24 January 2008

City Kin Retrospective

I started this blog one year ago with this post.

My goal originally was to form some kind of group of downtown parents who would get together for events and share names of babysitters etc. I still have a long email list of such people, and plan on organizing some events this spring.

However the blog is not the best way to meet up and organize such events, so I soon took the blog in a direction that suits my personal interests, which are urban issues, politics and historic preservation. Overlaying all of my interests though is a belief that a city, and in particular downtown Cincinnati, is a great place to raise a family. I just re-read some past posts, and realized that I have not been saying that very clearly. So that is one thing I will try to change.

One of the decisions I made early was to not get to personal. This blog is not a place for me to post family photos or to discuss how well my son did on his spelling test. But maybe I have held back too much. I considered for example, writing about how some family members are reluctant to visit us because of either a perceived danger or lack of private parking space. And, photos of the kids playing in the city would probably help liven the site. So maybe I will introduce some stuff like that.

I do want to thank you, the reader, especially those who post comments. Thank you.

17 comments:

Anonymous said...

My wife and I enjoy the perspective of the blog. We live in Walnut Hills [not quite downtown] but experience some of the same "suburban prejudice" associated with raising a family in the city.

That said, I don't think it would be a mistake to unleash some personal experiences here. True, it puts you out there a little bit, but it shows how urban living can be normal.

Regardless, we like whatchya got here.

Anonymous said...

Love the blog. I don't have any kids but do live in OTR. You post on such a wide range of topics, always seem well informed and present your points well. Easily one of my favorite Cincinnati blogs to read.

I too agree with Beit Carr, putting in a few personal experiences might not be such a bad thing. After all many of us deal with the same things living downtown like friends hesitant to come visit, ect.

Keep up the goods work, it's much appreciated!

Anonymous said...

Kudos to you Mike. Love the blog and your perspective.

I agree with the others - a little more personal never hurts...it makes our neighborhood all the more human.

Thanks and keep it up!

Dave

hellogerard said...

Agree, this is one of my top local blogs. My wife and I have no kids yet, but our friend is raising a boy and lives in OTR. She doesn't have trouble getting people to visit, but she does struggle with some of the mundane things you mention: taking him to the neighborhood park is always adventurous, finding neighborhood friends his own age for him to play with.

Radarman said...

I feel like a rat. I should be encouraging you daily. My wife and I reared two daughters in Over the Rhine and Northside. They're a little bit odd, but very smart and funny. We never felt they were in danger, and we agreed that anyone too afraid to visit us was probably not worth knowing. Our semi-raffish neighborhoods may have excluded the girls from the glossier social tiers, but they survived.
And they know how to get around in a city without panicking, and that's useful.
We would do it all again.

Julie said...

Like Cyberb, I don't have any kids, but I live in OTR, and I love your blog's perspective. It's very mellow and laid-back, and often tips me off to interesting things that I'd enjoy. Thanks, and here's to another year!

VisuaLingual said...

I love reading about this place from the perspective of a neighbor/architect/dad! I grew up in a city, and I want more people to see living here as a viable choice. Definitely bring on the lemonade stands and sleigh rides!

scott d said...

i'm a fan of the more personal stuff, as you probably have already gathered from reading mine, but whatever direction you go will be good at it.

CityKin said...

Wow, thanks for the comments. I'm still uncomfortable with posting photos of the kids, but I'll get there eventually.

Gerard, are you talking about Aryl? We need to reach out more with her as our sons are the same age.

Anonymous said...

Being a parent in OTR is a very cool thing. My son and I walk thru OTR almost everyday. I love it with here, and it's only getting better. Great Blog!

Anonymous said...

Keep up the good work mike. this is one of the few blogs i read regularly. I like the variety of your posts and the humor. When i finally join the 21st century and get a computer at home i will try to post also. give your family my love and thanks for the Chet Atkins record. your bro' Marc.

Anonymous said...

You are my hero!

CityKin said...

^I hope you are who I think you are. Anonymous messages like that are kinda freaky.

Anonymous said...

Mike -
I think you are correct to safeguard your personal life as you have done so far to date with this blog.

I salute your campaign to raise awareness that downtown Cincinnati is a great place to raise a family.

From my outsiders perspective, I believe the strength of your City Kin blog is communicating those local events, local special people who make a positive difference (community involvement!) and the family oriented places that form the unique qualities of raising a family in this particular metropolitan environment.

Please continue to showcase the uniqueness; that which makes your area potentially more attractive to families than City X or Suburb Y.

Dan said...

I do not have children (help them if I did) but I started reading your blog because I thought a lot of the information was great no matter what and it didn't matter if I had kids or not.

Any direction you take it will be great.

hellogerard said...

Yes, Aryl!

Kevin LeMaster said...

Congratulations on one year!

Not having any kids, I prefer the direction you've decided to take your blog...but I do appreciate you raising awareness of the issues parents face when raising kids in the City.

Keep up the good work!