Decision Time

Mr. Fob brought today's mail with him when he came to pick me up at the airport. I'm glad he did because there was a little letter from the University of Oregon: they didn't accept me to their program. This is fine because I made up my mind this weekend to accept the offer from Davis; getting rejected from Oregon just makes things easier. I've had several people tell me--and not just the ones working for Davis--that Berkeley's program is really not great right now and they don't give a lot of support to students. And if we're going to live somewhere expensive I'd rather go for the city that's only 150 percent above the national cost of living versus 180 percent. We'll miss being neighbors to the Ttheed family, but maybe we can convince them to move out to the valley with us. Did you know there's a housing development there that not only boasts solar power and communal gardens but also has streets named after Middle Earth geography? I'm already saving my money for a down payment so we can live groovily ever after. Now I just need to get my Birkenstocks fixed up so I can walk down to the Farmer's Market for some organic goat cheese and local wild mushrooms. California, I'm coming home.