xela | Homesick

My friend Matthew just phoned me from Seattle, where he's attending a conference. It's the first time he's ever been there.

Alex (looks at his phone and reads the caller ID info): Hi Matthew.
Matthew: Dude, remind me, why did you ever leave this place?
Alex: A girl.
Matthew: Dude
I finally understand that thing you've been saying all these years, about how if you could swap the part of Cambridge from MIT through Havard for the University of Washington campus, it would be nirvanna. I'm standing on the campus, in front of the fountain, it's about 70 degrees
Alex: And you're looking at the mountain.
Matthew: Yeah
Alex: Isn't it about the most awe-inspiring thing you've ever seen.
Matthew: It's up there. But I've seen the Alps; they're pretty impressive too.
Alex. I haven't. But bear in mind, it's about a hundred miles away. And, oh, by the way, you're standing on some of the outflow from last time it burped.

Matthew then proceeded to describe the bike ride he'd spent most of the day taking (it's a hard life, being an ivy-league professor at a conference, I tell you), with me remembering every vista, some of which I haven't seen in 20 years. Then he told me he had to run; a colleague there had invited him kayaking.

Le sigh