Propelled by an inexplicable urge, I just grabbed a piece of paper and jotted down the names of all the places where I had lived so far, two of which came up twice: Zagreb, Belgrade, Cambridge (Massachusetts), Ljubljana, Cambridge, Reading (Berkshire), London, Reading, Motovun. This was not the first time that I had drawn up such a list, either. But then I found myself correcting the list in two places, and for the very first time. First I remembered that I was in the military service close to the end of my Belgrade stint. About eight months of the service I had spent in Sisak, an industrial town not far from Zagreb, and two months in Zagreb itself. And then I remembered that I had spent three months on a sabbatical in Hong Kong soon after I moved to London. Now, these corrections made me surprisingly happy. Indeed, I felt kind of jubilant. When it comes to lists of such vital importance, errors of omission are nothing if not pernicious.

Addendum (January 27, 2017)

To my chagrin, the list needs correcting once again. Namely, I have been spending my winters in Zagreb ever since 2009. And this includes the first three months of the year. Besides, I return to the Croatian capital often enough, but especially in the fall. One way or another, the list is now complete, at least for the time being. For all my eagerness to leave Croatia for good, chances are that I will not move ever again. Alas, every move of mine has been accompanied by much hope, but hope is for the birds. The best advice I have for myself in my dotage is straightforward: sit where you are, stare in front of yourself, and shut up. Bingo!