#naplesisugly

It’s not.

Of course.

But I’m trying very hard to convince myself that Naples is no more wonderful than anywhere else - say Tampa or Valrico or Brandon or wherever we wind up living next.

Matt and I have made several trips up to the greater-Tampa area now, and my unforgiving eyes go straight to the least-pretty parts of the landscape: the big power plant, the abundance of power lines, and the radio towers and cell-phone towers that seem to outnumber the palm trees.

My scrutiny is unfair (and unwarranted) given the fact that the (above) pictured tower sits just over a mile from my house. Somehow, even after five years of driving right past that hunk of metal in the sky, I NEVER noticed it.

I see Naples through rose-colored glasses.

Long ago, and far away (from Florida) I read the advice in some bridal magazine to slow down at various points throughout your wedding day and take mental pictures - so you don’t forget this huge, significant day that you just spent a year or so planning.

And I did that.

I took these little mental snapshots all day/night - and if hashtags had been a thing then, I might have even mentally labeled my mental photos:

#walkinguptheaisle

#firstdance

#momshadenoughchampagne

But now, with our Naples’ days numbered, I’m collecting mental snapshots (and actual snapshots) of power lines and cell phone towers and the occasional unmowed (unmown?) lot to remind myslef that even though Naples is beautiful and I’m going to miss it after we move, it’s ‘ugly’ just like everywhere else.