random thoughts from bostonia

i'm sitting here in cafe luna, supposedly working on my portfolio. i say supposedly because, obviously, i'm not. but the point is, i should be. i actually have a date with my supervisors to present my portfolio to them--meaning i have homework. my mind is a little too jittery right now though, so i thought i'd put some thoughts on paper (proverbial paper?). maybe this way, i can clear it up a little.

i was thinking about co-op and how we all end up in different places with virtually nothing to start with. i came to boston with two suitcases and no expectation--landing in somerville with a married german couple and julia. the summer was fresh in my head but i knew the winter would be a completely different experience--not better, not worse, just different. i have to say, while i think the weather makes for a melancholy setting, i believe bostonians to be much more pleasant this time around. i've found myself in random conversation with plenty of people and despite their outward snobbery, the folks i've met have been sincerely nice. while attempting, once again, to work on my portfolio on thursday, i spent roughly 2 hours talking to this jazz sax player about music and life and how it's funny that we were having an actual conversation instead of depending on technology for socialization. it was incredible and to think it occured in a city famous for being rude astounded me. we left with nothing more than our names and the idea that maybe we'd meet again, but it'd be ok if we didn't because at least we had those two hours.

each time i've been here (each 3 month increment, i mean), my life has taken various different turns. it's a tease, this whole co-op thing. we get so comfortable in different places and then, magically, we're expected to revert to our old lives in cincinnati, pulling all nighters and casually falling into conversation with people who keep changing. not that i'm in any hurry to graduate, but sometimes i like to settle into my life for a minute and wonder what it'd be like if this was really the beginning. what if i lived in cambridge or somerville and this was my life? spending saturday afternoons with a mocha and my work, listening to a live jazz band with berklee grads (and a violin?!), wondering what i'll be doing in 2 hours. being able to hop on the red line just two stops down to grab a drink and listen to some good live music, no cover charge. mingling with musicians (because that's who i seem to acquire as friends when i'm on my own, don't know why) and artists, discussing different perspectives on literature and coffee. i mean, it's always rough in the beginning to get my bearings in a new place, but it's always unfair in the end to just drop it all and move back to the stale rituals of cincinnati. it's like the longer i'm away from there, the more i realize the pains of coming back.

whew, ok. i think my brain has been emptied out a little bit and perhaps i can go back to working on my portfolio. onward, self! onward!