# @outsidemagazine on Instagram

- **Type:** Image
- **Original URL:** https://www.instagram.com/p/DSY1peKjFbH
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/38044329-outsidemagazine-instagram
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/postThumbnails/57284a8b27.jpg
- **Posted:** 2025-12-18T02:30:55.000+00:00
- **Account Owner:** Outside Magazine (@outsidemagazine) — https://gondola.cc/outsidemagazine

## Caption

This is how Pam Houston, the author of a timeless book about dating wild and adventurous men, helped gear editor kellyy_klein navigate romantic frustrations in a mountain town. 

"Cowboys Are My Weakness, Houston’s 1992 debut, is a collection of fictional stories based on her personal experiences in the American West. My mom gave me her copy a few years ago, just before I went through my first real breakup. The stories are written from the perspectives of various brave, smart women, all of whom pursue relationships with wild men. There’s a reckless river junkie who puts the narrator’s life in danger on a Class V rapid, a bristly hunter who one woman follows deep into the woods of Alaska, and a sweet rancher who takes a woman dancing. The men in the book, too unrestrained to settle down, never commit to the narrators and eventually leave them feeling empty. I am familiar with the scenario.

Thirty-one years after it came out, Cowboys still feels relevant, perhaps even more so than when it first appeared. These days women fill mountain towns, attracted by the lifestyle that comes from living near ski resorts, raging rivers, and formidable crags. We feel more welcome in these outdoor communities than our predecessors did decades ago. Some of us are also attracted to the men who live in them; for better and worse, I’m personally drawn to the ones who refuse to settle down. And like Houston’s characters, I often surrendered my power in a relationship, sacrificing my wants and needs to the man in my life. One of my salvations is Houston’s writing. Her books are a reminder to define myself by my own untamed nature, not by the flaky men I date."

Tap the link in our bio to read Klein's essay.

📷 + ✍️ : kellyy_klein

#getoutside #skiboys #weakness #cowboys #essays

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## Tags

getoutside, essays, cowboys, skiboys, weakness

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