We are at much lower elevation than you (6700) but winter announced a little drop by this weekend and I’m caught between excitement for a new season and sadness to let this beautiful fall pass us by.
I really love to read your Substack. I’m serious when I say you should look to write a memoir, as you’ve got all the right stuff. Enjoy this snowfall!
And when you meet Matt, he'll say, "So I hear you wrote a newsletter about me!"
As for the breaking down boxes, I too would've struggled with the impulse not to shame those people. But you are soooo right that is not the way one wants to be known, small or big town.
Thank you for this meditation on figuring out who you will be and how you’ll be known in this town! It’s kind of cool to have the chance to define yourself in this way, compared to if you had grown up there and people already “knew” you. I put “knew” in quotes based on some recent conversations with my partner, who grew up in a small town and has complicated feelings about it. That town was on our list as we considered mountain towns, but we intentionally chose not to move there so the move could be a fresh start for us both. A recent visit back to that town showed us how much it has changed (mostly for the better!) but we’re still very happy with our choice of a place where we both get to start fresh.
Also, I love your point about how making friends is so consequential when you’ll backcountry ski together. It’s crucial! My avi course instructor pointed out that he has good friends and good friends he skis with, because some of his good friends have different risk thresholds than he does. It was a discussion that wasn’t technically part of the course material, but it was one of the pieces that has stuck with me as I also take baby steps to find more backcountry buds.
I think if anything, it's made it easier. One of my first friends here was actually through Substack. It's having friends that makes writing the newsletter harder 😂
I'm sure the instagram is a bigger deterrent. Or everyone in town is just reading this being like, "jesus she's got a lot of emotions."
"All of our Instagrams look identical: mountains, windswept faces, wildflowers, dogs, wildlife. But maybe we vet and memorize each there. Maybe that’s how we say “you seem worth knowing” without the weight of bringing someone in."
This is so good. I've been ruminating lately on what feels like a world becoming ever more obsessed with curating online personas, being performative instead of real and vulnerable, and how healthy that really is for us. We have the metaverse now, where people are going to live through avatars. It seems...regressive.
The millennial obsession with novelty and things being "genuine" seems to have corrupted itself pretty quickly, and maybe that's because the only things that are real are our daily routines, the way people observe us when we're not performing.
Love this piece. Of course it rings so true for a small town but also for all community/family. Great self check message - is that who I am? how I want to be known? So well expressed Kelton.
Pure poetry. Thank you for writing.
🥰 appreciate that!
Wow, this was your best yet (that I’ve read). The people are people anywhere bits--so true.
Thank you, Tom!
We are at much lower elevation than you (6700) but winter announced a little drop by this weekend and I’m caught between excitement for a new season and sadness to let this beautiful fall pass us by.
I really love to read your Substack. I’m serious when I say you should look to write a memoir, as you’ve got all the right stuff. Enjoy this snowfall!
I’m in a similar place—it’s been a glorious fall, and I’m sad to see it come to an end. But I’m also excited for winter!
And when you meet Matt, he'll say, "So I hear you wrote a newsletter about me!"
As for the breaking down boxes, I too would've struggled with the impulse not to shame those people. But you are soooo right that is not the way one wants to be known, small or big town.
Exceptional! Your insight is well beyond your years.
Thank you for this meditation on figuring out who you will be and how you’ll be known in this town! It’s kind of cool to have the chance to define yourself in this way, compared to if you had grown up there and people already “knew” you. I put “knew” in quotes based on some recent conversations with my partner, who grew up in a small town and has complicated feelings about it. That town was on our list as we considered mountain towns, but we intentionally chose not to move there so the move could be a fresh start for us both. A recent visit back to that town showed us how much it has changed (mostly for the better!) but we’re still very happy with our choice of a place where we both get to start fresh.
Also, I love your point about how making friends is so consequential when you’ll backcountry ski together. It’s crucial! My avi course instructor pointed out that he has good friends and good friends he skis with, because some of his good friends have different risk thresholds than he does. It was a discussion that wasn’t technically part of the course material, but it was one of the pieces that has stuck with me as I also take baby steps to find more backcountry buds.
Ok, real question. Do you think the newsletter has made it easier or harder to meet people and make friends?
I think if anything, it's made it easier. One of my first friends here was actually through Substack. It's having friends that makes writing the newsletter harder 😂
I'm sure the instagram is a bigger deterrent. Or everyone in town is just reading this being like, "jesus she's got a lot of emotions."
"All of our Instagrams look identical: mountains, windswept faces, wildflowers, dogs, wildlife. But maybe we vet and memorize each there. Maybe that’s how we say “you seem worth knowing” without the weight of bringing someone in."
This is so good. I've been ruminating lately on what feels like a world becoming ever more obsessed with curating online personas, being performative instead of real and vulnerable, and how healthy that really is for us. We have the metaverse now, where people are going to live through avatars. It seems...regressive.
The millennial obsession with novelty and things being "genuine" seems to have corrupted itself pretty quickly, and maybe that's because the only things that are real are our daily routines, the way people observe us when we're not performing.
Love this piece. Of course it rings so true for a small town but also for all community/family. Great self check message - is that who I am? how I want to be known? So well expressed Kelton.