The Flat Tops
As luck would have it, I’ve been able to visit my sister in Colorado several times a year due to a very convenient United Airlines flight pattern. We both feel pretty lucky we get to see each other so often, even if it’s just a 16 hour layover where we meet for sausage and beer at Wurstküche. We’ve explored Fort Collins, RMNP, Estes Park, Boulder, and Denver. This time, we headed further afield towards Steamboat Springs for our first sister-camping trip.
I don’t think we really thought much about what’s up next for us. Well, we have, we’ve thought about how Alex needs to get into residency. Get in. Not what happens after that. Back when Alex started medical school, I heard warnings about being the partner of a med student, how hard it would be. And the first year was harder than expected-Irish med school’s first year is notoriously hard, unlike the US where it’s typically the second year. But it was fine. And I think a large part of that is because we’ve never known “normal.” We’ve never known a 9-5, so bizarre and long days are somewhat the norm. Continue reading
We first noticed the stifling heat of East Coast summer giving way to a pleasantly warm, ocean breeze filled evening. We felt ourselves relax, within minutes of being in LA, it felt like returning home. Los Angeles is an unlikely contender for a favorite city for both of us, and yet, when we think about where we’d like to end up, it sits firmly in the top ranks. You’d think we’d hate it here, the traffic, the perpetual summer, the superficiality. But we don’t. We love it (most of the time). Los Angeles is many things, but it always unapologetic in its absurdity. It’s a city that recognizes it’s contradictions. Though finding your place here can be difficult, once you do, it’s home. For us, that’s always been the east side, and while the west side often results in a fair amount of eye rolling from both of us, we still love it. In some odd, love to hate sort of way that keeps brining us back. It’s also where the ocean is.
I could tell you all the ways in which you make life hard. How now, as I approach 30 the scale has shifted and your joys no longer outweigh your trials. At first I saw it as a defeat, that I no longer loved you, your energy, your opportunity. But then, I realized it’s not a loss, I’ve just found myself more. Like the 23-year-old you met years ago, I am still somewhat wayward and searching, but I know myself better. I know what’s important to me, and what compromises I don’t want to make. I’m seeking closer daily communication with nature, with community, with a slower pace and fresh air. Though you still provide thrills, the daily efforts and financial burden of living here are no longer worth it. And I’m OK with that. Though if you told 23-year old me that one day she would feel this way she might be disappointed in her decidedly less-hip older self. There’s a pride in surviving this city. For those that call it home, I understand. But I can’t imagine it ever feeling like home. Continue reading
Colliding With The Earth 