Making a move to a new lifestyle
Anyone who has ever packed up a house won’t argue with the fact that moving is considered to be one of life’s leading stressors.
But what happens when you’re not just changing residences, but changing your lifestyle as well? For some Baltimoreans, the stress is just one part of a great adventure.
Jon and Sherry Hyman went from owning a five-bedroom home on three acres in Reisterstown to a townhouse in Canton. While they had enjoyed the 18 years they spent living in the country, where the nearest grocery store was several miles away, the time came when they no longer needed all that land and all those bedrooms.
“Our daughters left for college and never came back,” said Sherry, 66, who is retired.
When one of their daughters moved to New York, the couple found that they enjoyed not only visiting her, of course, but also the excitement New York had to offer.
“One day we were raking leaves at home — a lot of leaves!” said Jon, who is 65 and a partner in an advertising agency. “We looked at each other and said, ‘Why don’t we start looking for something downtown?’”
Charms of urban living
Narrowing their search to the neighborhoods of Fells Point, Federal Hill and Canton, the Hymans eventually settled on Canton, and then further refined their choice by eliminating the rehabbed century-old townhomes they initially thought they wanted.
“We decided we needed parking,” they said. So in 2006, the couple bought a newer townhome in a community that had parking available, and have since become dedicated urbanites.
Sherry likes not having to get in the car if she forgets something at the grocery store, and Jon appreciates his “reverse commute” to Towson, which goes against traffic.
When he’s home, Jon can walk to his health club, and he and Sherry have almost two dozen restaurants just steps from their front door. Jon has also become active in various community associations and coalitions.
While Jon grew up in the Liberty Heights neighborhood of Baltimore City, neither he nor Sherry had lived in an urban environment as adults. And while Jon said he occasionally misses the view he had of his country acres, “this is a different kind of life, and one that’s very rewarding.”
Along with the move came much less square footage, “but it’s enough for what we need now,” said Sherry.
For now, the Hymans have no plans — or desire — to make any other move. “I don’t see us living in a retirement community,” said Sherry, “and we’re not going to chase our kids across the country.
“We like that Baltimore is a smaller city, has a diverse population, is easy to navigate, and is on the water,” she added.
“This is where we plan to stay put.”
Moving near family
Margarett Smith has spent her entire life in Baltimore, but come November, the 76-year-old retired librarian will be moving to Texas to be closer to her son, who has lived there for the last 20 years.
Smith has mixed feelings about the move. “I never thought I’d leave Baltimore,” she said, “but it is an adventure.”
Though Smith’s son has been trying to persuade her to move to Texas for a number of years, it wasn’t until several health crises arose — which, fortunately, have been resolved — that Smith accepted the fact that she might at some point need the assistance of her family. She also decided that it was better to make the move now, while she’s in good health, can make her own decisions and, she hopes, enjoy the experience.
A longtime homeowner, Smith moved into an apartment in Baltimore County when her mother — who was then living with her — needed a space without steps. Smith couldn’t find a condominium that she liked, so she rented an apartment that she said she has thoroughly enjoyed.
But moving to Texas is giving her the opportunity to be a homeowner again.
“The expense of an apartment in Texas is about the same as it is in Baltimore,” Smith explained, “but you can buy a home there for less than you can here. I can get what I want for less than renting, and have something to leave my son.”
Smith is looking forward to decorating her new home, but the move itself is another story.
“Oh, that is not going to be fun!” she exclaimed, having just spent the afternoon sorting through closets and packing up items to be donated or consigned.
Moving is expensive, so she’s planning to take only what matters the most to her. Once she is settled, she will fill in the blanks when it comes to furniture, accessories and so on.
While Smith has already met some people in Texas on her visits to her son, she admits that she’s concerned about leaving her friends.
“At my age, a lot of my friends are deceased or very ill, so the ones who aren’t are so important to me,” she said. “I’m going to miss them terribly.”
Smith won’t be living in a large city like Dallas, Houston or even Austin, and said she’ll miss things like going to the theater and, as befits a former librarian, a good library (though she’s become quite enamored of her iPad). The atmosphere in Texas is more “laid back” than she’s used to, as well.
Still, the people she has met so far have been very welcoming, and though she never thought she’d live anywhere but Baltimore, “it’s been a revelation to me that, at this point in life, I can have a new adventure.”
On a healing path
Carole Langrall, who says she’s on the younger side of the baby boom generation, grew up in Baltimore, left for a number of years, and then returned for another 16 years.
And while she loves her mother, her friends, the ocean and seafood, in 2010 she packed up her belongings and moved — without knowing a soul — to Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Langrall, who had owned a successful floral design studio in Catonsville, became seriously ill several years ago, which was followed by a devastating relationship break-up.
“Everything in my life just broke down,” she said. That caused her to re-think what she wanted to do in life, and where she wanted to do it. “I settled on Santa Fe,” after having visited there with a friend.
She had been tempted to move to Mexico because she speaks Spanish and wanted something completely different from her lifestyle in Baltimore. But she decided that, as a single woman, she wasn’t ready to do that on her own.
“Santa Fe is very much like Mexico, so I thought this would be a good alternative,” she said. Langrall was also drawn to Santa Fe because of its spiritual and healing practitioners.
“I not only wanted to challenge myself, but I wanted to learn how to heal myself naturally,” she said, adding that at one point in her illness she was in a doctor’s office almost every week.
With the many holistic therapies and support groups available in Santa Fe, Langrall is feeling much better, and believes that her move there played a large part in putting her on the road to recovery.
“So many people have looked out for me and ‘adopted’ me,” she said. “I feel very blessed.”
That’s not to say that Santa Fe is necessarily part of Langrall’s long-term future. She may come back to Baltimore — “Baltimore will always be my home” — but other new adventures may await.
“I landed in Santa Fe, but the journey continues,” said Langrall, who describes herself as a bit of a gypsy. “I’m ready for a new place. This is not my last stop by any means.”