reposted from a (personal) email I received (to me, from someone who is not me, into my personal inbox, on my email account, recently):
i didn't find the architecture to be all that impressive. i had favorite buildings, for sure. my favorite buildings are scattered through the world. any in boston ... hm, i like the brattle theatre.
chicago has this cold vibe of a really polished passive aggression. there appears to be no glimmer of hope. it's the people, but it's also the city really being owned by the mob, and all entertainment available seems to be a diversion, in a very low sense that roils me. chicago is also spread out like a horrible moss or mold, with that sharp jut of buildings at the downtown loop. i know chicago is renowned for its architecture, so anything i could say against it would hit that wall of acclaim, but, their city planning, in nearly every neighborhood i visited, is out of whack. chicago is so busy trying to be big that it forgets how to relate to the land, and land is the most important thing about a city.
seattle is nice because of all the islands, the coast-like effects of the lakes in such proximity to the pacific. the mountains are incredible, and they're to the west and east. i don't know if you're a sky person; the chicago sky was incredible in its expanse. here in seattle, it's the clouds that are impressive. they appear together in the sky in all sorts of shapes and colors. it looks like cloudcon up there. i've yet to learn the full extent of the climate (only been here since april). the people here are cool. there is this myth that pacific northwest people are passive-aggressive, and people from this area seem to like to keep that myth going--it's in ads and such. ad for tully's coffee: picture of the coffee cup, and the line "nice, but not in that pacific northwest passive-aggressive kind of way." but seriously, these people need to see midwesterners! at least chicagoans, illinois, michigan, and ohio. indiana is just full of pure hate rather than passive aggression. wisconsin, from what i've seen, and minnesota, seem to have avoided this and are extremely pleasant.
my favorite three u.s. cities, and the only places i'd want to live if it were up to me (and not my partner's wish), are seattle, madison wisconsin, and ithaca new york.
i didn't find the architecture to be all that impressive. i had favorite buildings, for sure. my favorite buildings are scattered through the world. any in boston ... hm, i like the brattle theatre.
chicago has this cold vibe of a really polished passive aggression. there appears to be no glimmer of hope. it's the people, but it's also the city really being owned by the mob, and all entertainment available seems to be a diversion, in a very low sense that roils me. chicago is also spread out like a horrible moss or mold, with that sharp jut of buildings at the downtown loop. i know chicago is renowned for its architecture, so anything i could say against it would hit that wall of acclaim, but, their city planning, in nearly every neighborhood i visited, is out of whack. chicago is so busy trying to be big that it forgets how to relate to the land, and land is the most important thing about a city.
seattle is nice because of all the islands, the coast-like effects of the lakes in such proximity to the pacific. the mountains are incredible, and they're to the west and east. i don't know if you're a sky person; the chicago sky was incredible in its expanse. here in seattle, it's the clouds that are impressive. they appear together in the sky in all sorts of shapes and colors. it looks like cloudcon up there. i've yet to learn the full extent of the climate (only been here since april). the people here are cool. there is this myth that pacific northwest people are passive-aggressive, and people from this area seem to like to keep that myth going--it's in ads and such. ad for tully's coffee: picture of the coffee cup, and the line "nice, but not in that pacific northwest passive-aggressive kind of way." but seriously, these people need to see midwesterners! at least chicagoans, illinois, michigan, and ohio. indiana is just full of pure hate rather than passive aggression. wisconsin, from what i've seen, and minnesota, seem to have avoided this and are extremely pleasant.
my favorite three u.s. cities, and the only places i'd want to live if it were up to me (and not my partner's wish), are seattle, madison wisconsin, and ithaca new york.
