4. - OUT IN THE MOUNTAINS -..FEBRUARY 1998

   

Midéleluury Natural
Foods Co-'-of;
A,f‘»'// 50‘V!'=¢. nafunsf /cad’: sforc

Sptcfl/fzin] in In/fly,
’ [0545 um’ pralvcfs

    
 

"£0/¢. 0ryAnfc

    
   
   
 

  

  

 ‘ produce ° vitamins
yroaery ~ spices . hodyctye
[2-b.l<-er‘) - Looks ' yiffs
c"Q¢5g_' !>.¢V¢rzs7¢5 —

          
   

Snacks

     

You can always
look

to us,
for the

   
  
  
 
  
   
 
 

<'DO3<'D'1CD-.+--H--Q.

NAOT
for the
newest
look in
comfort

cork latex insole shoes

 
 

31 St les of NAOT Footwear at:
ANI-‘ORM SHOES

RT.7 RT. 1 27 RT.7
Shelburne Colchester St. Albans

 
       
          

 

EETHAN .§LEEPé wini LEO  ToEou(—;H T
. Fora -rm: FIRsT1TME. 1 V

THANK Vou, (rob Fora MAKIW 
ME UNABLE To .§LEEPVl}lENEVEQ _
I o5PENi> THE NEGHT wmt ,§oME.

one FORTHE 151-1T:AE..‘.[

    
  
 

   
   

      
    
   

 

     
 

LEA§TA BiLLioN PoRNO FLn'cKé,

    
 

 
 

yspmv--‘8uNN

 

He N\o§)TLY uMFabu\L°u5 5oo7aL L'uFe :

 
    
   
    
     
       
   

us ‘INENK HA\liNtrWATcHe1> AT T

Tuis wquw B: one PArm’cuLmz A
gg§E$5\VE WORK? THAT I'D 35 yr.

BY STEVEN KOPSTEIN

hhhh.... Wait a minute....
Don't say a word.... just lis-

ten... The sound of silence
surrounds me in my mountain re-
treat. It has replaced the rattle of
the Number 97 bus that used to
shake my windows as it hauled
another load of commuters past
the front door.

I've made the change- the
change that can seem frightening
and soothing at the same time. As
a self-identified Urban Gay Male
(UGM) who has transitioned to
country life I have drawn both
consternation and praise from my
urban brethren. The experience
has been enriching, to say the
least.

I left inner-city Washington
DC for outer mountains, Vermont
with hopes of spiritual fulfillment,
cleansing and a fresh perspective.
For the most part, my wishes have
been granted. Like being born
again, the change from Sunday
brunches at the latest gay hot-spot
to barn warmings at the local or-
ganic farm has not been without
some pain. The incredible natural
beauty bestowed upon the Green
Mountain State cannot be under-
estimated as a tonic for urban
longings. But I'm still not into folk
music. Memories of plexiglass en-
cased shopkeepers, carjackings,
and the discovery of shards of
glass where my car window used
to be do help to remind me of
some of the reasons why I left the
city where my neighborhood
straddled a line between crack
houses and cappuccino infested
cafes.

So, when I miss being able
to walk a few blocks and see many
friends on the way to my gay cof-
fee house, video store or selection
of watering holes, I get out my
cross country skis or, when the
weather is warmer, take a hike and
drink in a bit of the landscape and
relish the quiet. My sister told me
for the first several months I was
here that I was still living on DC
time. I'm not sure if she'd say that
now - almost 2 years later. The
country changes you in subtle
ways, like aging. You can’t see the
changes from day to day - but over

   

 Ir I‘Move-I'LL W I V

AN AMPuTee - - '

THAN GE.

.  1EXc(Ti'N(v Ellouéll? ‘-
I R I ERoTI'c Erlouel-I?’ 7‘
ms I Kmkv Euaueuje  ' '

     
  
   
       
     
 
 
 
 
 

Move ,1’Lt §P€t~lD The .1’, v ’ I"  we C-reT up.. BuT ‘men He

 Ke3T OF MY .DAYé A5  

time you notice them - especially
when your old friends begin to
make comments. I think many of
them had expected me to adopt a
sudden fondness for country mu-
sic or start sleeping with my cous-
ins, but then again, their View of
the country is West Virginia,
where curly fries are haute cuisine
- especially when drenched in
fluorescent orange cheese - -and
Woodstock and Wheeling are two
very different places.

Vermont is a Very special
place to be able to experience
country life as a gay man - we have
an active radical faerie contingent,
a generally open and accepting
people, more gay rights laws than
any other state - and Montreal -
when the woods just aren't
enough! But living in the wilder-
ness has given me the opportunity
to live closer to the land than ever
before -to get to know the family
that provides the wood that heats
me each winter - to watch the veg-
etables that I’ll make for dinner
grow in the valley - to really see
the sky for the first time in my life.
One doesn't have to seek out na-
ture - living in the forest teaches
us how we are a small part of a
very ‘powerful and beautiful
world.

It's not all festivals and
berry picking though. Like the
time I was driving home from Al-
bany in mid-April, when a blind-
ing snowstorm made me crash
into a tree that had fallen across
the road. The fact that I'd blissfully
had my snow tires removed two
days earlier made me feel like the
flattest flatlander that ever lived.
When I finally got home about six
hours later - I was forced towalk
up my long driveway through
more than a foot of snow - my two
dogs in tow. But I think Vermont-
ers like stories like this - it shows
our tenacity - a bunch of snow isn't
going to get in our way!

Then there is the distance to
think about. Living in an isolated
place means I rely on my car much
more. Driving 60 miles roundtrip
to run errands is common. Basi-
cally, if you are thinking about a
move to the country, you can
double your car wear and tear and
mileage. Vermont eats cars

And there is a deeper loss
that must be considered. The loss

    
      

. I CouLD LEAVe A6 500»: A5 L, ; I
v MIC-rHT_1H\'NK.1 DON'T '

 

  
 
   
   
    
    

cc‘)HouLD -Etlo T‘  . - b T. i‘ 
i HiM BREAKFA5T_?oK_ .  ,§‘;§§llZ‘§;'3e  
. wouua mm BEToo comer? 1  N6 Fag we bea,m,‘F4qL 

. ms B€PR°°M 15 beaqr,
I /  ’. g L

  

’ 7A, CHiNA PATr~a2Na

  
   

   
     
 
  
 

ountains

        
 

of community. As a gay urban
male, I had oodles of friends who
would call to go out to movies,
dinner, bowling, drinking or just
hanging out. There are tons of
groups one can get involved in -
gay singing, gay bowling, gay
wrestling, volunteering at many
organizations etc... That doesn't
happen in rural Vermont. So, one
makes adjustments - we create
community within our communi-
ties, we network through Out In
The Mountains - we go to Pearls,
we go on-line, we Volunteer for
smaller groups here - basically, we
adapt. Which is something that

UGMs are not necessarily famous _

for. Adapt or die is how the say-
ing goes... So I guess it's not so
much a loss of community as it is
a redefinition of community.

The move from the city to a
rural life is not one that should be
taken lightly. It involves a fair
amount of personal sacrifice and
a willingness to be quiet and still-
something we don't get much
practice at in cities. But the re-
wards are great if you can make
the leap.'There is no way to mea-
sure the elation of seeing how full
of stars the sky really is, the won-
der in your first sighting of the
northern lights, the inner warmth
that comes from a stove lit by your
neighbors hand - or the secret
thrill of a hunky guy appearing
through the maple mist at sugar-
ing time. It is simply the joy of liv-
ing - and the knowledge that liv-
ing without the distractions of the
city can help you appreciate life
more fully. And Vermont is prob-
ably the best place this side of West
Virginia to be a RGM (Rural Gay
Male), after all, we've got Sugar on
Snow!

PS - Any mention of Mud Season
has been purposely omitted from
this article.

    
 

2;‘ -37'» .;

      
      
   
    
    
        
   
 

- uupqnooeaaon -‘Fat
“‘§-any \:§ beauTn'F¢i.l,' 

    

  
       

   

    

(gig /I’ W ..\.-:..'.‘»'s
@/ 770 50/Macy