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Cheyenne, Wyoming

John's shorthand, taken from a line in a play in the film Rushmore, for the place he goes when deeply immersed in a project, mostly writing.

Origin on the channel: From a Rushmore play set in the Vietnam War, where a soldier says he isn't even here but in Cheyenne, Wyoming, John took 'Cheyenne, Wyoming' as his shorthand for the place he goes when deeply immersed in a project. — Cheyenne, Wyoming 00:00:06

in-group term (bit) · in 6 videos, 2017–2026 · peak 2026 (3 videos) · still in use in 2026

Videos per year: 2017: 2 · 2023: 1 · 2026: 3

Every video

2017

date video use what is said
2017-06-13 Cheyenne, Wyoming 00:00:06 origin From a Rushmore play set in the Vietnam War, where a soldier says he isn't even here but in Cheyenne, Wyoming, John took 'Cheyenne, Wyoming' as his shorthand for the place he goes when deeply immersed in a project.
2017-12-01 Let's Talk About Stress! 00:00:00 callback Hank says that yesterday he told everybody he was stuck in, as John says, Cheyenne, Wyoming.

2023

date video use what is said
2023-09-05 I Ain't Even Here, Sergeant. I'm in Cheyenne, Wyoming. 00:00:00 callback John says a soldier's line in Rushmore, 'I ain't even here, Sergeant, I'm in Cheyenne, Wyoming', became his family's metaphor for deep immersion in writing or art: creative expression is escaping the prison of the self.

2026

date video use what is said
2026-01-13 why we make art 00:00:00 callback John explains that in Rushmore's play about the Vietnam War a soldier says he is not here but in Cheyenne, Wyoming; since first seeing the film at 21, John uses it for being fully engrossed in writing.
2026-02-13 Project for Awesome 2026 Kickoff! 06:51:50 callback John says January was one of the most intense work months of his life, his 'Cheyenne, Wyoming' of creative productivity, although he did not actually have to finish in January.
2026-02-15 Project for Awesome 2026 part 5! 02:36:45 callback John says he has spent the last few months in "Cheyenne, Wyoming", his metaphor for working very hard on writing, and it has been incredibly fulfilling, whatever comes of it.