There are a lot of things that I do to cope with my sometimes insurmountable anxiety. When the weather in nice in the fair city of Pittsburgh I prefer exercise. Specifically running the many sets of city steps. Being the ADD suffering obsessive compulsive guy that I am, I can't just run steps like a normal person. I have turned it into this huge, detailed, research project. For those of you whom have been following this blog since last summer you know the Pittsburgh City Steps project I have been working on. For those of you unfamiliar with my new addiction, I shall recap. Pittsburgh has over 700 sets of city steps with a combined elevation of about 30,000 feet. The network of steps is extensive and nuanced; some homes are only accessible by steps. Some sets of steps are so oddly placed it's like being lost in an Escher nightmare. Some steps rise or fall draped over hillsides and end up going nowhere or to where the grid of neighborhoods once reached. Rubble of past lives and hollowed out sandstone foundations, old piles of coal, rusty bits of washing machines and childrens' toys are all that remain. They are like secret passageways offering unseen perspectives into the city's past. There are the more well maintained runs as well; rising to insane heights, offering unparalleled expansive views of the valleys around the city. I aim to find the location of each set of steps, map it, count the steps, photograph them, and give a little info about them as to serve for an online guidebook. It's proven at times difficult; finding the steps can be a challenge. I attempt to cover one neighborhood at a time by first mapping the locations as best I can from old paper maps and Google Earth's imagery, then I travel to the area of study and the real work begins.
