back in boston

i'm sitting here, on evan and sharon's incredibly comfy couch, back in somerville for one last time...for, i'm guessing, quite a while.

davis square feels very small. it got me thinking about how anonymity can make people feel free; you aren't held accountable to (aka compared with) someone you were yesterday; you are free to be completely new every day. for me, anyway, it feels like some level of being a nobody makes me feel like i can grow and develop most naturally.  and, of course, without having to make small talk with a million acquaintances. i guess the moral of the story is, i don't want to live in a small town at this point in my life, especially if i've already lived there before!

so, i was reading blogs this morning (as i regularly do), and a blogger mentioned something about clothing being "locationally relevant." this is exactly what i have been talking about.  especially with multiple cities on one agenda, one has to think about practicality and also relevance, and then overlap so you don't end up with a ton of overweight baggage charges (which i also regularly do, and then unpack and repack on the airport floor). 

for example, this year, i think i will do a much better job of packing for japan (wearing denim in sapporo just did not feel relevant or appropriate at all). washington d.c. was still a wardrobe mess- what i now realize would have been perfect is a military-style parka, maybe in an olive green or dusty gray.  i don't own one, but i think it would also be great for san francisco, so i'll be on the lookout. my two outerwear options that i had with me, a leather jacket and a full length coat with fur, were perfect for new york but made me feel positively ludicrous in d.c. amongst polar fleece and suits. 

the thing is, it's not really about blending in, because i wouldn't necessarily wear polar fleece nor a suit.  but, it is about thinking about how your personal taste can be relevant within a certain environment. it's about being yourself while still engaging in and being present with the world around you.  being on the same wavelength, i suppose. so, here is to locationally relevant dressing. 

on another note, i bought simone de beauvoir's "the second sex" at strand in nyc...i'm working my way through it. i'm still in the parts about biology and ancient history about women in tribes and such- and so far, have found the information to be relevant to things i've learned in class but not to things in my own life- but i have a feeling that as i keep plodding along through the pages, this will change.