Beach breezes.

At least 360 days of the year, I prefer the mountains to the beach. I crave the mountains the way a North Carolinian craves Cheerwine. There is something magical in a jagged skyline that simply feels like home.

Today, standing along the battery, inhaling comforting sea air and exhaling my stress and anxiety, I couldn't have imagined wanting to be anywhere but here. In Charleston. Charleston, a coastal city where the land is flat, mountains are miles away, and the uneven bricks are the most elevation change one experiences on a two hour walk. Charleston, where February feels like summer. Charleston, where I have learned to love sea food because I get to experience it fresh. Charleston, where the sound of ships in the harbor is no longer startling. Charleston, a city built on filled in marshlands, dependent on barriers that distinguish the sea from the land.

Charleston.