maybe this is how i am undeniably american. i see the suburbs as a very evocative place. maybe it's because i grew up there, and had all my most influencing (?) experiences in suburban icons, but they're really quite mysterious. david lynch would agree, no doubt. brian eno, too, probably. the suburbs at night are amazing. after midnight, on a weeknight? they're so dark and lonely. there are these little pockets of light and warmth — a streetlight here, a porch light there. houses sit, full of restful people, sharing a little coziness from the dark and cool night. the real beautiful areas are the edges of the suburbs, where they start to go rural. there you have fewer streetlights and homes, and more open space. those open spaces often fill with a little mist at night. at night, the land gets to be what it misses being. deer, owls, and other creatures of the night move around. this also includes the lone policeman, sitting in his car at a stoplight, guarding against the scourge of the suburban night, teenagers. the shopping plazas are quiet and bathed in the glow of their mercury bulbs. all that they can do is wait peacefully. they get to sleep, too. the empty parking lots radiate warmth left over from day, like giant sleeping beasts. of course there are suburban hells: light pollution has ruined the night skies for four generations of americans and counting, the days are full of miserable traffic and wastes of water, and they are far too insular & self-absorbed. at night, though, the suburbs are a surreal elsewhere, where mystery is heightened and things seem just askance of reality.