PICTURES!!! I DID IT!!

(picutres: future president, my dad, in a replica of the oval office at clinton library; me - Little Rock Rocks!; dad "pumping gas" at the museum for the little rock central high school crisis. yes, we make a mockery of serious things.)

today - dad and i toured the clinton library and little rock central high school museum (civil rights monument). really cool. more later.

staying in "the rock"

a.k.a. "little rock", arkansas. left nashville yesterday and headed to little rock, via memphis. stopped in memphis for about an hour to walk up and down beal st - which is actually REALLY SEEDY in the daylight. but there was a live band playing in a shabby little park off to the side, and though there were only about 5 people watching, they were really rocking. very cool.

i walked into this unbelievable store on beal - can't remember the name - shevda's or something - it was like stepping back in time. and through molasses. things moved really slowly in there. the air was humid and dusty and i felt myself stepping slower. they sold everything there. candy, souvenirs, nick nacks. overalls, long underwear, walking sticks, teapots, everything, - ladies' hats, too. all in these waist-high shallow wooden bins, evenly spaced throughout the ware-house sized room. wooden, creaky floors that felt like they'd been there forever. i was over by the long underwear section (just to look!), and this older gentleman with large sunglasses on (i think he was blind), was questioning the store's owner about the long underwear. he was wearing a worn suit that seemed so southern to me - thin tie, wrapped into a bow, walking stick, brown overcoat and pants, straw hat. he actually had a drawl "i work at the...uh....penitentiary....uh in xxxx (can't remember the town), and we're (wee-ahhh) looking to sell things like drawers (drawahs) and undahshirts and even ladies' brahs." they were striking a deal of some sort - to sell the goods that the prisoners were making. the old guy went on "and i had heard (huh-ahd) about you from your fawthuh, and probably your grandfawthuh."

it was like eavesdropping on a conversation from the past. in a william faulkner novel.

drove through flat, flat n. arkansas to little rock (interesting: st. louis is the gateway to the west because no one could cross the mississippi river at any earlier point. n. arkansas was all marshland. then they tore all the marsh trees down, and made the land into rice fields. now arkansas is the nation's largest rice producer). nealon met me at the clinton library. nealon's a great friend - originally from ak, went to school outside of little rock, and interned with the clinton foundation - now he works there. he gave me the driving tour of the town and we ate in a kitchy little italian place...owned by a belgian.

dad flew in last night to help me with the driving as far as salt lake city (HE can drive a standard). we're staying at the comfort inn (free wifi!), along with loads of hurricane victims from neighboring louisiana. people are clearly living here. coming down for meals with their kids; older people sitting in the lounge in their pyjamas; national guardsmen in uniforms on their way -- where? to help? people are trading stories of where you can go to get supplies on your way home (walmart has clothing and gas, i guess). touring little rock today and then west tomorrow!
ps. mom - there's no WAY you can borrow my boots. they're mine, all mine!

nashville - so much to report!

weeeeellll, this town is just so cool! mir took me all around to some cool areas, including east nashville (where apparently, no one ever goes - it's a little rougher, but up and coming now, because it's cheap). live music is everywhere. even in the sweet shop.

walked into a coffee shop on tues to use the bathroom and miriam ran into someone she knew! JAKE BRENNAN. apparently, worked in our office at harvard just before i arrived there. he's a musician, and super into the music scene in boston (rockabilly), and was dressed like a denim warrior, with hair gelled up into a punky pompadour. retro-cool.

well, we told him we were planning on going to the lucinda williams concert at the ryman that night, and he knew the opening act!!! (a rockabilly band - cc adcock). CRAZY connections from boston run deep.

the concert was amazing. cc adcock and his band were amazing. and seeing it all in the ryman auditorium - original home of the grand ol' opry and stage for countless country legends - was almost a religious experience. and it wasn't just the stained glass windows or the pews that gave us the feeling (well, maybe a little bit). the energy of that place was full, and warm, and raw, and made you smile just by the feel of it. people of all ages, and definitely all political persuasions were there to hear some stories, harmonies, and killer guitar. it was unbelievable (the bassist - this is a base cello he was plucking - for cc adcock at one point leaned the cello upright and slightly to the side, and STOOD ON IT, while plucking. not sure i can describe it very well, but it was so cool).

other cool things:
1. i bought a killer pair of brown and pink cowboy boots that i absolutely cannot afford, but also absolutely love.
2. apparently all around the south are these things called "meat and three"s, which is where you get one meat plate and three veggie side plates (mac and cheese is a veggie)
3. churches here are HUGE. and there are alot of them. each one is practically a cathedral, and has a school attached to it - monstrous, large buildings. like nothing i've ever seen. and they're everywhere. one huge complex after another. is that all really necessary? couldn't we use the space and timber for something like....houses for people without houses?

still. love this town. and love miriam. so, another person i will miss very much. then again, she says if i don't find a job in ca, i can always come back to nashville. hmmmmmmmm.

Good will hunting...gone

saw "good will hunting" on tv last night at miriam's. had scenes of fenway, boston, cambridge, h square and central and the red line. funny thing, i had to change the station. it made me sad - but not in a current, homesick way. kind of nostalgic for something that's over and can't really be current again. or something. a part of me that is done. i love that part of me, but it's not relevant anymore.

a clear sign i'm doing the right thing? or a gentle reminder? i guess you know you're getting old when you recognize ghosts of yourself in the places you used to live.

the scenic route

from IN through KY to TN (nashville). it was a long drive, but really beautiful. some parts of rural southern indiana looked just like rural maine, nh or vt, believe it or not. i know it's a cliche, but the scenery was like a merry go round of farms, churches, dead downtowns, and gleaming new walmart-themed strip malls. lowe's hardware, home depot, staples, you name it - it's all there and brand, brand new. i guess these are the new "downtowns"

it's still shocking to see the same thing over and over and over again in each new town: martin, jasper, huntingburg, dale, IN. all the same - sprawling country, boarded up storefronts with churches open for business, and shiny new malls.

some funny signs along the way:

"Welcome to Martin County Hills: the best gypsum, the biggest catfish"
"Video rental/Tanning"
"German American Insurance" (just in case you lose your german americans, insure your supply today! - jasper, IN)
"To laugh each day is like inner jogging." (church in huntingsburg, IN)

all in all, it was a pretty uneventful ride, colored by the "America: the book (the audiobook)" from the daily show guys (hilarious), and the anti-abortion/UN billboards.

and don't forget, oct 2 is the first annual "take a child hunting" day. i'm not sure i can even comment on that one.

now i'm with miriam in nashville, which is truly a very cool town. saw some western swing last night, and hoping to buy some kick ass boots. more updates later. oh! and wifi is FREE everywhere. cafes, restaurants, from indy to nashville. just free. they expect you to buy a cup of coffee or something, but you don't pay for the wifi. how cool is that? definitely a nice change from the Northeast.

ps. forgot to mention the NUCLEAR POWER PLANT. drove right by it. i knew they existed (like, on the simpsons...and in france), but had never seen one here before. it was huge.

Nashville, here i come!

still figuring out the route to nashville (not sure - scenic or faster?) but will leave in about an hour. bloomington's been a blast, despite the rain. dinner last night was lovely at a place called tutto bene (mediterranean-themed tapas type deal), and then i hung out with some sociologists watching tv (the phrase "cultural capital" was thrown around liberally).

oh! any book recommendations? i got 'the kite runner' on audible.com to listen to while i drive, but am not sure what else to get. ERIN S. i *know* you have a suggestion. EMILY, you too. LEIA? (i'm not reading 'a tale of two cities' again. sidney carton may be hunky, but i'd risk falling asleep at the wheel, what with all that dickensian description).

wish me luck on the next leg of the journey!

damn you, rita!

rain, rain, and more rain. and another "america"-themed headline on fox news ("america's challenge" - haven't they already used that one before?)

saw "tim burton's corpse bride" today. really great little film. MG - i'm talking to you, go see it. really neat. and only 70 min!

forgot one more thing from yesterday -

mom and i managed to set off the alarm at the indianapolis public library (i read the sign that said "do not open door. alarm will sound." i opened it. alarm sounded. it was super embarrasing)

and so sorry to misrepresent christi's alma mater - INDIANA UNIVERSITY - for the record.

for those of you who are interested, you can check out my best friend leia's blog: http://www.figure.this.blogspot.com and my friend molly's blog: http://www.mollyblair.blogspot.com . i'll try to figure out the official "links" section of the site soon.

sorry about the lack of pics. still need a chord that will hook my camera up to my computer. but the camera is working - thanks, MG!

oh! and bloomington rocks

funky little town with coffee shops and restaurants. and....urban outfitters? at least it has a town center...with people walking around....and stuff.

boy, people in indiana aren't shy about wearing shirts that say 'indiana.' just in case they get lost.

(here are pics of a) christi in front of her university, and b) the two of us after an excellent italian dinner at a little bistro in bloomington)

I left my pillow in indianapolis.

(pictures: mom fiercely driving a stick shift...for 5 miles; mom in front of the amish cheese shop; the carnage at a monument remembering the men and women who gave their lives for the transportation system of ohio. seriously.)

now, pillowless, i'm at the home of christi smith, fellow smithie and current phd student at u of indy in bloomington.

the journey: made the looong drive with mom yesterday across NY, PN, OH to IN and indianapolis. NINE HOURS. all but five minutes i drove myself (mom's stickshift-phobic. no, not phobic - panic. we spent a couple of harrowing minutes at an indiana truck stop trying to pull on to the main drag.).

interesting signs along the way: "buffalo: an all american city."
and
"fireworks and karate supplies"
right before
"fireworks and pepper spray"
(apparently, buying fireworks in ohio is so dangerous that you need some form of self defense to make it out of the parking lot alive).

pictures soon, as soon as i figure out the digital camera thing.


oh! and indianapolis is the WEIRDEST city. as far as we could tell, it's one big mall. and a lot of restaurants that MUST house at least 300 people - and the servings were huge. my mom and i are small people. we can't eat 1/4 of a key lime pie. but we had a fabulous dinner at the Oceanaire - decorated like a 1930s art deco ocean liner. it was gorgeous.

also for the record

we're staying with great friends the dufords. eric duford is a sophomore in hs and is very cool. he's schooled me in the world of high school girls' blogs. apparently it's a whole thing. so much to learn on this journey!

for the record (and because he complained)

the whole "blog thing" was guy keeley's idea. it's true. i'm a poser. but post anyway, dammit!

takeoff/grandpa mele.

finally left today. FINALLY. have been running around like mad and i'm finally off. packed up my life (suprisingly, most of it fits in the trunk), and mom in tow, headed west. excellent start: picked mom up at dean college, where HERRELL'S was giving out free ice cream cones. score.

drove through berkshires to albany and grandpa mele, who lives at an independent living facility (read: college for old people) called coburg. we had dinner in the lovely dining room, sitting with three lovely ladies who informed me that there was plenty of gossip to be had at coburg. but they were reluctant to give it out (darn).

grandpa mele was in fine form. he's "quite busy". he's taking a painting class to "see what it's all about", which is after his lectures at the hospital (he's a doctor) on strokes, and "tumors of the breast (they serve a nice lunch at that one)." he's also an avid bridge player - as are many other coburgites ("yes. i play bridge, but i'm not a barracuda. i try to smile a lot.").

for those of you who don't know, my grandpa is 90 (and tells everyone he meets), and italian. his name's dominick and he's practically the mayor of coburg. at one point, we were sitting in the dining room, and he looked around and said to us: "yes. i think i know just about everyone here."

tonight with friends in rochester. tomorrow, indiana! hopefully, i'll get my mom to drive a stick shift somewhere in ohio, so i can get a break. in the meantime, i'm trying to keep the showtunes and soft rock to a minimum. but there's no telling what will happen if she breaks out the "ultimate broadway" cd.

i'm also working on this digital camera so we can get some visuals. hm.......

not always cranky.

friends threw me the most fabulous going away party on friday. it was a great celebration (like a wedding, except i didn't have to share the limelight with...anyone. heheh).

i will MISS this place. grew up in wrentham, went to college in northampton, lived in somerville, worked in cambridge. i'm a masshole. but, man, i need to move on. stay tuned. t-minus two days until takeoff (thursday).

journal entry from august.

**um....this explains most of my recent story. tho' i was a little cranky when i wrote it. oops.**

So, I'm walking home from work last night. and the air is thick and moist and hot, and coats my throat as i'm walking and dripping premenstrual tears of loneliness, when i pass by the back of the unitarian church.

there's smooth swing music melting from the open windows, and inside, against the background of deep red walls, several couples are smiling, and dancing, and spinning around. it's a swing class. they're trying creative moves - sliding this way, pulling that way, twirling left, right, and across the floor. other classmates are standing by the wall, practicing steps, watching or chatting.

and i stood outside watching this scene. and the summer rain was dripping on my humidified hair. and my cheeks were wet with self-pity. and i thought "well, isn't this a perfect freaking metaphor."

alone, wet, outside of a warm happy coccoon of couplehood.

so, i'm doing something. i'm running away from my loneliness, on a cross country trip that will zig zag most of the continent in search of friend's floors to sleep on. i'm running to california (where does everyone go?). i'm one of those people - the ones who "go west" to "figure stuff out." i used to hate those people.

so, this is it.

I'm moving from Boston. I have a blog. Stay tuned for more about ME.