Goodbye to All That

In Praise of Second Cities

There’s a big question I often find myself thinking about. Does the place I live define me? I would probably have a different answer at various points in my life, but it is something I think a lot of us probably consider. We make many decisions in life that help define our “personal brand.” This could get highly specific, but the big things are: What car we drive. What labels we wear, what media we read and listen to, and, finally, where we choose to call home.

I remember when Doug DeMuro (a writer/creator I really love) moved to San Diego, and as someone living in LA, I couldn’t wrap my head around it. (Later I heard that he moved because of his wife’s job and probably also because it’s a great place to live). When I lived in NY and LA, I probably wouldn’t let myself understand a move like that. For a long time, the only places that existed to me were the city and LA. Eventually I realized that if I have an airport and an internet connection, I could live almost anywhere. (I’m lucky that is the case.) After 15 years in NYC and a decade in Los Angeles, I realized I wasn’t willing to suffer the competition of living in New York anymore, and I liked the California lifestyle more than I liked LA as a city.