Visit to the BMI

Brian hasn't taken a sick day in the 3+ years he's been working at his company, so when he stayed home from work on Thursday and Friday, I knew he was really feeling bad. I prepared myself for a weekend of caregiving and occupying myself while he slept away his virus.

The virus was bad and it was a snot-filled weekend, but not as bad as I thought. Thankfully by Sunday, Brian was feeling much better, but cabin fever had set in. He was still weak and incapable of making decisions, so I jumped at the opportunity to suggest the Baltimore Museum of Industry... somewhere I've been wanting to visit for quite a while.

I was an art major in college, so by default I spent a lot of time at art museums. I loved (and still absolutely LOVE) looking at original works of art. What I didn't love was the stuffiness of most of the museums I visited. Even - or should I say especially - the modern art galleries. Walking around, I'd overhear pretentious idiots having deep conversations about transcendence versus nothingness or some other bs argument. At one point in my academic career, I really admired those who could pull off a conversation like that. Now, I think it's all ridiculous. I understand and appreciate that art has had a GINORMOUS impact on society throughout history, but I just hate all the speculation. What was the artist thinking? What was he feeling? Do you sense the angst in his work? BLAH. I'm much more interested in how a piece was executed and what materials were used.

Which is perhaps why I LOVED the BMI. I got to see how and why things were made... all factual, no speculation. It's all about the history of industry in Baltimore... The kind of history people still have stories about. What was made here, what was imported to and exported from our ports, how some of the products were produced, and where they were manufactured. Many of those industrial warehouses are still standing, although most of them have been repurposed. At the end of our visit, Brian bought a book that labels on a map where these factories and warehouses are in the city. We're pretty excited for our next urban adventure in search of the umbrella factory.