Day 106-Unselfconscious

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I took another journey to Joyland today. This stretch was along the back of the neighborhood where it abuts I-75. I enjoyed walking through this part of the neighborhood. Areas like this that are along the edge, out of the way, often feel comparatively run down. And maybe there was a little of that. But it generally just felt unselfconscious in a refreshing way. There was a lot of olfactory experience: cinnamon oil wafting from a car, a strong scent of orange juice,  tree blossoms, play-doh.

The streets here are narrow for their era; this may help cultivate a sense of neighborliness.

One curiosity is a “No Trespassing” sign in the middle of a very enticing clearing at the end of the street. It’s not doing a very good job!

Day 105-Ice Harvest

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Do bad neighbors drive down housing values? This question is bound to come up sometimes. Even in the poorest neighborhoods, there are well-maintained houses and yards. But between overgrown yards and packed driveways, this neighborhood feels sad without being exceptionally poor.

Day 104-Engaging the (sixth) street

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Today’s walk covered the area immediately around West Sixth Brewery and Coolalvin park. There is definitely an energy here, centered around the retail on Sixth and Jefferson. This is an older neighborhood and is outwardly focused, but not overly so. There are occasional brightly-painted houses but nothing engages the street quite the way the brewery does.

Day 103-Isolation Play

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The biggest story here is an essentially unwalkable street (Todd’s Road between Palumbo and Woodhill) with two mini-neighborhoods on each side, completely cut off from nearby opportunities (including the soon-to-be-completed Eagle Creek branch library). The neighborhoods themselves are unique, with some cute homes and mixture of density.

Day 102-A Park in the Backyard

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The second walk in a row though a neighborhood with houses and lots well larger than average, this time in the older Lansdowne-Merrick area.  This neighborhood has some nice features, including access to Lansdowne Merrick Park through several different cul-de-sacs.  It has fewer street trees and the main thoroughfare, Montevesta, feels more plain than Day 101’s Kenesaw.

An Entrance to Lansdowne Merrick Park off a neighborhood street.
An Entrance to Lansdowne Merrick Park off a neighborhood street.