Towards the end of last year, Pete and I had a quick visit to Plymouth, the city where we first moved to live together in the UK, and where we lived for 12 years before moving to the Island.
Well said. I agree with you about Sabrina and Andrea, Mr. Hall would be proud. Besides, we had such high standards at KBS: a B at our school would be an easy A at others!
Thank you so much Sarah! I appreciate you reading and your kind words.
I wish I had a photo to show what the women look like, but I always find that a bit awkward when I am out and about, to aim my phone right at someone! Let's see, it's a bit rural but with some style, like a slightly lass-posh version of the former Catherine Middleton, before she was married. One example might be: loose, calf-high leather boots, knee-high denim or corduroy skirt, wool sweater with a gillet//sweater vest over and a good mac/raincoat. Does that give you any sense? I'm not very good with fashion words or descriptions!
I'll have you know that I never got good grades in Mr. Hall's class. Tim Little always did. I remember seeing the A on top of the first page of every essay he wrote. I hope I can do Mr. Hall justice five decades later.
House vs. home. We currently live in our home. During the 18.5 years living in 2 other houses in SLC and Seattle we were not truly invested in them as we knew they were just waypoints towards moving back to MT. I drove by the SLC house a couple years after we left and the new owners had ripped out all the xeriscaping I'd slaved to put in. I wasn't surprised since those Utards like to have their lawn. The owners of our Seattle house hadn't done much except for giving the 2 Douglas Firs and haircut from the bottom up, using a ladder, power cord and circular saw (I know!). They looked like Q-Tips. We did do some interior improvements to those houses but we were truly invested in them. Our MT has had to reno's and we love it. We got what we wanted and it makes it feel like ours. Your visits to Plymouth sound so much more interesting with the all the character the town has to offer. We've maintained friendships in both locations we lived but none are neighbors, rather former co-workers. It will be interesting to see the childhood home I grew up in as the class event venue is "right around the corner". Maybe I'll knock on the door to see just how small it is compared to the perspective of my youth.
Since my childhood home is a few miles away, I've seen it remodeled a few times over. Fortunately, the new owners have done a great job. Guess that's the exception.
This post reminded me of the several visits to you and Pete in Plymouth. The pictures brought back many happy memories of being cosy and warm in restaurants, a tea house, or eating Indian food at your home. I recall many walks, trips along the Barbican and of course the day we hiked on the Dartmoor in the snow. You lent me clothes to prevent frostbite or hypothermia. If I could figure out how to post a photo of that adventure, I would.
The only former home I have a burning desire to visit is my grandparents' house in Pasadena. It holds wonderful memories. I want to see the sun room, butler's pantry, kitchen pantry, the sleeping porches on the second floor, and the third floor room which was my cowboy uncle's. I want to roam the bedrooms where we stayed as children. The house was so big then. I wonder I'll still think that. When I go to Southern California this summer, I'm going to find every way to go inside. Something very deep lives inside of me to experience it again. Almost as if I won't be complete without it. Surprisingly, I don't have this need for any other place.
I visit other places I've lived frequently enough - Marin County, New York, and Washington DC - that I find it normal. Fun and fulfilling but I'm not on the lookout for big changes. However, going to California no matter how many times I go fills me with happiness, nostalgia, and wonder. I love to soak that up.
Thanks Andrea-I'm glad the freezing cold has worn off and you remember the visits to Plymouth more fondly!
That is fascinating about your very detailed memories of your grandparents house in Pasadena. I definitely understand that desire to see it again.
For years I really, really wanted to return to one of the early places we lived. I had strong but incomplete memories of the space, in part triggered by photos, that I really wanted to see again in my older years to complete my internal picture. In later years, I felt a visceral longing for certain places I had visited or lived for long stretches of time.
Like you I also don't notice changes when I return frequently enough to only note a small thing now and then, but nothing drastic. And here, here to lovely California!
Sending so many caring wishes to our friends in the Los Angeles area. ❤️
I have a strong connection to my grandparent's home. I wonder why that is? Is it the wonder we had a children visiting a very special place with dear elders? My grandparent's house was a 1926 faux English Tudor home in the Fernside district of Alameda. Much more charming than the mid century modern ranch home that I grew up in.
Good question! In my case, I have a deep attachment to my grandparents' house because it was big and beautiful with many interesting rooms such as those I mentioned. My grandparents took us on outings, played with us in the yard, set up a Slip N' Slide, and bought Van de Camps chocolate chip cookies for us. So many wonderful memories of an important time in our lives.
Oh I loved this piece Sabrina! First off, the picture of Plymouth Harbor from Jennycliff took my breath away it was so beautiful….and your recounting of the amazing paths you walked made me want to visit there NOW!
And I’m also in complete agreement with Sarah - please elaborate on the styles in Plymouth which are so appealing, and also that Mr. Hall is beaming!
PS I like visiting places where I’ve lived but brace myself for feeling very poignant and emotional….for instance I plan to visit Tiburon in June when I’m in CA for our KBS reunion but it will be a bittersweet trip. Ditto for traveling to Sea Ranch; I may have been there for my last visit a few years ago.
Thank you Martha! Very kind of you to say so. Please see my response to Sarah and see if that description helps. Interestingly, I also took a creative writing class with Basil my 3rd or 4th year which gave me some practice writing in other styles.
Yes, revisiting the old places can't help but bring up loads of memories. Some are easier to sit with that others, for sure. This summer there will be many memories competing for your attention so hopefully the harder ones won't be the most dominant!
Interesting how we refer to Mr. Hall formally and Basil by his first name. Same school, same era, same kids, same air of formality and respect at the school but completely different characters.
It is, isn't it? In my case, Basil was a family and then a personal friend for many years after we left school, so he was insistent that I call him by his first name. Never had that kind of relationship with Mr. Hall!
Our classmates need to brace themselves for the changes in Marin. Having witnessed them, what remains are the friendships I treasure from the past that endure now.
Oh, I didn't know about wild garlic in Sausalito! Marin has changed so much since our childhood. I watched it while living in the East Bay for a few decades before leaving the country. But I also think what changed are the types of people who live there, and that is harder to see on a short visit. And you are right, it is always the friendships that are the treasures, no matter where you are.
There is a wistful joy that one experiences in visiting a previous home, and you have captured that feeling. I keep a list of all my previous addresses so that I can remember those places, and perhaps visit them (or perhaps my children might be inclined to do that, after we are gone). My worst case of such a visit was after my family moved from rural Minnesota to California in the late 60's. Only a few years later, we visited my boyhood home. It was still there, but had been subsumed into a huge mosaic of subdivisions. The lake and the forest and the fields where I used to play as a child were unrecognizable (I cried).
Oh Tim, that must have been so sad to discover your childhood land of imagination vanished into suburban sameness! I would be heartbroken too. How clever of you to save all your addresses! Thanks for sharing your memories and for your kind words too.
Lovely, evocative post ❤️ It is such a strange and multilayered experience revisiting old haunts. I'm glad that you are happy with your decision to move, even though you miss your old home. I understand that duality very well!
The picture of Plymouth foreshore really made my heart feel fluttery, as that was where I used to catch the ferry to Santander in a whole other life. Seeing it made me feel a lot of things. Which is a funny and lovely coincidence considering that is what this post is about.
So interesting to hear that you know that scene at the foreshore in Plymouth! We used to watch the ferries heading off to France and Spain and for awhile we even knew the weekly schedule for winter and summer...I bet that was so exciting to go off on the ferry to another adventure. Thank you for sharing the fluttery memory with me!
In 2021 I returned to Minnesota for my mom’s memorial service and visited all three houses I lived in while growing up there. I was able to meet two of the current homeowners and even get a walk-through! I was struck by fences added or removed, trees that were huge, trees that were missing, and in one case, a still perfectly preserved 1960s formica kitchen counter and linoleum floor!!
Wow Jen, you got to see all three and go inside two! That is amazing! That must have felt a little like Alice in Wonderland, perspective shifting with your age difference perhaps. And the formica kitchen counter and linoleum floor: what a perfect capture of a very specific time. Amazing that it is still intact!
What a lovely tribute to your former home city! I would've never thought of putting Plymouth on my list of places to travel to, but you make it sound like a contender.
I personally find it difficult to go back to cities where I've lived, and to even drive by former homes. Not sure why; maybe just prefer to remember them as they were? The grand exception being my hometown, to which I moved back after 13 years away. Even had the odd experience of watching the demolition of my childhood home from my work parking lot one morning.
Oh Wow, Erin! That must have been quite disturbing to watch your childhood home being demolished!
I agree that it is hard to revisit places from the past. Sometimes it does take the sheen off a bit, like you mention. Other times I feel like it is seeing another place entirely, the changes over time are so many, and the age perception is also so vast that it is like knowing two different places with the same name.
I think Plymouth is a great place to visit; certainly worth a stop for a day or two to explore the City if you are headed to Cornwall. And there is Dartmoor as well as the nearby coastal walks for additional days out too!
"Other times I feel like it is seeing another place entirely, the changes over time are so many, and the age perception is also so vast that it is like knowing two different places with the same name." Very well said!
It was sad to watch the house come down, but I'm pretty stoic in my nostalgia. There is now a clearer view of the maple tree in what used to be the back yard. If they cut it down, then that's when I'm more likely to cry.
I just finished reading "Hound of the Baskervilles," which makes Dartmoor sound like the spookiest place on earth. I'd love to see it some day!
I’m wondering about the sartorial peculiarities among the women of Plymouth!
As always, this is so thoughtful and well-written! Between you and Esch, Mr. Hall has every reason to be pleased!
Well said. I agree with you about Sabrina and Andrea, Mr. Hall would be proud. Besides, we had such high standards at KBS: a B at our school would be an easy A at others!
Thank you so much Sarah! I appreciate you reading and your kind words.
I wish I had a photo to show what the women look like, but I always find that a bit awkward when I am out and about, to aim my phone right at someone! Let's see, it's a bit rural but with some style, like a slightly lass-posh version of the former Catherine Middleton, before she was married. One example might be: loose, calf-high leather boots, knee-high denim or corduroy skirt, wool sweater with a gillet//sweater vest over and a good mac/raincoat. Does that give you any sense? I'm not very good with fashion words or descriptions!
I'll have you know that I never got good grades in Mr. Hall's class. Tim Little always did. I remember seeing the A on top of the first page of every essay he wrote. I hope I can do Mr. Hall justice five decades later.
Thank you, Sarah, for your nice comment.
House vs. home. We currently live in our home. During the 18.5 years living in 2 other houses in SLC and Seattle we were not truly invested in them as we knew they were just waypoints towards moving back to MT. I drove by the SLC house a couple years after we left and the new owners had ripped out all the xeriscaping I'd slaved to put in. I wasn't surprised since those Utards like to have their lawn. The owners of our Seattle house hadn't done much except for giving the 2 Douglas Firs and haircut from the bottom up, using a ladder, power cord and circular saw (I know!). They looked like Q-Tips. We did do some interior improvements to those houses but we were truly invested in them. Our MT has had to reno's and we love it. We got what we wanted and it makes it feel like ours. Your visits to Plymouth sound so much more interesting with the all the character the town has to offer. We've maintained friendships in both locations we lived but none are neighbors, rather former co-workers. It will be interesting to see the childhood home I grew up in as the class event venue is "right around the corner". Maybe I'll knock on the door to see just how small it is compared to the perspective of my youth.
Oh how awful to have ripped up your very wisely installed garden! Gah. And a Q-tip shaped conifer! Sounds crazy!
I'm happy to hear you love your current home in the place that you want to be. Makes for a very good life indeed!
And yes, you should at the very least drive by your childhood home to see what you can see! I think many of us will be doing the same thing!
Since my childhood home is a few miles away, I've seen it remodeled a few times over. Fortunately, the new owners have done a great job. Guess that's the exception.
This post reminded me of the several visits to you and Pete in Plymouth. The pictures brought back many happy memories of being cosy and warm in restaurants, a tea house, or eating Indian food at your home. I recall many walks, trips along the Barbican and of course the day we hiked on the Dartmoor in the snow. You lent me clothes to prevent frostbite or hypothermia. If I could figure out how to post a photo of that adventure, I would.
The only former home I have a burning desire to visit is my grandparents' house in Pasadena. It holds wonderful memories. I want to see the sun room, butler's pantry, kitchen pantry, the sleeping porches on the second floor, and the third floor room which was my cowboy uncle's. I want to roam the bedrooms where we stayed as children. The house was so big then. I wonder I'll still think that. When I go to Southern California this summer, I'm going to find every way to go inside. Something very deep lives inside of me to experience it again. Almost as if I won't be complete without it. Surprisingly, I don't have this need for any other place.
I visit other places I've lived frequently enough - Marin County, New York, and Washington DC - that I find it normal. Fun and fulfilling but I'm not on the lookout for big changes. However, going to California no matter how many times I go fills me with happiness, nostalgia, and wonder. I love to soak that up.
Thanks Andrea-I'm glad the freezing cold has worn off and you remember the visits to Plymouth more fondly!
That is fascinating about your very detailed memories of your grandparents house in Pasadena. I definitely understand that desire to see it again.
For years I really, really wanted to return to one of the early places we lived. I had strong but incomplete memories of the space, in part triggered by photos, that I really wanted to see again in my older years to complete my internal picture. In later years, I felt a visceral longing for certain places I had visited or lived for long stretches of time.
Like you I also don't notice changes when I return frequently enough to only note a small thing now and then, but nothing drastic. And here, here to lovely California!
Sending so many caring wishes to our friends in the Los Angeles area. ❤️
Did you ever go back to that house to complete the memories?
No, I never have, yet!
I have a strong connection to my grandparent's home. I wonder why that is? Is it the wonder we had a children visiting a very special place with dear elders? My grandparent's house was a 1926 faux English Tudor home in the Fernside district of Alameda. Much more charming than the mid century modern ranch home that I grew up in.
Good question! In my case, I have a deep attachment to my grandparents' house because it was big and beautiful with many interesting rooms such as those I mentioned. My grandparents took us on outings, played with us in the yard, set up a Slip N' Slide, and bought Van de Camps chocolate chip cookies for us. So many wonderful memories of an important time in our lives.
Oh I loved this piece Sabrina! First off, the picture of Plymouth Harbor from Jennycliff took my breath away it was so beautiful….and your recounting of the amazing paths you walked made me want to visit there NOW!
And I’m also in complete agreement with Sarah - please elaborate on the styles in Plymouth which are so appealing, and also that Mr. Hall is beaming!
PS I like visiting places where I’ve lived but brace myself for feeling very poignant and emotional….for instance I plan to visit Tiburon in June when I’m in CA for our KBS reunion but it will be a bittersweet trip. Ditto for traveling to Sea Ranch; I may have been there for my last visit a few years ago.
Thank you Martha! Very kind of you to say so. Please see my response to Sarah and see if that description helps. Interestingly, I also took a creative writing class with Basil my 3rd or 4th year which gave me some practice writing in other styles.
Yes, revisiting the old places can't help but bring up loads of memories. Some are easier to sit with that others, for sure. This summer there will be many memories competing for your attention so hopefully the harder ones won't be the most dominant!
Interesting how we refer to Mr. Hall formally and Basil by his first name. Same school, same era, same kids, same air of formality and respect at the school but completely different characters.
It is, isn't it? In my case, Basil was a family and then a personal friend for many years after we left school, so he was insistent that I call him by his first name. Never had that kind of relationship with Mr. Hall!
Cream first.
Wild garlic grows in Sausalito too.
Our classmates need to brace themselves for the changes in Marin. Having witnessed them, what remains are the friendships I treasure from the past that endure now.
Oh, I didn't know about wild garlic in Sausalito! Marin has changed so much since our childhood. I watched it while living in the East Bay for a few decades before leaving the country. But I also think what changed are the types of people who live there, and that is harder to see on a short visit. And you are right, it is always the friendships that are the treasures, no matter where you are.
There is a wistful joy that one experiences in visiting a previous home, and you have captured that feeling. I keep a list of all my previous addresses so that I can remember those places, and perhaps visit them (or perhaps my children might be inclined to do that, after we are gone). My worst case of such a visit was after my family moved from rural Minnesota to California in the late 60's. Only a few years later, we visited my boyhood home. It was still there, but had been subsumed into a huge mosaic of subdivisions. The lake and the forest and the fields where I used to play as a child were unrecognizable (I cried).
Oh Tim, that must have been so sad to discover your childhood land of imagination vanished into suburban sameness! I would be heartbroken too. How clever of you to save all your addresses! Thanks for sharing your memories and for your kind words too.
Lovely, evocative post ❤️ It is such a strange and multilayered experience revisiting old haunts. I'm glad that you are happy with your decision to move, even though you miss your old home. I understand that duality very well!
The picture of Plymouth foreshore really made my heart feel fluttery, as that was where I used to catch the ferry to Santander in a whole other life. Seeing it made me feel a lot of things. Which is a funny and lovely coincidence considering that is what this post is about.
Thank you, as always, for your words!
So interesting to hear that you know that scene at the foreshore in Plymouth! We used to watch the ferries heading off to France and Spain and for awhile we even knew the weekly schedule for winter and summer...I bet that was so exciting to go off on the ferry to another adventure. Thank you for sharing the fluttery memory with me!
My flutters are your flutters 😅
Lovely!
In 2021 I returned to Minnesota for my mom’s memorial service and visited all three houses I lived in while growing up there. I was able to meet two of the current homeowners and even get a walk-through! I was struck by fences added or removed, trees that were huge, trees that were missing, and in one case, a still perfectly preserved 1960s formica kitchen counter and linoleum floor!!
Wow Jen, you got to see all three and go inside two! That is amazing! That must have felt a little like Alice in Wonderland, perspective shifting with your age difference perhaps. And the formica kitchen counter and linoleum floor: what a perfect capture of a very specific time. Amazing that it is still intact!
What a lovely tribute to your former home city! I would've never thought of putting Plymouth on my list of places to travel to, but you make it sound like a contender.
I personally find it difficult to go back to cities where I've lived, and to even drive by former homes. Not sure why; maybe just prefer to remember them as they were? The grand exception being my hometown, to which I moved back after 13 years away. Even had the odd experience of watching the demolition of my childhood home from my work parking lot one morning.
Oh Wow, Erin! That must have been quite disturbing to watch your childhood home being demolished!
I agree that it is hard to revisit places from the past. Sometimes it does take the sheen off a bit, like you mention. Other times I feel like it is seeing another place entirely, the changes over time are so many, and the age perception is also so vast that it is like knowing two different places with the same name.
I think Plymouth is a great place to visit; certainly worth a stop for a day or two to explore the City if you are headed to Cornwall. And there is Dartmoor as well as the nearby coastal walks for additional days out too!
"Other times I feel like it is seeing another place entirely, the changes over time are so many, and the age perception is also so vast that it is like knowing two different places with the same name." Very well said!
It was sad to watch the house come down, but I'm pretty stoic in my nostalgia. There is now a clearer view of the maple tree in what used to be the back yard. If they cut it down, then that's when I'm more likely to cry.
I just finished reading "Hound of the Baskervilles," which makes Dartmoor sound like the spookiest place on earth. I'd love to see it some day!
Aw, thanks. And I agree about trees! They are so emblematic of life itself.
Dartmoor isn't usually spooky and is a landscape that I have never seen anywhere else in the world. Highly recommend a visit if it is in your future!