A Year Along The Franklin Corridor...

As 2007 rounds into the final holiday stretch, it would be unfair of me to keep the journey of this remarkable year to myself. Sarah and I have moved no less than six times (by my count this morning, could be more) in and out of a fantastic succession of homes either on or near Franklin Street in Hollywood. This is not because we love packing and unpacking, but because we are riding the winds of human kindness and taking a sailor's tack to get to the ocean where, with luck, we will find a suitable mooring and a less migratory nature. That said, it's been great. It really makes you feel alive: NOT having the dull ongoing comfort of a roof over your head, not knowing what your address will be next week, waking up and not remembering where you are or which way to point the car when your are returning to your domicile du jour after a day's work. Does that sound like something you would dread? Of course it does, we build our lives around the stability of our dwellings. But: when you remove the structural constant from the equation interesting things begin to happen. "Home" becomes something internalized and conceptual - a malleable (and weatherproof) spirit instead of a solid architectural manifestation. Rather than living from a fixed point of view, your worldview is constantly shifting, adapting to the new terrain, new set dressing, new shower heads, new cats. And there have been lots of cats - Clo Clo, Alfa, Jethro, Marvin, and a dog - Jake. I feel a strong kinship to these creatures, domesticated but nomads at heart, still in touch with the call of the wild. Don't get me wrong, I'm not glamorizing homelessness or making light of it. We're lucky to have such great friends and we're learning a lot from this adventure. "Keep on moving" has always been a personal mantra and in 2007 the metaphor became literal.

(great things happening at I Said If)