Within a week of my move to Waitsburg, construction started on my house. My ears were bombarded with drills, hammers, compressors, nail guns, saws and lots of cursing. About two weeks ago, construction slowed down for a short time. The silence was deafening, much appreciated, albeit too short.

The first few nights I spent in Waitsburg the silence was so eerie I had to keep the TV on to fall asleep. It was winter and I swear I could hear the snow falling, and icicles forming. It was culture shock, for sure.

When I was in Los Angeles, I played tennis at a club in the Hills; we had deer, one o...