Goodbye California!

In early March at the dinner table we broke the news to Lilia and Max: we’re moving. Moving to Australia. The initial reaction was lots of excitement: they only know Australia as somewhere we go on vacations, with beautiful beaches and airplanes and no school and Granny Jenni and Pops John. But after thinking on it, both of them went to bed in tears as they realized moving also meant leaving their friends here in California, their wonderful teachers and classmates at Alexander Valley Elementary, and of course Grandpa Greg. Lisa and I have also had a rollercoaster of emotions as we packed up the house and have allowed what lies ahead to sink in. We both know there are things about California we’re going to miss immensely, most notably the people that have been part of our lives for the 20 years we’ve lived together in the San Francisco Bay Area. We’re going to miss our beautiful house in Alexander Valley, and being able to ride across the vineyard blocks for a swim in the river on hot days after school, and taking a day off work for a powder day in the Sierras. I could go on…

The logistics of the move was a somewhat herculean task. Australia has to be the most difficult country to move to on the planet. Lisa’s visa took over a year to be issued, there is basically nothing the Australian government now does not know about Lisa, the kids and our relationship! And then packing up the house while observing all of Australia’s biosecurity restrictions was like studying for a university exam. You never realize just how much junk one can accumulate until you move house. The storage unit in Healdsburg has 153 boxes of our household contents waiting to be packed into a container. We made six trips to the Goodwill. Two truckloads to the dump. It was an excellent opportunity to purge, a somewhat cleansing experience.

Before we bid goodbye to Alexander Valley we hosted an open house with dinner for 90 people. It was so amazing to be able to get everyone together one last time before we left, especially after the last 14 months of varying degrees of social isolation for everyone. We had Mahi Networks coworkers, neighbors, the kids’ classmates, Jackson Family Wines colleagues, family, Mellon Capital alumni and friends from all over Northern California in attendance. Even our mail lady Bernadette came by for dinner and a few beers! It was a very eclectic mix of people from our 20 years here together in the San Francisco Bay Area. A number of people mentioned to us that it was the first time they’d really ventured out for a large social gathering since the beginning of 2020, Lisa and I were both glad that we could get everyone feeling a little more back to normal. Seeing 30+ kids running around together outside is something that’s been missing in most people’s lives here in the US for the past year or so, it was such a great sight to behold. The tacos and quesadillas that were served for dinner were a huge hit, I think I went back three times, the al pastor was quite exceptional. I’m pretty sure I saw Bret Munselle back at the taco tent with his plate five times! We were eating leftovers for days afterwards. (A few people asked for the taco guys’ contact details, business card is pictured below.)

We spent our last week in California hosted by Grandpa Greg in Santa Rosa, getting our last doses of favorite local haunts with him and a few other partners in crime. One last adventure down the estero with the Bordessas was a memorable way to spend Memorial Day while we waited for the kids to wind up the 2020/21 school year, such a beautiful part of the Sonoma County coastline that was great to be able to visit one last time before hitting the road.

I can remember as a kid being excited to the point of exploding on the last day of school, anticipating summers full of beaches and adventures. But yesterday when Lisa and I drove the kids to Alexander Valley School one last time they were both quietly deep in thought, contemplating what lies ahead and reflecting on everything they’re leaving behind. It’s a big change for them. A big change for all of us. But for now there’s lots of fish and bears waiting for us in Alaska!