We went to Ojai today. That is where we have an orange grove. We have a little trailer on the land, plus water. No electricity. The trailer is nestled in the middle of the grove, plus we have a fire pit and sitting area outside.

We’re proud of our oranges trees. They are healthy and strong and full of Valencia oranges that will be delicious. We’ve spent a lot of time, money and energy bringing back our grove after a freeze a few years back. It feels good to see several hundred healthy trees.

The orange grove is quiet and right on the edge of the national wilderness. When we stay there overnight, we hear coyotes howling during the night, and roosters crowing in the morning. It is a lovely place to spend time. The air is clean and we are so completely unplugged there that even one afternoon and evening feels extremely restful.

The town of Ojai is charming. The shops are small, privately owned and tasteful, and there is a fabulous health food store. Plus, a nice variety of restaurants are there, though we generally buy food, go to our land and stay there until it’s time to head back to the city. No need to go anywhere else when you’re happy where you are.

One portion of our land is a designated archeological site and Native Americans have been officially recorded as living there as far back as 8,000 years. It was an ancient milling site, and mortars and pestles have been dug up around the property over the years. Once you arrive on the land, time seems to slow down dramatically. Perhaps it has something to do with the ancient presence of people. Ojai is supposed to be a spot on the Earth where there is a spiritual “convergence.” I don’t know much about that, but am aware that time seems to shift when we’re on the land. It’s hard to say exactly why.

We toy with the idea of moving to Ojai. There are many artists and writers there so I expect we could both find a community of people we liked. The people we know there so far tend to be slightly “hippy-dippy,” but that suits me just fine. For me, I want to be close enough to see my children regularly. However, if for some reason they end up not living in LA, then we’ll rethink where we live. In the middle of the orange grove has some big upsides. We’ll see as time passes where we end up.

I would love, though, to go and spend an uninterrupted week in Ojai on the land. I think I might emerge looking about ten years younger. The air, the outdoors, the exercise and the atmosphere might indeed “converge” and create a transformation. I want to schedule time to take off and be there. Now that we have hot water…and an indoor toilet…well, now we’re almost “citified.” I just don’t want electricity. Candles at night and a fire to keep warm, now that’s living!