As I type these words my beautiful Sarah is in transit to Pittsburgh. She has been traveling intermittently for the last two years or so on business jaunts that have taken her from Mexico to Canada and many places in between. This is a double edged sword for us as the exalted place she holds in her professional life allows us to maintain a certain level of comfort in terms of lifestyle but also requires her to travel. We are being cut by the amount of together time being stolen from us by these trips.

Our search for a new home (apartment) on the West Coast began in earnest a few days ago. It is difficult to rent a place from afar, sight unseen, but that is the situation we are in � neither of us being able in terms of time or money � to fly out to California to inspect potential abodes. We have seen one place in Oakland because the property owner/manager e-mailed a set of digital photos for our perusal. Most helpful, this. I am finding the process of apartment hunting simultaneously exhausting and exhilarating. The latter beacuse we are happy, nay excited, to be returning home; the former because speaking to a prospective landlord is really akin to selling yourself - not being a terribly gregarious person, I am finding the daily communication with prospective landlords somewhat taxing. I have also found, however, many of these people to be friendly and helpful to an extent that I had not anticipated. Perhaps I simply underestimate folks.