The Republic, Pop. 1

From my houseboat here in Sausalito, I have one of the world's finest views. When it's not foggy, I can see from one end of the Golden Gate Bridge to the other, with the mountains disappearing off into the horizon. Sea-lions cavort up to the very door of my retirement. Of course, I try to lure my friends out here whenever I can, but everyone is so busy these days. Since I dropped out of life a few months ago, having a windfall inheritance to cover my costs for a time, an idea has been growing in my mind. I want to start a republic of letters. The republic of letters is not a new idea, nor is the name original. It is instead a perenial notion of the human imagination, viz., to have a like-minded community of men and women exchanging ideas about the present condition and fate of the world. Of course, my republic only contains a single citizen at the moment, myself. I hope to improve on that number by a steady application of effort in the literary sphere. I begin this new venture into undiscovered country today, on my 43rd birthday!