natschall's blog

Philadelphia is a very authentic city, from what I’ve seen of it so far. It has the “soul” keeping it alive that Zukin speaks of. When I’m there, I can feel how many people have been there and have loved it. It gives me hope that one day, I’ll be one of them, living in the city and loving it along with all the ghosts of its past. Zukin says that it is these, the ghosts, that make a city a true city. If that is in fact the case, Philadelphia is one of the truest cities I’ve ever run across.

We explored what felt like every inch of the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, and even a bit beyond. For the amount we saw, we came out at the end of the day feeling like we had spent the whole weekend in the city. My favorite site (or sight?) was the Reading Terminal Market. It was full of people, talking loudly to each other, clearly enjoying themselves as they did their shopping in this bustling indoor market. It was almost overwhelming because of how many people were in there, and how full it was. But when I took a minute to breathe (while moving, I didn’t want to stop in the middle of the traffic!) and look around, I got my bearings. And I loved it.

While reading Henig, I kept being struck by the fact that they were only examining play in children. Of course, psychologically I suppose it makes sense, because of the relationship between brain growth and play. But play does not stop once you reach puberty. For many people I know (including myself), play is still a huge part of our lives. We get together to play (informal or formal) sports, board games (which are in fact often made specifically for mature people, not just children), video games... The list goes on. It just seemed astonishing to me that the article did not mention that play does not stop when the brain is developed.

Bloomberg's article on the other hand reminded me of the Statistics class I took last year, when we learned about the algorithms used to personalize things like Amazon suggestions and Facebook ads. I thought then, and still do, that it's a good idea, at least for ads. Companies are more likely to sell things if, for example, they advertise shoes instead of football gear to me. But doing the same thing for newspapers? I'm not quite sure I like that idea. One of my favorite things about newspapers is that you get a combination of all the news that's happening, not just one narrow field that you already happen to be interested in. I would never learn new things about the world if the newspaper only showed me articles on feminism or fashion, because I already keep up with those on websites made specifically for those topics. Newspapers should stay generalized, just to keep the world informed. It's what they're made for, after all.

I took a picture when I was in Paris the summer of 2012. It was originally meant to capture the metro station, so I would remember how different they seemed from those I knew at home. I happened to also catch a small huddle of people in the picture, though. They are laughing together, waiting for their train. Looking back, this represents everything I feel about cities.

I could say, as I had originally written down in my notes for this essay, that I judge a city based on its public transportation. But this isn’t quite true. Just as I meant to capture a photo of the metro station and ended up with a shot of a group of friends, I really judge a city based on the people in it (and perhaps I see the most of these people on the transport systems, which is why I jumped to that train of thought first).

When I go into a city, I’m mesmerized by all of the people walking around. It’s hard to imagine each of them having their own lives and stories, yet they do. When you see someone laughing, you know they have their own private joke, one you won’t ever be privy to. You can catch so many glimpses into so many lives when you’re in the city. And I thrive in that knowledge. Sometimes it even helps me to feel like I know people, even if I don’t know a single soul there.

I'll be the first to point out that, yes, I am overly pregnant in my avatar. But don't worry, I don't actually have a child stowed away in my dorm room. This picture is of me trying on a costume for the one act play that I directed and acted in in the spring of my senior year. Though it may not be the most accurate picture of me (or how I would proportionally look if I was actually pregant), it is one of my favorites. Every time I see it, I'm reminded of how absolutely happy I was for those few months.

My username is not as interesting-- it's just the nickname those closest to me use with my last name added on. (I had to have my last name because, to most people from my high school, I'm a "two name person". Almost never would you hear me being referred to as simply 'Natalie'. It was 'Natalie Schall', or I would think they were talking to a different Natalie.)