The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
At 9,000 feet in the Rocky Mountains in July, life is good. Blue skies, highs in the 70s, the rainbow of wildflowers starting to emerge beneath the white-capped peaks.
Yes, life is good.
This week a couple of locals really know that life is good. A local mountain guide who was climbing on his day off (now, that’s a good job) survived a harrowing fall. A May graduate from the Crested Butte Community School survived a crash between a train and a semi-truck. A child of the village is a national champ.
Coming out of the Amtrak train in the Nevada desert last week, Hailey Loeffler commented that experiencing an event like that “makes you feel really good to be alive.”
Scott Krankkala took a dive from a cliff band on Crested Butte Mountain before cart-wheeling down a scree field last Thursday. He’s at home now. “I feel pretty lucky,” he admitted.
This being the Fourth of July issue, I was thinking of using one of the finest characteristics of this country—free speech—and criticizing the Republican elected officials for playing chicken with the country. They appear willing to let the country default on its debt by not raising the “debt ceiling” if there is any talk of a cutting subsidies to those poor oil companies. Economists and business leaders like Warren Buffet and JP Morgan Chase boss Jamie Dimon say letting that happen would be “catastrophic.”
I was thinking of criticizing the President for not pulling this country out of the quagmire that is Afghanistan faster than he is. And for getting us into what appears another quagmire in Libya and for expanding the Patriot Act that is anything but patriotic.
I could go to the local politicians for not being able to figure out a fireworks compromise so now we get $20,000 worth of fireworks over Sunday and Monday nights. Nice spectacles but it’s hard to talk about tight budgets?
But then a couple of local young people literally survive what could have been certain tragedy. Life or death tragedy. And word came this weekend that Crested Butte steeplechase athlete Emma Coburn took a national championship in a close race in Eugene, Oregon. She already has an NCAA title and this latest victory certainly puts her closer on a quest to the Olympics. That is uplifting.
So while the politicians continue to play politics with our lives, let us keep in mind that we are indeed fortunate to live and visit a pretty good place. Some are luckier than others but if you are here now, count yourself among the privileged.
Have a great July 4 holiday week.
