...it is somewhere between heaven and hell, caught in some mystical state of love and hate, hope and resentment, stature and fear. I am not sure that I can rightly describe what it is about Oakland love... perhaps it's one of those "you had/have to be there" experiences.
Some days, I love it and want to pat it on the back, other days... well, other days can range from flee-dom to wanting to put on the waders and slosh through the shit.
I could say diversity, but that is plain as day. Culture, but that may be passe.
It's more like the image of Darwin's fish struggling to get out of the water and onto dry land. There is something in the swamp of Oakland that wants to push The City into becoming something new and something better, but the struggle, the pain, the death... that makes it difficult to enjoy sometimes, but it also makes it something to love and root for.
I have a feeling this is just the beginning of a much larger writing experience, so I will leave it here for today...
And yes, I said The City. And yes, I meant to capitalize the "T" and the "C". Don't get me wrong, I love San Francisco and spend too much time there, but I love Oakland, so take some small offense when people tell me they are going to "the city," to which I ask "what city would that be?" Oh semantics... but if "they" can have their "city," I guess I can have my "City."
... to be continued...
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