Interlude

For the millions of you out there eagerly anticipating the next installment of 3SD I’m afraid I have bad news, it’s not ready. I know you’re outraged and in disbelief and I apologize. I offer this instead.

We moved here in the middle of summer in ’02. I’m a native Californian and have never lived outside the state before. Each day of my first year felt strange and alien. I often felt I was doing anthropological studies of a new and undiscovered culture. I still have occasional flashes of fish-out-of-water but they are fewer than before. The hardest adjustment was learning the rhythms of the seasons and feeling part of, rather than apart from, my new environment.

Winter started early that year. There was snow on Halloween, Thanksgiving, and … well you get the picture. My wife woke me during one night. It’s not something she normally does because I’m a grumpy cranky pants when disturbed. Before I could start getting worked up, she shushed me. “There are deer outside,” she said and had me look out the window. A herd of mixed does and fawns, I counted eight, were digging their hooves through the snow for leftover bits from a recently harvested corn field. We watched for 30 minutes, enjoying the unexpected show. I think that night eliminated lingering doubts about moving here and began a sometimes-intense love and appreciation of our new life.