Steppin' Out in the City

I may have mentioned before, in some blog post or other, that this Kansas City living is a new thing for me. It's the first time I've lived within a city. Most other times I've lived "not far from", "on the outskirts of", "within an ass' roar of" (that last must have been when I lived in Ireland) cities.

Now, midtown. Not all that far from downtown.

And it's good.

There's more noise than other places we've lived. West 31st. street is busy—even more since it's become a major detour route due to work on I-35 on-ramps near here. So my haiku mention sirens more often than previously. But it's still good.

Cities have things going on that smaller communities don't necessarily have available. That said, we didn't manage to enjoy the "Shakespeare in the Park" performances a couple of months ago. Our loss. And there are museums yet to be visited—although we have, on past trips here, visited them.

Five minutes away there's a local place we go have breakfast every couple of weeks or so. With friends. It's not "coffee and croissants on the Rive Gauche." No, this is the US, and the Midwest moreover. A local diner. Been there a long time. Will be there a long time yet. A good place to eat.

Ten minutes, or less, in the other direction we have the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts. Our season tickets for the Kansas City Symphony came early this month. It will be a lot easier to reach than the San Francisco Symphony, to which we'd go when we lived in the Bay Area.

I'm slowly getting to know the neighborhoods in the city. As I've said to others—it's a nice town. Good green areas, fountains, gardens, good food, good people.

I may yet become "city folk."

Small Stones

Somehow, in a fit of madness I suspect, I signed up for writing a small stone (defined at the link just to the left) every day this January. This January in which we move from Foster City, California to Kansas City, Missouri.

This January in which the movers arrive...tomorrow and sweep through the house like a plague of locusts. Let us pray to all that's good and holy that they don't pack up the cats!

This January when I take leave of my senses, take leave of Foster City, and drive 1,800 miles East.

This January.

My small stone for today was:

The moon, bright, white, shines down on a lake made blue and rose in the dawn of a new year.

It may be found in the comments on this post. 

I shall miss the lake. And friends. And the Bay Area. And Silicon Valley. And the San Francisco Symphony. And San Francisco itself.

Let I look forward to the Midwest. To other friends who've become dear over the past 19 years. To Kansas City that I've watched change in glimpses every Christmas over the same near-two decades.

And maybe, who knows, I may become part of Silicon Prairie now that Google is busy wiring the place with fiber. And yes, they've (whoever "they" may be) begun calling a portion of the Midwest "Silicon Prairie."