Wordless Wednesday: A bit of natural light May 23, 2012
Posted by mareserinitatis in photography.Tags: city lights, Minneapolis, moon, pictures, wordless wednesday
add a comment
In the middle February 26, 2012
Posted by mareserinitatis in Fargo, personal.Tags: cities, fargo, Minneapolis, small towns
2 comments
It’s hard living in Fargo…and not because of the weather.
When I was a kid living in the western part of ND and the eastern part of MT, there were a lot of things that were different. I really like small towns because people know each other and are always willing to help each other out (except for a few ornery people). It was easy to get certain foods like unhomogenized milk or fresh eggs (and usually a lot cheaper than the organic eggs and, if I can even find it, unhomogenized milk that I try to buy now). And there’s pretty much no commute. Of course, it was hard to get other things (like pretty much everything else), the standard of living was not as nice, and the conservative mindset drives me nuts. Oh yeah…and the schools weren’t all that great.
On the other hand, I really hate living in big cities. I hate commuting; it’s stressful and sucks the energy from me. I have horrible asthma even when the smog is at the lowest levels. In fact, it took over a year before I could breathe normally after moving back from Minneapolis. People are rude and inconsiderate. But then I miss certain things like some of the cultural events, cool stores (I’m sorry – I’m a diehard Trader Joes fan), and being closer to other things I like. (I lived in the northern suburbs of Minneapolis and Los Angeles, and there were some real beautiful parks and other places within a couple hours drive.)
Living in Fargo is difficult because it has just enough culture to want to stay but not enough that you don’t miss some of the other things. It feels like a small town because the people are still friendly, and on many occasions, I’ve been helped by strangers when an emergency struck. However, some of the perks of small town life aren’t available.
I don’t feel like I really want to live in a small town, but nor do I want to live in the city. Fargo is a nice compromise, but I feel like I enjoy living here because I don’t want to suck it up and either move to the country or the big city.
Driving with the younger son July 26, 2011
Posted by mareserinitatis in family, younger son.Tags: Deer Crossing, Impala, Minneapolis, Rush, u2, Vapor Trail
add a comment
This weekend, we took a trip to Minneapolis for the U2 concert. In case you weren’t aware, tickets went on sale for this 1 1/2-2 years ago. The concert was supposed to happen last summer, but Bono hurt his back, and it ended up being postponed.
I plan on writing a bit more about the concert itself…including some science! But I’m tired so I’ll just tell you about the beginning of the trip.
The older son is off visiting family elsewhere, so it was just Mike, myself, and the younger son. About fifteen minutes before we were to leave, the song Vapor Trail by Rush popped into my head. It’s a great song, particularly the rhythm. On the other hand, it has some of the most depressing lyrics I’ve ever heard in a song.
The younger son has either been a Rush fan since he was in utero or he has a pretty strong genetic predisposition to liking their music. Mike owns several of their albums and has seen them in concert twice. I’ve seen them three times, in approximately 8 year intervals. I’m hoping they’re still touring in 2018 when I will probably have the opportunity to see them again. At least that’s my prediction based on the current time series.
Back to the younger son, Vapor Trail has been one of his favorite songs for at least half of his life. As evidence, this is him singing the song at four years old. Before I pulled out the camera, he was doing his best Eyore impression, but he decided to get serious. His brother is reminding him of the lyrics.
Wouldn’t you know it, fifteen minutes down the road, we had this conversation.
“Mom, are we listening to the radio?”
“No, my iPod.”
“Can we listen to Vapor Trail?”
At least this trip, we only had to listen to it fewer than half a dozen times.
About 45 minutes later, we’re driving through an area of the interstate surrounded by trees.
“Mom! I saw a sign for an impala.”
“What?!”
“Yeah, impalas jump!”
Apparently, what he saw was a deer crossing sign, and because it was an impala-ish looking thing that jumped, it must be an impala. I can’t say I would have come up with that one myself.
I also blog at Engineer Blogs, home away from home to some of the best engineering blogs.