Roseburg - Home part 4

We lived in Washington for over two years by the time my dad was offered a job in central Oregon. We moved to Roseburg in the middle of my fourth grade year. Originally we lived in a 2 bedroom, 1 bath tri-plex that must have been around 600 square feet and didn't even have the pleasure of privacy. There were 2 little girls at the other end of the building - Jenny and Joanna - who didn't have much parental guidance and spent a great deal of their time watching tv through our window. Looking back, I feel really bad for those little girls but at the time it was unfuriating.
I can honestly say I didn't have a "home" at this place but luckily we only lived there while my parents looked for a house to buy; 6 months tops.
Before my 5th grade year we moved into a moderately sized house with 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms on the edge of town. This house was by far my favorite. I felt safe and happy there. It probably didn't hurt that this was the friendliest town we lived in. I felt as though I fit right in.
In fact, I remember my first day of school being neither scary nor intimidating. I was befriended immediately and still keep in touch with some of my classmates. (On a side note- it was one of those classmates that later introduced me to Logic. No wonder I have a soft spot for this place.)
I liked my room in that house. It was small, but I somehow managed to get a t.v. in there! Many hours were spent mastering Mario Brothers upside down and finding that I actually enjoyed reading. But it wasn't my bedroom that I found refuge in. It was the garage.
Oregon molded me in many ways, but one of the most influencial experiences was learning to love dance. A good friend introduced me to ballet and jazz and I started taking lessons when I was 11. The studio was like a second home to me. I found myself using the garage as an alternate studio; I took my boombox with me and spend hours out there practicing my moves and choreographing new ones. I would invite friends over to make up dances and subjected my parents to hours of "Cold Hearted Snake" and "U Can't Touch This".
Unfortunately, when we left Roseburg I left behind an amazing ballet teacher and any chance at becoming a professional dancer. But it was because of Roseburg that loved dance in the first place.
(I continue to dance around my house and find inspiration in such shows as -say it with me- So You Think You Can Dance.)