And I think it sounds kind of maybe sexy and interesting and just exciting, but there's probably darker sides and more difficult sides to it. But I want to hear both. So I thought I'd pull in Michael Ehrenberg, who goes by Heycoach here on Swell, and ask him what it's like to live in two different cities and the tips and tricks he might have for anybody who's thinking about doing that. So here we go
Deborah Pardes
@DBPardes · 0:14
Hello. So first question is how did this happen in the first place? Can you let us know? Was it by accident? Was it strategic? Give us the whole background of how you landed up living in two cities
Michael Ehrenberg
@HeyCoach · 1:07
How did I end up living in two cities? Well, first of all, my partner and I had been in Los Angeles as our home base, but had been traveling to Colorado and New Mexico and landed upon Santa Fe, New Mexico, which I had been to many times, and we had been spending the night there on our way to various points north. We fell in love with Santa Fe so much so that we really felt like it was already a home. We had a base of friends
Swell Team
@Swell · 0:15
Deborah Pardes
@DBPardes · 0:34
So I'm dying to know about your relationships in those two cities. Like, how do you juggle your social life and your kind of community sense? Because I know it's like if you're living someplace, you might as well figure out why you're there. Are you active in both places? Do you feel pulled by one more than the other? Do people know your schedule? How do you juggle being a good friend, a good neighbor, a good community member in both cities?
Michael Ehrenberg
@HeyCoach · 2:39
But I keep a connection with them. I call them, we FaceTime, we email, we speak on the phone. And so it's really about that part of my life that I feel. And not only it's an effort that you make subconsciously or consciously, but it's also being conscious about how you want to be in the world. So that also reflects on being a community member. So I'm involved in helping out wherever I am
Deborah Pardes
@DBPardes · 0:27
I mean, of course, you could throw in some of the pitfalls that might seem obvious to most of, but you could throw those in if you want to talk about that as well
Michael Ehrenberg
@HeyCoach · 1:52
I go hiking and hiking where it's literally you drive 15 minutes from your house in these beautiful mountains and it's a very rich culture. Rich in Native American and Mexican culture, Hispanic culture. So there's a lot of benefits to that
Deborah Pardes
@DBPardes · 0:52
Or do you think that living in two places is really life giving and it's part of your identity as a human and maybe that's why you might stay in two cities the rest of your life? Have you thought about it? And what advice do you give to people with regard to knowing one place over the other that's better suited for different chapter of their lives? Bye
Living in two cities involves getting adapted to both cultures. In one city, people could have customs, traditions things receive name message are different from the another city. People communicate in a different way. People face life in a different way. And based on those things, you could perceive life. It's something really interesting. So if someone has a chance to live in two cities you I consider that person lucky
Michael Ehrenberg
@HeyCoach · 2:25
I would say about living in one place or the other. It does depend on where you are in your life. Most people that I know, although it varies, some people start when they're young and have some other place to go when they're wanting a change. And other people wait until they retire, find another place, and ultimately live in that one place because that's where they've found peace and sanctity. So it really depends on each person