During the end of my Rochester days I fell head-over-heels in love with someone who lived in another state. We did the long-distance relationship for four months before it finally imploded. I guess in a nutshell, the problem was two-sided: I felt that he couldn't/wouldn't express his feelings to me (pretty much ever) and he felt that I was pushing/pressuring him into things, moving too fast.
Regardless of the reality, the situation worsened to where I couldn't even maintain a friendship with him. It was too painful for me to be with someone about whom I cared so deeply and be excluded from his feelings, hopes and dreams, as if I weren't worth his sharing them, all the while he seemed to have no problem sharing them with his friends.
Anyway, several factors led me to the decision to leave Rochester. I eventually moved to Fort Lauderdale, FL, the sunny paradise of the advertising world, in 2003. After moving around locally, I finally purchased a condo down here, a nice 3-bedroom, 2-bathroom condo with private patio. I love my condo complex. It is heavily populated by gays and lesbians and is very neighborly overall.
Since moving down here, I haven't made a tremendous amount of friends, but I have a few core ones with whom I hang out. One thing that I have changed a bit is that I have become more determined to travel, having the opportunity by living near Fort Lauderdale and Miami airports.
Since moving down here I've traveled domestically to Providence and Pawtucket, RI, Ogunquit, ME, Chicago, San Juan, New York, San Francisco, Madison, WI, Duluth and St. Paul/Mnpls., MN, Fairbanks, Valdez and Anchorage, AK, Raleigh, Phoenix and a few other cities. I've also traveled a bit internationally to Montreal, QC and Winnipeg, MB, CAN, Bogota, COL and Buenos Aires, ARG. I'm always looking for new places to which I can journey.