What To Miss: The City

Three months of pristine, wild land. I didn’t ever want to come back to the city, it didn’t feel right to me anymore. I have truly come to feel more at home away from home. My very fortunate life took a fortunate turn, announcing that I had three more months to spend in the wild and quite possibly a year after that. There was a catch. Five days in the city before my re-indoctrination of the wilds.

I suppose this is me finding things to look forward to in my five days of city.

What do I really miss about the city?

I miss taking hot showers with different fragrances, freshly laundered towels and clothes, full breakfasts, rare coffee blends, ridiculous newspaper articles, and the morning sun filtering through the blinds.

I miss sticking my head out of the window while on the highway and the feeling of air buffeting my face. I miss guessing where other people in the cars next to me are going, and what their story is.

I miss waiting for the public transit system. It reminds me of how often I used to take it and all of the different people I would meet and stories I would hear. I miss bus rides in the night.

I miss discovering warmly decorated offices while running errands. It reminds me of the adaptability of humanity and their power to make whatever condition suitable to them, even if in a cubicle.

I miss beautiful girls on public bike trails and the smiles they give me as they ride by. I miss the style of ‘outdoor’ city girls in this particular city, not quite outdoorsy but they make a good effort.

I miss the 25% of profits that companies must spend towards art in their construction plans.

I miss local radio stations during long car rides. I especially miss the classical channel and how it synchronizes with the urban safari I observe.

I miss the flowers that make the concrete and glass easier to look at. I also miss good architecture.

I miss roadside vendors and the scents that they blanket the air with. I miss the swarms of tourists that flock to roadside vendors. I especially miss pretty tourist girls.

I miss long lines at cheap drive-thru places and the hilarious moments usually caused by them. I miss lunch visits with my dad and helping him out where he needs it.

I miss the smell of freshly cut grass. I miss the symmetry that people struggle so hard with to attain and working on menial tasks in the yard.

I miss fresh meals with a wide range of choices. I miss the refrigerator, the oven, the stove, and everything else I used to cook with.

I miss comfortable furniture, warm buildings, deep naps, and dry socks.
I miss the love of my feline companion and watching a movie with her before I retire for the night.

I miss sleeping all the way through the night uninterrupted, always confident that it will be warm, and waking completely refreshed for the next cup of coffee.