Granularity

Life is not a smooth glide. From anywhere or toward somewhere. Life is steps. Bits and pieces. Some tiny. Some enormous.

I recall days long ago when an early teen in New England, riding my bike through glens, woods and meadowlands on paths and lanes beaten down by generations of strangers. The tires gripped the surfaces. The sound of crunches among the pebbles and sand of the path. Loose and hard alternating surfaces, I was taken by the granules of the path.

On paved surfaces the granularity remained but bonded by tar and macadam. The way forward was strong, smooth, and regular. The granules of the surface were still apparent. Of course, in New England, blacktop roads battle brutal winters and freeze thaw cycles. Granules become loosened, often in giant potholes. A bicyclist navigates these perils with care but the realization that composition of granularity may vary but the only substantive difference is loose or bonded.

Like life. We live with the bits and bobs loose or cemented together firmly.

Loose is more difficult to travel, but it has transparency that is honest and real. Cemented may be firm, but uptight is another adjective apt for use. Uptight and rigid. Resolute against change. Smooth going but to what end?

I was reminded of this the other day when working with a client. Commercial real estate was the environment. A new property on the market begged for description. But my mind kept going to who the possible buyers and users would be. What might they be doing? What industry would they be plying? What thinking and creating would be happening in these spaces?

In an old city with vastly changed cultures, people, commerce and activity, the landscape is used differently today than 200 years ago. In between the years witnessed changes and the village, town, city adapted. New industries appeared. New buildings built to house them. Newer industries followed and the existing buildings were altered to accommodate their changes, their needs.

Today, nearly 200 years later industry and commerce wear even more faces. What industries are appearing anew? What collaborative commerce will co-invent the new industries? Will networks and synergies pop up to support them? Will space available for use be used for these startups and growing companies?

If so, what are municipal and county governments doing to support this evolution? Is the infrastructure there? The logistics of supply, shipping, parking, technology, spacing and communications; are they all there or developing to abet the new to birth and mature to exciting potential horizons?

These are the granules of modern society. Change. Adaptability. Potential. New ideas. Failed attempts. Successful new products and services. New commerce, new jobs. Fresh careers from the granules of the past.

Loose and available ready for a new assembly. Granularity. Like building blocks. For each and all of us.

September 15, 2021