Monday, April 30, 2007

my new kentucky home...

perhaps it's a result of being surrounded by tree- and plant-geeks, but i get the feeling that folks in kentucky know their natural environment much, much better than washingtonians/new yorkers/bostonites. or, perhaps it's a result of being surrounded by natural environments (well, sort of...), rather than urban playgrounds. in any case, it looks like i'm going to have to get to know my trees and shrubs and wildflowers, otherwise i'm going to spend my time here feeling like an idiot.

the previous paragraph is the direct result of a hike i went on last week - a wildflower hike at a nearby creek. the woman i was with pointed out and named every flash of color (and there were many) along the water. she named many of the trees, too. granted, she's a botanist, but still...my bona-fide city credentials aren't doing me too well in this place!

speaking of which - i have joined the ranks of the non-city dwellers, or rather, the ranks of those who cannot rely on public transporation. this isn't going to help me get to know my plants (well, not directly, anyway!), but it does make me feel a little more like i've 'arrived' in my new mid-western life. this is definitely a big step - aside from the financial plunge, it's a little intimidating to think about the responsibilities that come with owning my own half-ton piece of metal. eek. still, i'm looking forward to zipping about town and getting to know the region a bit better now that my radius of travel has increased (there's only so much you can get to on two feet...even my own well-traveled ones!)

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