Goin back to Cali

After a lot of wrangling, I'm heading back to California in late June and staying for nearly a month. No trip overseas is worth it if it's less than a couple of weeks. And since this one is oriented toward getting a new roof on my house there, and includes the 4th of July weekend (which is a dead loss for working on the house), I decided to be safe rather than sorry and schedule a month.

I'll be working while I'm in California, in addition to getting the house done, so it's mostly work and not a whole lotta play. But, I'm looking forward to being home and visiting with friends. I'm not sure I'll be able to make it outside of California during the trip, which is really, really sad. If I can, it will most likely be a very last minute, short stay only kind of trip, which are really tough on everyone. But if I can make it back East, I'd like to go. I'd like to visit with my Mom and also see if I can get things sorted with my family to help scatter my Dad's ashes. Too much planning is necessary for that last one, though, so I doubt that part will work if I can only visit on the spur of the moment.

Really, the big thing is the roof. It's been on the house since before I first moved in, which was in 1991. Hard to believe it was that long ago. I rented the place with roommates for years before it was offered for sale. Flush with the internet boom in 1998, and with the owners interested in selling it to help them leverage to buy their own contracting warehouse, I bought it. The roof has been leaky off and on for years, despite so many tries to keep water flowing off the top, and now, with tenants in the place, it just can't wait any more. Shingles are blowing off, it still leaks in a couple of places, and with strangers living in the place, well, it has to be done. I even went out and got a home equity loan with this in mind. Interest rates have been kind to me this year, so I can get some cheap money to get the roof done.

It's going to be a challenge to keep that project going and manage my team from across the Pacific, but I'll do my best. Fortunately, there's nearly a four hour overlap in our schedules so I'll be able to chat with them in their mornings.

When I'm back in San Francisco, I look forward to reacquainting myself with the city and my friends. I suspect both sides will be shocked with the changes that have occurred since last we saw each other. But, that's how life goes...long absences make for seemingly dramatic changes.