Somewhere toward the middle of our trip Aunt Mary and I were both hit the fact that I wouldn't be returning home at the end of it all.  That's still pretty hard to comprehend.  This has been a more or less permanent life change.  From now on I'll only be a visitor to California.  I'm beginning to wonder how long I'll be on the east coast, and where will my life take me from here.  On the one hand, I'm excited by the idea of living all over and seeing the world.  On the other hand, what if I want to put down roots some day?  Where will I put them and how?  Should I ever have kids, I want them to appreciate California for what it actually is, not have some romanticized/villified picture of based on what they hear in the popular media. 

For now I need to come to terms with the fact that I've made a choice not to live and die within a certain radius of where I was born.  I'm putting myself in the path of adventure, so I'd better enjoy each and every twist and turn that path makes.