Eric Milford :: Web Developer & Food Advocate

I finally get it.

There is a genuine love and appreciation for this town. I'm quite certain it is unparalleled. There is a level of pride found within its inhabitants. I admittedly never really understood. But I am beginning to see; as I explore neighborhoods, interact with the locals, and begin to find my place. The energy -- the life beat and sensory overload. It makes everywhere else seem to stand still. The overwhelming abundance of choice, opportunity, and possibility. The millions of people who inhabit it. It's making sense.

I'll manage anywhere thanks to my life experiences, but I never truly fit in DC. That has become significantly more apparent and prevalent as I teeter on the border of my 30s. DC has a mold and it's a mold that I quite simply do not fit. It's not that I can relate to each and every person on the New York City streets. Lord knows the majority here are the yin to my yang in every way conceivable. But here that's okay. There is a comfort in being different and I appreciate that.

This place is a people watcher's dream - history, struggle, culture, diversity. Stimuli -- some good, some bad. There is variety, oddness, acceptance, and style. DC inhabitants seem to have stemmed from the same stencil. We work the same jobs, dress in the same dull, unimaginative fashion, and share similar interests. I work for "the State Department" (or as some prefer, Treasury). I work on "The Hill" for Congressman/woman so-and-so. I work for [insert non-profit] to end/help/fight [insert cause]. It is flat.

It is beyond freezing. The wind is piercing, funneled down the chute-like city streets by a cross pattern of building after building. Yet still the city is saturated with life. Runners -- they're still crazy in my eyes, but they persist nonetheless. There are children in the parks, playing basketball and skateboarding. The dog park is a fury frenzy of wrestling, fetch, and tail chasing, as owners converse with other owners. The cold, and probably anything for that matter, simply can not slow the pulse of this town.

Anyway, much yet to say and experiences to share. But for now, I have people to meet and places to be.