How It All Began

A little history is in order. I have lived in 11 places in 25 years, all over the country. The majority of the time was spent in the Midwest, specifically Wisconsin, though not exactly in the middle of a cow pasture as some people may think. It's not too bad if family and old-fashioned values are your thing. If you prefer bright lights and fast-paced, well, Chicago still has room for one more. I also lived in CT, near the Mass border, which put NY and Boston about 2 hrs. away as well as central CA, with LA about 3 1/2 hrs. away and San Francisco about 4 hrs. away. (Distance figures are conservative and optimistically based on excellent (i.e. utopian or post-nuclear fallout) traffic conditions)

I spent an eye-opening couple of months in Lawndale, a really tough section of Chicago, yet a five minute drive from the very posh suburb Oak Park, birthplace of Ernest Hemingway and location of Frank Lloyd Wright's first studio. The difference in socio-economics was astounding. Lawndale is also where Kanye West is from when he says he's from Chicago. Unlike the band Fallout Boy who are from Winnetka, IL. Ask any born and bred Chicagoan who doesn't work for the city's PR department, Winnetka is NOT Chicago. More on what constitutes Chicago and what doesn't later.

I also lived in another part of Chicago that was neighborly and quiet and whose location I refuse to disclose as I may move back there someday and would like a moderately priced apartment like I was so fortunate to find then. Thoughts on the flood of genrification in Chicago to come.

I went to school in Savannah, GA where I earned my BFA in art history, but I realized that I would be able to make a more personally meaningful contribution to the world through urban planning. $150K education later, but it's the journey not the destination, right? I got into planning on my first trip to Italy where my professor, Christian Sottile, who is also an urban planner, showed us how a city evolved if we look for clues in its layout, its architecture, etc., Since then I've never been able to look at a city the same way.

Like I mentioned in my profile, at the moment I am self-taught in all things related to urban planning, so there may be discrepancies or thoughts that do not reflect the current trend in academia, etc., Therefore, I humbly request that anyone who knows more than me please correct me where I am in error so that the learning may continue.