Shawn's farewell to Santa Cruz

​Last night was Shawn's last night in Santa Cruz, after living here for 32 years. Yesterday afternoon, luck and circumstance took us back to our old neighborhood, where we reconnected with our friends there. That was followed by sopes at Palomar and a movie downtown.  We had been holding movie certificates for quite a while.  Last night was our deadline to use those movie passes. I think it had been about six years since we had gone to a movie. While we waited for the movie, we were treated to music from our wonderful local marimba band. The whole scene was also being recorded by happy Buddhist monks.  It was a quintessential Santa Cruz experience.

This morning we had breakfast with our friends at Zachary's, which opened the same year we arrived here. I had my usual sourdough waffle. After lots of procrastination, Shawn finally got on the road. He's headed to Placerville, where he will pick up our C-Dory, repack our stuff in the truck and boat, and finally make his way north toward the June 10 Bellingham ferry to Ketchikan.

Meanwhile I spent this afternoon cleaning out my classroom at Santa Cruz High, and I completed my final preparation of lesson plans and final exams. 

This evening I wandered about downtown for some dinner, as I no longer have a kitchen in Santa Cruz in which to cook. It's a good excuse to go to all of my favorite old haunts, and quietly complete my checklist of places I want to visit before I leave. This will be my week of farewells to this town that has been so good to us.

For 32 years, Santa Cruz bore witness to some of our lives' most significant events. We got married here. We bought and sold two homes here. We launched and concluded our careers in education here. We cared for my mother and she died here. We also survived an earthquake that forever helped us keep "stuff" in perspective.

I'm going to enjoy this final week, as I transition from being a resident to becoming a visitor. I'm staying close to downtown, and I will quietly reminisce about the good here.

I look forward to graduation with Santa Cruz High on Friday. So I won't say goodbye just yet.