A Happy & Cozy Life

Anna Surprenant
Nov 7, 2019
4 min read

Updated: Jun 8, 2023

Meeting my husband, a western road trip of a lifetime, moving to Colorado, living at the base of Rocky Mountain National Park, summiting mountains, graduate school, crushing my first half marathon, adopting a puppy, experiencing a wonder of the world, three job changes, four addresses…

It’s still difficult to believe this has all happened. These years of adventure, struggle, love, doubt, confusion, and clarity, have completely changed me. I’ve continually been stepping into the unknown and rolling with whatever comes my way. I’ll be honest and say I give credit to my husband for a lot of these changes. He has encouraged me, pushed me (even when I didn’t want him to), and has shown me just how brave I can be.

In the fall of 2018, Rob and I were dreaming and scheming over a New Belgium beer about moving to the mountains. I was in a position that I was unhappy with and we were both craving a change. A few days after Christmas, Rob and I drove to Estes Park to look at the ONLY rental opening in town and it was perfect. A large back yard, space for Rob to work from home, and a view of Longs Peak in the backyard. I’m not sure we discussed our decision much because just a few days later we were filling out our rental application. Once again, we found ourselves jumping into the unknown and again, I was learning to be comfortable with uncertainty and make the best of this change.

When we moved in February, I was a few weeks into my Student Affairs Administration graduate program through Colorado State University. During this time, I put immense pressure on myself to find a job relevant to my background. I quickly landed interviews and even had a job offer from YMCA of the Rockies which I ultimately turned down. I felt crazy for declining this offer because jobs in Estes Park that aren’t in the service industry are difficult to come by. Funny enough, the job I did find was in the service industry and it was one of the best things decisions I've made. “No job is beneath you.”-Randy Pausch

During our time in Estes Park, I worked at Kind Coffee. It was here I found incredible friendships, kindness from complete strangers, a feeling of community, and the best support system I could’ve asked for. Balancing school and wedding planning was a lot for me. Having a job at Kind Coffee was my lifesaver. Lots of coffee and friends is what I needed every day.

Estes Park was one of our greatest adventures together. Rob got to challenge his athletic ability by running, yes RUNNING up mountains after work. We took drives into “the park” (RMNP) on week days “because we could”. We added Laramie to our family. We often ate dinner outside and watched the sunset over the park. We found the best secret camping spot. Our neighbors consisted of mule deer, elk, birds, bears, and bobcats. We experienced the elk rut. We hosted several groups of friends & family from MN, which gave us opportunities to get to know each other on another level and make memories we’ll have forever.

We’ve often had people tell us we were lucky to live in Estes Park and yes, we were lucky. Lucky in the fact that Rob had a job he could work from anywhere and that we found a place to live. That was luck, but we made the effort to get there. We found an opportunity to make a change, follow a dream and we acted on it. Was it scary for me? Yes. Was there uncertainty? Of course. Would I do it again? Absolutely. Would I have done this in 2016? No. I often didn’t make efforts to change things in my life because it was scary and there were so many uncertainties. (and yes, this is where I give Rob lots of credit ;)

I am currently in a state of uncertainty, as we have moved back to Fort Collins and I am on the hunt for my first role in higher education. The only difference this time, I’m okay with taking a coffee shop job in the meantime. (Thanks Kind Coffee!)

When I started writing this post, I didn’t really know where it was heading. I like to think buried in here somewhere is some encouragement for anyone who has an aspiration to make a change. Whether that be a move across the country, a career change, being more active, or continuing your education, it’s possible. Yes, there is uncertainty but that feeling is only temporary. Free solo climber Alex Honnold says it best, “Nobody achieves anything great by being happy and cozy”.

Trust me, it's easy to get comfortable with a happy and cozy life. I often do have a comfy and cozy life but there's always part of me itching to break free from it and do something crazy.

Get out there, make yourself uncomfortable and see what happens.

xoxo,

Anna…. the unabashed and unemployed