chargirlgenius

Nope, still not on a diet. But I want to talk about food, overeating, and exercise.

( Why it’s not our fault. And I might piss people off. )

On the Kojo Naamdi show right now, they’re discussing a new law in Virginia. The Commonwealth will apparently no longer maintain cul-de-sacs that are built after July 1st.

I think this is brilliant. Callers are upset about this, because their kids play in the streets, and they feel that they’d lose the play space. Well, frankly, if a cul-de-sac is your own private play space and not actually a public thoroughfare, it should be treated like a driveway. Once people are responsible for plowing and maintaining their own playspaces, they might think twice about it being the best place to live. Why should the rest of the community subsidize plowing what is essentially private space? Never mind that when I was a kid I was taught not to play in the street…

I wanted Kojo to ask these callers if their kids could walk to school, a library, a park, or to a store. I moved from a grid street to a cul de sac when I was 10 years old. When I was living on a grid street, I was walking all around town when I was seven years old. After we moved, I couldn't walk or ride anywhere, partially because it was too far, and partially because the connecter roads were too dangerous.

Now, I live in a town where kids who live within sight of schools have to be bussed, because the connector roads in between are too dangerous to walk on, they don’t even have sidewalks.

I wrote an email to the show, but of course it never got read. Alas!

Not about people who don’t buy a house because of the paint colors, this time…

This isn’t particularly a kvetch about the show itself, but about a mind set.

The couple last night was living in Austin, and *needed* a bigger new house for their four member family. They were living in only 3200 square feet, and their poor kids had to share a bathroom!

Aw. Hear me cry for them.

Actually, I *am* sad for them. The whole episode, they kept talking about making sure that everybody had enough separate space. “We want a main floor master so we can be separate from the kids.” “The kids need space to be separate from each other.” They were looking for a house with a room that could be used as a second TV room for the kids. At the end, with the ruckus of kids in the background, they joked "I thought we had soundproofing in here!" I got the sense that they weren't really joking.

Now, Househunters International is my new favorite show. Tonight was a guy moving to Cognac, France, and I could die from how wonderful the houses were. He ended up with the place in town, with a view of people, and (as the realtor put it) of life!

Watching these homebuying shows, I’ve got to wonder if we’ve all gotten too engrossed with the idea of getting our own space, and shutting ourselves off. Families want places with a bathroom for everybody, where nobody has to spit in the same sink. They want a big yard for the kids to play in. Really, what’s better for kids? A big yard to play in, or a little yard, and a neighborhood with other diverse areas to explore? reabhecc once gave the boys a book called The Do Something Day, about a boy who runs away from home and visits all of the people in his neighborhood. As I read it, I keep wondering about his neighborhood, and the fruit seller, the baker, the car repairman, etc.

The most important parts of my yard were the swingset, which attracted all of the neighbors, and the bushes, which we hid under. The bushes were on the edges. I don’t remember the wide expanses of lawn vividly. I *do* remember the fences and bushes and hidden edges in my friend’s yard.

ren_flora pointed me towards the discipline of childhood geographies. I found some info through the wonders of Google, but very little (so far) about how childhood geographies are affected by suburbia. Too bad I'm thinking Masters and not PhD. I could have found my thesis subject (what a "family oriented" neighborhood should *really* look like).

Too late to think much more. I need Jeff here to nag me when it's time to go to bed. Anyway, that’s what I’ve been pondering today. That, and a stone house in France. *sigh*