Back to the Edge

After two and a half days in middle America, it's back to the eastern edge today as I catch a mid-morning flight to DC (Reagan National). And then I'll either Metro or hoof it (two miles) back to the house. It looks like the same sun will be shining at both ends of the trip. Breaking morning now is sunny and mid-afternoon then should be equally sun-filled.

We will have Meadville guests again this weekend (well northwest PA guests) which means a meal or two or three out to eat and some sightseeing. Always nice things to do. Especially with friends.

My thoughts on the three days here in the middle, based on what I saw and also what I heard from the people in my meeting: The people I met were friendly. Which is good because most of the non-meeting people I met were in the hospitality business one way or the other. But the friendliness seemed genuine regardless. The area seems to have been hit hard with urban flight over the past few decades. Prompted by a shifting economy and fear. Fear of others coming into the city - "others" as in not middle class not the same color not the same culture. Racism is pretty entrenched here as are middle lifestyle traditions ("It's the way we've always done things"). Taking a cue from last week's Dollhouse episode, it's very "vanilla."

I'm not so sure it's that much different from the rest of us. Maybe just a bit more concentrated and evident. Same dish just a bit saltier. People as a whole tend to exist in a fairly narrow continuum of personalities - in the middle or on the edge.