welcome to the space

i can't stop smiling.

i'm being serenaded by old country gypsy music. a woman is leaning against a wall in our courtyard, practicing her accordion and singing. we opened our sliding door wide so we could hear her better. listen:



our place rocks so hard. no complaints, only smiles and repeated mentions of, "i love our place." it truly is our home. i've never felt this way about an apartment. it is so much our home, a place we want to live in, grow in, stay.

last night our neighbors, the artist group, had an opening. before going inside, we wandered around our neighborhood to see what it felt like at 9 pm on a saturday night. it was lively, but not frenetic or crazed, like haight street. all of the galleries were open--likely an art walk or something--so we wandered and visited and came upon an adhoc concert set up on a quiet street corner. they had a stand of sorts, with drummers and guitarists sitting underneath, and a lead singer, rapping in spanish. his energy was tremendous, getting the 20 or so audience members to repeat spanish lyrics back to him. we wandered off, amazed that this was our neighborhood. we returned to our street, and went inside the gallery that shares our courtyard. the art was playful and beautiful, and the vibe was chill. they had live music, snacks, and libations to share. we're happy to have this group nearby.

we haven't met many neighbors yet, except for the other day when we were taking out our garbage, recycling, and compost. a guy was doing some woodworking in the courtyard (a daily occurrence), and we introduced ourselves as new neighbors. he introduced himself and replied, "welcome to the space."

i love living in a space.