my last entry, i talked about a little project. i've started working on all the final images...which, i'm sure will keep changing over and over, because nothing is really final for me. i'm going to use an image or two per blog entry to give you a better glimpse into the life of amos. most of you know these stories, but some of you don't. sit back, grab a snack, relax and enjoy!
i was born on november 21, 1982. the sunday before the thanksgiving holiday. my mom and dad's favorite story of my birth is that i came out hand first. the doctor said to my dad, 'it's a girl!' my dad said "how can you tell? it's just a hand?" the doctor said "her hand is out to you now and will be for the rest of her life." that's kinda true..but not in the monetary sense. i go to my dad about a lot of things..
anyway, i was born in louisville, kentucky. one of the first cities you come to when you enter the southern united states, nestled on the ohio river. louisville is home for college basketball, baseball bats, the kentucky derby, and most importantly bourbon. many people claim this city as their hometown, such as, jennifer lawrence, muhammad ali, jim james (of my morning jacket), patty loveless, and a few others.
i lived most of my life in a smaller town in the southwest area of jefferson county, called fairdale. it was a great little place. i lived at the bottom of the largest hill in the county. i knew all my neighbors. i spent nearly every weekend watching my brother play football for either the youth league, or for the high school. fairdale loved high school sports. many of us (the townies) would travel far and wide to watch the teams play. there were times i rebelled against having to go to these games all the time. looking back, those times are some of my fondest memories.
i lived in the same house for a majority of my childhood. we moved there when i was 2ish and my parents bought their current house when i was 21. i've lived in several different rooms in that little house. my brother bought it from my parents at the time when they were moving and lived there until a couple years ago. my nieces spent their first few years in the bedrooms my brother and i grew up in.
louisville/fairdale became my own small personal hell for ages 12-18. as i think every person that age feels about where they are from. i spent those years formulating the plan to get out and never come back. it wasn't my city's fault really. louisville is a great place, filled with many memories, people and place that i love. fairdale...it's special. definitely not what i remember it to be, but that's a whole other topic. i just knew that there was a big, big world out there that i wanted to be involved in. i knew at a very young age that my wings were too big to fly around there.
when someone asks where i'm from, i always say louisville. i have lived in nashville for the last five years (until september when i moved here to phnom penh) and it still wasn't "where i was from". i identify as a kentuckian, and always will.