For as long as I can remember I’ve been having a love affair with the city. I’ve been surrounded by the countryside and suburbia for all my life, but when I close my eyes I think of those long, lingering looks.
It’s not what most people assume. I don’t imagine the skyscrapers or have big, Broadway dreams. I fell in love with the side streets, the 24-hour coffee shops, and the opportunities.
A city is an enormous, breathing industry sucking up our money and positive emotions. However, after a long night in a jazz club, I forget that I’m broke and missed the last T. Instead, I’m smiling because the starry night fills the negative space of the skyline.
When I look into those urban eyes I see my future self. The commute to work that I’ll learn to loathe, or the street where that guy accidentally touched by boob while he was texting and walking at the same time. In the city, I see the drunken nights at my favorite bar where the bartender knows my name and shamelessly offers to take me home every Friday. I cannot wait until I laugh with my friends about the time one of us accidentally took home a college senior.
I want the small loft, the tight corners, and shitty roommates. The kind of roommates that have loud sex at 4 a.m., after I’ve announced I have to open the store at 5:30.
I crave a new perspective. All my trips to the city consisted of backseat views and dinners at restaurants I cannot afford. I’ve walked around downtown and stayed at a friends apartment, but I’ve never had that experience of being able to call an overpriced residence my own.
Of course, the most vital concept is the interaction.The workplace buddies and crushes. The fellow commuters I see after work at Kendall Square. The small conversations that happen while waiting for my scone. As someone who studies how communication shapes our world, I view the city as the ultimate social web. I just want to find my place among the spiders.
This summer I strive to find my side streets, to discover how long it takes to get across town, and find the group of friends who want to catch a late night movie. This summer is about starting my future. This summer is the start to a big adventure.
I feel like every liberated woman at the end of an indie romcom. But instead of having some realization that the man I’ve been sleeping with for 8 years will never leave his wife, I’m running into his arms as we finally put a deposit on that adorable 2 bedroom in Cambridge.
BOOTS & BISOUS 