under my thumb

i feel a little lucky to be a transplant to Minneapolis. i grew up in a small town west of here and for as long as i can remember i felt a pull to devour whatever was "out there" in the big city of Minneapolis. i probably only came to the city about 3 times in my entire childhood.... and those were ALL on fieldtrips. i always thought that living in the city would be wildly exciting and endlessly stimulating. when i first moved here just a few short years ago... i didn't know anyone. i didn't know how to get anywhere. but it really didn't matter because i had no idea where "anywhere" was or what i would find when i got there... i didn't know how to parallel park. i still remember the first time i tried to park in uptown and bursting into tears eventually thinking i was an idiot for ever thinking i could live in the city. but Minneapolis welcomed me in with open arms. the thing i remember most about meeting people back then was that i just kept thinking... oh my god... all of these people are so interesting! you see, i guess i was part of a little bit of a subculture... my boyfriend at the time was really involved in the music scene here and so instantly i was thrust into a group full of musicians, artists, music heads, photgraphers, hippies and all around good folks. back where i come from... there's like one guy that has a band... and guess what he moved here.... and you never meet artists....and if you do they paint wildlife (not that there's anything wrong with that) photography is generally of flowers...  quickly my spirit was overwhelmed with the feeling that i belonged here... surrounded by all of this collective experience.

now... i think Minneapolis is small. i have made a lot of friends and the feeling that the city is vast and thrilling has faded slightly... i will admit that... but now i feel like it's a city with a small town heart. i still believe that the people sharing this cool metropolis with me are some of the most interesting cats out there... and as much as i travel... and explore... i always find that this is my favorite city of them all. whatever secret recipe we've got going on here ... suits me just fine.

and, yes, i painted late last night... and early this morning... and i should be exhausted after this marathon week but i am bright eyes and loud music... loving this wave.