I went to Coachella as a 29-year-old and realized I'm too previous for it

• The final time author Fortesa Latifi went to Coachella, she was 21.
• Then, she slept in her automotive and pieced collectively the weekend. Now she’s 29 and feels too previous for it.
• “I used to be completely different after I final went to Coachella,” she writes. “However Coachella was completely different too.”

The final time I went to Coachella, I used to be 21. I spent three days sleeping within the desert, with the trunk of my Jeep left open and the seats pushed all the way down to create a makeshift mattress. I drank heat beer and listened to music at ear-splitting volumes. I did not put on sunscreen or use ear plugs. I met strangers and listened to their life tales, exchanging mine for a crudely combined drink. I ate one meal a day to economize, filling within the gaps with rushed snacks.

I am 29 now. Once I went again to Coachella this weekend, I knew it might be completely different — simply not how completely different. I joked that I used to be too previous for it, however it grew to become much less of a joke the longer I stayed.

Now I do know for positive: I am too previous for Coachella

I am additionally too chronically ailing for Coachella. Regardless of buying and selling car-camping for an Airbnb, I discovered myself exhausted on the considered even getting into the pageant grounds. Our home was solely a few miles away from the venue, but it took nearly an hour in an Uber to get there due to the site visitors. 

Every minute that ticked by jogged my memory how a lot I did not actually need to go, to the warmth and the crowds and the noise. However I attempted anyway.

Even after we received dropped off, we nonetheless weren’t there

We needed to stroll over a mile within the desert warmth to get to the doorway, and I saved pondering: “Has this pageant gotten method larger or am I simply method older?” Seems, the reply is each. 

Once I final attended in 2015, 198,000 individuals attended over two weekends. However in 2017, the pageant expanded, permitting for as much as 250,000 attendees. The grounds have grown by greater than 40 acres to accommodate the larger crowds. 

It was validating to see that Coachella has gotten larger, and it is not simply that I’ve gotten older (although it’s undoubtedly additionally that).

I used to be instantly overwhelmed after we received within the pageant

The sounds, sights, and sheer quantity of individuals had been quite a bit to soak up. I additionally discovered myself taking a look at everybody’s outfits and pondering: “Wait, that is style?” I am nearly 30 years previous, and I felt prefer it.

I discovered some individuals to interview since I used to be there for work, and I felt like an alien visiting their planet. I needed to discover a quiet, darkish place to take a seat and gather myself, however there are not any such locations at Coachella. The second I walked onto the grounds, I used to be exhausted.

I additionally barely knew anybody who was performing 

I knew Frank Ocean and boygenius, however that was it. I additionally took this as an indication of my age.

However although in my analysis, I’ve discovered that Coachella was far more indie and rock centered. Once I first went in 2014, I used to be thrilled to see Lorde, Wye Oak, Foster the Individuals, Chvrches, and Lana del Rey. In 2015, I used to be most hyped about alt-J, St. Vincent, and Florence and the Machine. 

Because the pageant has grown, it is shifted from indie and rock to extra mainstream pop and hip-hop. That is cool too, however it’s not my vibe. 

I solely lasted contained in the pageant grounds for about 2 hours

Should you depend the hour it took to get there and the hour it took to get again to the Airbnb, I lasted 4 hours. 

I used to be supposed to remain the entire weekend, however I left the subsequent morning. It was simply an excessive amount of. I am chronically ailing, and the warmth, mud, and noise had been main triggers for me. I had a pounding migraine that I may really feel pulsing in my temples, and through a tearful cellphone name to my mother, I spotted being on the pageant wasn’t value sending myself right into a flare. 

Once I received again to the Airbnb, I reduce my wristband off and felt a surge of reduction.

So, yeah, I am too previous and too chronically ailing for Coachella

I used to be completely different after I final went to Coachella — youthful, much less sick, extra adventurous — however Coachella was completely different too. We have each modified, and there simply is not any widespread floor anymore. 

However as my thirtieth birthday approaches, I feel the most effective elements of getting older is realizing I haven’t got to do issues I do not need to do. I used to be by no means good at pretending to take pleasure in myself, and now I am carried out making an attempt.