Plus ca change, plus c’est la meme chose (the more things change, the more they stay the same)

Looking for a job my how-to-get-a-job books recommend that I define what I want in a job. They don’t recommend vagaries. So, I’ve been thinking of what I’d like to do ideally/where I’d like to live and what reality might be able to provide.

When I was young I wanted to be an artist- sleep late, have people pay me to paint, travel to lands far from the staid but comfortable Midwest in which I grew up. I also wanted to live in a big city, with exciting things to do at night, which would be waiting for me after I rolled out of bed. There would be cultural events at my disposal. Ideally, it’d be a big creative city brimming with artistic people to chat with over coffee, watch good-not-boring foreign films with, and contemplate priceless works of art together. Also, ideally my dad's last name would be Trump, Rockefeller, or other titian of industry.

Some things remain the same- in a perfect world I’d prefer to sleep late, be paid to paint, and travel. But I know that nowadays it’s next to impossible to eke out, much less make a proper living as a painter. Therefore, I’ve realigned my sights for something more realistic. I’ve always wanted to have a job that would make a difference in the world. And as much as I believe in the power of art I don’t think that a painting will solve world hunger. Mona Lisa’s been around for about five hundred years and she has yet to put a dent in the issue of international famine.

I also think that problem-solving and liaison with multiple parties is something that I’d like to do and would be great at. Ideally, I’d work in an education or sustainability-emphasis capacity. And I’d definitely like to have new challenges every once in a while. I did go/am at planning school. But I am 95% confident in the hiring potential probabilities in the planning realm. All I hear about are people being laid off. However, I get most of my planning news in California. Now is definitely time to start expanding my horizons, especially those that could provide an optimistic boost.

Regardless of where I end up, being in a big city is still very important to me, and especially one that has creative areas. Again, with the utopianism, I’d like to stay in LA. The weather is perfect about 360 days out of the year, there’s always something interesting to do, and we have a vibrant, active creative community. Even if some of them pay too much for clothes that they could pick up at Good Will for 200 dollars less, same look.

However, I have a mental list of places that I’d like to live in before I settle down somewhere for a really long time and Texas is one of them. I’ve lived technically in the four parts of the US. They’re not the true cardinal points. But it is definitely the four major regions of the US= the Northeast (Connecticut), the Southeast (Savannah), the West Coast (California), and the Midwest (Chicago, Wisconsin). But I haven’t lived in Texas, which I consider a country unto itself. It’s certainly big enough to be. And guys that say ma'am like George Eads of CSI fame make me weak in the knees. Granted, that wasn't terribly professional, but it's true. I also visited Charlotte, North Carolina over spring break last year and I loved it there. It reminds me of Savannah, where I went to undergrad, but there is more to do.

I’m open to moving anywhere, that is the perk of moving around a lot as a kid. Just nowhere with wretched amounts of humidity and within reasonable driving distance of a major metropolitan area.

I'll keep you posted on what unfolds! And where I end up. :)

It never rains in California, but we've got problems all our own!

I've lived in 11 places (and counting) in 25 years and the majority of my research into urban planning has focused on Midwestern and Northeastern cities. I did attend college in Savannah, GA, but the South's relationship to growth defies categorization. Apparently, Houston is one of the hot new places to be, according to an op-ed in Newsweek, June 22, 2008 www.newsweek.com/id/142633 Doesn't make it any less humid in summer yet so cold it snows in winter, it's like the Midwest, but with a drawl. . .

Also, having gone to school in Savannah, and having family in Matthews, NC, a suburb of Charlotte, I've seen first-hand the incredible growth that Charlotte and Atlanta are experiencing. Savannah too, is enjoying its revival, thanks in part to my alma mater's decision to build a downtown campus, but it doesn't have nearly the growth patterns that Atlanta is experiencing.

But I didn't realize that Los Angeles has challenges, uniquely all its own, which warrant its own metropolitan policy until I came across this excellent document, put forth by USC.

Summary Report
USC Southern California Studies Center
Urban Policy Seminar Series 2001–2002
Moderated by Antonio Villaraigosa & Jennifer Wolch

Principal Authors
William Fulton
Jennifer Wolch
Antonio Villaraigosa
Susan Weaver
Co-Sponsored by:
USC Center for Sustainable Cities
USC Lusk Center for Real Estate
With support from:
USC Urban Initiative
The John Randolph and Dora Haynes Foundation

In their report the authors recommend that Los Angeles adopt a "5-point action plan for metropolitan L.A.," which is as follows:

Grow Smarter:
As the region runs out of land, we must learn to use our land and resources better
and more efficiently to accommodate future growth.
■ Level the Playing Field for Infill Development
■ Encourage Housing Construction and Homeownership
■Manage the Car

Grow Safer: As we continue to add population in existing neighborhoods and communities, it becomes imperative to improve their safety.
■ Connect Public Safety to the Neighborhood
■ Balance Gang Suppression with Prevention and Intervention
■ Improve Safety in Transportation
■ Prioritize Earthquake Preparedness

Grow Greener: The region’s metropolitan development in the 20th Century inflicted great harm on the natural environment. In order to sustain metropolitan L.A. in the 21st Century, we must actively focus on restoring the natural environment rather than merely refraining from damaging it more.
■ Conserve Energy and Natural Resources
■ Promote Environmental Justice
■ Make the Metropolis More Permeable

Grow Together: As our region has expanded, it has also grown inequitably. The gap between rich and poor has become wider, as has the gap between the well-being of different communi- ties in the region. In the 21st Century, our growth must be more equitably
distributed, both economically and geographically.
■ Narrow the Economic Divide
■ Promote Equitable Economic Development at the Regional Level
■ Connect Neighborhoods to Regional Job Opportunities

Grow More Civic Minded: We cannot accomplish any of the other four goals without nurturing greater civic-
mindedness and commitment among the people of our region, especially immigrants
and others often excluded from participation in public affairs.
■ Broaden Civic Involvement
■ Know More about the Region and Its Communities
■ Create Benchmarks to Measure Progress

Obviously, they go into more details in their report. But I found the regionally-specific circumstances fascinating and I have now shifted my focus in emphasis on what I want to do as a planner.