Proponents of arranged marriage argue that it can result in an affection as pure, if not purer than any love-marriage out there. Love, in an arranged marriage, grows, they say. Years ago I would have scoffed at this, citing all the reasons why choosing a mate should involve precision, checklists, lust. But now I am not so sure.
My love for my city has come about in much a similar fashion. Aside from a series of tragedies both large and small in scale, my reasons for moving to Spokane are eerily similar to those cited by supporters of arranged marriage: familial obligation and financial practically. Spokane and I did not choose each other organically, ours is a preordained love affair. After my mother moved to Elk Washington, a town boasting …show more content…
It seemed lacking in so many of the fundamental physical and emotional characteristics that I thought I required in long-term partner. In a perfect mate.
There were so many boxes on my list that I couldn’t tick off when considering Spokane as a home. Where was the art? The diversity? The decent Korean Barbeque? I was baffled by a giant Red Wagon as a center piece for a town. I weighted Auntie’s against my beloved Skylight back home, against The Tattered Cover and St. …show more content…
One of the first tasks after moving was to get my classes organized at Eastern Washington University. In the months before my move, my friends, most of whom had long-ago finished advanced degrees, written books, and had things like agents and lenders, were incredulous about my educational choices.
Only months earlier they had been helping me weigh the merits of the post-modern focus at Davis against the reputation of Stanford. How, they all seemed to want to know, could someone, especially someone as long in the tooth as I was, pass-up an invitation from Berkley?
My friend Peter, an elderly Greek man who personified gregarious, excitedly exclaimed “UW is a great school! My son did his post-grad work there.” When I explained that UW and EWU are far different schools, he demanded that I explain where Eastern Washington is.
In grim preparation for relocation, I shored up money based on my understanding of living expenses in Los Angeles which left me with a sizable surplus. Unable to face applying to work for work at the startlingly low number of local bars, and in light of my accidental financial windfall, I took that first summer