Musings on Asheville
I had a minor revelation this past weekend.
I am a different person when I am in Asheville. I would even go so far as to say I am a better person when I am in Asheville.
This epiphany came when I was in the yard on Sunday morning helping oneandonlymatt do some clean up. I was hot, there were mosquitoes and I was picking up sticks from the yard. These are not things I enjoy doing. Then, a cricket landed on my shorts. When I went to swipe it off, it held on to my finger for its dear little cricket life. I freaked out. I screamed. I danced. I just wanted the cricket to go away. I was as though it was a locust or a venomous scorpion. I realized I hated being in my yard.
When I am up in North Carolina, I don't have the same anxiety. I'm not afraid of the bugs or wild life there. Hell, I wasn't even afraid of the bat that circled our tiny barn room at 1:15am. I actually felt bad for it. A cricket is far less menacing than a bat, don't you think?
When I am in Asheville I enjoy doing the work that needs to be done to make it a better place. I have moved rocks to the spring. I have placed a statue in a sacred place. I have helped to build a deck that serves as a place to shower. I shower on that deck - outside with a propane heated camp shower. I like it. I sleep in an old barn. I build a fire. I don't shower for days, unless we are going anywhere important like into Asheville proper. When I am at home, I can't stand being awake and not being showered. At home, I wake when the sun hits the bedroom window. Even on Saturdays. I generally get up around 7am. I have slept until noon in the barn.
Why do I feel differently in North Carolina than I do in Atlanta? Maybe I am away from the stress of my day-to-day job. I like my job overall, but I loath the idea of a job. In Asheville, I can do what I want when I want and even when I have certain things to accomplish I don't feel the same sense of dread when I think about having to actually do it. I also feel like I have more of an outlet to be creative. I'm not sure if it is the surroundings or if it is the fact that my mind can switch gears. But at home, when I get home from work all I want to do is sit in front of the TV or computer and do mindless things. I have done a lot of writing in Asheville.
I like living in Atlanta. I love my Atlanta friends. But I am a different person in Asheville. I am a better person there.
Oh, I apologize if that got a little angsty in the end. That was not exactly my intention. I still don't have an answer for myself, but I feel better having written it out. Thanks for listening.
I am a different person when I am in Asheville. I would even go so far as to say I am a better person when I am in Asheville.
This epiphany came when I was in the yard on Sunday morning helping oneandonlymatt do some clean up. I was hot, there were mosquitoes and I was picking up sticks from the yard. These are not things I enjoy doing. Then, a cricket landed on my shorts. When I went to swipe it off, it held on to my finger for its dear little cricket life. I freaked out. I screamed. I danced. I just wanted the cricket to go away. I was as though it was a locust or a venomous scorpion. I realized I hated being in my yard.
When I am up in North Carolina, I don't have the same anxiety. I'm not afraid of the bugs or wild life there. Hell, I wasn't even afraid of the bat that circled our tiny barn room at 1:15am. I actually felt bad for it. A cricket is far less menacing than a bat, don't you think?
When I am in Asheville I enjoy doing the work that needs to be done to make it a better place. I have moved rocks to the spring. I have placed a statue in a sacred place. I have helped to build a deck that serves as a place to shower. I shower on that deck - outside with a propane heated camp shower. I like it. I sleep in an old barn. I build a fire. I don't shower for days, unless we are going anywhere important like into Asheville proper. When I am at home, I can't stand being awake and not being showered. At home, I wake when the sun hits the bedroom window. Even on Saturdays. I generally get up around 7am. I have slept until noon in the barn.
Why do I feel differently in North Carolina than I do in Atlanta? Maybe I am away from the stress of my day-to-day job. I like my job overall, but I loath the idea of a job. In Asheville, I can do what I want when I want and even when I have certain things to accomplish I don't feel the same sense of dread when I think about having to actually do it. I also feel like I have more of an outlet to be creative. I'm not sure if it is the surroundings or if it is the fact that my mind can switch gears. But at home, when I get home from work all I want to do is sit in front of the TV or computer and do mindless things. I have done a lot of writing in Asheville.
I like living in Atlanta. I love my Atlanta friends. But I am a different person in Asheville. I am a better person there.
Oh, I apologize if that got a little angsty in the end. That was not exactly my intention. I still don't have an answer for myself, but I feel better having written it out. Thanks for listening.