Bury me in California

Or spread my ashes over the Pacific Ocean in California. Or maybe over some trail where I used to run.

I’m not dying. I’m feeling pretty healthy.

Initially, I thought of calling this story “California is home”.

Out of our nine years in America, we spent seven in California, both Nothern and Southern.

At the end of last year, we moved to Florida, though it wasn’t because we lost our love for the Golden State. Florida is best for our kids’ tennis, one of our pursuits, one of our [American] dreams. I’m still spending a lot of time in Southern California, where our oldest son is finishing high school.

So California is not technically our “home” — we don’t own a home in the state. And we will not in the near future — it’s too expensive for our family. Once our son is done with school, we will no longer maintain any presence in California.

Still, it feels special. We’ll be back. If we could afford to live anywhere and carry on with our dreams and pursuits — probably a silly “if” — there is no question where we’d want to be.

The weather. Ever sunny, but the heat is gentle. Do I sound spoiled talking about the weather? Maybe. But once you experience California's weather, you appreciate it forever. If you like the outdoors, you cannot not appreciate California.

The views, the smells, the landscape, California’s amazing national parks, the hikes, the ocean. A couple of weeks ago I had a job interview in…