Trendy Kids Between a Rock and a Hard Place

Flat Irons, Boulder, Co.
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We drove here Sunday before some more extracurricular stuff for my friend's work.

I explored there this previous Sunday afternoon, after a short hike. My friend and I took a few hours to explore the Flat Irons, which are red rock formations that stand like house-size irons on the sides of the baby Rockies. We noted as we gleefully collected mud on our sneakers that many of our fellow Flat Irons visitors had received no lessons on hiking etiquette. Now, New Englanders may have a bad rep in some parts of the country, but we are damn nice hikers. The Midwestern in our blood also lifted our smiles and eyes to greet the perambulators we passed, and we were met with blank stares. The older of the crowd, the baby boom generation of Boulder, knew their etiquette. The younger, the students of the local University (drunk frat brothers running up the paths singing loudly, and sorority sisters trekking carefully over the snow where mud was present), and the yuppies would look at us oddly or ignore us completely. Many women appeared concerned that we might be interested in talking to the man to which their hand was attached. My favorite yuppie couple was a skinny-legged woman climbing while barking orders on her cell phone, whose husband would walk ahead of her, and wait for her at forks so she wouldn’t get lost- or forget about him.

The winter hill on the Flat Irons paths.
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I can only hope that those who snubbed us were far too absorbed in the beautiful countryside to notice other hikers. The open hills were dusted or blanketed in snow, some pine-covered hills smelled as fresh as any spring air I can remember, Boulder looked quaint from above, and as we climbed the stark peaks of the Rockies rose above us. All in all we were surrounded by natural beauty, and I hope that every resident is proud to be humbled by such a sight.

Then we drove into town. The city looks clean and new, with the larger buildings erected in the style of a brown UPS box, and the smaller shops following suit. The place thus appears to be constructed from dirt, which is nice, but the shops were bland or cliché. I was startled to see the chain stores, mirroring the mall I would visit later that day, laid out next to charming restaurants and their pompous neighbors. From what I gather from the travel companion (books) at my side, there are a number of trendy boutiques that are a pleasure to shop, but I did not explore the Pearl St. mall like a good tourist. Taking a town like this seriously would be a lot easier if the kids sporting the Patagonia yoga couture while spouting their trendy environmental convictions drove something other than a hummer. You know what I mean?

Too snowy for my clumsy feet!
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I heard from a friend later that Boulder was not always this way. The liberalism has been a constant, but with the advent of the SUV craze, saddling up with the outdoor enthusiasm craze, some hypocrisy oozed into the grand old town. She told me that it used to be a gem on the side of the mountains, a small town to raise a nice family, and that some of those families still live on the outskirts of town. I wonder how fast that transition occurred.

We decided there is great potential in Boulder, but I have a feeling the University- or more plainly, the thirty thousand students- hinders reaching that potential. I want to be nicer about this town, really I do. Telluride struck me as a sadder yuppie town, where money may have corrupted the liberal values and created an unwelcoming atmosphere. What potential there!

So I must conclude: Boulder is beautiful and rich and populated with beautiful, fit people. Although there isn't a "Civil Liberties Safe Zone" sign like in Telluride, there is a strong history of liberalism. That's what I know, if there is a lot more to the town, my apologies. That's what one outsider sees.