Back to The Moan

Well, we've done it. We moved into my parents' place. ('which shall surely give you plenty of blogger fodder' say my imaginary readers. 'Bwah-hah-hah' say my imaginary foes.) They live in a city whose last syllable is "mon," pronounced "moan," hence the high school nickname The Moan.

It's not the Most Fabulous Thing I've ever done in my life (there are a few top contenders for that title, among them scaling Hospital Hill in Mutare, Zimbabwe to watch the spectacular sunset over Mozambique; celebrating my 21st birthday with 300 international students in Strasbourg, France; attending a gala at the Kennedy Center with great human rights defenders and some movie stars).

In fact, it feels a little shabby. But I also feel a little bit of the California pioneer spirit-- "We do what we must do," she says with her proud chin held high. (You can drag a romantic spirit in the mud, but dammit, you can't kill it. I have read too much Laura Ingalls Wilder.)

I mean, how else is anyone going to become a homeowner in the Bay Area but By Any Means Necessary? Desperate times, desperate measures. Though we're watching the housing market like a pair of half-starved hawks-- the way it lumbers along, we figure there'll be a decent chance for us to buy in the next two years, even in the uber-expensive Bay Area market.

Sigh. I'm having a soup party at the end of the month and am going to invite old friends as well as a few neighbors. Sadly, one neighbor has an atrocious Hummer with a custom paint job of maple leaves meant to look like camo and a license plate that reads: "HUMER[heart]ER." Another neighbor has one giant American flag, three giant SUVs, and a bumper sticker that reads "Bush Cheney 2004," which is totally unforgivable. (Bush 2000 voters might be forgiven for being churlish and naive if they have since seen the light, but 2004? Um, yikes.)

I figure there must be some fun, sane, smart people living here or Jerry McNerney wouldn't have been elected. Right? Right? I'm going to find them. Off to check craigslist groups! Wish us luck!