At Home in Henderson

The last of the boxes have been unpacked, the last of the art has been hung, and the washer and dryer are rumbling softly in the distance.  It's official - we are now residents of Henderson, North Carolina.

I remember my first impression of Henderson.  It wasn't in any form positive.  Celeste and I were passing through on a Greyhound bus from Washington, D.C. to Durham (we had no idea at the time that we would end up teaching there), and Henderson happened to be one of the stops.  It looked brittle and depressed.  Its hand-painted signs spoke to its primitive form of capitalism.  Once booming with industry, it had seen its jobs and prosperity leave the county in the late 1980s.  In turn, it had developed into a thriving community of crime, where dozens of rival gangs competed for drugs, money, and city blocks filled with abandoned homes, boarded up warehouses, and tin-roof trailers.

The Henderson bus terminal was little more than an empty parking lot next to an abandoned strip mall.  Only the Greyhound station and a barbershop remained in what used to be a small center of commerce.  Graffiti covered the paint-chipped walls.  As our bus screeched to a stop, a thug right out of a rap video walked past and stared down our bus like it had said something profane about his mother.  He wore the pain of the streets like a mask over his face.  I don't remember the expression I wore, but I do remember pulling Celeste close to me until we rejoined the Interstate.

Of course, Henderson really isn't as bad as my first impression led me to believe.  Sure, it's got its rough patches, but so does every town.  A subtle, under-the-radar evolution has been taking place in our hearts and minds about this place.  It started about 2-3 months ago when Celeste and I began seriously considering what lay ahead for us post-NELA (I graduate in 5 weeks!!!).  We talked about doctoral programs, job opportunities, and maybe even moving to Durham to be closer to friends.  But it was during these long conversations and reflections that we started to consider all of Henderson's assets rather than its liabilities.  We considered our good friends there.  We considered the benefits of living and working in the same town.  We considered the restaurants we loved there that seemed to have that down-to-earth, homegrown atmosphere where your food is served with a smile and a Southern drawl (not as common in the cosmopolitan Wake Forest), and tastes like someone's granny was actually in the kitchen working magic with a taste-tested recipe that dates back to the Lincoln presidency.  We considered the dramatic life improvements that would come with cutting an hour out of our daily commute.  Before you knew it, Celeste and I were actually talking about moving to Henderson.  What's stranger yet is that we were doing it with smiles on our faces.

The rest, as they say, is history.  With the help of wonderful friends and ward members on both ends, we were able to move into our new house on Saturday, and have spent the last five days turning it into home.  There's plenty of space for family and friends alike, so call ahead and reserve your North Carolina vacation today!

We're calling it: Casita Blanca

We think Merlin might be bipolar.  One second he's a nervous wreck, the next he's insisting on a photo shoot.

Previous owners were big UNC fans, which is not a problem for us.  Go Heels!

House and porch from the side.

Looking through the carport to the big, fenced-in backyard.

Side door.

Under the carport looking toward the street.

Backyard...volleyball, anyone?

Living Room

Dining room with swinging door to kitchen.

Half of the family room.  Merlin says hello.

Same half of the family room, just looking the other direction.

Office

Master bedroom

Guest bathroom.  Again, we had no objections to the previous owner's affection for UNC.

Guest bedroom (Charleston themed)

Mud/Laundry room

Family room with an adorable pup playing with his toy.

Look at the concentration!