Carmel, Indiana, and the insulated life

I was driving away from downtown Carmel on a Tuesday afternoon when I saw them on the corner — two young mothers parting ways after spending time together, both tallish and willowy with long straight hair. The brunette pushed a clearly expensive stroller. The strawberry blonde had two small strawberry blonde children, maybe three and five, each holding one hand, each with startlingly blue eyes. Doll perfect, and genuinely striking — anyone would have stopped and looked twice. Designer people, I thought. It touched on something I’d been feeling about Carmel for thirty years without being able to put my finger on it. On paper, people like Margaret and me are the residents this very nice Indianapolis suburb wants. We have the careers and the income. When we left Zionsville, another north Indianapolis suburb, last year, moving to Carmel would have been a natural next step. It offers better amenities, stronger cachet, and a logical progression. We talked it over many times. I finally said…