San Francisco

While this winter hasn't been particularly harsh here in Michigan, any chance I have to escape for a while I relish the opportunity. This past weekend (and then some) I got to visit a place that's been on my bucket list for quite some time: San Francisco.

I am lucky enough to have a friend who now lives in Berkeley, which if you're unfamiliar, as I was, Berkeley is across the bay from San Francisco, practically a suburb. If San Francisco were Detroit then Berkeley would be, well, Berkley.

I had a quick trip, flying in late on Saturday night and leaving early on Wednesday morning, but the few days were enough to make me yearn for the bay area even more.

I've always envisioned myself as a person who would enjoy the west coast, particularly San Francisco northward. Los Angeles is still not attractive to me, but I'm sure one day I'll visit. After visiting the bay area, I can't imagine life without it, and my desire to move west has increased tenfold.

It was one thing to wake up every morning to a crisp temperature that you knew would warm during the day, unlike February mornings in Michigan where that temperature at seven a.m. may well be the high temperature for the day. It was another thing to venture into my friend's parking lot and peer down the foggy mountainside for the mysteries below. It was another thing entirely to turn around and see the bay laid out before me. While trees prevented complete views of the entire bay area, the little sliver of view was more than enough.

I had a fair amount of time to explore the city and major attractions on my own and a bit of time to have a guide in the shape of my resident friend. While there were so many things to see and enjoy, the three most prominent things I noticed were the multiculturalism, the sense of community, and the integration of all these different cultures. Naturally, I am forced to compare my experience with my experience of living in Detroit.

I generally feel that Detroit has a large sense of multiculturalism just as San Francisco does. What I found to be quite different was that San Francisco generally celebrated these differences in areas such as Chinatown, North Beach (the Italian neighborhood), French roadsigns, and of course the 'hippie' area in Haight-Ashbury. Each neighborhood was distinct and yet integrated into the landscape. It was never something that you felt like you were in a new city or encroaching into another culture, but that each of these cultures was what made the city thrive.

In my experiences in Detroit, this is a very different idea. While you can certainly experience different cultures, its like the neighborhoods were established to maintain identity and keep a stark border, not to celebrate our differences. This is the main part of that third thing I noticed; a stronger integration of cultures in San Francisco. This integration, both in race and culture, seems to be missing from the multiculturalism in Detroit.

It was my last day in San Francisco when I noticed while riding in the BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) that the collection of people in my car was very widespread. Being the entry port of Asia there were naturally many Asian people, but also African-Americans, all of us whities, and a wide variety of languages being spoken. And what was more interesting to me was the large number of multi-racial couples that didn't garner weird looks. And being San Francisco there were many same sex couples as well. People weren't eyeing each other through sideways glances and people weren't clumped with people who looked like them, everyone was just riding to work or school or wherever they were going.

This to me is the starkest different between San Francisco and my experiences in the Midwest. Its not that Detroit doesn't have different people and its not that the Midwest doesn't have culture, but the wide acceptance of different peoples doesn't seem to be as present. We have our neighborhoods and we have our sections of the city where people live, but there doesn't seem to be much co-mingling. Keep in mind  this is based solely on observation and not on any other hard evidence. I'm sure a quick search would tell me if San Francisco deals with many similar problems of segregation, but the perception for this outsider is that they have it right. People are people, no matter how they look.

The final observation and the one that makes me most attracted to the area is the strong sense of community. Its possible that it was so stark for me because I live in Detroit, a place where each suburb tries so hard to be distinct from the next and where borders are incredibly important. Its also possible that it was simply where I was or who I was with, but regardless, I felt a sense of community that doesn't exist where I live. I took a walk one night through my friend's neighborhood and saw many people on the streets and in their yards who would say hello or were simply out enjoying the wonderful evening. Cars flew by with a friendly sense of acknowledgment that I was a pedestrian, unlike in Detroit where if you don't have a car you're more likely to get a honk or some stare downs instead of respect on the roadway. Cyclists integrate seamlessly with traffic and while some are bolder than I could ever be, there is a respect that these people, like you, are just trying to get somewhere.

I have a hard time capturing what this feeling of community really was. Because I feel that the Midwest still has a warmer hospitality than California, but the community and acknowledgment that we're all in it together seemed to be stronger in the bay area. And this was a feeling not just in San Francisco, but also in Berkeley and in the towns near Berkeley and the towns north of San Francisco across the Golden Gate Bridge. And it seemed to transcend neighborhoods that were high tourist and neighborhoods that were slightly off the beaten path.

Again, I only observed a very small slice of the bay area, but the fact that I felt this in this small sliver leads me to believe that it is evident throughout the area.

I had a wonderful trip. The sights are gorgeous and the city is moving. I felt like a part of something there and I was there for just three short days. I can only anticipate the next time I shall return.

John Glenn 50 Years Later

Today marks 50 years since John Glenn sat in a tiny metal telephone booth and zoomed around the Earth. It doesn't seem like that great of an achievement in our time when we have cell phones that are more technologically advanced than the computers that sent him into orbit. But, make no mistake, his achievement is a big one for the US. And what I find even more remarkable of an achievement is that in roughly seven years Neil Armstrong would be standing on the moon and transmitting back to Earth.

In one of President Obama's recent speeches, I think last year's State of the Union, he asked us to find our 'Sputnik Moment.' He was referring to the awesome notion when the Soviets sent a satellite into space that essentially launched us into the space race and provided us with the motive for creating and establishing technologies that would be unrivaled for years to come. It is arguably the catalyst for President Kennedy's push to get to the moon in the decade. The type of innovation that took us from standing in awe at Sputnik to Neil Armstrong standing on the moon in about 15 years has not been mimicked to the same degree. You could answer that the technologies we use daily have moved just as fast, but your cell phone doesn't seem to unite people like landing on the moon did.

I'm all for a Sputnik moment. I hear President Obama's plea. But I think I speak for a lot of people when I say that I'm not entirely sure how to go about achieving it. Its like the president said, 'Hey, I'll be back here on Monday, and when I return I want you to have something really cool and innovative to show me.' What the heck is that supposed to be? How do you go be innovative? I think the complacency in this country lies somewhere in this question. Essentially, its much easier to keep things as they are and struggle to maintain the status quo than it is to be innovative.

I see this quest for our 'Sputnik moment' as wasted rhetoric. We can all talk about wanting to do something new and creative. Generally, I think most of us want to do something new and creative. But the focus and the drive isn't there. When the Soviets launched Sputnik and put a man in space, we were completely caught off guard. We were struggling to launch a successful rocket and not even thinking of human space flight. Yet due to international implications, we understood that we needed to not only get a rocket off the ground, we needed to do something before the Soviets.

Thus we launched into this quest to go to the moon. We spent tons of money, dumped a ton of resources into the programs, and put tons of our top minds on figuring out how to get there. In machines that have less processing power than your computer or mobile device you are reading this on we sent a man to the moon and brought him back. Its nothing short of incredible.

And the only thing that made it possible was incredible focus. We knew we needed to beat the Soviets. We knew we needed to catch up fast and we knew we needed to make the whole thing a national interest. Anyone alive in 1969 can probably tell you where they were when they saw the grainy images on the moon. Our generation's 'remember when' moments are 9/11 and where you were when you heard Michael Jackson died. Since when did our big moments become so depressing?

But the focus needed to land on the moon is missing. We hear that we lack motivation. We hear that we lack innovation. We hear that students aren't interested in science anymore. Nobody wants to do anything creative. I don't think any of those are true. More than ever people of my generation are volunteering and giving back. Creative ideas are out there. Much as I hate to say it, Facebook is a revolutionary device that has transformed our world. I often think there are too many negative repercussions, but the fact remains that things are different. You can't tell me that our generation is any dumber or unmotivated than any other generation.

What I think we truly lack is focus. Every day we hear about the problems that are happening in our country. Everyone has an opinion on how to solve them, but nobody seems to take any action. It is very easy to be a bit overwhelmed by the problems that we face. And I increasingly feel that we expect our president to come into office and tackle each problem that is important to us and get it solved in four years.

Just for a minute imagine if we made a goal that we would be 100% free of the use of oil and gas products by the end of 2020. And imagine that this wasn't just a goal but something we forced ourselves to do. You can bet that we would probably pour our resources into figuring this problem out. You can bet that there would be a great deal of money going into figuring out this problem and that by 2020 we will have it accomplished.

In the 1960's you would never hear members of Congress trying to slow down NASA in the race to the moon. You wouldn't hear about how President Kennedy unveiled a plan, but that there was already opposition to the fact that the Saturn V rocket was going to cost too much and that the money would be better placed in tax breaks. I realize times are different, but if we are truly going to have a 'Sputnik moment' I believe we need something to rally around. We need to have something that we as a nation will focus on with everything we've got. If we did this on enough problems instead of constantly being distracted we might just find that the solutions are right in front of us.

Power in Mentors

I had a good chat today. It doesn't happen all that often anymore. And that good chat comes after a good chat on Sunday. And that chat comes after a good chat on Saturday.

It seems like ever since becoming an adult, people are too busy to sit and chat with no real purpose other than to talk. And that lack of talk is hard to bear. It isn't easy to transition into 'real life' and it certainly isn't easy to move some place where you don't know anyone. As encouraging as I'd love to be in telling people that connecting with others and breaking into the culture of a place you've never lived, it just isn't anymore.

And back in the good old days, I used to have regular Deep Meaningful Conversations or DMCs with people that had good things to say. It wasn't about the topics of conversation, though the topics were always outstanding. It was always about enjoying the company of others and letting that conversation drift into a place of deeper meaning. And when you left, you felt like you learned something about that person that you thought you knew so well.

Today, the chat was about the need for a mentor. If there is one thing missing from my life at this moment, it is a mentor. While I often get to talk with people I trust, I don't have anyone sitting in my corner cheering me on in a mentoring capacity. I have plenty of cheerleaders, and that is certainly wonderful to have. My parents are great, my family is supportive, friends are always wonderful to hear from, but not always consistent, and my best friends are constantly excited about what I'm about to talk about next.

But, mentors are missing. The people who are able to tell you things you don't always want to hear and tell you what kind of work it takes to get places and the ones who can tell you that you're good at something and should find your way to use those strengths.

That kind of mentorship isn't easy to come by. It takes time and work and a general care for one another to develop the relationship into one where you can learn from one another. This type of relationship is something that in conversation today I realized is lacking in my life.

I think it stems from a great conversation I had with my AP English teacher from high school and a constant reminder of my supervisor in college. Both are now retired and able to tell me some great things about the world. And I am constantly surprised when both mentors tell me about how I have inspired them or helped them see something they didn't see before. Likewise, both are full of life and have lived the type of life that I'm interested in pursuing. Both are constantly waiting to see my name in the headlines, though I have no great desire to be there.

Its that type of relationship that I really need right now. I only wish these two wonderful people were a bit closer in my life and that we had a better opportunity to connect. I still don't get into technology all the time because you lose inflection and tone in e-mail and chat. You lose so much of what makes a conversation. You can be distracted and doing other things and it is seen as a norm through internet connections.

But when you and another person are in the same room, sharing a living space or a public space or really any space, you and that person become connected and engaged in a strong interaction that is tough to shake with distractions and outside influences.

I am excited to develop my mentorships and excited to find more mentorships in my life. I'm on my way towards something big, but I don't know what it is yet. Life is good. Life is fun. And slowly but surely, my life will be, as it always has been, passion filled.

78th Annual Hillsdale County Treasure Hunt

Whenever I head home I always have a strong sense of place. I call it my 'summer home' or sometimes the cottage, but in all reality its my childhood home that tends to be a nice breath of fresh air and break from the daily grind.

This weekend I went home to my cottage with a specific goal in mind. This weekend, was the 78th Annual Hillsdale County Treasure Hunt, and what a hunt it was. 

If you've never been on the hunt (and let's face it, unless you've lived in Hillsdale you've probably never heard of it) let me tell you what it's all about. The treasure hunt is an event where cars, typically of four people, drive recklessly around the county hunting down and finding 10 clues and in some cases, tokens, that are to be retrieved and then returned to the final destination to see who wins. The clues range in type from crossword puzzles, to cryptic clues, to clues where you must count mailboxes and road stripes in the dark, all in a route that spans many miles, takes many hours, and never takes you outside Hillsdale County.

This year, my Mom and Dad decided to come along with myself, one of my best friends, and one of our good neighbors. It was a great dynamic in our car and a quality team as we all had our strengths and useless knowledge stored away in our heads. Armed with flashlights, maps, and naturally pencils and paper, we set off to see what we could accomplish.

The race almost always begins at the Hillsdale County Fairgrounds, home of the most popular fair on earth. (Really, there's a sign.) And it usually draws around 100 cars full of people out ready to hunt. This year was no exception as the sun was creeping downward and we all waited in light jackets as the crisp fall air swept lightly through the grounds. To any who don't know about the Treasure Hunt, I'm sure the sight of a couple hundred people gathered around a building must look strange, but alas, this is a normal sight in Hillsdale.

Our first clue was taped to a wall of the Merchant's Hall, and after a brief welcome, a few ground rules, and a few hints, the hosts of the hunt allowed us to push and shove to our clue on the wall. To those with more aggression or anger issues the run back to their car was quick and easy. To those with a bit less aggression, the run back to their car was still quick and easy.

It was an audio clue on a CD (which, thank goodness we weren't in my car as I don't have a CD player) and the song set the tone for the night. After the song we learned that on the opposite end of the fairgrounds we would find our first clue (a word search) and the hunt was on.

It was 6 o'clock when we ripped those clues of the wall of the Merchant's Hall, and though we did get stuck a few times, we traversed the county until around 2:15 a.m. when we had all 10 clues and 2 tokens in hand. Naturally, we were outside the money as it took us a short 8 hours to complete the hunt, but the fact that we completed the hunt was a great accomplishment.

For me, (though I can't speak for all members in the car) this was never about winning. This hunt was about having a good night and having some fun doing something outside the ordinary. It is so easy to get swept up in excitement during the race as figuring out clues is always incredibly rewarding and finding clues in the dark, lonely roads of Hillsdale County near Halloween is always a bit thrilling. The teamwork and the frustrations that take place in the car are irreplaceable and it is a mark of the love of others that nobody ever gets too mad at their car mates.

I think the Treasure Hunt is one of those things that really allows you to see the true colors of a person. While its all fine and dandy at 6 p.m. and its still light out, doing complicated puzzles at 1 in the morning in the pitch black having never left the car except to stumble around for a clue changes how you might react. Your brain is groggy, your eyes are tired, and the perseverance it takes to continue solving a riddle or reading something backwards or decoding a puzzle of jumbled words is taxing.

But, that is the joy of the Treasure Hunt. And if you pick the right people (which we did) you always have fun. Inside jokes are made and memories are created and in the morning light you can sleepily reminisce about the hunt, look where we were on the map, and talk about how if we had noticed one detail a bit earlier we may well have been in the running, even though every year we are always one detail away from being in the running.

No, just as in travel the destination is never the best part (usually) and how in good movies and books the pieces leading up to the memorable ending are always better, the Treasure Hunt is far more about the clues in between than it is about coming in first place.

I'm glad I was able to participate and I'm glad I had the people I did in the car. I only hope when next October rolls around I'll be in a position to rally the crew and start hunting. 

Deleting Facebook

Wait, what does that say?

If you're on this blog you've probably seen that I am getting rid of Facebook. It's happening on Friday, just two short days away, and I can't wait.

Don't get me wrong, I think there are going to be some challenges. For one, people won't be randomly messaging me because something was posted on my wall. I won't be remembering things about people that I met that one time at the bar and saw again on campus later, such as birthdays. Such a shame.

Granted, fewer people will remember my birthday and I can no longer post some witty comment about the latest pop-culture silliness. But, then again, I rarely do anyway.

No, the greatest challenge I see is that I no longer have that time killer. I no longer have that thing to hop on and see what other people are up to. I no longer have that little piece of me that sits online and no longer need to take good photos for my profile picture. Any new updates will be outside my lingo and knowledge.

But, on the same note, those are all the things I'm most excited about as well. No longer will I be on the internet to check out random pages of people I never talk to anymore. I foresee one of two things happening, or maybe a bit of both. One, I will no longer be on the internet that much and be able to focus on some creative efforts or enjoying nature or reading. Or two, I will be on the internet, but researching things that I need to research, no longer concerned with finding something to post so that people will comment on my wall. My status, is no longer important.

I think I am going to find this experience to be quite liberating. I no longer need to worry what people are saying in their status. I no longer need to worry if some cryptic comment is a backhanded comment towards me. I no longer need to worry what my employers or future employers see. I no longer need to sensor my images and my beliefs and my interests so that it doesn't fall into the wrong hands.

I feel that Facebook has been a ball and chain for a while. It was fun when it was simple and just a few college buddies meeting up. It was fun when you could post a few photos and watch a few videos and share inside jokes with people for hours. But, now, for me, it has become a burden. A life I have to maintain outside my life that is already spinning. It has become another place for advertisers to bombard me with more pleas to buy, buy, buy.

I know it won't be easy and I'll lose several friends and I won't be invited to many events and I may even have more difficulty maintaining contact with some good people, but I gave advanced warning and did my best to find the contact information to people that I need. From here on out, people will need to call me, text me, or e-mail me, and if you don't have any of those, then we will wait for fate to bring us together. In which case we'll have something to talk about, because we haven't been caught up on Facebook. Think of this as a conversation starter. I know I will.

I'm excited to be free.