For me, it's the latter more than the former.

Every so often, I have to travel back to the county where I grew up and lived for the first four decades of my life. It is--or was--located in rural Virginia. We've been moved away now for a dozen years. The landscape has changed fast. Suburban sprawl is everywhere I look.

This isn't yet another rant for the good-old-days rant. Nope. I couldn't be happier. The new folks bring in the much-needed fresh blood. The public schools are bursting with kids. The dreary shopping center is jumping with spanky new big box stores. The tired, old towns are filled with lots of eager faces. There's a revitalized vibe catching hold down there. I can feel it.

Of course, I miss seeing the fields and farms of my youth. Who wouldn't? Matter of fact, a high tension power line runs straight through my old stomping grounds. It buzzes and snaps. It's also ugly but a necessary evil, I suppose. In other words, there are bound to be some growing pains.

But here's the deal. I can still relive the good, old days when I write of the small towns such as the one found in my cozy mystery, QUIET ANCHORAGE. I can share that experience with the readers.