Travel Tuesdays-- Mounting the Rocky Steps

I'm not sure if it is real, or just something I've imagined, but there seems to be a bit of rivalry between Baltimore and Philadelphia. It would certainly make sense if such a rivalry existed-- separated by less than 80 miles, the two cities share a similar vibe, a similar love of food, a similar rich history, and, admittedly, a similar layer of grime over the beautiful city scape.

I've always decidedly known where I fall on the Crab Cakes vs. Cheese-steak debate, preparing the back-alley-Poe-death type of history to the pristine the-Consistituion-was-written-here variety, but recently found a new face on Philly. I am there at least four or five times a year for work, but often saw only the walk from the train station to the office. A few weeks back, my boss sponsored a team building event in the form of a city night lights tour, and guess what, Philadelphia is awesome.

On the night life tour, I learned about former speakeasies, the city's superstitions around William Penn, that M. Night Shamalyan growing up with such creepy thoughts might have have been impacted by his proximity to one eerie abandoned prison, and that lots of night life happens outside of South Street.

My loyalty is intact-- if you get to spend two days on the east coast, I vote Baltimore first, DC second, but if you have a third day, trek up to Philly. It's more than just cheese-steaks, as this night view from the Rocky Steps (also known as the Art Museum) proves.

Travel Tuesdays- There is no place like home

I've been a lot of places, seen a lot of stuff, and so I don't exactly feel like it is cheating to tout my love for my hometown on Travel Tuesday. Because:

1. It's my blog
2. I love Baltimore so much that I get to talk about it
3. It is a cool, and very under-rated town that more people should know about

And so, here are some photos of one of my many, many favorite parts of Baltimore: Patterson Park.

Patterson Park is Baltimore's version of Central Park. We have a duck pond, playgrounds, pavilions, a museum, the Pagoda, a Community Center, Ice Rink, ball fields, and tons of walking trails. And it is in the middle of the east side of the city, so it is close to lots of arts and culture!

And it is beautiful!

On Being Rejected and Loving Baltimore

Two concepts recently converged for me, reminding me of why I call Baltimore home!

Concept 1: I have to live somewhere diverse. I love places with lots of types of things to do and people from all different backgrounds and situations. These things breed possibility, and sometimes dissonance, and such things are fodder for the writer in me. Because of this, I love, love Baltimore.

Concept 2: I don't handle rejection well. Seriously, I don't. Innevitably after every rejection letter I receive, I spend at least a day convinced that I have absolutely no talent and should quit trying to be a writer. And the annoying thing is that I KNOW rejection is part of being a writer (and I do talk myself out of it), and I know I shouldn't get so upset, but I do.

These concepts converged on Tuesday night when I came home from a bad day at work to find a rejection letter. And the worst kind-- the kind I waited six weeks for and thought I had a real shot at. I commenced  my normal post-rejection letter freak out, which led to a trip to the grocery store for a post-rejection Berger Cookie.

If you're not from Baltimore, you may not know what a Berger cookie is, so let me enlighten you. This is a Berger cookie. It's like a cakey-cookie and fudge had a baby and their sweet baby helps get me out of a funk every now and again.

While in line to buy my Berger cookies, I noticed that behind me were two tall, muscular men in their mid-forties. They began discussing a friend's recent arrest, referring not only several bail bondsmen but also several guards at central booking by name. Following this, one man picks up a magazine about the upcoming wedding of Brad Pitt and Angelina Joley. He looks at his friend and says "Damn, it is about time he marries that woman."

The other man agrees, adding "And that mofo better $*)#( wear Armani to his #(%)#( wedding."

And I couldn't help but smile, inwardly thanking my city for always providing me with something random to make me laugh.

I immediately came home and began writing. I love you Baltimore!