Out of the Midwest

The Midwest hasn’t cornered the market on small towns or charming diners (surprise!). I discovered this firsthand when I ventured west to visit a couple of our kids who live in Colorado. One of them happens to live in Fort Collins.

If you haven’t been to Fort Collins, put it on your list. This might be the cutest small town outside the Midwest, and I’m not saying that lightly. They have parkways (pocket parks between the streams of traffic with trees and landscaping). They have a college here that is fine, whatever. The town is adorable and walkable and full of kind and interesting people.

Last night we went to a restaurant and snagged a parking spot right outside. Then after dinner we walked to a nearby ice cream shop only to find it was closed. It had a funny sign in the window with 10 reasons they weren’t open. So we walked to a second ice cream shop and got over-served chocolate peanut butter chunk ice cream. The trees are all covered in white lights that add to the magic of it all.

Walking those lit-up streets, I kept thinking: this is the feeling I’m pursuing for Blue Lake. That sense of community where you can stroll from dinner to dessert, where even a closed shop has charm, where strangers smile at you on the sidewalk. It has exactly the vibe I wish I was talented enough to capture when I’m writing Blue Lake.

I wonder how many days I could camp out in a Fort Collins coffee shop, furiously writing before my hot retired fighter pilot starts suggesting we head home. Worth finding out, right?​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​