Wednesday, June 27, 2007

i [heart]

i was in DC this past weekend at the ALA conference working, playing, and having a great time. while there, i met some tremendously interesting and inspiring librarians. after sharing my new city with a librarian from kansas, he asked what i liked best about san francisco.

i first offered the obvious: the beauty and the friendly, and then shared what i think captures a side of sf most people don't consider:

i love the castro. i love it for its openness and expressiveness, its energy and its individuality. people just do their thing, and it makes me happy. with a huge smile on my face, i told him, "now that's freedom."

it didn't occur to me until later that perhaps he was taken aback by what i said. i'd like to think he wasn't. and if he was, hopefully he considered a new perspective.

3 comments:

jewlee said...

Hey Beark......I too feel the same way about the castro....of course. I think it's great that you told your new friend about it. If he thinks about that area at all in a different light then that is a beautiful thing. I can't wait to see you in MN!

Much love to you...yo. Du

jini said...

well, of course part of my heart has been in san francisco for a long time. after this visit more of it resides there.....well you and david are there of course, but seeing more of the city just made me like it a lot more.
i suspect it's not always easy being in kansas these days, and your positive comments may have provided fresh air.
love you
hey, i bet it's good to be HOME!

Anonymous said...

It's always such a pleasant experience to see things through your eyes. You are able to capture so much emotion and insight with so few words. Welcome back to SF!