Unabashed

Two things I find very interesting this morning. First, the Neptune Society, from Matt Staggs:

A Florida company is offering a unique memorial service for your earthly remains. For a fee, the people at the Neptune Society will mix your cremated remains with concrete, which is then molded into a sculpture and placed with others in a giant artificial reef a little over a mile off the coast of Key Biscayne, Florida. The reef then provides a new habitat for marine life and a destination for recreational divers and researchers. It’s apparently all ecologically sound, too. At first blush, I really like this idea. I’m certain that I want my remains cremated, and as much as I love the ocean this would be a perfect way to rest for eternity.

Also of interest today, from Curtis Palmer: Birmingham is gaining a new 1100 acre park in the Oxmoor/Ishkooda area. The park is bigger than New York’s Central Park and is going to have tons of amenities–hiking trails, 20 acre lake, softball and soccer fields, etc. I live in Montevallo, but I work in Birmingham, so this new park will be good for day trips. Oak Mountain State Park is closer and I’ve always loved it (it’s a refuge in an urban area, almost 10,000 acres). I go there often, but I love me a new park, yes I do. Especially interesting in this is that this park will make Birmingham the #1 U.S. city in terms of greenspace per capita. Birmingham catches a lot of grief around the country and is regularly noted as one of the worst places to live in America, so it’s nice to see the “Magic City” making inroads to be something better than it is. If only we could somehow craft a governing body that wasn’t corrupt and driving the city to bankruptcy.

written by Matt Mitchell \\ tags: Alabama, birmingham, cemetery, florida, greenspace, ishkooda, key biscayne, memorial, neptune, oak mountain, oxmoor, park, red mountain, underwater

I’ve spent time in a lot of different places. I lived in Jacksonville, Florida for a few years and enjoyed my time there. I liked Pensacola, too. I’ve lived in or near Birmingham most of my life, though, and though it’s got some good points it’s not what I would call a “Great Place to Live.” According to CNNMoney.com, Trussville, which is a suburb of B’ham, is one of the top 100 (no. 56). My boss lives in Trussville. I’m very familiar with the area, though, and I wouldn’t rank it as high as Helena, which is near where I live (picture is of a small dam in the town of Helena).

There are a few places that I’ve never visited that have always seemed like they would be great places to live: Asheville, NC and Austin, TX. I don’t know why they seem so appealing to me, but whenever I read or hear anything about them it only intensifies my belief. I’ve seen Austin City Limits on PBS, which is a great show, and Asheville has the Biltmore Mansion. I read an article about Asheville in Adventure Magazine that called Asheville the “Boulder of the East,” I suppose in reference to Boulder’s rep as an adventure/outdoors-enthusiast destination. The article made Asheville’s cred rise significantly for me.

Other places that I’ve heard are good places to live: Chattanooga (actually, I wouldn’t have believed this, having been there a few times, but apparently Chattanooga has gone through a revitalization over the past ten years), Boulder, Scottsdale, Boise… To me, the qualifications for a Great Place to Live include plenty of restaurants, theaters, and bars. There’s got to be some outdoors activities–hiking, biking, climbing, camping, fishing, etc. There’s got to be some scenery of some kind: a rolling river, a beach, mountains, something. Smaller is better, but it’s got to be near somewhere big.

Where do you live? Do you know of any Great Places to Live? What makes them great?

Sometimes I drive this route to work instead of taking the interstate, just for the view. This area is called Bluff Park on Shades Crest.

written by Matt Mitchell \\ tags: Alabama, Arizona, Asheville, Austin, Boise, Chattanooga, Helena, Idaho, Scottsdale, Texas, Trussville