I'm enjoying the calm before the storm, my last day of solitude before the moving extravaganza begins. It's funny to be on the cusp of a major life change. It makes you think about where you started, where you've been, what's changed. When I arrived in L.A. I was so done with New York. After living in the New York/New Jersey area for most of my life, I was exhausted by the rat race. I needed space. I wanted to explore new ground, have some adventures.
Living in L.A. was definitely new ground and I have had plenty of adventures. I built a great network of friends, my surrogate family, who has made my life here so wonderful. We created our routines - girls' nights, happy hours, champagne brunches - all of which usually included plenty of alcohol to make life a little better. I explored my adopted home state - driving up and down the coast, stopping in places from San Francisco to San Diego, Needles to the Salton Sea. I started working at UCLA, went to grad school, got a Master's degree in Public Health. I went to Brazil, Costa Rica, and Argentina and returned to Venezuela after a 10 year hiatus. Looking back on the past seven years I have to say, "not too shabby!"
Tomorrow my family arrives, the family that's waited seven years for my return. All of these adventures have prepared me to go back home, ready for the next chapter, new adventures. A week from now I'll be packing my last few boxes and heading back east. The plan is to be back in New Jersey by Easter Sunday - interesting because I first visited L.A. on Easter Sunday 2004. East to West and back East - Full Circle.
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