What I Miss About New York and Love About Ohio

Six years ago tomorrow we moved to New York. We've been back in Ohio for about 2 1/2 months, but there are still things I miss. But for (almost) everything I miss about New York, there's something I equally love about Ohio.

I miss looking down from our apartment's third floor perch onto the streets below ...

• ... but I love looking down from our second floor windows into our pleasant little backyard, with its bench and swing.

I miss our cozy little Brooklyn apartment, where everything was only a few steps away ...

• ... but I love stretching out in our large kitchen, large dining room, large EVERYTHING.

I miss the number of restaurants within walking distance of our apartment ...

• ... but I love the few restaurants that we can actually walk to in Clintonville -- they're some of my favorite in all of Columbus.

I miss not having to rely on a car to get anywhere any distance away ...

• ... but I love having a garage and driveway so Paul doesn't have to spend 20 minutes looking for a parking spot.

I miss barely ever having to use the car seat ...

• ... but I love not lugging the stroller up and down three flights of winding stairs.

I miss hearing the ships blasting their horns in the bay in the morning ...

• ... but I love the whistles of the trains that are just far enough away not to be annoying.

I miss Central Park and how it was impossible to explore it all ...

• ... but I love that the trail and Park of Roses is a short stroll away.

I miss exploring Brooklyn with Edith ...

•  ... but I love exploring Clintonville's antique and vintage stores on a weekday afternoon with her.

I miss the noise ...

• ... but I love the quiet.

New York and Columbus aren't opposites, but you can be forgiven for thinking that the manners in which we've lived in each city are. Like parents say about their children, I love each in their own unique way.

A Walking Taco by Any Other Name (Is a Frito Pie)

Sometimes you just want a taco in a bag.

I hadn't had a walking taco in at least 10 years, since my days hanging out at the Defiance County Fair. So when I saw one on the menu of a vendor at our neighborhood's recent arts and music festival, there was no doubt what I was going to order.

I had a walking taco in another form right here in Columbus, not long before we moved to New York. I ordered a Frito pie, which is basically the same thing as a walking taco, minus the bag. In a nutshell: Fritos plus meat plus taco toppings.

But a walking taco is more fun. Basically you open an individual-size bag of Fritos and then dump in the meat, lettuce, tomatoes and whatever else you want. Then you eat the "taco" with a fork. And yes, you can eat it while walking. But is that really any different than your standard taco?

This particular taco was placed in a paper boat, which kind of defeated the purpose of placing it in the bag. But it didn't affect the taste. The crunchy Fritos turn nice and soft surrounded by the meat and tomatoes. And the last few bites -- surrounded by a pool of grease at the bottom of the bag -- are just as inedible as I remembered.

Launching a Freelance Writing Career

I'm writing again, and not just for my blog.

The move to Ohio seemed like the perfect time to launch a freelance career -- new beginnings and all. In August I started freelance copywriting, and in September I began reporting for newspapers again.

Right now I work only from home, usually a couple of hours a day, more or less. Even though I'm nowhere near full-time, re-entering the workforce in even this limited capacity is both more rewarding and more difficult than I expected.

The copywriting jobs I've received call on the skills I learned spending five years in a New York City marketing department. The company I freelance for assigns me content to be written for businesses based mostly in the U.S. and Australia. I've written website copy, blog posts, marketing emails, press releases, tweets and even a flier. I can do the work whenever I want -- and that's frequently closer to midnight rather than noon.

I've put back on my journalism cap for the newspaper group I worked for before moving to New York. These pieces are more difficult, but mainly because of the baby in the background. I conduct phone interviews during working hours, and Edith's non-existent schedule doesn't always cooperate. I learned Friday that a few Cheerios will keep her quiet through at least one interview.

I'm glad to be getting back into the swing of things. Sometimes I miss the office environment -- particularly when I'm interviewing or trying to meet a deadline -- but overall I like working from home. I'll be the first to admit that it's a balancing act I haven't yet mastered. My free time is practically nil: To whit, I haven't finished a book since moving to Ohio, which is killing me. But I believe the positives will outweigh the negatives, and I hope I'm right.