‘Tis The Season
Take a breather.
Step outside the city limits.
I am, to my fathers horror and my bank accounts detriment, a city girl.
My element is a rooftop bar, not a backyard baby shower.
But, my God, am I happy to come home tothe suburbs, the land of infinite parking.
With that said, when I come home, it has to be a microdose.
I can only take suburbia in small spurts.
In spurts, its rejuvenating.
I turn into another person there.
Part of this is simply the space that suburbs have.
And the same principle of space carries over into so much of what makes the suburbs good.
People have the storage space for really impressive holiday decorations in their attics and basements and garages.
One girl from my high school changes her home decor each season!
Watching a movie with a bottle of wine in someones basement?
A choice of couches (plural)?
The suburbs are designed for this kind of ease.
The biggest part of this?
Car culture, baby!
(JK, do not break the law.)
Occasionally theyll give me specific instructions on which routes to use to avoid mall traffic.
You call that traffic?
In so many ways, the suburbs are simpler than cities.
In the suburbs, youre probably not far from aCheesecake Factoryand its magical warm brown bread.
My parents knowtheir neighborsand are involved in their lives, and their neighbors are involved back.
Being in the suburbs is about being comfortable, and Ilovecomfort.
However, barring catastrophe, Im notmoving back.
But theyre also invigorating, idiosyncratic, and inspiring (and in many waysmore eco-friendly).
Theyre full of people youdontknow, which presents freedom in the form of anonymity.
I like that most of my friends around me are making some kind of art.
But sometimes existing in that constant state of striving wears you down.
I want the relaxation, the focus on what really matters, which is slowing down.
I want to take the edge off.
And fortunately, its difficult to match the woozy high of a suburban mall at Christmastime.
