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Why I love Boston
I've read a number of "sick of Boston" posts and comments lately and it's getting to me. As I started to make a list of why I love Boston and it reminded me a lot of going to Columbia College. Columbia has stuck to a set of core classes (they have other names, but basically Literature, History of Philosophy, Art History, Music History and Writing). I was always surprised to hear people complaining about the core curriculum, because it's one of the things that Columbia is very proud of and it's all over their descriptions. If you didn't want to take those courses, why would you go there? Boston is like that for me.
Things I Love About Boston
• The Weather I've lived places with milder weather and there are certainly days I miss the warm breezes of Berkeley or the cool mists of London, but there's nowhere else that weather is so exciting and yet relatively mild. We get blizzards and hurricanes and heat waves, but we generally have the equipment and experience to deal. It's great to live somewhere that checking the forecast instead of the calendar is worthwhile and there are surprises all the time. We rarely have the same weather for more than a few days in a row and we get wonderfully dramatic moments. I was out in the monsoon on Thursday night and it was glorious! And then I came home and sat inside and listened to the wind whip around the house like a dragon attacking--whee!
• Driving I love to drive in Boston. I love that I can count on the people around me to go. The erratic behavior in the service of getting where you want to be makes it like the most immersive video game ever played--there's a van backing up three blocks the wrong way down a one way street! there's a pedestrian risking their lives! there's a flying tire! Having driven in a lot of different places, I'm always happy to be back here, part of the hive mind that makes the unpredictable an every day occurrence. I once flew back from London to drive my sister to & from work in the Financial District every day for a week (she'd broken her foot really badly)--that was so much fun!
• The Food There are places with great local specialties and areas with a wider range of haute cuisine or better Asian restaurants, but for me the great thing about Boston is the ubiquity of simple food. Want a slice or a sandwich or a gyro? Walk around the block in any of the high street areas and you'll find one. If anyone knows of someplace in San Francisco to get a gyro besides the place at 9th Ave & Lincoln, across from the park (where they're not great) let me know! I do know the one place to get a decent burger in London (c'mon, tikka masala is the national dish--burgers should be easy!). And if you want to blow a hundred bucks a person in the Boston area on great, creative food, talk to me.
• The History I love that it happened here and that the war that's still echoing here is the American Revolution. I love that my daughter's art class is around the corner from where the first shots were fired. I love the 19th century homes and the 20th century mistakes and the streets laid out for horse & carriage. I love that in order to understand local politics, you often have to go back decades. I love that when Boston Magazine prints a list of Famous Feuds, they start with the Franklin brothers (Philadelphia, you're welcome). I love that when you look up "firsts" you'll find many of them in Boston and I love that the spirit of innovation and rebellion is tradition here.
• The People I find the people here passionate and engaged and of infinite variety. There isn't one way to be strange in this city, there are thousands. They may not be friendly to strangers, but when they are friendly, they mean it. I love the intellectual breadth and depth of people here and the strong opinions to be had with little provocation. I love the students pouring back into the city every fall, getting their moving trucks stuck on Storrow and making it impossible to park and bringing their energy and creativity to bear on everything. If there is one reason that I live here instead of elsewhere, it's the fantastic people.
I know that Boston isn't for everyone. I know that there are majorly bad things here (the shameful level of segregation, the abandonment of public transportation in recent years, the political corruption in our Legislature, etc., etc.). I know that coming here for school often ties this place to the stress of those years and that workload. I know that coming here not-for-school can make it hard to connect. I'm not trying to convince anyone who hates the place to feel differently, or even to stay. But I love it here and I'm proud to live here and I invite you to join me in celebrating.
Things I Love About Boston
• The Weather I've lived places with milder weather and there are certainly days I miss the warm breezes of Berkeley or the cool mists of London, but there's nowhere else that weather is so exciting and yet relatively mild. We get blizzards and hurricanes and heat waves, but we generally have the equipment and experience to deal. It's great to live somewhere that checking the forecast instead of the calendar is worthwhile and there are surprises all the time. We rarely have the same weather for more than a few days in a row and we get wonderfully dramatic moments. I was out in the monsoon on Thursday night and it was glorious! And then I came home and sat inside and listened to the wind whip around the house like a dragon attacking--whee!
• Driving I love to drive in Boston. I love that I can count on the people around me to go. The erratic behavior in the service of getting where you want to be makes it like the most immersive video game ever played--there's a van backing up three blocks the wrong way down a one way street! there's a pedestrian risking their lives! there's a flying tire! Having driven in a lot of different places, I'm always happy to be back here, part of the hive mind that makes the unpredictable an every day occurrence. I once flew back from London to drive my sister to & from work in the Financial District every day for a week (she'd broken her foot really badly)--that was so much fun!
• The Food There are places with great local specialties and areas with a wider range of haute cuisine or better Asian restaurants, but for me the great thing about Boston is the ubiquity of simple food. Want a slice or a sandwich or a gyro? Walk around the block in any of the high street areas and you'll find one. If anyone knows of someplace in San Francisco to get a gyro besides the place at 9th Ave & Lincoln, across from the park (where they're not great) let me know! I do know the one place to get a decent burger in London (c'mon, tikka masala is the national dish--burgers should be easy!). And if you want to blow a hundred bucks a person in the Boston area on great, creative food, talk to me.
• The History I love that it happened here and that the war that's still echoing here is the American Revolution. I love that my daughter's art class is around the corner from where the first shots were fired. I love the 19th century homes and the 20th century mistakes and the streets laid out for horse & carriage. I love that in order to understand local politics, you often have to go back decades. I love that when Boston Magazine prints a list of Famous Feuds, they start with the Franklin brothers (Philadelphia, you're welcome). I love that when you look up "firsts" you'll find many of them in Boston and I love that the spirit of innovation and rebellion is tradition here.
• The People I find the people here passionate and engaged and of infinite variety. There isn't one way to be strange in this city, there are thousands. They may not be friendly to strangers, but when they are friendly, they mean it. I love the intellectual breadth and depth of people here and the strong opinions to be had with little provocation. I love the students pouring back into the city every fall, getting their moving trucks stuck on Storrow and making it impossible to park and bringing their energy and creativity to bear on everything. If there is one reason that I live here instead of elsewhere, it's the fantastic people.
I know that Boston isn't for everyone. I know that there are majorly bad things here (the shameful level of segregation, the abandonment of public transportation in recent years, the political corruption in our Legislature, etc., etc.). I know that coming here for school often ties this place to the stress of those years and that workload. I know that coming here not-for-school can make it hard to connect. I'm not trying to convince anyone who hates the place to feel differently, or even to stay. But I love it here and I'm proud to live here and I invite you to join me in celebrating.