I used being from New York as an excuse for lots of things for a long time. "I don't do nature, I'm from New York." "I don't know how to fix cars, I never needed to own one until my late 20s, I'm from New York." "I can't possibly be caught in a terrible storm listening to a tornado siren right now, there must be some mistake, I'm from New York." These days I
love nature, still refuse to learn how to fix cars, and know that tornadoes don't care if you're a local. But I still get confused sometimes, here out of my element. You can take the girl out of New York,
etc.
One thing that never quite clicked in my head until embarrassingly recently was that where there is a Canal Street, there is often also
a canal. Like in Shelton, for example. A canal and a lock and a dam. Who knew?
(There's some more information
here and
here and an amazing picture
here.)
