For the past two years, Mark and I have had our noses to the grad school grindstones, on an isolated rock in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Although our families visited for Christmas and spring break, we missed them terribly, so, before setting foot in South America, we scheduled our favorite pre-trip tour of the heartland: Colorado, South Dakota, and Minnesota.
Our first stop was Grand Junction, Colorado, where we spent 10 days with Mark's family. Mark loves the Valley, and would love to live there when he finishes his PhD. I like the Valley, too, but have my reservations about living there again. On the one hand, the active, outdoor lifestyle and affordable cost of living are very appealing. On the other hand, the career opportunities appear somewhat flat for those of us with higher education. Moreover, one of the critical factors to happiness on the job, social support, can be a real challenge for "city folk."
During this visit to GJ, my primary observation was the contrasting culture. Honolulu has a large Asian influence and tends to be more communal, whereas Grand Junction is largely "white bread" with a small Hispanic influence and tends to be more independent. Moreover, GJ is the kind of place where 90% of the population owns a gun, goes to church, and embraces the military... Disclaimer: stats may be exaggerated by personal perception, but I can provide a few supporting anecdotes: 1. The airport lobby has a stuffed grizzly bear. 2. Our friend, Eric, packed heat when we went snowmobiling on the Grand Mesa. 3. Our cousin's high school graduation kicked off with with a special tribute to honor graduates who signed up for the military. 4. The coach's graduation speech quoted scripture and talked about God. 5. There's practically a church on every corner. 6. Literally every male in Mark's family owns a pick up truck (we did, too, when we lived in GJ, though that was back when gas was less than $3/gallon).
There's a lot to love about the Valley.
1. There's order. I like that the whole town is laid out on a grid system of one mile increments ranging from A-G Road and 24-32 Road (I realize this lacks creativity, but after criss-crossing Honolulu's winding roads, and challenging signage, I appreciate being able to find things easily).
2. It's surrounded by mountains. There's something familiar and comforting about the Bookcliff's cascading ridges of shadows and reflected light, Grand Mesa's flat top (the largest in the world), and the Monument's rocky, orange hiking trails with bursts of sage and juniper bushes.
3. The food is exciting. Our mouths celebrated the reunion with Kannah Creek's blonde ale and Caesar salads, Ghengis Grill's Mongolian BBQ, Mexican food, Olive Garden's wine and seafood, and grilled steaks with blue cheese. Visiting GJ is like traveling to food heaven.
4. Family lives here. Mark's dad took us snowmobiling on the Grand Mesa, and I took my nephews and sister-in-law hiking alongside the big-horned sheep. The trail was loaded with lizards, and we even witnessed a bull snake taking down a mouse. We rode ATV's, BBQ'd, created pinatas with the nieces and nephews, and even adopted a siamese cat named Chester for Mark's mom. It was wonderful to have family around again.
So, while it's impossible to know for certain where we'll end up in the future, GJ is high on the list of possibilities.
This is not to say that the Valley inhospitable for "city folk." Sprouts (think Whole Foods) had opened up a new store with affordable organic fruits and vegetables, as well as gluten-free offerings, snack mixes, and dark-chocolate covered honeycombs. And, there are a handful of vineyards and even an annual Winefest.
1. There's order. I like that the whole town is laid out on a grid system of one mile increments ranging from A-G Road and 24-32 Road (I realize this lacks creativity, but after criss-crossing Honolulu's winding roads, and challenging signage, I appreciate being able to find things easily).
2. It's surrounded by mountains. There's something familiar and comforting about the Bookcliff's cascading ridges of shadows and reflected light, Grand Mesa's flat top (the largest in the world), and the Monument's rocky, orange hiking trails with bursts of sage and juniper bushes.
3. The food is exciting. Our mouths celebrated the reunion with Kannah Creek's blonde ale and Caesar salads, Ghengis Grill's Mongolian BBQ, Mexican food, Olive Garden's wine and seafood, and grilled steaks with blue cheese. Visiting GJ is like traveling to food heaven.
4. Family lives here. Mark's dad took us snowmobiling on the Grand Mesa, and I took my nephews and sister-in-law hiking alongside the big-horned sheep. The trail was loaded with lizards, and we even witnessed a bull snake taking down a mouse. We rode ATV's, BBQ'd, created pinatas with the nieces and nephews, and even adopted a siamese cat named Chester for Mark's mom. It was wonderful to have family around again.
So, while it's impossible to know for certain where we'll end up in the future, GJ is high on the list of possibilities.
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