Places

August 19, 2009
We're in Flint, Michigan. Might as well be another planet. We started off in the peace and beauty of the U.P. and ended up here. The bridge was a trip this morning. It seemed huge. According to a postcard I saw, including the approaches, the bridge is 5 miles long. It's an attractive structure. They were working on it, so we were in the inside lane, and there was equipment between us and the view sometimes, but it was still a nice sight. Then it was a few more hours of nice scenery until we gradually ran into more traffic and eventually, 4 lanes of it. By the time we drove by Saginaw, we knew we were back in what people tend to call “civilization.” I think we were going by the outskirts of Saginaw—at least I hope so, because it seemed to be pretty industrial. There was a weird smell in the air. Thirty miles later, Flint. Bill's stress level kept rising as the traffic got thicker. I don't blame him. There's a reason I hate driving.
This seems like urban with some grit added in. Minneapolis, St. Paul, and Fargo were urban. The first two were pleasant enough. They seemed like nice places, even if they were large and too busy for my taste. I wouldn't want to live there. I didn't much care for Fargo, but it was still not quite like this. I could visit the Twin Cities again. I hope to never be here after tomorrow. Of course, tomorrow I will be just outside of Cleveland, so I am not sure how much of an improvement that will be. I am sure that there are people who adore Cleveland. I have only been there once. I have what is probably an ignorant and stereotypical idea about Cleveland not being very inviting. And since I will just be passing through, tomorrow will not do anything to enlighten me, I suppose. I have been thinking today that Burlington will be interesting. We read that it is the smallest town to be the largest city in a state. The population is about 35,000 people, I think—maybe a few thousand more—so it's about the size of Klamath Falls. But it's close to places like Boston and Montreal, and seems to have some really progressive thinkers. I know from experience that you can't go by what you see on the web. There were things in Klamath Falls that looked really good until I got there and saw the reality, which was nothing like what was advertised. So I am either a chump or a hopeless optimist or something, because even after my experience in Klamath Falls, I am really starting to see possibilities for our time in Vermont. I am hoping that some of this stuff really is happening and really is there for me to be involved in. The Quaker Earthcare organization is based there. The Quakers seem like they're active and involved. There's a whole bunch of stuff. So I am starting to feel hopeful about what we will discover. And the city is small enough to be comfortable and not so small that we will be isolated. Larger cities are close by in case the opportunity to do projects or some other kind of work comes up. And it would be nice to see Quebec again. Bill and I went there for a weekend once (when we lived in NH) but that was about 25 years ago. Anyway, those are my rambling thoughts about places for today.
Tomorrow, Cleveland.