What's in a Name?

Trying to come up with a name for my “catch-all” blog was a challenge.  I’m weirdly self-conscious about the name I chose, but I do think it’s fitting.  I’ll break it down for you.

The Modern Midwestern Home

[definitions courtesy of the ‘New Oxford American Dictionary Second Edition’]

mod∙ern /’mädǝrn/

adj. of or relating to the present or recent times as opposed to the remote past

n. a person who advocates or practices a departure from traditional styles or values.

How will modern fit my blog?  First off I hope to be blogging about the “present or recent times” of my life, might throw in a few surprises from the past every now and then.  Secondly, decorating is one of my favorite hobbies and I like to call my style “modern eclectic”, more posts on this to come.

I like the noun form of modern as well, “a person who practices a departure from traditional styles or values”.  Recently I went vegetarian-bordering-on-vegan, and living in the Midwest this is definitely a departure from the traditional.  I hope to have some posts about my journey and struggles with this new lifestyle and some advice for others contemplating it. 

One thing that I want to steer clear of in this blog is trying to “convert” others to being vegan or judge others for their own lifestyle and food choices.  I just want to post honestly about what I am doing on a day to day basis and hopefully share some delicious recipes with everyone without becoming that person, if you know what I mean.

Next definition:

Mid∙west /’mid’west/

the region of the northern states of the U.S. from Ohio west to the Rocky Mountains.

As mentioned previously I live in the Midwest, Omaha to be exact.  It truly is a great place to live, which my parents could not convince me of growing up.  I always longed for “the big city life” in Chicago, Denver, Seattle or even Minneapolis living in an ultra hip downtown warehouse-turned-loft with exposed brick walls.  I blame this completely on HGTV’s Lofty Ideas.  But Omaha has evolved in the past decade making it easier for 20-somethings like me wanting the big city lifestyle to stick around here long term. 

I no longer desire a loft, sure it still sounds lovely but really they’re just not practical or affordable for us.  I quite like having a our traditional Cape Cod style house with four floor-to-ceiling walls in every room (makes my painting obsession/habit a lot easier).  But let’s get back to the name.  I like the perceived oxymoron of Midwest-modern and hope to challenge this idea in my posts.

And last but not least:

home /hōm/

n. 1 the place where one lives permanently, esp. as a member of a family or household

<SPECIAL USAGE>

-a place where something flourishes

Okay, I absolutely love the special usage definition “a place where something flourishes”.  I want to “flourish”, as cheesy at it sounds.  I’m hoping that blogging will provide me with the right amount of structure and accountability that will help me to make the most of my free time and do the things that I really enjoy.

So there you have it.  The Modern-Eclectic Midwestern Semi-Vegan Home.  Yeah, I knew that wouldn’t roll of the tongue too easily.

Anyways, I hope The Midwest Modern Home will be my home for sharing my musings on decorating, cooking, crafting, DIY home projects and the like.  Thanks for stopping by and stay tuned!