Fare thee well, Tacoma

For those who I have not been in regular contact with, this may come as a bit of a surprise: I've left Tacoma.

Here's the short version: I'm on leave Fall quarter to return to Germany, where I will spend some more time at the Albert Einstein Institute. Rather than return to Tacoma and UWT, when I come back to the US I will be taking a position at Lewis & Clark College in Portland, OR. Personally, this is very good news, since that's where Iva has a job. Imagine... living in the same city as my wife!

But I'll miss Tacoma.

There are the friends I've enjoyed being able to spend time with, the folks at Peace Church, my colleagues at UWT, and the city itself. Many people who aren't from Tacoma (and many who are) find this last item surprising, so I'll take this opportunity to list a number of aspects of Tacoma I've really been enjoying.

Parks. Tacoma has great parks. There's Point Defiance, of course, but also the Old Town waterfront, Titlow Beach, and a large number of other, smaller parks.

Interesting and yummy place to eat. Here's a short list: The Spar (I can't pass up the mushroom swiss burger), Doyles (go for the pot pie), Tatanka Take Out (the flawless burrito), Tacos Guaymas (tacos al pastor), Quickie Too (anything), etc.

Culture. I thoroughly enjoy the wide variety of culture in Tacoma, from the bikers and families at the Old Town waterfront to the hipsters at Blackwater (which also has the best coffee I've found in Tacoma).

Anyway, that's a bit of a list about Tacoma for you. I'll close off with a snippit from a Dylan song:

...goodbye is too strong a word,
so I'll just say Fare Thee Well.

(Name the tune for a bonus point.)