A Writer. His Wife. A Remote Outpost in Colorado. New Year's Eve. Lots of Snow. Even More Darkness. (Revisiting)

A happy new year? Shine on! WRITTEN AND ILLUSTRATED BY PETER MOORE

It is the day of our New Year’s Eve pilgrimage to Estes Park, where a certain alcoholic author spent a lonely, creeped out, night with his small family at the Stanley Hotel. Sound familiar? It was a little too familiar, for me….

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I’M NOT A SELF-DRAMATIZER.

For instance, I rarely imagine myself as the protagonist of classic novels. I have never walked a lonely road to Yarmouth, like David Copperfield. Nor have I had a cage of rats strapped to my face, like Winston Smith in 1984. And I have never once driven around France in a sports car with a mind toward seducing the locals, like Phillip Dean in A Sport and a Pastime.

OK, sometimes it is tempting.

In fact, my recent New Year’s Eve jaunt into the remote, snowy, lonely, spooky, dark mountains of Colorado did have obvious similarities to Stephen King’s The Shining.

For instance:

1. Our lodgings in Estes Park, Colorado, were solitary. And the weather sucked!

2. We had some trouble locating our room. Hey, it was simple mistake.

3. The views were less than ideal. I know there are mountains out there. Somewhere.

4. Fortunately, I’d brought a little work along to keep me busy. My wife didn’t share my enthusiasm for my latest project, however.

5. We had a visit from local urchins. That part was like a Dickens novel. Sort of.

6. Despite all that, we were able to chill. Let it go!

May your new year shine on with visions of hope and joy.