I have now been back in Boston for a year. Technically speaking my arrival was a year ago yesterday but I was in New York City at the time and wanted to wait until I got back here to properly reflect on the past year.
Actually this past year has been a tale of three cities - Boston, Cambridge and Somerville. I spend most of my days in all three cities as I work in Boston, live in Cambridge and do most of my shopping and dining in Somerville.
At this point, I can honestly say that I am very happy that I have returned to the Boston area. New York and Atlanta have their virtues, but this is home - even more so than my home and native land of Canada. It certainly helps that I have excelled at my present job in a way that I probably haven't excelled at work in a decade and have been suitably rewarded for this excellence. Nothing is forever, but I am savoring the moment.
The only edge Atlanta has over Boston is that I had my own apartment. I have spent the past year living in someone's house. Although I have less space with which to work it is a space that I can call my own. Nevertheless there are times when my landlady has company at the dinner hour and it is necessary for me to go out and eat. Fortunately, there is a Chinese restaurant, a Thai-Vietnamese restaurant and now a burger joint right around the corner from me. The funny thing is that although it is around the corner it is in the next town. The Cambridge-Somerville line has considerable charm. The amenities in the neighborhood are outstanding and I also do not have to spend a dime to wash and dry my clothes. This arrangement is working for now. In the grand scheme of things, I have little to complain about.
With that said, I do wish I renewed acquaintances with more people. I've had some but it has been sporadic. Some people lead very busy lives and time is in short supply. On the other hand, if you really want to spend time with someone you make the time to do it and I suspect there are some people who for whatever reason would rather not spend time with me. So be it. The last thing I want to do is to take up anyone's space. I am perfectly content to spend time on my own. On most weekends I go candlepin bowling, occasionally take in a movie and and engage in the simple pleasure of walking around Cambridge, Somerville and Boston. When I walk around Harvard, I am always on the look out for Remy The Harvard Cat and have had the delight to see him twice. However, I try to vary where I go so I don't wear out my welcome back here. I find it best to pick my spots before I return to the comfort of my room.
Now that I have back in Boston area for a year, I don't ever want to leave again. I say this with the understanding that nothing is guaranteed and circumstances could change in an instant. But the nearly 1,000 days I spent away from Boston was long enough.
This isn't to say I couldn't have prospered in Atlanta had another opportunity come along. However, when I was offered work in Atlanta in October 2020 I was awaiting an offer from Boston which I ultimately didn't get. Even though the position in Atlanta ultimately paid more I was disappointed I wasn't coming back to Boston. Had I been offered both positions, I would have taken less money to come back to Boston.
As it turned out, things didn't go the way I hoped they would but I quickly landed on my feet back here. In this regard, I am grateful to my supervisor. My application to the job had initially been rejected because I lived too far away. But she liked what she saw and overruled the rejection. For this I am grateful.
With that, I look forward to starting my second year back in the Boston area. I've already been in Boston longer than I've been anywhere else and in about six months from now I will have spent 20 years here. This will represent 40% of my life. I've made a lot of wrong decisions in my life, but two of my best decisions were to come to Boston. I hope I get to stay.
No comments:
Post a Comment