So I'm supposed to keep a journal eh? It seems a bit presumtious to think that anyone wants to hear what I have to say. On the other hand, maybe they should. I'm much more interesting than lots of people.
I guess I'll comment on something I was thinking about today: Love/Hate relationships. I have a few going on right now. The biggest is with the area that I live in. This will probably make more sense to people who have spent time in my area, but maybe others can relate too.
I grew up in Boston, but I have spent the last 5 years in fascinating and mysterious Western Massachusetts. Northampton, to be specific. This town has a reputation for being a haven for lesbians, artists, aging hippies and all manner of freaks and weirdos. It is called "Paradise City", "The Land of Ten Thousand Lesbians", "The 'Hamp" by the older generation and "NoHo" by the young 'ns.
Now at the outset, there are many perks to living in such a wonderfully liberal town. People are active in local and national politics, there are vibrant local art and music scenes, educational institutions abound, I can recycle just about everything, folks are generally friendly and I can wear my hair however I want and nobody ever hassles me. (not to mention all the random Sonic Youth encounters)
In addition, Northampton is something of a tourist spot, so there are many fairs and sidewalk sales in the summer, plus an enormous selection of ethnic specialty restaurants to choose from. So what do I have to complain about you ask? I don't know exactly how to put my finger on it, but there is a vibe in town that just kind of gets to you after a while. I find myself saying the same thing about Northampton that people do about New York : I hate it for the exact same reasons I love it.
One of the first things that hits people who have been here long enough is that because we have the reputation we do, nobody lives here because they *have to*, they live here because they *want to*. We have no industry that supports the locals. There is no factory that the residents work at. The town is demographically split between the old timer "lifers" and the transient younger generation. Most of the regulars seem to live off of trust funds and other such niceties, while the kids work endless crappy jobs to afford the high cost of living.
Why I ended up here is a long story, but it never fails to surprise me how many twenty somethings come here for the promise of some kind of freak utopia. In the end what they usually find is crazy high rents and an almost total lack of good jobs.
Even the social setting gets old really quickly. Everyone in town is trying to out do everyone else. If you are a hippie, then you are the crunchiest tree hugger ever invented. If you dig the punk rock scene, then you have more studs than anyone before you. It's not enough to be gay, you have to be some kind of third gender Hedwig mind fuck or else you don't even register. All summer long kids ride the bus in from surrounding towns just to loiter on the sidewalk and pose for onlookers.
Speaking of the children, I feel for those youngsters who actually grow up here. Aside from the fact that the pedestrian friendly-to-a-fault atmosphere means they won't last 10 minutes if they ever travel to a real city, there is something to say for experiencing life outside of this glorious liberal bubble. Everyone is so god damned "open minded" here. You'd think that was a good thing, but if you've ever had the pleasure of having stangers' children come over and handle your food at a restaurant, then you know it's not all it's cracked up to be.
Before I wrap up this overlong tome, it is worth noting that it can be hard to maintain friendships in a place like this. All of the quality relationships I have had (outside of my girlfriend/future wife) have moved away. Some were students who moved on after they graduated, others simply burned out and went on to find more realistic locales. It gets pretty sad when your only friends are 2 hours or more away.
So there it is. Anyone out there who has any input on Northampton, or can relate in general, let me know what you think.
Thank you
"This ain't no Mecca man, this place is fucked"
I guess I'll comment on something I was thinking about today: Love/Hate relationships. I have a few going on right now. The biggest is with the area that I live in. This will probably make more sense to people who have spent time in my area, but maybe others can relate too.
I grew up in Boston, but I have spent the last 5 years in fascinating and mysterious Western Massachusetts. Northampton, to be specific. This town has a reputation for being a haven for lesbians, artists, aging hippies and all manner of freaks and weirdos. It is called "Paradise City", "The Land of Ten Thousand Lesbians", "The 'Hamp" by the older generation and "NoHo" by the young 'ns.
Now at the outset, there are many perks to living in such a wonderfully liberal town. People are active in local and national politics, there are vibrant local art and music scenes, educational institutions abound, I can recycle just about everything, folks are generally friendly and I can wear my hair however I want and nobody ever hassles me. (not to mention all the random Sonic Youth encounters)
In addition, Northampton is something of a tourist spot, so there are many fairs and sidewalk sales in the summer, plus an enormous selection of ethnic specialty restaurants to choose from. So what do I have to complain about you ask? I don't know exactly how to put my finger on it, but there is a vibe in town that just kind of gets to you after a while. I find myself saying the same thing about Northampton that people do about New York : I hate it for the exact same reasons I love it.
One of the first things that hits people who have been here long enough is that because we have the reputation we do, nobody lives here because they *have to*, they live here because they *want to*. We have no industry that supports the locals. There is no factory that the residents work at. The town is demographically split between the old timer "lifers" and the transient younger generation. Most of the regulars seem to live off of trust funds and other such niceties, while the kids work endless crappy jobs to afford the high cost of living.
Why I ended up here is a long story, but it never fails to surprise me how many twenty somethings come here for the promise of some kind of freak utopia. In the end what they usually find is crazy high rents and an almost total lack of good jobs.
Even the social setting gets old really quickly. Everyone in town is trying to out do everyone else. If you are a hippie, then you are the crunchiest tree hugger ever invented. If you dig the punk rock scene, then you have more studs than anyone before you. It's not enough to be gay, you have to be some kind of third gender Hedwig mind fuck or else you don't even register. All summer long kids ride the bus in from surrounding towns just to loiter on the sidewalk and pose for onlookers.
Speaking of the children, I feel for those youngsters who actually grow up here. Aside from the fact that the pedestrian friendly-to-a-fault atmosphere means they won't last 10 minutes if they ever travel to a real city, there is something to say for experiencing life outside of this glorious liberal bubble. Everyone is so god damned "open minded" here. You'd think that was a good thing, but if you've ever had the pleasure of having stangers' children come over and handle your food at a restaurant, then you know it's not all it's cracked up to be.
Before I wrap up this overlong tome, it is worth noting that it can be hard to maintain friendships in a place like this. All of the quality relationships I have had (outside of my girlfriend/future wife) have moved away. Some were students who moved on after they graduated, others simply burned out and went on to find more realistic locales. It gets pretty sad when your only friends are 2 hours or more away.
So there it is. Anyone out there who has any input on Northampton, or can relate in general, let me know what you think.
Thank you
"This ain't no Mecca man, this place is fucked"