In early 2000 Yumiko and I became homeowners for the first time.  Our purchase was a 50 year old three bedroom fixer-upper on a large one acre lot in beautiful Ojai, California.  Ojai is a few hours north of Los Angeles and situated roughly 10 miles inland from the pacific coast.  The small community of  8000 enjoys warm, pleasant winters and hot but dry summers.  The community is an eclectic mix of working class families, wealthy folks as well as every sort of artist, mystic, musician and organic gardening type you can imagine.

Our little home in Ojai was located at 2212 Los Encinos Road in the small Los Encinos community.  Our home featured a wonderful garden where we could enjoy outdoor living year round.  Being as old as it was, the place was a lot of work to be sure, but it was also a beautiful place to live and our three years at this address will certainly remain some of the most memorable of our lives.  Perhaps the most important memory Yumiko and I will hold of this address is the fond recollection of bringing our new born Emily home to Los Encinos for the first time.  Now, as then, her presence brings magic to our lives and makes wherever we live a very special place indeed. ( photo montage below)

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