EDLM Diary
Oct. 22, 2021
I’m thinking about the good life. Do I have a good life in Muncie? Do we have a good life, collectively? Answers to this question vary across time, space, class, identity groups, and culture but I think a lot of us want fundamentally similar things: to have meaning and purpose, someone to care for us and care about (including pets), to live comfortably in health and safety without worrying about next month’s bills and time to relax. I have these in Muncie. For an ideal life, missing for me is extended family, more cultural diversity, and a geography or landscape that speaks to me on a deeper level (mountains, forests, larger bodies of water).
This also ties to my interest in public space, which I’m thinking about a lot these days because I’m leading a class about Muncie parks and recreation. Based on the parks presently, Muncie does not feel like a thriving city. I take my kid to the parks, and run or bike by them, but rarely attend events in them. There is not much going on in the parks. Someone recently told us that Muncie is about 30 years behind other cities when it comes to its parks. The city simply does not have enough revenue to maintain its parks, much less improve them. What this means is that to improve the parks, private funding will need to be tapped, which surprisingly hasn’t yet happened in Muncie. Parks are important for the common good, though, not only private interests. We all need access to free green space to walk, observe other people, let the dog or kids run around, and attend activities and events (we’re learning that people in Muncie want more music in their parks, for example). I wonder if people can get past their differences in Muncie and come together to improve the city’s parks? The mayor and parks board seem to believe this is possible. The mayor has explicitly made Muncie’s parks a priority for his agenda. The Board will be leading a capital campaign and are setting up an endowment.
I did not make it to the parks today. I have not spent as much time outside as I would like in the last few weeks. The weather went from too hot to too cold and rainy, and there is too much else to do. Today I sat at my computer all day, answering emails, grading papers, and writing things I need to write about. My daughter didn’t have school today due to teacher’s conferences, so we invited her friend over to keep her occupied. I took breaks from my computer to watch the drama queens act out their imaginary lives in the backyard.
Friday nights are pizza and movie nights for us. It’s something we started doing weekly due to COVID-19 and the lack of other things pulling us away from the house on Fridays. Now it’s something we all look forward to every week. In Muncie, that means Greek’s pizza, our favorite pizza place in town. It’s Halloween season these days so we watched the classic Bed Knobs and Broomsticks. The 9-year-old admitted to liking it more than she thought she would.