Tag: Seattle

• April 11, 2014

  City of Destiny

  

  They call it the City of Destiny or the Gritty City. It is a city of contradictions, loved and despised, where 19th century steeples share the skyline with 20th century smokestacks. A blue collar city choked in paper mill chemicals and cleansed by saltwater breezes. A city of potholes and community gardens.

  

  The second city, overlooked by glistening Seattle to the north, Tacoma is the dark horse. The people drawn here, the people like me, prefer it that way — we fight for the underdog. And yet, in spite of its reputation, I see it throwing off the shackles of its industrial past. I see it reclaiming the abandoned waterfront warehouses; nurturing a fledgling arts community like a flickering flame. I see container ships on the bay waiting their turn to unload the cargo from foreign lands.

  Years ago, it lost the railroad and with it a chance to stand on the stage of the world. For a hundred years, it shed its sweat in obscurity, but now, it calls those of us downtrodden and searching for a second chance. Now, it rises and claims its identity, not as the lesser of two great metropolises but as the place that destiny remembered.

  

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  Jonny Eberle is a writer, photographer and underdog supporter living in Tacoma, WA. You can follow his gritty Twitter feed @jonnyeberle or leave a comment below. Thanks for reading!
• July 24, 2013

  That Old Pioneer Spirit

  

  For hundreds of thousands of years, human kind has taken up more and more space. We’ve spread out of Africa and expanded over mountains and deserts and land bridges and oceans to occupy every continent on Earth. I think that urge to go somewhere new is in all of us. Perhaps that’s why we all leave home.

  The date of my departure from Flagstaff is looming. In seven days, I load up a U-Haul truck and start driving to my new home in Western Washington. I’m excited and terrified, but it all feels right; a thing that must be done.

  Previous generations of my family came to America from Ireland and Germany in the 19th century. They came not knowing what their lives would be like, but believing that they would be better off in this land of opportunity. When I was young, my parents left Pennsylvania for the Southwest. And now, I’m making the journey to the Pacific Northwest.

  I’m going because my girlfriend got a good job there, but also because of a streak of pioneering spirit within me. As much as I love it in Flagstaff, I yearn for a better life. Like my ancestors before, I’m leaving for a strange land on a leap of faith. In doing so, I’m reinventing myself.

  I don’t have a plan once I get there, but that’s the chance immigrants and explorers have always taken — a trait hardwired into our genes. There’s something something innately human about that.

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  Jonny Eberle is a writer, editor, photographer, filmmaker, social media marketer and adventurer in Flagstaff, AZ. On July 31, he’ll start his 1,300-mile trek to Tacoma, WA (and blogging about the whole thing). If you know of a job or networking opportunity in the Tacoma or Seattle area, please feel free to drop him a line at eberle.jonny[at]gmail.com, on Twitter or on LinkedIn. Thanks for reading!

  Related Posts:
  A Farewell to Flagstaff
  The Sum of Our Genes
  The Beast With a Billion Boxes
• January 6, 2013

  Five Million Pixels

  I was lucky to start my year with a week in the Puget Sound around Seattle, Tacoma and Gig Harbor, going to museums, walking on pebble beaches and getting lost. I could tell you what I saw there, but this time, I think I’ll show you instead.

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

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  I’m a writer and photographer in Flagstaff, AZ with a serious travel bug. Please feel free to comment — I love to hear your comments. You can also follow me on Twitter: @jonnyeberle.

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  Flash Fiction: 7,000 Feet