Tiny Threads

In the long departed Peanuts comic strip by Charles Schulz, a desperate Linus digs up the neighborhood looking for his missing security blanket. That’s very much like my thought process this morning looking for a blog post topic. I have been digging a lot of holes but keep coming up empty.

This is not to say that there is nothing going on around town. There is plenty that might be discussed. But there is a certain thread of possibility that I search for that tells me that this is a story I could tease out or shed light upon. Perhaps the big stories are feeling too big to me right now, and the small ones too petty. Perhaps end of the year teacher fatigue is dulling my intellectual acuity.

A few things that are on my mind:

1. The cycle whereby well funded schools in affluent areas push their students to procure the most “measurable” achievements of excellence so that enormously high real estate values are justified so that the schools will continue to be well funded. Is anyone surprised that the kids figure out that they are a commodity?
2. I saw last night that Columbia can have successful over-21 arts events that draw younger folks in addition to the usual older arts supporters we often see. There was a healthy range of ages at Arias and Ales at the Chrysalis. So, what makes a local arts event appealing enough to younger members of our community? What can we do to build those audiences for the future?
3. I saw a conversation on Twitter where someone referred to Columbia as The Village of the Damned. Yes, I Googled it. And now I’m worried.

Have a wonderful Saturday. I’ll be at Fantasywood with my daughters. Send me your tiny threads if you have any and I’ll see what I can do.