As much as I love the northeast United States, including my home state and adopted city of New York, I must say that San Francisco and the state of California as a whole treated me extremely well, from the ocean, the redwoods, the vineyards, the Golden Gates of bridges, parks and Victorian houses, with hills and views stellar, the sequoias, the canyons, the deserts, the valleys, the hillsides, the boulevards, the parks, the plaza, the tent near the vineyard, the couches and beds in Oakland, the room in the quiet sophistication of a hill somewhere in San Francisco, the room near the glory days, the room/art studio by the highway, the room in the quiet college town, the room with the bars on the windows and a view of a garden and greenhouse while people partied on the street corners of West Oakland, to the fellow travelers, including the hosts, co-workers, employers, roommates, and friends from other stages of life.  Thank you, West Coast, including Washington, Oregon, and the entire West side, meaning Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas.  You have helped to develop something strong and joyful that has always been inside.