The Hill District: Where Gems are Found

James

Hill District

Parking Attendant for William Penn Parking on Crawford St.

This is the happiest man I have ever met. No matter what, he always says hello and asks about my day. He even saves me parking spots closer to the entrance of the lot. This is James. He is my parking attendant. I would guess about a hundred people a day call him their parking attendant and they are lucky enough to experience his positive energy that shines from his happy soul before they trudge into work every morning.

"How long have you been working here?"
J: 8 years

"What did you do before this?"
J: I was an electronics engineer.
"No way, that's awesome!"

"What do you love most about the Hill District?"
J: The people - we become close, the community. Many of us lived together for over 30 years!

"What's a fun fact about yourself?"
J: I'm always happy!
"Yes! That is sooo true."

*Just as an FYI for those who don't live/know the different parts of Pittsburgh, the Hill District is infamous for it's low-income living accommodations and at times violence, but recently, the city has been investing in the business growth there, section 9 housing, and increased police awareness. Many of the people have lived there for decades and business used to boom and community was the most important. I look forward to seeing the Hill District rebuild itself in hopes of crushing its reputation as a dangerous part of the city. On a side note, I live borderline to the Hill District & Downtown and travel through for work everyday, so I do have personal interest in sincerely hoping it becomes a safer place *

Business in Shadyside

 Alex, Mercurio's Gelato & Pizza 

Walnut Street, Shadyside

I'm doing this post as a half business interest, half personal interest. Meet Alex, social media man for Mercurio's. Such a pleasure getting to know him & the business just a little more - also, they have thee best wood-fire pizza ever. 

Making me a wonderful latte

One piece of advice for someone moving to Pittsburgh: Pittsburgh is a very 'sections' town. If you're new, you're definitely going to have to explore it. (Yessss, exactly my thoughts)

So Mercurio's - tell me something about it: Well, we are all under 30. 

And anything else? Every once in a while, when we are having beers [after work] we like to harmonize... That's pretty cool.

Personal Statement: It's from my favorite author... (instead of saying it, his tattoo said it already. I dare you to know the author - great writer) 

The Obligatory Explanation

Welcome to my new project. It's meant to be insightful, thoughtful, entertaining, and just plain fun. I'm going to tell you why I am writing this blog, why it's called Ménage a Pittsburgh, and it will be followed with a short, short post about me to start off the project.

Why? I decided to live in Pittsburgh instead of going home to suburbia Philly after college & I've been so intrigued & inspired by the Humans of New York project and the Facebook page faceburgh that I wanted to do my own version.

So what makes this different? My goal is to provide the readers with an inspiring experience with each post - whether the photo speaks to you or the short question and answer part has a deeper meaning to you - I want to aim to get to know the people I photograph, share it with you, and to get to every area of this city to be posted on here. This is from the point of view from a 22-year-old, Pittsburgh transplant with no current full-time employment, looking for more meaning in this city. There are so many parts and aspects to this city from which I have yet to understand, that now it's time for its residents to speak to us.

Ménage uhhh... French, meaning a social unit living together. Pittsburgh has so many sections: Bloomfield, Downtown, Uptown, Hill District, Oakland, Shadyside, South Side, Squirrel Hill, Greenfield, and many more - all of these parts and its inhabitants coexist within a larger scale called the City of Pittsburgh. So in the end, the title couldn't have been any more perfect. (So grammatically it's supposed to be PIttsburgh ménage, but I thought it was more fun to call it "Ménage a Pittsburgh.")

What to expect: A photo that is more or less candid, the location I ran into him or her, and an answer from the person photographed with a question I ask. The quote is my emphasis. I want you to feel inspired after reading it.

I hope you look forward to this project as much as I do and if you ever have any suggestions, I'm always more than willing to consider them.