Stand Aside, Cynicism The second homeowners and tourists were long to arrive. This could have been the weather – or – this could simply be that they couldn’t come soon enough. Our little valley is slow right now. Commerce here is a gaping hole, the only exception being the grocery store. We are all forced to shop there and endure price gouging and short lived produce. Big Hole Music, a long held business in the valley, has had to lean on fundraising events to try and maintain a lease in the building that they occupy. Not only that, but they have served as a dependable ticket outlet for all of Grand Targhees's music events... but not anymore. The owners of the 'ghee pulled the plug on allowing that, and now offer tickets at a sporting goods store. Who owns that store? Well, the owners of Grand Targhee, of course. All many of us can do is wish Big Hole Music and other long held small businesses around the valley the best of luck. My fingers and those of many around me are crossed for some kind of boost to our economy. Realistically, the possibilities are daunting. This is mostly due to the fact that there simply is no predictable end to the slowdown.
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Sometimes words are not enough. Case in point: I have not been considering any words for this here thing in five months. I have failed miserably in the endeavor to dig for those words. I mean, if you can't find the motivation to start a search, the words will never be discovered and ejected into the atmosphere. Instead, they lie dormant - they sigh with contempt, "You haven't even tried."
Distractions abound in my life. I still write a freelance column for the Valley Citizen (I can find words for that). I work a full time job. I volunteer. Very occasionally, I will pour wine for Alpine Wines on one of their event nights. For the most part we have been anticipating the arrival of a new roommate, who happens to be my 12-year-old niece. She got here in mid-June.
So here we sit in August. The dust has settled for a bit and our lives are on a slightly different course. So far, so good – but my motivation has been in the toilet. Well, my motivation for this here thing, anyway. Instead, I decided that if time is to be had, it should be spent doing housework or reading. Sometimes I watch a movie with the new roommate. I talk on the phone. I write other things. I cook. Other times, I procrastinate shamelessly. Other times, I try to suppress my desire to drink copious amounts of wine.
I have strained to overcome my motivational challenges by finishing a book. Yee haw, it is so. Yep, it even won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction. So I picked a good one. Or, at least my friend Leslie picked a good one. And you should read it to: Empire Falls by Richard Russo. This poor book sat on my shelf for almost two years before I got to it. Formerly an avid reader of fiction, for the past two years I have been obsessed with periodicals. It is odd to me that my taste in reading could change so severely. But truly, I could not pick up a book and commit. I read The Kite Runner in the spring of 2008. That has been it until Empire Falls. Now I am reading Crossing California by Adam Langer. It’s over 300 pages, so maybe I will finish it by Christmas.
The winter was long. Back in February while I was trying to plan my Chinese New Year party that never actually came off, I had some kind of hope that spring would be palpable in just a few weeks. But it snowed. And then it snowed again. There were some brilliant weeks in March followed by more snow in April. May is a scant memory. In June, it rained. Geez, I sound like some depressed Russian poet.
But here is the thing. Because winter is so long in the ol’ TV, one tends to forget the glory of summer. Or at least, it has faded beneath your active brain waves. When summer finally does arrive, it’s like you were awakened from a sleep in deep space. The sun is bright! The birds are singing! The tourists are crawling!
On the other hand, the birds are singing. The wildflowers are popping. During early July, the residential streets surrounding Driggs were filled with the scent of fully bloomed lilac bushes. It is an enchanting time here.
If only the human race could ride on the feeling that nature provides when it is at its most glorious. If we could bask in its energy and rechannel it back into our own lives - then all would be well. And I am certain that recognizing its bounty does assist in maintaining a positive outlook on life.
However, in the light of day, we still need shelter and food, and therefore jobs. And with jobs, we need workplaces and co-workers which we will eventually take to complaining about. And through our complaining and lamenting over our plight, our heads become bowed with responsibilities. Our eyes are to the ground. I say, look up. Cast a concentrated gaze over your surroundings. It is there where you will find a way - it is there where you will find a little hope.