Not many people know where Steve Jobs lives. Even those who live in his home town of Palo Alto know that he lives 'around' but not many know exactly where. That is probably because, for such a high profile billionaire, you wouldn't expect such a low-key residence in Old Palo Alto, which is a nice neighborhood but not fabulous by any means.
I went there today to pay respects, with a bouquet of
flowers in my hand. The police had closed the street in anticipation of
people flocking. There may be grand theatrics going on around big Apple
stores out there, but for the few who made it to Steve's 'secret' house,
the scene was quiet, respectful, and as low-key as Steve would've wanted
it to be.
Steve's house is definitely not what you'd expect. It looks about 30 years old or so, made of brown brick and mortar, with grey singles, a chimney, and a low double-beam wooden fence like and old-school farm house. It is pretty modest in size, and is surrounded by a small garden with a simplistic variety of trees and bushes that had obviously been home grown. I wonder if he used to tend to his own garden. I wonder if he had any extra time for it, given all that he accomplished in his short time.
I wonder what it was like for him living there, knowing that he could afford to buy the whole block, the whole neighborhood if he wanted to. Would you retire to a simple bed in a modest home if you could afford to buy a private island with a landing strip, along with a private jet and crew to get you there?
People of all ages would come, lay down some flowers, candles, postcards, and stand there in silence. There were school children, college kids, middle aged people, and a few seniors standing around. One college kid left his empty iPhone box as a tribute. Someone else had apparently left an apple, after having taken a bite out of. A kid left a chalk mark "iSad" on the pavement. Another mark on the pavement read "Thank you for creating the iPod. You made music so much easier to listen to. RIP we will miss you"
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