 I am an East Coast expatriate hiding out in the Midwest... I am an urban gal living in the suburbs and occasionally hiding in the country I am a yoga practitioner, fitness enthusiast, believer in the mind-body-spirit connection... I am a mid-life "revert" to the Roman Catholic faith in which I was raised and which has become an enormous source of support, encouragement, inspiration, and joy in my life... I am a mom, sister, daughter, and wife... I am an explorer; adventurous and curious about the world and people around me... I am educated in the formal sense but I gain insight through everyday living... I created this blog at a time of great fear and apprehension in my life. I chose to sustain it because of the discoveries about myself and the world around me that it has revealed. What you can expect to find here: the documentation of a love-hate relationship with the greater Philadelphia area
reminiscing about the good-ole-days (the 80's!)
complaints about my various ailments and injuries, both real and imagined
pictures and stories of gardening, decorating, shopping, sewing
my love of irony
links to kooky news stories
way too much scatological musing for sane people
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Saturday, November 27, 2004
(warning: the following post is likely the most treacly entry to date. diabetics beware!)
From the title of my blog, there is an implied melancholy, the feeling of geographically-detached identity crisis.
But yet again, my little "Village" that I now call home has reminded me why I live here.
This morning my family and I woke up bright and early, gobbled down a quick breakfast and sped to the "downtown" part of the neighborhood to the local movie theatre. This morning was "Movie With the Mayor and Santa" - a free event for the family (you were asked to donate a non-perishable food item for a local food pantry or a new, unwrapped toy, as your admission.) Our mayor cheerfully greeted each entrant and collected the donated items. As my daughter sheepishly handed over a heavy bag of canned goods, the Mayor bent down and said to her, "This is so nice of you to help people who might be hungry and need food to eat."
Inside the lobby, Jolly Old St. Nick sat on a black leather loveseat (!) and talked to children while digital cameras snapped left and right.
Once inside the theatre, before the screening of "Elf" (which I can now heartily recommend!) each child was given a raffle ticket, and they did a drawing for a huge vareity of toys purchased and donated by local businesses. My daughter won a prize and she selected a large Snow White "Pillow Buddy".
Then the Mayor came in and welcomed everyone, and introduced Santa who said a few words, and then on with the show.
I made sure to thank the Mayor for her efforts in putting this event together; she replied, "Thank you for coming out. I'm so glad you and you family are enjoying it."
Upon exiting the show, everyone got a candy cane.
I am continually blown away with the enormous sense of community in this "little" town (population 76,000!) This community caring and pride is the reason I literally weep at our town's 4th of July parade, grin widely when we visit our library "Bookmobile," brag to family and friends about our local park activities, and, in turn, make an effort to do most of my shopping at local businesses.
As a former urbanite, I am thrilled that we didn't end up in a soul-less cookie-cutter sprawl of suburbia but rather, in a town with clear sense of identity and heart.
As Dorothy Gale once said, "There's No Place Like Home."
I am more than inclined to agree.
Posted at 12:24 pm by brandy101
 | | | Lyly
November 28, 2004 01:53 AM PST
!!send insulin quick!! hehe. | |
| | | brandy101
November 27, 2004 01:12 PM PST
I didn't want to mention it but I had figured your "alter ego" out, mostly by the other visitors; i.e. - same blog buddies on your "vanilla" blog.
I try to visit again v. soon! :) | |
| | | Greg
November 27, 2004 12:46 PM PST
Sounds like a lovely place. My town (pop. 100,000) has very little sense of community, and it's sad to me. One of the (many) reasons I want to move to the South.
Anyway, in case you didn't know it, I was "Darkside". I've closed it up, but I wanted to thank you for your advice and support. Things aren't completely solved, but seem to be headed in the right direction.
Have you visited my photo/poetry blog? There's a link to it from my main blog, if you're interested.
Take care, and have a great weekend! *hugs* | |
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