After 26 years of living in the SF Bay Area, and 30 years since we first left home, we’ve made the decision to return to our hometown of Lindsborg, Kansas. This decision comes after contemplating such a move off and on for the past 6 years. To be honest, this is probably still as much a shock to us as it is to our friends and family; to the extent we do have uncertaintanties about this decision we will retain our house in California for an indefinite time.
To some degree it’s premature to mention this in public, as the deal isn’t absolutely final yet, but at this point we’ve got a signed contract for our new house and the financing seems to be going well. Plus, I’ve discussed this with my management at work, and have their support, so I guess it’s time to tell the world!
While there are many reasons for making this rather dramatic change, it really boils down to family. I saw one of my sisters for 1 hour this last trip. I only saw my dad twice. Last year I didn’t get to see Regina at all, and every year, excited as I’ve been about returning home to California, it’s always been hard to say goodbye when it came time to leave.
After almost 30 years of being gone we have a whole lot of catching up to do. And, not just with family. George, the best man at our wedding, lives in Lindsborg and we haven’t seen him since 2001. And the list goes on. We just get too busy trying to see family to find time for friends. (Quite a change from when we first moved away. When visiting back then we’d see the family the day we arrived, and the day we left, and the rest of the time was spent w/friends.)
Finally, we’re keeping our California house, and if it doesn’t work out, we’ll just move back and call our time in Kansas an extended visit. We had quite a jolt of “what have we done” as we drove up US 395 and through Yosemite on the way home, but for the most part are pretty excited about beginning this new chapter of our lives.
Herewith, then, are a few photos of our new home in Lindsborg, a single owner, custom built, 15 year old house that has ensnared us with its charms:
Many more pictures of the house are available.
Mike & Sheryl – Your website is something else! I hadn’t checked it since closing of the house but your photos really show the best side of Lindsborg and the surrounding area. When do you find the time? I guess I’m stuck in meetings a lot but even if I had the time, I couldn’t do the technical aspect or have the photographer’s that you have. I had hoped to get up to visit you before now but the fall has been unusual with some extra travel and more business than usual (that’s good!). I’ll give you a call soon. I did see Sheryl go into the post office but I was on the phone so couldn’t shout Hi. Happy Holidays to you both! Carol