I\u2019ve been in Aspen for around six months. I don\u2019t have the exact number of days, mostly because I don\u2019t want to look it up. Six months is about right.<\/p>\n
I like to think I\u2019m settling in nicely to my new home. Snowboarding is getting better, at least in that I\u2019m able to travel 500 or 600 feet before falling instead of 50, which makes the days much more enjoyable. I can get out every week or two, which I assume is heretical to some, but is infinitely more winter exercise than I\u2019ve done thus far in my life.<\/p>\n
I\u2019m starting to recognize faces of a few of the locals, and it seems like some around town remember me. It helps that whenever the workers at Grateful Deli or elsewhere ask what I do around here, \u201cedit at The Aspen Times\u201d is more likely to start a conversation than something like \u201ccheck my trust fund balance.\u201d<\/p>\n
I\u2019ve even been stopped once or twice and asked for directions. On the checklist of fitting in, that must be up there. I take it that wearing jeans, a T-shirt and a thin coat while nonchalantly heading toward the post office paints me as slightly more of a local.<\/p>\n
Side note, turns out Cooper Avenue isn\u2019t the one with the lifts and the mountains. Sorry to the person who asked. I\u2019m still working on the giving correct directions part.<\/p>\n
All in all, things are going pretty well. The flow of the town has taken some getting used to, simultaneously busy without feeling urgent, but things are comfortable. After six months and finally feeling like a part of the community, the next step is to find my niche and give back to a place that\u2019s been so accepting to a recent transplant.<\/p>\n