What makes a place home.

Day 220 of 365

When was the last time you walked around your neighborhood?  It's one of my favorite things to do.  I don't talk about this enough on here but at some point I realized that I really like walking more than I like photography.  My camera is just the vessel that encourages me to walk more often.  Most mornings and every time I visit a new place you can usually find me walking around at 6am with my camera.  It makes you appreciate and seek out the details of a place.  It has also allowed me to meet a lot of the local workers and early risers.  Those are usually the only people up this early in the morning.  

Most importantly walking can make you fall in love with a place.  If you walk the same walk daily you will know it like the back of your hand but it is still ever changing.  Noticing these details is something I strive for.  This is why I love Brooklyn so much you are forced to walk and interact with people daily.  It's why I so identify with Brooklyn over Manhattan.  Manhattan is more of a head down run to where you are going kind of place.  Brooklyn is much more of a neighborhood feel.  

This also brings me to identity.  For a long time I felt Connecticut was a big part of my identity.  It is based on my past identity.  It is no longer apart of my future.  I didn't realize how we chose our adult identity.  How you define yourself and what you want to be are conscious decisions.  This is why I identify with Brooklyn so much more than Connecticut.  I walk down the street and I run into 5 people I know and the kicker....there is no small talk.  We only know each other based on our similar interests or work.  So 9 out of 10 times the conversations are great, brief, or a friendly wave.  Image going to the grocery store seeing people you know saying whats up and there is no "how are things" it's fucking amazing.  

To wrap this up what makes a place feel like home to me is community, knowing the place like the back of your hand, being a regular at a restaurant to where they know your order and your identity.  Du you identify with the place?  If not LEAVE.