My Home Town

                                         Gig Harbor Washington

It has been a while since I have written about my home town so I figured it was time to do so again.

I know that most people are happy about where they grew up and I am not any different. In fact I have to say that I am proud to have grown up in Gig Harbor, Washington and that I still live here.

I haven’t seen a lot of the rest of the country so I look forward to travel to see everywhere else. Gig Harbor is a small town around seven thousand now though it was about three thousand when I was growing up. There is a lot of growth going on right now which I am OK to some degree however I hate the loss some of the trees. In area that they call North Gig Harbor in the last year or so they cut down acres of trees to build a lot of homes. I am not sure how many homes but my estimate would be about 150. North Gig Harbor is now larger than the town of Gig Harbor is. When I was growing up all that area were trees with no homes at all. Where the homes are built and continuing being built each one is side by side without any backyard to speak of. I can’t imagine living there at all and they are expensive homes as well.

Where I grew up on the east side of Gig Harbor there are more homes now than back in the day. The homes are much larger now than they were then and very expensive to buy. You would have to be a millionaire to buy a home that is for sure. My grandfather bought the property about a hundred years ago and then my dad bought it from him in the 1950s. Dad sold it for a fair amount and now the value is at least twice the amount. The house I grew up is actually only about one of a half dozen that are still standing while the rest are newer homes. The family that bought our house has done some remodeling however the outside looks about the same as when I was growing up. The yard is what looks different with more of a beautiful grass area. The yard is hilly so not easy to cut.

There were a lot of boats around when I was growing up however there is a lot more of them as well now. Gig Harbor is a great place for tourists to come and walk around the waterfront. You can see my old house along with others across the harbor. There are little shops that you can go into as well. Each being unique to themselves along with restaurants and coffee shops; there is some construction of new homes in the downtown area but nothing like in north Gig Harbor.

I really enjoyed walking around the harbor well as rowing and sailing. Two of my best friends lived nearby as well so spent plenty of time at their places to.

Although we get some rain about forty inches a year I enjoy when the sun comes out especially in the summer, spring and fall. Disappointing now because we don’t get as much snow in the winter like we did when I was a kid; so far we have had only a trace this year and I hope some will come our way soon.

If you still live in the area you grew up tell those who have moved in how it was in those days. I certainly enjoy telling the stories and more will come I am sure as long as my memory stays intact. LOL