< PREVIOUS ] [ 1993 Index ] [ Ed Quillen HOME ] [ SEARCH ] [ NEXT >
Earlier this month, it was my pleasure to talk with elementary students at the Logan School in Denver.
Like all kids, they complained that they lived in a boring place where there was nothing to do. I mentioned that Salida children offer the same complaint, and I wondered aloud whether this ennui problem might be more a function of age than geography.
Oh, no,
one girl argued. There are some truly
boring places, like Longmont.
I agreed that Longmont can be about as exciting as
watching nails rust. Her classmates offered other
nominations for Most Boring Place in America
--
mostly small towns in Oklahoma, Nebraska and Indiana.
Maybe they should hold a contest,
I
suggested.
Why would towns want to compete for that?
they
asked.
Because old people like me prefer to live in a quiet,
sleepy place,
I explained. Seeing puzzled looks, I
advanced the topic. Besides, what would happen if a town
won and became famous as Most Boring Town in
America?
Lots of people would visit, just to see what it was
like. The dogs sleeping in the street would be celebrities.
With all the tourists, there would be lots of stuff to do,
and the town wouldn't be boring,
a student replied.
Precisely, and this could be the solution for Estes Park, Grand Lake and other seasonal resorts which are exciting in the summer -- noisy go-kart tracks, gaudy miniature golf courses, tasteless T-shirt stands -- but dormant in the winter.
Currently, Estes Park tries to build a winter trade by touting special events, and Grand Lake bills itself as the snowmobile capital of Colorado.
Instead of going to all that work, though, they could try a different tack, and promote what they have:
Tired of the hustle and bustle of the city? Sick of
the monumental lift lines and the bumper-to-bumper traffic
of the ski resorts?
Then come cocoon with us in Grand Park, Colorado.
Bring a few good books you've always wanted to read, and
snuggle in with us for a fortnight with a crackling fire in
a cozy cabin. So quiet you can hear the snow fall.
Celebrate the wise rhythms of Mother Nature by joining the
boreal hibernation cycle.
That should be popular. Until the Industrial Revolution, work was seasonal -- make hay while the sun shines, so you can spend the winter living off the fat of the land, etc.
We're probably still built that way. A few years ago, my
contractor friend Kirby Perschbacher had big jobs all
winter. I naively thought he'd be thrilled, but instead he
complained that If I'd wanted to work all year, I'd live
somewhere else. That's not what Salida's for.
Estes Park and Grand Lake could serve as places to hole up and enjoy some seasonal serenity. Of course, if hibernation catches on, they'd have the same problem as the Most Boring Town in America -- they'd become too busy for their own good, and lose the distinction. But nothing comes without risk.
< PREVIOUS ] [ 1993 Index ] [ Ed Quillen HOME ] [ SEARCH ] [ NEXT >