Madison
I’m reading the Althouse archives right now and just feeling a huge wave of homesickness for Madison. I see the pictures of Library Mall and Bascom Hill and Abe Lincoln, those familiar paths that I trod almost daily through sun and snow and ice, and I wish I could be back there, 5-degree weather and all.
Although I’ve lived most of my life in the Milwaukee area, I spent eight years in Madison—three as a child and five as a college student. In my heart, Madison has always been my hometown.
Madison has an incredible amount of energy for a small city (even through the brutal winter), and I miss being part of a community that cares so deeply about being involved and helping each other.
It’s especially apparent during election seasons, when Madison just explodes with awesome craziness and Pittsburgh…goes on as usual, including re-electing Luke Ravenstahl (aka Frat Boy Mayor) in a landslide. I mentioned Sue Bauman (former Madison mayor) before. Well, she didn’t do anything half as colossally stupid as what Ravenstahl’s done, and she didn’t even make it out of the primary for her re-election campaign. In fact, out of the six candidates running for mayor that year, she came in fourth. I miss that kind of brutal accountability for government.
In the summer, I miss the best damn farmer’s market I’ve ever seen. My friends and I used to head up to the Capitol on Sundays, pausing for a coffee on State Street, then getting breakfast on the square. A mini-loaf of fresh-baked bread from one vendor, some gourmet honey or homemade jam and a pint of raspberries from another, and maybe a bouquet of flowers or a new houseplant to brighten up the dorm room.
I miss eating brats and ice cream at the Union Terrace, watching the Hoofers sail on the lake.
Last weekend was prospective weekend for Carnegie Mellon Psychology. I always feel kind of bad because I’m supposed to be selling the recruits on the department here, but I can’t stop myself from lighting up and gushing whenever someone tells me they’re also considering UW-Madison.
One of my friends is moving to Madison next week. I am deeply jealous.
Chipanglish
CogKnition
Gustatory Circuit
I hope you weren’t looking for the Farmers’ Market on Sundays. If you were, you’d end up with Capitol Loop traffic, Scanner Dan, and Piccolo Guy. The market is on Saturdays.