Unfortunately these can't be sent in a care-package

Oct. 22nd – Colonia, Yap
I was recently writing a letter to a friend who asked me to respond to a number of questions. The final inquiry was a 'build-your-own' type, and I chose 'What does Porter miss most from home?' The following is what I wrote – with some recent additions.
Family and friends are the quick and obvious answers. Let's be a little more creative, huh?
I really miss the turning of the seasons – summer to fall. I miss the building cold, the shortening days, sweatshirts at football games (I know you feel me on this one, Blake), seeing my breath, my parents making batches of bean soup & beef stew while I agonize over Jets blunders on Sundays, crisp hikes in the Boise foothills with Megan, Tilley (my dog) & Tosa (her dog), and nights warmed by a pint of Table Rock's delicious Hopzilla IPA. I miss having ridiculous-fun arguments with Blake over matters Seinfeld-esque in their trivial nature, taking Dana's side in all her & Blake's little married quibbles, parking lot football and the Turkey Bowl with all the gang (Chris, Billy, Nicole, Angie, Nick, Josh, Jamie, Dave (when he wasn't too disgusted by the early hour and activity of choice), Carlie, Blake, Dana, and the young-bucks).
I miss holidays with family, people pouring in the front door at my parents house – some early, some late, very few on time. I miss Pa bullshitting, Grandma knocking people out of card games – acting surprised – saying 'Oh, are you out? I would have played something else if I knew that would happen!' I miss my pops' laugh that only comes out when he's with all the Porters. I miss getting that good ribbing from my aunts & uncles, seeing my cousins & hearing about their lives, and playing with my cousins' kids (bunch of youngins, cute ones too).
I miss dreary rainy days in Portland ending with a fine microbrew at Rogue with Sarah, Mojgan, Nick & Beth, pizza & bourbon on the kitchen floor, walking down 23rd to the Silver Dollar to watch Jets games with Dan & the rest of my Sunday crew, seeing Mt. Hood rising out of the clouds to the east, biking to OMC for work in the morning rain & then to UP in the evening rain to hangout with Katie, Mia & Jo, and hiking Forest Park with them. I miss kicking it with the Christie Crew (Max, G-Ho, Dave, Little Bird, Clock Tower & Eben) & making our future plans to retire in North Portland and playing the 8 of Spades, and driving across the Fremont Bridge – seeing the best view of Portland. I miss cold nights in the guys' (A Treat, JT, Andy, Dave, Bryan and Will) house in Portland because they decided 50 degrees is fine and the heater needn't be turned on. I miss Monday nights spent preparing, enjoying and cleaning up after our dinners (all to great tunes, except for Meatloaf's Bat Out of Hell III: The Monster's Loose. That one sucks), and our huge wine nights like the first one on JT's birthday.
I miss visiting my brother & having him visit me – going to Lucero shows, attempting to walk on my hands after too many drinks & kissing the pavement oh-so gracefully, not caring how we were getting home & missing the last bus or train, crabbing on the coast like two old salts, hanging with Tyler, Nicole, Courtney, Nick, Josh, & Michelle in SLC, and spending nights tipping back IPAs while talking of music, life, loves & passions. (I'm thinking of you, Jon. Hope D.C. is treating you well).
Oddly enough, I even miss my office at Illinois State, late nights churning out papers, readings, grading & watching the clock creep further & further into the wee-small-hours, discussing everything under the sun with Emily, and late-night chair-races with Melissa, Shane & Emily. I miss Thursday nights at Amy's with the whole group (Case-of-Bass, Melissa, Emily, Christine, Joe, Vik, Janelle, Jeff, Ted, Brad, Joseph, Hurricane, Niko, Kc & Shayna) playing Mafia, Vik overloading bonfires, beating Amy & (especially) Christine in bags with Ted as my partner (using non-dominant hands), playing darts at Maggie's & Lunker's (inevitably being beaten by Christine), watching terrible B-list horror movies with Kc, hashing out all kinds of conversations and debates with Vik & Joe over beers that always strayed passed the single round we had planned, dinners provided by the faculty (thank yous from a still-poor grad student to Joan, Frank, Marion and Nick), and walking across the tundra of Normal, IL between my home and office.
These are some of the things I miss most, right now. You can't put them in a box and ship 'em to Yap, but you can drop me a line – tell me how you're doing and what you're loving about life.