Terlingua

    It's indeed a place, but also an attitude. One may pass through unaffected, but prolonged exposure can result in the relocation of those infected. It's both a physical area and one of community and self discovery. Boasting hardships of location and climate, one doesn't spend time here for reasons other than choice. Folks that put the place above the means, tend to be of a slightly different stripe than those that don't. After all, it is as much the who that makes the where, what it is. The backdrop is hauntingly beautiful and timeless, but it's the current life that gives it such.
    Long the site of quicksilver mining in the last century, the vestiges are apparent everywhere. The center of activity, the remains of the commercial center of the largest operation, is simply referred to as, "ghost town" by the locals. Mingling among those ghosts are the current denizens that are inextricably part of the desert atmosphere, singular and remote. The mix of retirees, desert rats, river guides and the simply smitten, ebbs and flows with the seasons and visitors, making for a laid-back dynamism (yes, it's possible) that we haven't quite found anywhere else. Famed scene of egalitarian exchange, from the mundane to the most esoteric, is The Porch.  Beverages in hand, the lineup is always changing on the benches of the the porch of the old company store, as is the subject of discussion. Such locales seem to attract a uniquely committed bunch, and to quote one Porch regular, "There's more intelligence and courage out here than any place I've ever been". Jam sessions and solo moments break out frequently, as this just might be the place with the highest per capita number of musicians outside of a folkfest. The Porch faces east, and unlike most sunsets, that's the direction it is here most appreciated, as it colors the western slopes of the Chisos in an ever changing but constant ritual. As the stars come out, the option for another cold libation remains at one end from the Terlingua Trading Company, with that and dinner available at the other end, in the Starlight Theatre. And until the wee hours, conversation is always available in between.
    Concerts, plays, dinner parties, community events, there's constantly something going on. Tourism in a low key fashion is an important part of the local economy, but many area residents are either beyond the wage years or not unlike Alaska, have cobbled together a variety of means to enable survival in a location where it's not a given. Commitment to a place above comfort, makes for some wonderful variety in livelihood, personalities, and dwellings. With personal lodging defined by some as only the need for shelter from the sun, there's an  intriguing variety of philosophies from tents and RV's, to adobe and straw bale, to the lovingly re-crafted stack rock homes of the early miners. Many desert dwellers  live tortuous distances from pavement and are "off the grid", and though spread over thousands of square miles, they call Terlingua home as much for the post office as the aesthetic. No, it's not Shangri-La, but then each of us has their own criteria. Come give us your take.