When it came time to apply for college, I was dead set on leaving Washington to attend the University of California, but I didn’t get accepted.
I also applied to school in Michigan to be closer to my extended family, but the cost of school in Ann Arbor was just too much.
Instead, I stayed close to home and got my associates degree at Spokane Community College. I rented an apartment on East Marshall Avenue for a number of years and rode my bike to campus whenever the weather would permit. Unfortunately, the heating systems at Spokane Community College were at somewhat of a low point when I was a student there about 20 years ago. The boilers were replaced a number of years later, but they were woefully underpowered for the cold winters in Spokane every year. I still live in Spokane but now I have a house in Lincoln Heights and I have a supplemental heating system to my central furnace. I have a wood stove and a storm generator to use in the event of a winter power outage so we don’t have to worry about frozen pipes. My parents have radiant heated flooring in their townhouse in Dishman Hills and a huge fireplace in the living room that actually has a heat reclaiming system with ductwork as well. They have a gorgeous home and I love visiting them whenever I have an excuse to drive over there from Spokane on Interstate 90. The students at Spokane Community College don’t realize how easy they have it compared to people like me who had to deal with substandard heating systems when we were students there.