Oh, the Places You'll Go!

According to the 2010 census, Michigan was the only state in the union to see a population loss for the first decade of the twenty-first century (source: mlive.com). 54,000 people smaller than it was only ten years ago, Michigan has two residents who aren't leaving... no way, no how.

Like any recent college grads, Josh and I have been slowly pondering where we want to live our adult lives. For now, we have a house in Ann Arbor that we love and jobs that are allowing us to do what we need to do, but we don't plan to be here forever.

So, where do we go? With the world of possibility available to us in our youthful enthusiasm, we've chosen to greatly scale down the scope of our options and stay in the state of Michigan.

We love the Great Lakes state for any number of reasons and we feel a commitment to doing whatever we can to help to our community, the state-wide community, get back on its feet.  As we see it, there's a lot of opportunity here for those willing to seize it and as long as we have something to offer and the will/ability to give it, here we'll stay.

In short, to fulfill our personal, professional, and life goals, we are in the process of seeking a place in Michigan that fulfills our various "residential" desires. In other words, we're looking for a community with...

• Agricultural roots, including any or all of the following:
• Land available for us to purchase and live on (homesteading, anyone?)
• Farmers' Market(s)
• Community Sponsored Agriculture (CSA) farm
• Community garden plots
• People who appreciate, respect, and engage in hard work - often the product of having agricultural or industrial roots
• Downtown center - I living close to where people gather, be it coffee shops, grocery stores, hardware stores, or any other number of public spaces (this also makes green transportation - i.e. your legs or a bike - much easier to use frequently)
• Scenic beauty - lakes, rivers, forests, parks, whatever
• Ample space for recreation in natural areas
• A basis for life-long learning - some sort of institute for higher or continuing education
• An emphasis on community - community development, community action, taking care of one another
• Diversity - not only in race, but in age, thought, culture, belief, etc.
• A relatively small population both in the community itself as well as in the surrounding area - i.e. no more metro or suburban space for us

That's the criteria and the time frame is 3-5 years (though we're relatively flexible). In support of this project, from time to time I'll be sharing our explorations in a series I'm calling "On Location." Tomorrow will be the first installment, reporting on our recent weekend trip to Holland, Michigan. Below is a teaser photo of me and a frozen Lake Michigan. Stay tuned for more...

Navigating Lake Michigan at Holland State Park in February