After a few days in the South Bay for the SaaStr conference and related events, I spent a couple of days north of the Golden Gate Bridge (which was shrouded in fog both times I crossed it). That meant that I spent zero time in San Francisco itself this trip; I didn’t want to see it in its current state. Even stores I visited during my trip last year have now closed and I prefer happier memories.

It was a pleasant and relaxed couple of days in a place that feels like it’s a world away from the city just across the bay. I even rode along for a work-related journey some distance inland and got to experience the insanity of Northern California’s microclimates. In the space of about 30 miles, the temperature increased almost 20 degrees even as the altitude increased by no more than a few hundred feet. In this country that only really happens near the Pacific coast.

These couple of days were about closure. It was a natural coda to the cross-country road trip that saw me snake across America through the spring and early summer. There was also confirmation that I made the right choice for me. It is a nice place to visit and I’m sure I’ll visit again, but California could never be my home. The mindset and zeitgeist are too different from what I’ve known and am comfortable in even though I now live and breathe technology companies. Instead, I’ve committed to North Carolina and building a home here. Curling season starts up in just a few weeks and I’m looking to add a few more activities to my plate before then.