My Last Night in Berkeley
Places I’ve Lived
Reno Here I Come
As I sit here contemplating my move, it does seem weird that I’m moving to Reno. Over the past few years, I’ve been thinking about moving and my target was Palm Springs. I like the size of it and there seems to be lots of do; of course, there are lots to do in the Bay Area. Ok, then why Reno? More on that later.
I thought I was so much more ahead of it all, but this weekend showed me I probably should have spent more nights boxing my stuff. I don’t know how, but it seems “stuff” keeps multiplying, hey if you are missing socks, I think they are at my house!
It’s 10 pm and I probably have more to do to ensure I can leave by noon tomorrow; I’m at the point where stuff will end up on the street vs. me packing more, besides I am almost out of boxes. Berkeley is great that way, you can put things you don’t want anymore on the sidewalk and it magically disappears. I think people drive around looking for the free stuff and then sell it at flea markets, but hey it’s helped me get rid of so much stuff.
My landlords came over to say goodbye, it was sad. I’ve been here for 12 years and it’s been home. We all went through COVID together and having my neighbors and landlords made it much more tolerable. We felt safe around each other so no yelling from across the yard.
Someone asked “is this going to be the final move? I have to say “I don’t know”. Maybe. I didn’t think I would make this move but coming out of COVID and other bumps in the road, I knew it was time to make a change and I think this move is part of starting over. I know, you don’t have to tell me “we take our shit with us no matter where we go”!
I am looking forward to seasons again. Oh, I can say that now, but wait until this summer and it’s over 100 degrees, I just might regret it then. The Bay Area has almost perfect weather, but when the holidays come around it never feels like it. We are creatures of where we grew up and I have missed the fall and snow at Christmas. It’s sad, but I’ve been here 12 years and only had a tree once; I hope I find that feeling again.
I’ve been fortunate by living out here. My career took off. I met some great people and one I’ll dearly miss when I move and I think by choosing Reno, it allows me to not completely move away. I’ve stretched the tie, but not quite broken it. I had thought about other places, Palm Springs was at the top of my list for a long time, but as I thought about it, going there wouldn’t really be different. I’m looking for more adventure.
Most people roll their eyes when I tell them Reno and I can understand that. I couldn’t afford to live in Tahoe and so plopping over the border in NV allows me to save on state income taxes. But what ultimately pushed me there were the mountains. I ventured to Tahoe last year for the first time and when I came over Donner Pass and saw the mountains sprawled out in front of me, my heart lifted, and that hadn’t happened in a long time.
Well, I’m going to try to squeeze a little more packing time, though I’m exhausted and expect tomorrow will be hectic. I hope the movers show up early so I can be on the road by noon. The weather looks good, but you never know when you hit the mountains of what you’ll find, a good thing I have a truck now. See you on the other side…of the mountain.
5/6/2023 Update: When I initially drove over the pass back in January, there was too much snow to stop and capture this photo. Last weekend I went back to Donner State Park and on my way home, I stopped; though there is still a lot of snow in the mountains, down at this level not so much.