By Josh Moss, editor, Louisville Magazine
As part of an ongoing weekly conversation we facilitate among a group of Louisvillians, we recently asked folks to do a downtown Mad Lib:
The last time I was downtown was ___ days ago
for __________.
The streets were __________,
people seemed __________
and I felt __________.
Each time I ask us to fill in the blanks like this, I love — at least as a first draft — to plug everything we shared into a word-cloud generator, so I can start to get a big-picture sense of how things are going. It’s always messy — in a good way. Feels dynamic. For example…
We were downtown for…
The streets were…
People seemed…
And we felt…
One thing that immediately jumped out to me in that last word cloud was that, even though I didn’t specifically ask about safety, so many of us, thinking about what might be downtown’s reputation, made it a point to say that they felt safe.
Here are some of our Mad Libs, in full, to give a sense of some of our other feelings about downtown right now…
The last time I was downtown was ___ days ago
for __________.
The streets were __________,
people seemed __________
and I felt __________.
The last time I was downtown was 27 days ago for A Christmas Carol at Actors Theatre. The streets were busy, people seemed cheerful and excited and I felt optimistic that Actors might reclaim its prominence in our community after a tough few years.
The last time I was downtown was less than a day ago for a Renee Good protest. The streets were somewhat crowded, people seemed angry, determined, frustrated, deeply concerned, vocal and I felt all those same emotions — plus thankful to be in community.
The last time I was downtown was almost two months ago for the Festival of Faiths. The streets were empty that early on a Saturday morning, people seemed buzzed (high on life not drugs) and I felt uplifted — immigrant stories should be heard with more frequency.
The last time I was downtown was 120 days ago for a distillery tour. The streets were active but not overcrowded, people seemed animated and I felt buzzed after the tour and cocktails.
The last time I was downtown was 21 days ago for dinner. The streets were quiet, people seemed missing and I felt like I was in a tiny town.
The last time I was downtown was zero days ago for work. The streets were a wasteland of storefront vacancies, people seemed visibly distressed and I felt depressed.
The last time I was downtown was three days ago for U of L men’s basketball. The streets were bright and pretty, people seemed lively and I felt happy because we kicked their ass.
The last time I was downtown was one day ago for work. The streets were freshly paved and lined up, people seemed excited and I felt a stirring of hope that things were going to be OK.
We also like to give people a space to share a bit more if they’d like. Here’s just some of what folks had to say:
“I worked downtown for about 30 years. I have seen downtown go from being deserted except for workers to busy back to being deserted again.”
“When I was downtown I was proud that this is my town. I usually feel that way when I see a bunch of tourists.”
“I was sad because downtown used to be so vibrant in my youth, filled with a little bit of everybody, but now it’s just the homeless and visitors staying at the downtown hotels.”
“Nostalgia for pre-Covid downtown energy.”
“I am so disappointed that businesses have moved from downtown and that so many people work from home.”
“Sad that I don’t work downtown anymore and will consider there when we relocate our offices next year.”
“I’m downtown quite regularly, preferring to work from an office rather than my home. Recently, downtown was teeming with visitors, some in for a youth religious conference, others in for bourbon tourism. It’s that dichotomy that makes a downtown vibrant.”
I’d love to know how you’d answer our Mad Lib too.
The last time I was downtown was ___ days ago
for __________.
The streets were __________,
people seemed __________
and I felt __________.
If it sounds like something you’d have fun doing, you can fill it out here: Your Mad Lib
Or just send me an email: josh@louisville.com
Will share more soon. — Josh