My impressions
My sister said to me, "In the pacific northwest you feel like a midwesterner but when you get to the midwest you will feel like a Pacific Northwesterner." She is so right.
Even though I have lived in the midwest and have visited (almost) annually I am able to see through a new lens.
So here are some impressions. As you will see some are Indiapolis specific and others are more regional.
1. Fewer people recyle here. And by fewer I mean almost no businesses. It is terrible. Aggregious. Unethical. I went to a super hipter-ish coffee shop and they gave me a latte in a styrofoam cup. Seriously people styrofoam is so so bad for the environment. We need to stop.
2. There are churches everywhere. Seriously everywhere.
3. There are however more bugs than churches. I cannot believe how many bugs are everywhere. This world is full of bugs. They are loud, they are crawly and flying. It is so strange. There is a sound-track to the summer here. And this soundtrack is so distinctive. I keep having moments where I feel like I am in a movie that takes place in the south and the background sound of the heat is bugs.
4. Most of the people i have met have never lived outside of the midwest for longer than a month or two. My preferred way of approaching that is to be respectful and honoring of the deep wisdom they must have about this place. It is also kind of strange. In Seattle almost no one had lived in the area their whole lives. . .I think their are some pitfalls to this permanence of place; the first is probably that exposure to diversity tends to make people see the world in a more complex way- but I am sure their are others. Above all though, I think it is helpful to have a positive perspective on it.
5. Unlike Seattle where artists were getting more and more scooted out of the city Indianapolis (and Indiana generally) is very affordable. People can afford to start little businesses or to have an art studio and stuff. I can feel the affordability of this city in the way that art is all around here and that local businesses that are not super hip and trendy are able to exist here.
6. Even hipsters are mostly friendly here. Yup. The midwest, known for it's friendliness, is full of smiley people inquiring, "how are you?" It get's old at moments but the honest truth is that there is a general amiability about this place. People are not snobs. Being a snob or being cold and uncaring is not the thing here. Indifference isn't the game and I'm happy to not play it.
7. The summer produce here is AMAZING. I miss the berries of the northwest, but we are eating tomatoes like candy (seriously over the last 3 days Miriam ate and entire 1 gallon bucket of cherry tomatoes by herself). We had eggplant parm--- basically from my sisters garden layered with the produce she bequeathed us. The watermelons are so good. And apparently there some kind of unique Indiana cantaloupe which is the shit (except that I don't like cantaloupe so this is Sean's reference)
8. There is a good food scene. Phew.
9. School here seems to be kind of a different beast. On Vashon I think parents took their kids out of school all the time for all kinds of things. It required paperwork and explaining why. Here I think that people don't do that. My impression is that people are more likely to circle their lives around school rather than circle school around their lives. The whole school thing is kind a big headache right now so I shouldn't really get into it.
Even though I have lived in the midwest and have visited (almost) annually I am able to see through a new lens.
So here are some impressions. As you will see some are Indiapolis specific and others are more regional.
1. Fewer people recyle here. And by fewer I mean almost no businesses. It is terrible. Aggregious. Unethical. I went to a super hipter-ish coffee shop and they gave me a latte in a styrofoam cup. Seriously people styrofoam is so so bad for the environment. We need to stop.
2. There are churches everywhere. Seriously everywhere.
3. There are however more bugs than churches. I cannot believe how many bugs are everywhere. This world is full of bugs. They are loud, they are crawly and flying. It is so strange. There is a sound-track to the summer here. And this soundtrack is so distinctive. I keep having moments where I feel like I am in a movie that takes place in the south and the background sound of the heat is bugs.
4. Most of the people i have met have never lived outside of the midwest for longer than a month or two. My preferred way of approaching that is to be respectful and honoring of the deep wisdom they must have about this place. It is also kind of strange. In Seattle almost no one had lived in the area their whole lives. . .I think their are some pitfalls to this permanence of place; the first is probably that exposure to diversity tends to make people see the world in a more complex way- but I am sure their are others. Above all though, I think it is helpful to have a positive perspective on it.
5. Unlike Seattle where artists were getting more and more scooted out of the city Indianapolis (and Indiana generally) is very affordable. People can afford to start little businesses or to have an art studio and stuff. I can feel the affordability of this city in the way that art is all around here and that local businesses that are not super hip and trendy are able to exist here.
6. Even hipsters are mostly friendly here. Yup. The midwest, known for it's friendliness, is full of smiley people inquiring, "how are you?" It get's old at moments but the honest truth is that there is a general amiability about this place. People are not snobs. Being a snob or being cold and uncaring is not the thing here. Indifference isn't the game and I'm happy to not play it.
7. The summer produce here is AMAZING. I miss the berries of the northwest, but we are eating tomatoes like candy (seriously over the last 3 days Miriam ate and entire 1 gallon bucket of cherry tomatoes by herself). We had eggplant parm--- basically from my sisters garden layered with the produce she bequeathed us. The watermelons are so good. And apparently there some kind of unique Indiana cantaloupe which is the shit (except that I don't like cantaloupe so this is Sean's reference)
8. There is a good food scene. Phew.
9. School here seems to be kind of a different beast. On Vashon I think parents took their kids out of school all the time for all kinds of things. It required paperwork and explaining why. Here I think that people don't do that. My impression is that people are more likely to circle their lives around school rather than circle school around their lives. The whole school thing is kind a big headache right now so I shouldn't really get into it.
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