Sweet Sweet Change.

This is not advice. You’re going to do what you want.

But here I am on vacation in Sonoma, California, in a tiny town called Healdsburg.  There’s a place that sells homemade ice cream, and a book store that doesn’t rhyme with “glamazon” or end with “& noble”.

There’s mountains and ridiculous views of the bay and a highway called Route 1 that twists and turns its way into the sky, and at no point do you lose a quite ridiculous view of the ocean.

There are redwoods that were here before any of us were gleams in ancestors eyes, and places that will exist long after we’re gone.

This is not an ad for Sonoma (though it certainly could be).

It’s an ad for change.

I’ve been unemployed since January.  Little by little I’ve sunk into a rut.  Yes, I’ve been job hunting.  Yes, I’ve been tweeting, growing my network, even expanding my skills (I’m learning Final Cut Pro lately).  Yes, I’ve made the effort to get outside as often as possible (or as often as the harsh New York City winter and ever shrinking window of Spring will allow).

I haven’t felt anything resembling true vitality in awhile.  I’d hit that unfortunate place where the days seem simultaneously short and long, where they seem more about finding ways to spend them than living them.

But here, in the midst of this nature, and friendly, and different, I’m beginning to feel reborn.  I feel possibility creep in.  I’ve cocked my head just slightly, just for a week, and it turns out the world isn’t quite what I’d set up in my head (it rarely is, but I often need reminding).

I’ve often said (and admittedly probably stole from somewhere) that life is like a mobile, that you can’t make one change without affecting everything else.

Well, Kate and I decided to go on vacation, to the other side of the country where the sun is shining, where the trees are growing, where the people smile back.

Maybe we’ll stay.

Change is delicious.  I choose, for the moment, to bite into it like a crisp apple pear and let the juices run down my chin onto my shirt.

Fuck it. There will always be other shirts.

If the mood strikes (actually, if it doesn’t, especially if it doesn’t), you might want to give yours a little push, too.  If you dont, expect a kick in the ass from the people who love you.  I expect one from you, when I forget what I’ve learned. That’s part of what love is.

Let’s find out together where the mobile stops spinning.

So… What’s next?