Seasonal Colors or lack thereof

I'm sure this will be a constant theme/complaint/topic of discussion - but one of the things Southern California is most lacking is the seasons. I just left my cave of an office to walk around in the bright sunlight and thought how strange it was. There were "autumn" leaves glistening in the sun, that dry brown where all of the moisture has been sucked out. Juxtapose that with a glistening green lawn and the eucalyptus trees that always suggest summer. I think that is the biggest problem with the lack of seasons here. The landscape stays perpetually green and brown. There's no brilliant golds, oranges, reds, purples of autumn in New England. No blanket of white snow, dipped in the blue night, and punctuated by amber streetlights. No tiny hints of pink and white to lift your spirits as flowers shyly bloom. Each of these worlds feed into each other, and even winter, which can be brown and spare and dirty and gritty, makes the colors of spring that much more worth it. When you live in a space of perpetual spring it loses its magic.

Thoughts on Home

Home is such a funny, wonderful, ever-changing thing. In my life I have considered home to be in 7 states (plus one canadian province), 12 towns, 6 houses, 4 apartments, 1 dorm and 1 hotel. I have had 16 different bedrooms in 25 years of life! Ok, so a couple of those weren't technically "my room" but where I stayed when visiting my parents - but my childhood books are there so we're going to count them.

My freshman year of college my definition of home was turned upside down. When I moved to Boston my family moved from San Diego, CA to Seattle, WA. My first Christmas I flew "home" to a state I had literally never been to before. I interchangeably used home to describe both my parent's house in WA and my dorm room in MA. Because they both were equally home to me. Boston had my day to day life, Washington had my family. I learned that - although cliche - home really is where the heart is.

This past weekend Agent S and I flew back to Boston for the wedding of two of our dearest friends. It was a very busy, beautiful weekend and I definitely discovered that my heart is still very much in New England. It felt so completely normal to be back in Boston, spending time with our friends there, enjoying some of our favorite restaurants. Drinking in the crispness of a perfect fall day in the city. It felt like we had never gone on our road trip, moved in to new places, or started school. Any sense of a developing home in California melted away almost instantaneously. Even now that I am back in my room, in the comfort of my own bed, I can't quite accept it as home. I am incredibly homesick for Boston and the great life we had there.

Yet I know this is unfair to San Diego. After all, I've been here less than a month, and I just spent 7 years in Boston. I know I will adjust - after all, all those years in Boston I always said San Diego was my hometown (having spent 11 years here prior). Thus far I am incredibly excited about my department and the great opportunities I have here. I am now close enough to my best friend from high school to call her up and make last minute dinner plans again. I'm meeting other wonderful people in my department and adding a delightful cast of new friends to my life.

A sense of home will come. I'm sure of it.

The Best Intentions....

Did you know that starting a blog at the same time you are moving across the country and starting school is an incredibly difficult task? I now have even more respect for the blog writers who share their lives every day, even when they travel!

Anyways, I will try to post again soon with pictures and wrap ups from our road trip (which was AMAZING!) and thoughts on our transition to the west coast thus far! In the meantime here is a teaser from our favorite stop (hint: it was grand and canyon-y!)

A Scene from a Kayaking Trip

The setting:

A beautiful river on a clear, perfect day. Surrounded by tall green trees and plenty of shrubbery. Water is high due to recent rainfall.

The cast of characters:

Agent K: a twenty-something who has lived in the suburbs or the city her whole life. Although resourceful (ie girl scout), and handy (ie theatre techie) she is not what you would call outdoorsy. She has kayaked before (and enjoyed it), but this is her first time in a single one where she has to steer.

Agent S: her fiance, a twenty-something who grew up in a small rural town. Happiest when immersed in nature having adventures or when making fun of Agent K (double points when he gets to do both). Plenty of canoe experience.

Agent J: S's father, age undisclosed. Even more outdoorsy than S, happiest rising with the sun and keeping the mind and body active all day. Boat loads of canoe experience, and always happy to teach others.

Lights Up

Agents J and S send K off in her single kayak. She tries to paddle but turns herself around and goes backward under the bridge. J and S jump in their canoe and help her turn around.

Agent J: (watching K about to run into a bank) Back Paddle! Back Paddle to the Left! To the LEFT!

Agent K: Ahhh! (runs into the bush on the bank. Pushes off with paddle and gets back on course.)

Agent J: (noticing the next bush K is about to run into) OK, now stick your paddle in the water. Nope, just stick it in the water. (as K runs into bush) Back Paddle! Back Paddle!

Agent K: (pushes away branches) Ahh! Not fun! I want to go back to the city!

Agent J: Well you have to learn to turn - that's all this river is.

Agent K: (sighs and perseveres)

Agent S: I love you (K throws him an exasperated "you'd better" look)

And Scene.

Defining Myself

The definition of bicoastal (according to wiktionary) is "of, pertaining to, or concentrated on two coasts, often specifically the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of North America." Normally I've heard it used in reference to companies that have locations on both coasts, or people who live and/or work on both coasts. Neither of which applies to me, at least not at this point. However for most of my life I have lived on either the east or west coast, and learned to love (and hate) things about both. The coasts are a part of me, and now that I'm returning to the Southwest after 7 years in the Northeast it will be interesting to see if I can finally decide which coast I like better.

Let the road trip begin!