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This started as a comment to ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
bearsir, who remarked that all of her grandparents live in Florida, "as you might expect".
My mother's parents used to winter in Florida until the travel got to be too much for them (I'd guess my grandfather was around 90 then), and then stayed in New York City for the rest of their long lives. My father's parents moved to senior citizen housing in Far Rockaway, Queens when they were around the age of your grandparents. I know people retire to Florida, but it's not something my family do: New York City appears to be the Promised Land.
That sounds facetious. It's not. My mother and her parents were born in Germany; my father's parents in what was then Czarist Russia. America, and New York, were safety. They raised families here, lived safe lives, and had no reason to move again.
It seems entirely reasonable to me that I am living, again/still, in New York, and slightly odd that my mother and brother have moved long distances away. Both for good reason, and both enough years ago that I'm used to it, but in some ways I think of New York as the place we come to, not from. Yes, I know the demographics; I know people move to the suburbs or California or any number of other places.
[This feels approximate and not quite right, but I'm going to post it; revisions and expansions possible, comments encouraged.]
bearsir, who remarked that all of her grandparents live in Florida, "as you might expect".My mother's parents used to winter in Florida until the travel got to be too much for them (I'd guess my grandfather was around 90 then), and then stayed in New York City for the rest of their long lives. My father's parents moved to senior citizen housing in Far Rockaway, Queens when they were around the age of your grandparents. I know people retire to Florida, but it's not something my family do: New York City appears to be the Promised Land.
That sounds facetious. It's not. My mother and her parents were born in Germany; my father's parents in what was then Czarist Russia. America, and New York, were safety. They raised families here, lived safe lives, and had no reason to move again.
It seems entirely reasonable to me that I am living, again/still, in New York, and slightly odd that my mother and brother have moved long distances away. Both for good reason, and both enough years ago that I'm used to it, but in some ways I think of New York as the place we come to, not from. Yes, I know the demographics; I know people move to the suburbs or California or any number of other places.
[This feels approximate and not quite right, but I'm going to post it; revisions and expansions possible, comments encouraged.]
This started as a comment to bearsir, who remarked that all of her grandparents live in Florida, "as you might expect".
My mother's parents used to winter in Florida until the travel got to be too much for them (I'd guess my grandfather was around 90 then), and then stayed in New York City for the rest of their long lives. My father's parents moved to senior citizen housing in Far Rockaway, Queens when they were around the age of your grandparents. I know people retire to Florida, but it's not something my family do: New York City appears to be the Promised Land.
That sounds facetious. It's not. My mother and her parents were born in Germany; my father's parents in what was then Czarist Russia. America, and New York, were safety. They raised families here, lived safe lives, and had no reason to move again.
It seems entirely reasonable to me that I am living, again/still, in New York, and slightly odd that my mother and brother have moved long distances away. Both for good reason, and both enough years ago that I'm used to it, but in some ways I think of New York as the place we come to, not from. Yes, I know the demographics; I know people move to the suburbs or California or any number of other places.
[This feels approximate and not quite right, but I'm going to post it; revisions and expansions possible, comments encouraged.]
bearsir, who remarked that all of her grandparents live in Florida, "as you might expect".My mother's parents used to winter in Florida until the travel got to be too much for them (I'd guess my grandfather was around 90 then), and then stayed in New York City for the rest of their long lives. My father's parents moved to senior citizen housing in Far Rockaway, Queens when they were around the age of your grandparents. I know people retire to Florida, but it's not something my family do: New York City appears to be the Promised Land.
That sounds facetious. It's not. My mother and her parents were born in Germany; my father's parents in what was then Czarist Russia. America, and New York, were safety. They raised families here, lived safe lives, and had no reason to move again.
It seems entirely reasonable to me that I am living, again/still, in New York, and slightly odd that my mother and brother have moved long distances away. Both for good reason, and both enough years ago that I'm used to it, but in some ways I think of New York as the place we come to, not from. Yes, I know the demographics; I know people move to the suburbs or California or any number of other places.
[This feels approximate and not quite right, but I'm going to post it; revisions and expansions possible, comments encouraged.]
The interesting part of the day was hanging out with cattitude. In addition to some good, reassuring conversation, we had a nice walk in a bit of Inwood Hill Park that wasn't really passable two days ago. I spotted two hawks, and then a downy woodpecker very near us. The swan has started chasing Canada geese, a project that seems hopeless on the face of it, given the relative numbers, but that we, and presumably he, know from past experience will eventually produce a goose-free inlet. I hope he finds a mate, but even if not, it's good for the reeds. It's also a sign of Spring.
I didn't go hang out with people in Flushing, as I'd half-intended--I wasn't feeling energetic, and there were boring chores that needed doing.
So, I have done the laundry. I have filled out the forms to get rebates on my fax/printer/copier; those will be in tomorrow morning's mail. I have done four exciting pages of proofreading, and faxed them back. The super has shown us how to turn the toilet valve off. Not my idea: they're turning the building cold water off at 8 a.m. tomorrow (it should be back on at 2 p.m.) and want us all to turn the toilets off as well. The announcement said to ask if we needed help; they seem to have thought through the difficulties inherent in having dozens of people all looking for the super at the same time, while trying to get out of the house for the day, and he went around this evening instead.
Now I just want random bits to stop itching (nothing that interesting, things like a spot on my forearm that looks like an insect bite, and the dry skin around my eyes).
cattitude. In addition to some good, reassuring conversation, we had a nice walk in a bit of Inwood Hill Park that wasn't really passable two days ago. I spotted two hawks, and then a downy woodpecker very near us. The swan has started chasing Canada geese, a project that seems hopeless on the face of it, given the relative numbers, but that we, and presumably he, know from past experience will eventually produce a goose-free inlet. I hope he finds a mate, but even if not, it's good for the reeds. It's also a sign of Spring.I didn't go hang out with people in Flushing, as I'd half-intended--I wasn't feeling energetic, and there were boring chores that needed doing.
So, I have done the laundry. I have filled out the forms to get rebates on my fax/printer/copier; those will be in tomorrow morning's mail. I have done four exciting pages of proofreading, and faxed them back. The super has shown us how to turn the toilet valve off. Not my idea: they're turning the building cold water off at 8 a.m. tomorrow (it should be back on at 2 p.m.) and want us all to turn the toilets off as well. The announcement said to ask if we needed help; they seem to have thought through the difficulties inherent in having dozens of people all looking for the super at the same time, while trying to get out of the house for the day, and he went around this evening instead.
Now I just want random bits to stop itching (nothing that interesting, things like a spot on my forearm that looks like an insect bite, and the dry skin around my eyes).
The interesting part of the day was hanging out with cattitude. In addition to some good, reassuring conversation, we had a nice walk in a bit of Inwood Hill Park that wasn't really passable two days ago. I spotted two hawks, and then a downy woodpecker very near us. The swan has started chasing Canada geese, a project that seems hopeless on the face of it, given the relative numbers, but that we, and presumably he, know from past experience will eventually produce a goose-free inlet. I hope he finds a mate, but even if not, it's good for the reeds. It's also a sign of Spring.
I didn't go hang out with people in Flushing, as I'd half-intended--I wasn't feeling energetic, and there were boring chores that needed doing.
So, I have done the laundry. I have filled out the forms to get rebates on my fax/printer/copier; those will be in tomorrow morning's mail. I have done four exciting pages of proofreading, and faxed them back. The super has shown us how to turn the toilet valve off. Not my idea: they're turning the building cold water off at 8 a.m. tomorrow (it should be back on at 2 p.m.) and want us all to turn the toilets off as well. The announcement said to ask if we needed help; they seem to have thought through the difficulties inherent in having dozens of people all looking for the super at the same time, while trying to get out of the house for the day, and he went around this evening instead.
Now I just want random bits to stop itching (nothing that interesting, things like a spot on my forearm that looks like an insect bite, and the dry skin around my eyes).
cattitude. In addition to some good, reassuring conversation, we had a nice walk in a bit of Inwood Hill Park that wasn't really passable two days ago. I spotted two hawks, and then a downy woodpecker very near us. The swan has started chasing Canada geese, a project that seems hopeless on the face of it, given the relative numbers, but that we, and presumably he, know from past experience will eventually produce a goose-free inlet. I hope he finds a mate, but even if not, it's good for the reeds. It's also a sign of Spring.I didn't go hang out with people in Flushing, as I'd half-intended--I wasn't feeling energetic, and there were boring chores that needed doing.
So, I have done the laundry. I have filled out the forms to get rebates on my fax/printer/copier; those will be in tomorrow morning's mail. I have done four exciting pages of proofreading, and faxed them back. The super has shown us how to turn the toilet valve off. Not my idea: they're turning the building cold water off at 8 a.m. tomorrow (it should be back on at 2 p.m.) and want us all to turn the toilets off as well. The announcement said to ask if we needed help; they seem to have thought through the difficulties inherent in having dozens of people all looking for the super at the same time, while trying to get out of the house for the day, and he went around this evening instead.
Now I just want random bits to stop itching (nothing that interesting, things like a spot on my forearm that looks like an insect bite, and the dry skin around my eyes).
.