Thinking about non-places
I really enjoyed a recent read through of Marc Auge's Non-places: Introduction to an Anthropology of Supermodernity. I'll fully admit it's a pretty dense text that I did find somewhat repetitive across the length of it all, but the core ideas are good and still relevant 22 year after its initial publishing. The core idea is that in the current era, there are places that don't fully fit the idea of a place, and one of those that Auge focuses on is the spaces of travel, your train station, airport, bus stop, and the vehicles that are used from these locations. They are more defined by our use of them as a way to leave them than the actual place's characteristics.
On the other hand, I love a train, I love a bus, I'm even willing to entertain a plane on a good day, and I know I'm far from the only one (I'm in a lot of communities online). So I was caught today riding the bus being aware of these two things, both that I really enjoy these non-places and that I kinda loathe the fact they exist vs actual places, I had a thought. I think that at least for me, the thing that really makes me interested and in love with these non-places is the fact that my mind can't handle spending so long in these spaces and instead has tried to find meaning in these strange, liminal spaces of travel. I don't think that there's a value judgment I can place on any part of this, but the whole realization that one of my little interests might be in its own way a defense mechanism is an interesting one.