Decaf, please, it's after six-thirty…

Nov. 9 – Fayetteville, AR

For some reason we had Friday night off, so we did Fayetteville. Anchored by the University of Arkansas, there's a surprisingly robust strip of nightlife in this compact downtown. For a good four blocks along Dickson Street we found every kind of nightclub, bar, music joint and eatery, something to suit every style—as long as you're still in college. The truth is, while we enjoyed having a scene to immerse ourselves in, I kept wondering where it was that the old farts liked to hang out. There's a mellowness lost when Having a Great Time, through the exuberance of youth, becomes an end in itself.

Still, we made a valiant effort to absorb the experience, and I found a wide selection of Different-Looking People to enjoy watching. Fayetteville is situated on some pretty substantial hills, and there's something about being on a slope that makes an urban area seem more vital, with deep layers of architecture brought into one focal plane, as if viewed through a telephoto lens. So while the overall vibe may not have been my cup of tea, it was nice to feel enveloped within a locality rather than feeling always on the edge of it, overlooking some flat plain of humanity as if from on high.

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