Listing the cities in which I have lived makes my past sound far more interesting than it actually was:
- Luanda, Angola: Birth
- Fort Collins, Colorado: Diapers
- Monterey Park, California: Toilet training
- West Lafayette, Indiana: Elementary school
- Reston, Virginia: Fifth grade
- West Lafayette, Indiana: Junior High School
- Castelldefels, Catalonia (Spain): Freshman year
- West Lafayette, Indiana: High School
- Pittsburgh, Pennyslvania: University
- Seattle, Washington: Work
- Beijing, China: Being a foreigner
- Seattle, Washington: Drifting in and out of employment.
- New York, New York: Eating a lot.
I grew up bilingual, speaking English at school and with friends and fractured Portuguese at home. The summers I spent in Portugal helped my Portuguese tremendously: I lost nearly all of my accent and taught myself how to read and write. With the exception of my mother, father, and sister, my extended family lives in Portugal. Although I’ve never lived there myself, I have visited several times, spending over three years there in aggregate.
I have no desire to return to the Midwest.