"From French nostalgie, from Greek νοσταλγία (nostalgia), from Ancient Greek νόστος (nostos) "a return home, travel, journey" + suffix -αλγία (-algia), from άλγος (algos) "pain, grief"."
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Today I took a random trip to Port Huron. Sure, I had a few reasons to go. But it wasn't imperative that I went today.After I left today's meeting of the newspaper I used to run I ran into a friend. We walked together for a minute before she went to the Applied Technology building at SC4. The Canadian geese were out in full force in the parking lot when I reached my car. As she left she told me not to hit any of the geese.
The leitmotif of the first episode of The Sopranos is that Tony Soprano's self-esteem is tied to a flock of ducks that visit his pool. The end of the episode shows him staring into the sky at a flock of ducks flying overhead, smiling.
I stayed outside for a couple seconds to take a look at the area before coming home. Then a flock of geese took to the sky and started squawking.
Words cannot describe how stupifyingly beautiful this was.
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On and off over the past few months I get into discussions with my best friend, RJ. I met RJ in early 2002 when I went to my first meeting of the Erie Square Gazette at St. Clair County Community College.
Anyways, our discussions about Port Huron and the surrounding area usually occupy both extremes. Even though he is from Lexington and I from Almont, Port Huron has played an integral part in both of our personal histories even before we met. His argument tends to be "I want to go back but whenever I do I'm invariably disappointed." On the other end is me and I always say "I miss the place and it is rarely from my thoughts."
That isn't to say that I don't tend to have the same thoughts as him. My time in Port Huron ended 3 or 4 years ago. By the time I left a lot of the people I grew close to had already been long gone.
Since I was a kid I've had a love affair with the place. Oh sure, Utica had more things to do and more places to go. But Port Huron, that was nice. I loved the drive up I-69. It was so peaceful when compared to trying to get to M-59 and going to Lakeside Mall. That was the bigger mall but Birchwood had a certain character that I can't seem to describe. Maybe it was the Aerosmith video game at the Tilt.
It was the people that made the place so special though. Graduating from Almont in 2001, I had little to no desire to stay friends with 99% of the people I graduated with. Equal parts disappointment and depression, I wasn't interested in any of them. It seemed that "eccentric" was synonymous with "homosexual" in Almont. I have absolutely no problems with gay people, but remember that Almont is where kids would ridicule me for having Martin Luther King on my class ring because he was black and I wasn't.
For the people of Port Huron though it seemed "eccentric" was synonymous with "interesting" and "worthy of being a friend." It was this attitude of acceptance that made Port Huron my spiritual home town.
But now most of those people that were so important are gone now. So while I like to return to Port Huron once in a while I don't stay long because we have all left.
Right as the winter break started though something happened. It seemed for a couple hours that everyone that I grew up with were back. I didn't have to look very far around the Quay Street Brewery to see the very people I grew to miss over time.
We are not meant to stay. There are people I know that for various reasons are trapped in Port Huron. Those who are trapped in Port Huron are trapped because of their own choices (there is only one person who is an exception to this).
My academic duties have taken me elsewhere over time. But once in a while, like those geese, I have to stop by.
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There are multiple reasons I'm starting this blog. Partially, when I got my first blog back in the day it was during the tail end of my time in Port Huron. I didn't get to chronicle the times that I enjoyed the most.
Another reason, and probably the most important, is to try and have some sense of pride for my spiritual hometown. I know that Port Huron gets trashed and rightfully so. A number of the places I used to frequent have undergone significant changes or now don't even exist.
The entries into this blog are going to have a semblance of a formula. I have no planned order for these entries except I will try to do one every day. I plan to profile a number of geographical areas, social spots, buildings, and other points of interest. The profile will also include some story that tied me to this particular spot.
Simple enough, at least I hope.
I am under no illusions that this blog will suddenly trigger a renaissance and everyone will fall in love with the Port Huron area all over again. But I do hope that you are entertained and maybe, quite possibly, learn to appreciate your roots just a little bit more.
Tomorrow's post (the only preview ever):
What is Polis? And how does it relate to Port Huron?
