thinks, I think virtee and I are gonna be there. There’s still some debate on exactly when we’re leaving, as about 5 minutes after he emailed this company looking for a job, they called him to see if he could start work like… yesterday. So we might be leaving soon, might not be till like the second week of August. I wanna go though, so I’ll be there if I’m here!
So will you two be settling in RI, or . . . 
If y’all decide to come by VA, we’ll have a li’l get-together somewhere:)
Good for you! I’ve put the same thing off way too long myself, I need to get back home too. Best of luck and good thoughts comming your way!
Well shit. You and Sue Duhnym both* moving back east? Don’t tell the Beach Boys, or they’re gonna have to change the lyrics to “California Girls”.
Damn, Rasa, I feel like I hardly got to know you. I’ll miss you. But I hope everything works out better for you out there. And virtee, I’m happy for you - San Jose, good riddance. Be a good friend to her, and don’t hurt her or we BADs will be forced to fly out there and pummel you with acorns, or whatever the hell grows on the trees back there.
Anyway, here’s some advice my grandmother gave me when I was young that’s always stuck with me: “(drool)…(loud chewing sounds)…bleaarrgh(pfffthht)[sound made as the old bag’s head dropped right into the bowl of mashed potatoes]”. Hope that offers some solace.
Just pretend the italics ended after the “both” in the first sentence.
I am happy for you, baby. I always felt you would be happier going home. Home is just the best place to be if you are a home sort of person. And you are, as am I.
Much Love Always,
Cheri
Thanks, Whammo. It’s not true… sometimes, you can go home again. I’m lucky.
punha, we’ll be settling in RI/MA somewhere, depending on where we find work. virtee will at the very least be stopping in VA to visit with his mom; I might be going along too, depending on the financial/job situation at the time.
And woody… you went from being “that quiet Doper” to one of my very favorite BAD’s in no time flat. You had me at “Anyone wanna go see Shane MacGowan?” You will have the lifelong distinction of being the person who got me to the legendary Fillmore. You rock, my friend. Even if I had to turn my head sideways to read your post.
::strolls out singing If I Should Fall From Grace With God::
If you were headed home from anywhere else, i’d feel nothing but happiness for you. As it is, i know i’m gonna miss the fuck outta my best friend.
But i’ll manage. You need to do what’s right for you, and i admire your courage for doing so. Besides, as you once told me, you could be in Uzbekistan and i’d still feel like you were the closest person in the world.
So take care. Good luck. I love you.
oh, and virtee, if you ever do anything to her, be aware that i’m well-skilled in the art of cheese grater castration. 
zyzz… I don’t even have to say anything and you know what I mean.
Even though I don’t see you all that much, it’s still good to know I can, whenever I want. I wouldn’t still be here in CA had you not helped me out. I don’t know what I do to blunder upon such wonderful people like you, but I’m damn lucky I do.
3,000 miles isn’t gonna erase 9 years. 
Woody my man, you just made the news of Rasa’s departure a little easier to take. Amen to everything you said, bruddah!
Anyway, Rasa, i’ll miss you dearly. You’re one of my favorite posters, ever since my thread asking “who that Rasa lady is”. I guess i’ll have to save money and fly east to pay you and Virtee a visit. I hope you have a better time back east than in CA (even though you have to admit, you do love us BAD’s). Now, you HAVE to go to the Nor Cal So Cal thing. So i can see you, and meet Virtee
Scotti! How did I miss your post? I’m so sorry. You’re right, as always. California had its perks, now I wanna go home.
And Doob, how I remember that thread. Heehee! Who woulda thunk you’d be sitting in “that Rasa girl’s” icky, dirty car just a few months later? You rock, and yeah, I do love my BAD’s. Take care of them for me, willya?
East coast? What’s that? I haven’t looked back over my shoulder since I got here, so…
Rasa, I’m sorry it didn’t work out, and I’m sorry I didn’t get a chance to meet you while we were on the same coast. If you ever make it back, make a trip down to SoCal - it’s warmer, at least.
Esprix
Home is precisely where you’re leaving. I’d give anything to move back - but I can no longer afford to (so my ‘anything’ is worthless). Why’d I ever give up that $358 a month apartment in San Francisco on Sutter Street? A parking spot costs that now.
Best of luck.
Esprix, it’s funny you mention that. I have a good friend from back home that moved to San Diego a couple months ago. I haven’t seen him in about 2 years, and am not sure if I’ll get to see him before I go. Kinda ironic! I’m sorry things didn’t work out better for me too, thanks.
straykat23, I hear you. I do love the Bay Area, and I love the City… I wish I could stay, but it’s not feasible for me. I wanna go back East and live somewhere I can afford to live. Hope you make it back out this way soon. The rate housese are going up for sale, you may be in luck!
Good luck in your endeavors, and don’t worry, you’ll be back soon. With a few more months, the dotcom silliness will level off and things will be back to normal. And you’ll be forced to go back anyway, because you’ve been “contaminated” by California. I’ll explain…
I lived in CA for many years, and when the 1990s recession forced me out. My mom begged me to come back to Iowa and finish my college degree, which I did. But I found myself completely unable to find a job. I just had to introduce myself to the prospective employer and they took an immediate hatred towards me. I finally went to a job counsellor and she immediately identified the problem. She said, “oh, it’s the way you talk! You speak too fast. People around here speak really slowly and mistrust fast talkers.” I was forced to admit she was right, I’ve been completely unable to change my speech patterns, nor have I found a decent job since I’ve been here. The pace of life on the west coast is much faster, and it pervades your whole being. Californians live faster and talk faster. You’re headed for a huge collision with local culture, no matter where else you go. It will frustrate the hell out of you.
I’ll give you a similar example. The things you used to do effortlessly will now take days or weeks. I remember when I arrived here, I ran out of one of my favorite brands of watercolors. In LA, I would have just walked 4 blocks from my house to my favorite art supply shop and bought some in mere minutes. In Iowa spent 3 weeks trying to locate the same materials at every art supply shop within a 100 mile radius, I never did find it locally so I had to drive 250 miles to Chicago to buy some.
I hate to be a downer, but after CA, nothing will come close. Just remember to speak really slow, and try to act as stupid as the locals. And don’t ever mention California. Then you’ll seem to fit in.
Rasa, if I get this right, you’re moving from San Francisco to Rhode Island? The whole state probably doesn’t have many more inhabitants than the city you’re leaving!
Unfortunately we never got to meet at a So. Cal/No. Cal dopefest. Good luck back on the East Coast, and I hope you’re happy there.
Chas.E, you may be right. I’ve lived on the East Coast my whole life though, except for the past 6 months, and we talk a whole helluva lot faster out there than here. I have been “contaminated” by CA; I love the people I’ve met, and the weather, and having all sorts of cool things available to me minutes away. I’m finding the opposite is true though–computer geeks like me and virtee are a dime a dozen out here; whereas back in RI they’re not as available. The job market isn’t as big, but there’s not quite as much competition.
Arnold, you got it right. I moved out here in January, and am moving back to Rhode Island, where I’m from. Yeah, I’m living in San Jose, which alone has more people than the entire state of Rhode Island! RI may lack quantity, but we have quality–me n’ Euty are pretty durn cool. I’ll probably be at the NorCal/SoCal thingy, so there’s hope for meeting you yet!
Thanks for the wishes everyone… it’s going to be hard to leave, regardless.
Gee Rasa, that’s the inverse of the reason I moved out to LA so many years ago. Around my university town, computer people were a dime a dozen, and not enough in CA.
Anyway, don’t mind me, I’m just a bit bitter and gripey, I just returned from a trip to LA to try to set up my return. It blew up after a mere week, and I ended up right back where I started. So good luck with your relocation, I know it’s tough. I hate moving more than anything. You have to restablish all your personal infrastructure in a new area, get everything you own sorted out, oh man, I feel for ya.
Well, I’m lucky, Chas. I’m moving back to where I already have an established personal infrastructure. My friends and family are all thrilled that I’m coming back. It’ll make being a bridesmaid in all these freaking weddings a lot easier too. Won’t have to fly home for them all. I was getting tired of flying cross-country every 3 months or so!
Here’s hoping you find your way back to LA.