Millennial Struggles

The harsh realities of being in your early twenties... Where to go? What to do? Who to love? All discussed here.

[millenialstruggles]

It’s been a while

It’s been two years since I last wrote on this blog or any blog for that matter. It saddens me to think I’ve wasted precious writing time while I’ve been traveling due to the fact that #1 I was lazy and #2 That I didn’t want to deal with some of my deep feelings of uncertainty in the future and with some of my relationships. 

When I first named this blog it was titled “23 and Lost” - well that name isn’t really appropriate anymore considering I’m not 23 (I’m now 25) and lost might not be the right word. Therefore I changed the name to “Millennial Struggles”. I’m just a girl trying to figure out her place in the world. Follow this blog to see my journey unravel. 

[millenialstruggles]

Full Moon Questions - Hike up Buttermilk Mountain

Last night some of my friends, my boyfriend and I made the hike up West Buttermilk under a full moon. We were fully equipped. We had all of our ski gear on, backpacks full of extra layers, snacks and most importantly PBR. We strapped our skis onto our backpacks and started ascending the mountain step by step.

The moon was out in full swing. As we kept creeping closer and closer to the summit of the mountain, our breaths quickened and we started to get the “swing”. The swing is what happens when your suffer exhaustion but cannot get over the mad desire to get to the top to stop pushing yourself.

After about 45 minutes of climbing in the dark, we had made it. At the top of the mountain there was a small bench that sat near a warming hut overlooking Aspen Mountain, Aspen Highlands and even the Maroon Bells. We could see a few headlamps flashing about in the Highlands Bowl. We couldn’t help but think how gutsy and determined those skiers must be to hike up the bowl.

After about 20 minutes admiring the view, we headed inside to drink some more beer at the nearby warming hut. We shared many laughs in the warming hut. We stayed for a while and more hikers came in to join our fun. Looking at the clock it was 9:30pm and we decided to head down the mountain.

Everyone headed outside to assemble their gear. Our group consisted of two skiers (my boyfriend and I), two telemarkers and one very very brave soul... a sledder. Once everyone had their gear on and ready, we started heading down the mountain under the light of the full moon. There’s something so magical about skiing down a mountain on a full moon with no headlamp required. There was a light breeze; the mountain appeared to be singing at us. We headed through the terrain park, hit a couple jumps and then started tree skiing through the fresh powder that had fallen that morning. One word came to my mind “magic”. I couldn’t help but feel fully alive. Fully happy, fully content with where I was at my life in that moment.

When we made it to the bottom of the mountain, we packed up our gear and loaded the car to drive back to Aspen proper. I couldn’t help but think about what I had just accomplished. The full moon hike up Buttermilk is often thought of as Aspen local initiation. Did this hike mean that I’m officially a local now? My mind was mixed with emotion. I have strong pacific northwest roots that pull me back. Do I want to stay here? What about my dreams about starting a company? Is it possible here? What about my other love of the ocean, my family, my friends that all reside Northwest. Aspen is my boyfriends home. I feel bad taking him away from here in less than a year. What is a girl to do?

Opinions? Thoughts? Thanks for reading :) Would love to hear from you guys!

[millenialstruggles]

23 and Lost (Feb 10, 2016)

Fuck. Damn. Shit.

What the hell am I doing? Where am I going with my life? Why am I in this job?

Those are questions that run through my mind constantly. I’m one year out of University, have a relatively stable job (although seasonal), a great boyfriend and friends who are supporting me everyday. My life doesn’t seem that bad right? Then why do I keep asking myself the same damn question day after day?

Like many recent college graduates, I have found myself lost. Articles online read that people my age shouldn’t worry. At 23 J.K. Rowling didn’t have a dime, Oprah was fired from her job and Tina Fey was working at the YMCA just trying to make ends meet. One thing the articles fails to tell you is all these incredibly successful ladies at least had an idea of what they like doing. Yeah Oprah was fired but she was pursuing a job on a major television network. I can sure as hell bet you that J.K. Rowling was writing at the time and Tina Fey was acting on the side. What I’m trying to say here is that these people had a passion and they were pursuing it. The problem I’m having (and I hear many other 23 year old’s are having) is deciding what direction I should go in order to best utilize my skill set whilst earning still making ends meet... and hopefully more than just meet.

This blog will be dedicated to my journey as a 23 year old. The ups, the downs, and anywhere in between. Making big life decisions at this point seems a bit impossible but I’m hoping that this blog will help me vent and lead me to the path of greatness. Yeah seems a bit far-fetched that a blog could be the answer to my problems but I’ll give it a go. Follow 23 & Lost to witness my story unfold on a tumblr blog, it might just give you some direction too.

Best,

Maggie