Confessions of a Lifelong Coloradoan

I’m a lifelong Coloradoan, and these are my confessions.

1. I have never been skiing or snowboarding. Ever.

This surprises people immensely, especially when they also learn that I have lived in Colorado my entire life; all twenty years of it. Between being raised by parents who simply are not interested in the sports and having a desire not to have a head-on collision with a tree, I’ve simply never done either of these popular wintertime activities. However, going skiing at least once is on my bucket list.

2. Coloradoans love their flip-flops.

Despite the less-than-tropical climate, most Coloradoans consider fifty degrees an appropriate temperature for flip-flops. Case in point: I worked in a high-end flip-flop store (yes, this is a thing), where I learned that some Coloradoans love flip-flops so much that they’re willing to spend $150 on them. If that’s not love, I don’t know what is.

Photo from Flickr.com courtesy of teofilo

3. Our state is a melting pot.

My parents always remark that almost no one they know was born here; a lot of people are transplants, my parents included. Most of my generation, however, seems to be lifelong Coloradoans. Our state is so incredibly awesome that many of us don’t want to leave. The snow is pretty much the only issue I have with Colorful Colorado; when incredulously asked why, I remind people that I have experienced twenty years of blizzards, some bad enough that one can barely open the front door, let alone drive anywhere. What’s even more frustrating is when they’re bad enough to make one’s commute horrendous, but not excuse anyone from school or work.

4. Colorado is beautiful.

I’ve been lucky enough to travel to nearly every corner of Colorado, and it truly is amazing. We have almost every type of landscape one can conjure up. Heck, we even have a beach, at Chatfield Reservoir. It’s far from impressive, but hey – we have one! Besides, I think the utter beauty of the mountains makes up for any lacking qualities of our (man-made) beaches.

5. We’re fit.

It’s true – Coloradoans, lifelong or not, really are active. That’s one of my favorite aspects of my state. We pride ourselves on getting up and getting moving, whether it’s six degrees or ninety-six. Whether it’s running, cycling, yoga, skiing, ice skating, kayaking, or any other awesome activity you can think of, Coloradoans do it, and we take pride in it.

If you’re reading this and you’ve never been to Colorado, come visit us. We’d love to have you. And if you are from Colorado and have found your way to another state, I bet you’ll find your way back some day. It’s impossible not to.