Then, on one drive to Colorado, I noticed that the Wyoming sign was missing. It looked like it had been chopped down and stolen. Since the Colorado welcome sign was still in place, I figured that it may have been a prank of football fans of the rival Colorado Rams, and expected that the sign would soon be replaced.A year and a half later, I was still waiting. A large pile of dirt became the only thing marking the Wyoming border.
When friends came to visit, I made sure to point out the state-line dirtpile, which had, in my mind, come to represent the particular attitude of Wyomingites.
Part of the attitude is a feeling of "eh, good enough". This attitude is evident in such cases as a Laramie church, built almost two years ago, that still has the steeple sitting on the ground next to it. I guess no one quite had the energy to erect it after the rest of the building was finished. And you don't really need a steeple to hold a church service.
This Wyomingite attitude seems to hold that that doing nothing is easier that any kind of action. There's a kind of hope that things will work themselves out if they're just left alone for long enough. Most of the streets in Laramie aren't plowed in the wintertime, because the snow will eventually melt when enough people drive on it.
There's the also the widespread feeling that Wyoming is separate from the rest of the world, and special for being so. When discussing the issue of global warming, one Wyomingite said, "I'm not concerned. I'd like to see the sea level try to make it to 7200 feet."
One day, however, someone got their act together and a new sign appeared, redesigned to match the new licence plates which show the Grand Tetons instead of Devil's Tower.
I think it matches the dirtpile nicely.
I am really sick of that bucking bronco, though. It seems to be the official symbol of both the State of Wyoming and the University of Wyoming and is everywhere: on signs, building fronts, bumper stickers, and even stenciled onto the sidewalks around town.
The symbol, while overused, is not out of place. Rodeos are popular summer entertainment, and there are still working cowboys out here. The other day, driving home from a hike, I had to stop the car to wait for four cowboys to finish their cattle drive.
The cowboys were interesting to watch as they guided the cattle down the road and off into an adjoining pasture. They rode their horses well and looked the part with their traditional cowboy hats and boots.
When I was a kid, I heard George Strait sing a song in which he wore his welcome thin. I thought a Welcomethin was a kind of cowboy hat, because George Strait always wore one.
Laramie is a nice place to live, but I wonder if there might be certain signs that it's time for me to move again?
4 comments:
Yes, that is my international center.
That is also my pile of dirt.
How did you get pictures of my ranch and cowboys?
Please go away.
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