This afternoon my dog Dante and I went to the vet and acquired some antibiotics for a condition of his. I read the label and realized that one of his meds need to be taken with food. And what kind of delicacy does Mr. Dante favor? Peanut butter! What we were out of? Peanut butter! This necessitated a trip to the "local" grocery store, which may not be around the corner, as Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk and Andres Duany hope in all cities with an implementation of a new urbanist design scheme, but it was within (relative) walking distance.
Walking back from the store I came to an intersection where two perhaps eleven (-?) year old boys were waiting for the light to change.
I could tell that they had just returned from an afternoon excursion to Roller Town, the local skating rink and arcade, where I spent many a middle school afternoon, as they both clutched small treasures.
We were apparently heading in the same direction, so I had a chance to observe them from a discrete distance.
They were about the same size and height, but appearance-wise they embodied the polar extremes of that caterpillar-like stage of a young man's life when he is no longer truly a child, but he is not quite a teenager. One had long, tousled blonde hair and the other was dark haired, which was cut in something a quarter of an inch from a buzz cut.
Both were wearing those ill-fitting, but totally age-appropriate clothes for their age- you know what I mean- those slightly over-sized t-shirts and average fitting pants. Pants not nearly as baggy as those favored by gangsta rappers and their suburban fans that were sported a decade (yikes) ago nor the gonad-crushing skintight almost leggings i.e. "skinny jeans" that the teenagers of today are sporting. Yes, I am old when I cast a critical eye on the fashions and trends of today with a jaundiced eye. Yet somehow I still can't comprehend how pants that double as a tourniquet to the lower extremities are "cool," but this clearly my age talking.
I remember when my brother favored t-shirts that looked like he'd raided my dad's closet and shorts that looked more like baggy pants cut to calf-length. Then he suddenly discovered American Eagle and Hot Topic and started sporting more body-conscious outfits. The sudden enlightening of the concept of girls and the desire for proximity to them was also a contributing factor to this revolution of the wardrobe. I am not immune to fashion faux pases. In fact, I think everything up to yesterday has been a mistake I'd prefer to forget and not to captured for posterity on film.
To remain unobtrusive I kept my earbuds in and my ipod on to Chester French's "Love the Future" album. Therefore, I'm not exactly sure what they were talking about, but I know that one was quite elated by his prize, a sort of plastic stick with a grabbing mechanism on the end, which he took great delight in using to hit his friend with, when said friend was not looking.
There are several intersections from the point where we first came upon one another to my final destination and rather than wait for the light to change they sprinted across the street after judging oncoming traffic to be at a safe enough distance. They also lept to swat at low hanging tree branches and broke into a sort of inspired sprint several times too, oblivious to how odd this may look.
It is moments like these that I savor, moments that remind me of my own (what feels like distant) past and what it really means to be young and alive. There is much that lies ahead of these two boys, but for these embodiments of the future, the present is all that matters. And honestly, it is all that should matter to us too.
I would have missed out on this quiet observation if I had been driving. If anything, I probably would have regarded the boys as a minor irritation- two more additional factors that I would have to calculate in my defensive driving formula. Would one of them suddenly run into the road, would one of them suddenly trip and fall into my path, etc.,? Instead of what they are, two boys enjoying a warm spring day, free of their parents' watchful eye, and exploring the world on their own terms, something every child deserves.
As graduation draws near for schools near and far I also become quite philosophical about life, especially my own, and the direction that it is taking, should be taking, or veered off course. It is an annual thing, though when it started exactly I am not sure.
So, some future postings may be waxing philosophic about what it means to inhabit this mortal coil. But I am also compiling some thoughts about new urbanism, sustainability, and reviews of the excellent spring 2009 issue of Good magazine (http://www.good.is/) and Scientific American 3.0
Wishing you a safe and satisfying summer.
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Inglorious Bastard: a Few Thoughts on a Mr. Bernie Madoff
I love a Quentin Tarantino movie as much as the next person, but this is not a review of his upcoming film.
This is just a small rumination on Bernie Madoff. I did, however, look up the word inglorious, to make sure that I was using it correctly. According to the American Heritage Dictionary, Third edition, inglorious is an adjective 1. ignominious; disgraceful, 2. not famous or renowned
As we still endure the tremors of the global economic meltdown, one man holds a lot of the blame, Mr. Bernie Madoff.
Madoff, I am not going to do him the courtesy of a title, has pled guilty and is looking at 150 years in jail. Yet the on-going mystery is where is the money?
I know how to make $50 disappear- hello Barnes and Noble! But hundreds of millions- and not just the funds he kept recycling over and over in his Ponzi scheme- where did they go!?
Vanity Fair has written an exclusive article called, "Madoff's World" by a Mr. Mark Seal and Fortune magazine has recently published a special report entitled, "How Bernie Did It" by Mr. James Bandler and Mr. Nicholas Varchaver with Ms. Doris Burke
The old adage of keeping your friends closer and your enemies closer may not be as true as we once thought, perhaps it is with friends like Madoff, who needs enemies?
My thoughts and prayers, small as they may be, are with all of those who Madoff wronged.
This is just a small rumination on Bernie Madoff. I did, however, look up the word inglorious, to make sure that I was using it correctly. According to the American Heritage Dictionary, Third edition, inglorious is an adjective 1. ignominious; disgraceful, 2. not famous or renowned
As we still endure the tremors of the global economic meltdown, one man holds a lot of the blame, Mr. Bernie Madoff.
Madoff, I am not going to do him the courtesy of a title, has pled guilty and is looking at 150 years in jail. Yet the on-going mystery is where is the money?
I know how to make $50 disappear- hello Barnes and Noble! But hundreds of millions- and not just the funds he kept recycling over and over in his Ponzi scheme- where did they go!?
Vanity Fair has written an exclusive article called, "Madoff's World" by a Mr. Mark Seal and Fortune magazine has recently published a special report entitled, "How Bernie Did It" by Mr. James Bandler and Mr. Nicholas Varchaver with Ms. Doris Burke
The old adage of keeping your friends closer and your enemies closer may not be as true as we once thought, perhaps it is with friends like Madoff, who needs enemies?
My thoughts and prayers, small as they may be, are with all of those who Madoff wronged.
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Something's Innovative in the State of Denmark!
OK, OK I know Denmark is not a state. It's a country, the ancestral home of my mom, etc., You want more details? I have enclosed Wikipedia's page on the country that does more than share its name with a breakfast pastry, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denmark
But permit me an esoteric reference to the Bard without involving a lesson in geography.
The reason I am writing about Denmark is that I came across a really interesting article about how incredibly "green" Denmark is. I don't mean green like how Iceland is really green and Greenland is really, really icey, but in the environmental sense of the word.
There was a good article in the March 16, 2009 edition of TIME magazine entitled, "the Gutsy Superpower. How Denmark's green energy initiatives power its economy" by Bryan Walsh http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1881646,00.html#
I used to think that TIME magazine was kind of old and stogy, but they've had such good articles (of personal interest) lately that I'm seriously getting a subscription. Either that or I'm getting old. Eh.
Anyway, I've always considered the Danes honest, hardworking folk who don't seem to get all uppity over anything or demand more than their fair share of the global pie. I knew that my mom's family is from there and that's about all I knew.
However, I found out that Denmark is the world's leader in wind power. According to Wikipedia it is the 10th greenest country in the world, which is also good. Denmark is also home of Vestas, a manufacturer that has become the top producer of turbines.
This didn't just happen due to good luck and great timing. The Danish government made a commitment to producing and improving their wind power technology, including involving the utility companies to "purchase wind energy at a preferential price- thus guaranteeing a customer base." (-Bryan Walsh, "the Gusty Superpower,"TIME, March 16, 2009, 42-43) Like Field of Dreams, "if you build it, they will come."
This was due, mainly from the 1973 oil crisis. Denmark relied on petroleum, almost all of it imported. Sound familiar? Realizing that they were causing their own problems, they set about to fix it before it happened again. Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice shame on me. . .
We could stand to take a lesson from their book. I know that President Obama is super busy right about now, but this is why great leaders delegate! No time like the present, so let's learn from our friends who don't hate us.
But permit me an esoteric reference to the Bard without involving a lesson in geography.
The reason I am writing about Denmark is that I came across a really interesting article about how incredibly "green" Denmark is. I don't mean green like how Iceland is really green and Greenland is really, really icey, but in the environmental sense of the word.
There was a good article in the March 16, 2009 edition of TIME magazine entitled, "the Gutsy Superpower. How Denmark's green energy initiatives power its economy" by Bryan Walsh http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1881646,00.html#
I used to think that TIME magazine was kind of old and stogy, but they've had such good articles (of personal interest) lately that I'm seriously getting a subscription. Either that or I'm getting old. Eh.
Anyway, I've always considered the Danes honest, hardworking folk who don't seem to get all uppity over anything or demand more than their fair share of the global pie. I knew that my mom's family is from there and that's about all I knew.
However, I found out that Denmark is the world's leader in wind power. According to Wikipedia it is the 10th greenest country in the world, which is also good. Denmark is also home of Vestas, a manufacturer that has become the top producer of turbines.
This didn't just happen due to good luck and great timing. The Danish government made a commitment to producing and improving their wind power technology, including involving the utility companies to "purchase wind energy at a preferential price- thus guaranteeing a customer base." (-Bryan Walsh, "the Gusty Superpower,"TIME, March 16, 2009, 42-43) Like Field of Dreams, "if you build it, they will come."
This was due, mainly from the 1973 oil crisis. Denmark relied on petroleum, almost all of it imported. Sound familiar? Realizing that they were causing their own problems, they set about to fix it before it happened again. Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice shame on me. . .
We could stand to take a lesson from their book. I know that President Obama is super busy right about now, but this is why great leaders delegate! No time like the present, so let's learn from our friends who don't hate us.
the New Venice?
I realized that April is almost over, and I only have one posting credited to the month of showers and spring flowers.
I attribute it to my mattress that is trying to kill me, rendering me with excruciating back pain (between the shoulder blades no less) that I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy, if I had enemies. I say a life well lived is the best revenge.
Therefore, I decided to post a little something something so that come fall when I am at USC (yay my #1 choice !!!) people won't think that I'm a pretentious idiot who just says that she has a blog, which she hasn't touched since 2007- that's my other blog- youneedaninja.blogspot.com, which has, like 3 recipes on it and that's about it. I don't even remember which e-mail it's tied to.
I have been thinking a lot about this whole economy (and how we got here), new urbanism, and Detroit, all of which will merit their own postings. But I had to share this bizarre concept that I discovered in an article from Wired's February 2009 issue called, "Live Free or Drown"
http://www.wired.com/techbiz/startups/magazine/17-02/mf_seasteading
There is an entrepreneur named Patri Friedman who is the executive director of a non-profit called, the Seasteading Institute. The Seasteading Institute has big plans to start a new society on water. Yes, water. Mr. Friedman is a former software engineer who worked for Google, but wanted to pursue something much bigger. (in full disclosure I do process some health insurance claims at my current position for Google) Mr. Friedman is also the son of libertarian legal theorist David Friedman and grandson of free-market economist Milton Friedman, who won the Nobel Prize (facts from Chris Baker's article)
I'll spare you the political ideology behind this idea. Suffice to say it'll be both laissez-faire (let do, literally > let things take their natural course) and laissez bon temps roule (let the good times roll)
Wired covered this story, not only because it's unusual, but also because the concept is supposed to be like a platform in the same sense that Linux is a platform, which can expand and build upon itself. This is definitely out of my depth, but the author of the article, Chris Baker, does an excellent job explaining it. If you know anyone who's a tech nerd/sociologist this may intrigue them.
My dad, though I love him dearly, sometimes entertains rather "unusual" thoughts about separating from the government, libertarian ideals, etc., But this concept takes the cake, past the people in Montana who want to succeed from the U.S. (good luck with that. . .), past the hermits and the recluses, even the Unabomber seems "normal" to a relative degree. These people and their motivations are interesting, no doubt about it, but they are seriously out there, both literally and figuratively.
I did think, however, that though there is technically a definite absence of any need for planners- what will they need people to help plan make sure that the world's first floating Wal-mart doesn't affect the quality of life of these post-libertarians- it draws striking parallels to the city of Venice, which I had ruminated on in my posting Ah Venice!. . .is sinking? (February 20th, 2009)
It's the same basic concept- people seeking freedom above all- from politics, social norms, etc., and constructing a new society on er, water. And it hasn't been done for hundreds of thousands of years, not counting the people who live on houseboats. People build new sub-divisions all the time, but a new society?! I mean a brand-new society! Far out man.
A short history of other entrepreneurs who attempted to build their own freestanding societies is included in the article.
I do doubt that the occupants of this new society will feel the need to steal treasures from other cultures, like the Venetians did by stealing the horses during the Crusades, most probably from the Hippodrome in Constantinople, though their point of origin remains in dispute.
You have to hand it to the people who believe that this really can work. It's like the kids that really grew up to be the astronauts and firefighters that they said that they wanted to be.
Or like the incredibly poetic line from one of my favorite works, the Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster, one of society's overlooked philosophical tomes as it masquerades as a children's book,
"Now and then, though, someone does begin to grow differently. Instead of down, his feet grow up toward the sky. But we do our best to discourage awkward things like that."
"What happens to them?" insisted Milo.
"Oddly enough they often grow ten times the size of everyone else," said Alec thoughtfully. "and I've heard that they walk among the stars."
I attribute it to my mattress that is trying to kill me, rendering me with excruciating back pain (between the shoulder blades no less) that I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy, if I had enemies. I say a life well lived is the best revenge.
Therefore, I decided to post a little something something so that come fall when I am at USC (yay my #1 choice !!!) people won't think that I'm a pretentious idiot who just says that she has a blog, which she hasn't touched since 2007- that's my other blog- youneedaninja.blogspot.com, which has, like 3 recipes on it and that's about it. I don't even remember which e-mail it's tied to.
I have been thinking a lot about this whole economy (and how we got here), new urbanism, and Detroit, all of which will merit their own postings. But I had to share this bizarre concept that I discovered in an article from Wired's February 2009 issue called, "Live Free or Drown"
http://www.wired.com/techbiz/startups/magazine/17-02/mf_seasteading
There is an entrepreneur named Patri Friedman who is the executive director of a non-profit called, the Seasteading Institute. The Seasteading Institute has big plans to start a new society on water. Yes, water. Mr. Friedman is a former software engineer who worked for Google, but wanted to pursue something much bigger. (in full disclosure I do process some health insurance claims at my current position for Google) Mr. Friedman is also the son of libertarian legal theorist David Friedman and grandson of free-market economist Milton Friedman, who won the Nobel Prize (facts from Chris Baker's article)
I'll spare you the political ideology behind this idea. Suffice to say it'll be both laissez-faire (let do, literally > let things take their natural course) and laissez bon temps roule (let the good times roll)
Wired covered this story, not only because it's unusual, but also because the concept is supposed to be like a platform in the same sense that Linux is a platform, which can expand and build upon itself. This is definitely out of my depth, but the author of the article, Chris Baker, does an excellent job explaining it. If you know anyone who's a tech nerd/sociologist this may intrigue them.
My dad, though I love him dearly, sometimes entertains rather "unusual" thoughts about separating from the government, libertarian ideals, etc., But this concept takes the cake, past the people in Montana who want to succeed from the U.S. (good luck with that. . .), past the hermits and the recluses, even the Unabomber seems "normal" to a relative degree. These people and their motivations are interesting, no doubt about it, but they are seriously out there, both literally and figuratively.
I did think, however, that though there is technically a definite absence of any need for planners- what will they need people to help plan make sure that the world's first floating Wal-mart doesn't affect the quality of life of these post-libertarians- it draws striking parallels to the city of Venice, which I had ruminated on in my posting Ah Venice!. . .is sinking? (February 20th, 2009)
It's the same basic concept- people seeking freedom above all- from politics, social norms, etc., and constructing a new society on er, water. And it hasn't been done for hundreds of thousands of years, not counting the people who live on houseboats. People build new sub-divisions all the time, but a new society?! I mean a brand-new society! Far out man.
A short history of other entrepreneurs who attempted to build their own freestanding societies is included in the article.
I do doubt that the occupants of this new society will feel the need to steal treasures from other cultures, like the Venetians did by stealing the horses during the Crusades, most probably from the Hippodrome in Constantinople, though their point of origin remains in dispute.
You have to hand it to the people who believe that this really can work. It's like the kids that really grew up to be the astronauts and firefighters that they said that they wanted to be.
Or like the incredibly poetic line from one of my favorite works, the Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster, one of society's overlooked philosophical tomes as it masquerades as a children's book,
"Now and then, though, someone does begin to grow differently. Instead of down, his feet grow up toward the sky. But we do our best to discourage awkward things like that."
"What happens to them?" insisted Milo.
"Oddly enough they often grow ten times the size of everyone else," said Alec thoughtfully. "and I've heard that they walk among the stars."
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Men of the World You Have Been Warned!
OK, as you all know, I try to keep this blog fairly academic. However, my friend at work sent this to me and after I picked myself up off the floor, having fallen out of my chair from laughing so hard I knew I needed to post this. Plus, I got into my school of choice- go Trojans!!! So I feel a little "safer" posting less than cerebral stuff every once in a while.
I also work on a computer all day and at the end of the day I don't want to be anywhere near a keyboard, but as my blog has been a little sparse these past few weeks I'll rectify that this weekend. In the meantime- enjoy!
NINE WORDS WOMEN USE -
(1) Fine: This is the word women use to end an argument when they are right and you need to shut up.
(2) Five Minutes: If she is getting dressed, this means a half an hour. Five minutes is only five minutes if you have just been given five more minutes to watch the game before helping around the house.
(3) Nothing: This is the calm before the storm. This means something, and you should be on your toes. Arguments that begin with nothing usually end in fine. (see #2)
(4) Go Ahead: This is a dare, not permission. Don't Do It!
(5) Loud Sigh: This is actually a word, but is a non-verbal statement often misunderstood by men. A loud sigh means she thinks you are an idiot and wonders why she is wasting her time standing here and arguing with you about nothing. (Refer back to # 3 for the meaning of nothing.)
(6) That's Okay: This is one of the most dangerous statements a women can make to a man. That's okay means she wants to think long and hard before deciding how and when you will pay for your mistake.
(7) Thanks: A woman is thanking you, do not question, or faint. Just say you're welcome. (I want to add in a clause here - This is true, unless she says 'Thanks a lot' - that is PURE sarcasm and she is not thanking you at all. DO NOT say 'you're welcome' . that will bring on a 'whatever').
(8) Whatever: Is a woman's way of saying Screw YOU!
(9) Don't worry about it, I got it: Another dangerous statement, meaning this is something that a woman has told a man to do several times, but is now doing it herself. This will later result in a man asking 'What's wrong?' For the woman's response refer to # 3.
I also work on a computer all day and at the end of the day I don't want to be anywhere near a keyboard, but as my blog has been a little sparse these past few weeks I'll rectify that this weekend. In the meantime- enjoy!
NINE WORDS WOMEN USE -
(1) Fine: This is the word women use to end an argument when they are right and you need to shut up.
(2) Five Minutes: If she is getting dressed, this means a half an hour. Five minutes is only five minutes if you have just been given five more minutes to watch the game before helping around the house.
(3) Nothing: This is the calm before the storm. This means something, and you should be on your toes. Arguments that begin with nothing usually end in fine. (see #2)
(4) Go Ahead: This is a dare, not permission. Don't Do It!
(5) Loud Sigh: This is actually a word, but is a non-verbal statement often misunderstood by men. A loud sigh means she thinks you are an idiot and wonders why she is wasting her time standing here and arguing with you about nothing. (Refer back to # 3 for the meaning of nothing.)
(6) That's Okay: This is one of the most dangerous statements a women can make to a man. That's okay means she wants to think long and hard before deciding how and when you will pay for your mistake.
(7) Thanks: A woman is thanking you, do not question, or faint. Just say you're welcome. (I want to add in a clause here - This is true, unless she says 'Thanks a lot' - that is PURE sarcasm and she is not thanking you at all. DO NOT say 'you're welcome' . that will bring on a 'whatever').
(8) Whatever: Is a woman's way of saying Screw YOU!
(9) Don't worry about it, I got it: Another dangerous statement, meaning this is something that a woman has told a man to do several times, but is now doing it herself. This will later result in a man asking 'What's wrong?' For the woman's response refer to # 3.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
I Would Not, Could Not In a House, I Would Not, Could Not, With a Mouse!
I recently returned from a trip to L.A., which I still love with abandon and will be going back to next week for a school- yep school! related event next Friday. Ah, the world-weary traveler! *Hand stapled to forehead*
But I was thinking about where I have lived and where I want to live and where I thought I wanted to live.
When I was young and spending the majority of my formative years in the Midwest I wanted to move to Chicago when I grew up. But somehow I went to college in Savannah, grew bored with the sleepy Southern town's lack of a nightlife, and set my sights on New York City. I even threatened to transfer to Columbia, but never got around to filling out application papers, much to my best friend/roommate's relief. It would have saved me from a rather overwrought and drawn-out, angst-filled relationship. But I imagine that there are equally "broken" boys in the Big Apple.
In a strange twist of fate I actually spent my first few years out of college living in Chicago instead of New York. 9-11 happened on my first day of classes in college (feel free to do the math to determine exactly how old I am), but it was more the appalling lack of real estate in NYC coupled with astronomical rent prices that made me not want to pursue it more doggedly. This was while the lower East Side and the West Village were getting gentrified and developers were starting to look to Williamsburg with an avaricious glint in their eye, but most true Manhattanites considered Brooklyn faaaaar too far away from their island. "I'll have to move. . .to Brooklyn!" -You've Got Mail
Serendipity intervened and Chicago turned out to be the perfect city for me. I always say that it's like the kid brother of the super slick, super popular, super successful investment banker older brother NYC and the less chic, though infinitely more hipster than its glamour-puss of a cousin, platinum blonde, or is it Marilyn blonde-? L.A. Chicago is confident in where it stands in the world and it doesn't want to strive to be what it's not. Sure its shoes may not be Jimmy Choos, but Converse low-tops are A-OK. OK it may never have the super riches of New York, but it also doesn't have to work killer hours to pay the rent. (Chicago does have the Gold Coast and some verrrry cushy sections, but rich isn't usually the first word people associate with Chicago, and if they do, they've never been there.)
However, my scorching case of ambition motivated me to seek a high paying job in the suburbs and after burning out there I moved to California, which I'd missed ever since I'd moved away in sixth grade. Having two weather-related car accidents helped motivate me as well.
For the longest time I'd scorned L.A. I though it was just as fake and as plastic as a Barbie. And while this is true of some parts of L.A. It's not true of everywhere. I love hanging out in Hollywood, not the movie star Hollywood, but the real location, whom the movie studios abandoned for the aptly named, Studio City. I love walking down Melrose, driving down La Brea, hanging out in Santa Monica. Yes, there are a few people who have been airbrushed out of existence or are more silicone than skin cells, but not everywhere is it a shiny, happy city. There is a lot of grit and a lot of people who look like you and me.
L.A. will probably never be New York, or even Chicago in terms of its "culture"- you know, the artsy fartsy stuff. C'mon people, I have a degree in this stuff, I can say it! But its real estate is still more reasonable than NY and the weather is a significant improvement over Chicago. However, it has much more planning challenges than Chicago, who has done a relatively awesome job, and therefore I see less job opportunities for me there. Though stop gentrifying every single neighborhood in Chicago that remotely has a whiff of bohemian chic! We do not want your Pottery Barns and Baby Bjorns! "Where am I to go if doublewide strollers follow me everywhere?" asked mediajorgenyc in response to an article about the gentrification of Red Hook, Brooklyn in New York magazine. Indeed sir, indeed.
Hanging out with my friend/old roommate from Chicago reminded me of all the fun that I'd had in Chicago and in a perfect world I will move back there some day. My other friend, the best friend/roommate from college now lives in L.A., but is an East Coast transplant and sometimes thinking of her reminds me, by association of all that I love about New York. But would I want to live in New York, though it used to be my dream? I've thought about it and the answer is, probably not. You do not get any bang for your buck when it comes to rent, though another more lewd term may be used. New York has amazing theater, street food, and culture. But so does Chicago for a lot less price-wise (sortof).
Where will the road take me? I don't know. I am also interested in helping cities plan smart growth and Colorado, Atlanta, and Charlotte were all growing like crazy before the recession, so I may set my sights somewhere totally else. One thing I know, it won't be boring.
But I was thinking about where I have lived and where I want to live and where I thought I wanted to live.
When I was young and spending the majority of my formative years in the Midwest I wanted to move to Chicago when I grew up. But somehow I went to college in Savannah, grew bored with the sleepy Southern town's lack of a nightlife, and set my sights on New York City. I even threatened to transfer to Columbia, but never got around to filling out application papers, much to my best friend/roommate's relief. It would have saved me from a rather overwrought and drawn-out, angst-filled relationship. But I imagine that there are equally "broken" boys in the Big Apple.
In a strange twist of fate I actually spent my first few years out of college living in Chicago instead of New York. 9-11 happened on my first day of classes in college (feel free to do the math to determine exactly how old I am), but it was more the appalling lack of real estate in NYC coupled with astronomical rent prices that made me not want to pursue it more doggedly. This was while the lower East Side and the West Village were getting gentrified and developers were starting to look to Williamsburg with an avaricious glint in their eye, but most true Manhattanites considered Brooklyn faaaaar too far away from their island. "I'll have to move. . .to Brooklyn!" -You've Got Mail
Serendipity intervened and Chicago turned out to be the perfect city for me. I always say that it's like the kid brother of the super slick, super popular, super successful investment banker older brother NYC and the less chic, though infinitely more hipster than its glamour-puss of a cousin, platinum blonde, or is it Marilyn blonde-? L.A. Chicago is confident in where it stands in the world and it doesn't want to strive to be what it's not. Sure its shoes may not be Jimmy Choos, but Converse low-tops are A-OK. OK it may never have the super riches of New York, but it also doesn't have to work killer hours to pay the rent. (Chicago does have the Gold Coast and some verrrry cushy sections, but rich isn't usually the first word people associate with Chicago, and if they do, they've never been there.)
However, my scorching case of ambition motivated me to seek a high paying job in the suburbs and after burning out there I moved to California, which I'd missed ever since I'd moved away in sixth grade. Having two weather-related car accidents helped motivate me as well.
For the longest time I'd scorned L.A. I though it was just as fake and as plastic as a Barbie. And while this is true of some parts of L.A. It's not true of everywhere. I love hanging out in Hollywood, not the movie star Hollywood, but the real location, whom the movie studios abandoned for the aptly named, Studio City. I love walking down Melrose, driving down La Brea, hanging out in Santa Monica. Yes, there are a few people who have been airbrushed out of existence or are more silicone than skin cells, but not everywhere is it a shiny, happy city. There is a lot of grit and a lot of people who look like you and me.
L.A. will probably never be New York, or even Chicago in terms of its "culture"- you know, the artsy fartsy stuff. C'mon people, I have a degree in this stuff, I can say it! But its real estate is still more reasonable than NY and the weather is a significant improvement over Chicago. However, it has much more planning challenges than Chicago, who has done a relatively awesome job, and therefore I see less job opportunities for me there. Though stop gentrifying every single neighborhood in Chicago that remotely has a whiff of bohemian chic! We do not want your Pottery Barns and Baby Bjorns! "Where am I to go if doublewide strollers follow me everywhere?" asked mediajorgenyc in response to an article about the gentrification of Red Hook, Brooklyn in New York magazine. Indeed sir, indeed.
Hanging out with my friend/old roommate from Chicago reminded me of all the fun that I'd had in Chicago and in a perfect world I will move back there some day. My other friend, the best friend/roommate from college now lives in L.A., but is an East Coast transplant and sometimes thinking of her reminds me, by association of all that I love about New York. But would I want to live in New York, though it used to be my dream? I've thought about it and the answer is, probably not. You do not get any bang for your buck when it comes to rent, though another more lewd term may be used. New York has amazing theater, street food, and culture. But so does Chicago for a lot less price-wise (sortof).
Where will the road take me? I don't know. I am also interested in helping cities plan smart growth and Colorado, Atlanta, and Charlotte were all growing like crazy before the recession, so I may set my sights somewhere totally else. One thing I know, it won't be boring.
I Am Officially Old
I was walking home from work today and a kid, about eight or nine years old, came zooming by on his bike. The sun was shining and he was pedaling like the hounds of Hell were nipping at his heels.
Watching him speed away I realized that, at that age, being on a bike is about the fastest speed you're able to obtain legally under your own steam. You're way too young to drive, sledding down an iced-over hill is out of the question in most parts of California and only viable for a few months out of the year in other areas of the U.S. Even dirt bikes and four wheelers are usually reserved until you're a little older too.
But a bike? As soon as you're old enough not to instantly fall off of one, the world opens up. And I realized that there is a glorious, almost nirvanic kind of freedom obtained riding high on your two wheeler. Your mom can't micromanage your behavior, you can go where you want, (within reason), you control your destiny. Pretty awesome.
When I was a kid, my mom, being the good parent that she was, would force me and my brother outside when we came home from school, instead of letting us veg into front of the TV, our brains turning into tapioca. At the time it felt like cruel and unusual punishment- I mean TV or nature? No contest!
But now that I am old(er) I realize that some of my best times were outside, on my bike, riding around the neighborhood with my best friend, nipping down to the local grocery store to buy some candy, etc., While I enjoyed the TV shows of my youth I can't honestly say that some of my best memories were spent basking in the cathode rays.
For an event related to the grad school I am attending (USC!!!) I was supposed to compose a mini biography about my academic and career achievements. I chirped on and on (with a 120 word limit) about wanting to save the environment and use sustainable materials, etc., I realized that I also want to make this place a little better than I found it, be it in post-industrial downtowns or even in the suburbs.
This includes fostering environments where kids can safely bike, which is harder than it sounds. When I was a kid SUVs hadn't been invented. Hey, like my title said I Am Officially Old :) I bring this up not to sound like an old curmudegon, which I am in danger of becoming, but because , back then, yeah, in the good ol' days, it was easier for motorists to see a kid on a bike. Now in the age of the Excursion children's mortality rates are increasing and disease is not the only guilty party. I'll blame people talking on their cell phones too, though no mobile ever demanded that you use it while operating a two-ton vehicle at the same time. Just saying. . .
There is debate on what really are effective "traffic calming measures"- narrower streets, speed bumps, flashing signs, banning the use of cell phones while operating as the driver of a vehicle, etc., But regardless, whenever you are behind the wheel please drive defensively, especially in residential neighborhoods so that the little boy that I saw today and other kids can enjoy riding their bikes just as much as I did.
Watching him speed away I realized that, at that age, being on a bike is about the fastest speed you're able to obtain legally under your own steam. You're way too young to drive, sledding down an iced-over hill is out of the question in most parts of California and only viable for a few months out of the year in other areas of the U.S. Even dirt bikes and four wheelers are usually reserved until you're a little older too.
But a bike? As soon as you're old enough not to instantly fall off of one, the world opens up. And I realized that there is a glorious, almost nirvanic kind of freedom obtained riding high on your two wheeler. Your mom can't micromanage your behavior, you can go where you want, (within reason), you control your destiny. Pretty awesome.
When I was a kid, my mom, being the good parent that she was, would force me and my brother outside when we came home from school, instead of letting us veg into front of the TV, our brains turning into tapioca. At the time it felt like cruel and unusual punishment- I mean TV or nature? No contest!
But now that I am old(er) I realize that some of my best times were outside, on my bike, riding around the neighborhood with my best friend, nipping down to the local grocery store to buy some candy, etc., While I enjoyed the TV shows of my youth I can't honestly say that some of my best memories were spent basking in the cathode rays.
For an event related to the grad school I am attending (USC!!!) I was supposed to compose a mini biography about my academic and career achievements. I chirped on and on (with a 120 word limit) about wanting to save the environment and use sustainable materials, etc., I realized that I also want to make this place a little better than I found it, be it in post-industrial downtowns or even in the suburbs.
This includes fostering environments where kids can safely bike, which is harder than it sounds. When I was a kid SUVs hadn't been invented. Hey, like my title said I Am Officially Old :) I bring this up not to sound like an old curmudegon, which I am in danger of becoming, but because , back then, yeah, in the good ol' days, it was easier for motorists to see a kid on a bike. Now in the age of the Excursion children's mortality rates are increasing and disease is not the only guilty party. I'll blame people talking on their cell phones too, though no mobile ever demanded that you use it while operating a two-ton vehicle at the same time. Just saying. . .
There is debate on what really are effective "traffic calming measures"- narrower streets, speed bumps, flashing signs, banning the use of cell phones while operating as the driver of a vehicle, etc., But regardless, whenever you are behind the wheel please drive defensively, especially in residential neighborhoods so that the little boy that I saw today and other kids can enjoy riding their bikes just as much as I did.
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