A mixed trip. Pros: Spending time with JP, living with AW and the great advice during a stressful and important time, fixing my dislocated rib and zapping my knee, hanging with MP and LH in an ex-mortuary bar. Cons: I feel dead inside. Flakes, extra costs, five-hour commutes, too many choices, being sick for the first time in nine years.

I was a “tourist” in my own city in that some things were familiar, but most everything has changed and others I’d rather forget. The Bay, though beautiful, feels like the past because it is. It makes me even more grateful for my friends, my life now, and what’s ahead. I did not leave my heart here. I carry it with me.