Changes
My neighborhood is slowly changing, with a recent influx of young, white hipster types, people a good 10 years younger than me. It’s interesting to see how some of the newer residents have a different philosophy toward our block.
For example, there’s a large vacant lot next door to The Mitten, a three-story house on the 4900 block occupied by some of these hipsters. Over the past two summers, they’ve torn down the weeds, picked up the trash that had been piling up since before I moved here in 2003, built raised beds, and planted a massive vegetable garden. It’s awesome!
Another example, seen three weeks ago. I was walking back from the produce truck on the Chester Avenue side of the Kingsessing Rec Center. As I walked by a guy I’ve seen around the neighborhood, he took a big swig from his bottle of soda, and then hurled his litter right into the field. I don’t think the guy even thought once about putting his trash in the litter basket where it belonged. That’s been one of the shameful things about the block: lord knows I could do a better job of mowing my front lawn, but that’s about the extent of my bad behavior. There are two women who work the block every morning, picking up trash left behind by the slobs who live and play here, and it’s an impossible task.
I thought about hollering at the guy, but Philly being Philly, and the Kingsessing Rec Center being the location of 5 shootings over the past 3 years (one took place less than a month ago and to the best of my knowledge was never reported in the paper because apparently no one died), I decided to keep my mouth shut.
As I walked past the doors of the Center toward my house, I saw some of our new neighbors working on a project on the Center grounds. It’s amazing: the guy who’s lived in the area for years thinks nothing of treating the block like his personal dumpster. The new folks were buys planting another vegetable and flower garden.
Some people might call this “gentrification”, since it’s largely white people moving into the neighborhood. I’m not so sure: these young people aren’t millionaires or yuppies: in fact, I suspect many are renters. That said, they sure have a different way of looking at the block. The old guard sees a litter box; the new influx sees a canvas.
Next week: dirtbag baseball. Remind me.
One Response to “Changes”
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July 17th, 2008 at 3:43 pm
Damn dirty hipsters. /s