Mountain Life in Colorado: Hippie with a Dream

Saturday, February 6, 2010

Hippie with a Dream

I've been dubbed "hippie with dream" by our chef at work.  After I gave my notice last week that we are moving to Costa Rica for the summer the chef, started calling me that.  Can't say I've ever been called a hippie before but I do have hippie-esque qualities, I guess.  I'll take that as a compliment.  For one, we don't live on the grid so to speak.
  We live in the mountains and anyone who lives in the mountains, away from it all, 2 miles above sea level, having no neighbors, land all around, understands what I'm talking about.  Often, when people drive up the beautiful, scenic, tortuous road, our road, that leads right to our house and also a trail head cannot believe the view.  They'll get out of their car and stretch and look, usually up at the mountains in awe.  A lot of times we are sledding down the driveway, or mountainbiking on the berm track that Jack made, or just hanging out enjoying the day.  In the summer Hannah, my 11 year old most likely will be dressed in tye dye, or she'll have a t-shirt with a peace sign on it.  Her hair is thick, really thick.  We almost gave her dread-locks when she was 7.  We researched it and showed her pictures and she was sold.  We had friends who could do it in a few hours they said so we were in.   The thought of not having to comb the blond, wirey, mess was pure bliss.  Eventually we decided against it.  I'm glad. So now, her hair is wild and we don't stress she comb it unless we are going somewhere.  So when you see her she looks wild.   She'll be playing outside with her hacky sac or devil sticks or meditating because she heard that it was good for you.  So driving up to that sight is not the norm.  Plus there is a ginormous dog that will not leave their side when they are outside.   They usually end up asking questions such as "do you live here??"  Yes.  "YEAR ROUND??"  Yes.  "And you raise your kids here??" Yes.  "Wow."  It's a good feeling and it makes me feel proud in a wierd way.  I sitll get a thrill that others who drive up from Denver or are out visiting from Kansas, or Boston, or Mpls can't believe where we live.  It was my hippie dream since I was in 10th grade to live in Colorado in the mountains and now my new hippie dream is to do it all over again in Costa Rica at the beach.  What felt so scary and undoable at 19 now feels so scary and undoable at 45.  Hippie with a dream.  That's me and I guess the hippie part shows through my little hippie daughter.  Time to meditate.

1 comment:

Bridget said...

Should I post those pictures from Halloween on your blog???