You can always go home

Which is good, because sometimes you just need a Nebraska fix. And now is one of those times. Look out, O-town :)

What a difference 60 miles makes

This weekend was the first time Travis had the a-okay from his Dr. to go snowboarding after blowing out his shoulder, so he and some buddies decided to spend the whole weekend in the mountains to make the most of it. I still have yet to attempt hurling myself down a mountain on wooden planks, (though this winter I truly did have every intention of learning,) so I amused myself for a day by browsing the shops and taking some photos. I am still amazed at how it can be 50s and sunny in Denver but look like this in Breckenridge...

That is a TON of snow on that building!

Holy icicles, Batman!



Job Update

Now don't get too excited, I still don't have a job. But at least the interviews have picked back up after a quite disheartening lull. Overall I've applied for over 50 jobs, had interviews for 8, and several repeat interviews. Here's my week schedule:
Monday: first interview with GlobaLinks, parent company of Australearn, for two open positions within the study abroad field.
Tuesday: interview with the Colorado for Water Education for the position of Colorado Water 2012 campaign coordinator.
Wednesday: third interview at CraftWorks - this time meeting with the Chair of the Board of Directors who also happens to be the SVP of Old Chicago.
Thursday: second interview with GlobaLinks, with additional people this time.
Friday: eye dr. appointment. Also very important because I'm down to my last pair of contacts. Dang, that always seems to sneak up on me.

So, still no news. But if I make it through all of these repeat interviews without an offer I am going back to mowing grass at Champions. I'll let you decide if I'm kidding or not.

First Hike of the Season!

It has been so nice here the past few days that I was getting the itch to hike again! Of course it is still dumping snow and freezing up in the mountains, so Travis and I stayed closer to home and went to the Garden of the Gods near Colorado Springs. It wasn't a strenuous hike, but it was great to be outside for the afternoon. I even got a little sunburned on my nose - that's when you know it was a good day! (B, we had planned on going to the zoo to feed the giraffes, too! But we hiked longer than anticipated, and if I'm going to go to a zoo I need multiple hours, so I kept that on my list for another day.)

This is the Siamese Twin rock formation - I wanted Travis to take a picture with me in the middle. He gave me that "are you serious?!" look, so I made him take a picture of me instead. I have to pick my battles.

In other news, I have three job interviews this week. Wish me luck... much love from the Rockies!

"A holiday for the redheads"

... at least that's what my roommate calls it. :) And it just so happend that St. Patty's Day fell on a Thursday... what better excuse to go to Cowboy Lounge for ladies night? It was meant to be, for sure.

Happy St. Patty's Day!

Hard to believe it is only March when we're enjoying mid-70s here in Denver... Perfect day to go to Wash Park. It could have been summertime except for the brown grass and bare trees. But don't worry, it is supposed to snow on Friday. Bi-polar Denver...

Weekend Adventures

This weekend I got to play tour guide while Mom and Dad were here... I think I did well, but I did get lost a few times. Ah well. We definitely made the most of the long weekend!

Friday we explored downtown Denver. We ate at the Irish Snug, saw the capitol building, strolled down 16th Street Mall, and tried and failed to tour the Denver Mint. Twice. (Yes, Phil and Finke, that means that I've failed to see the mint a total of three times now. I don't think it is meant to be!) We all had dinner with Travis and his parents (!) on Friday before calling it a night.

Saturday we were up and at 'em early. (Not shocking for those of you who are familiar with the Muegges.) In fact, we were at Santiago's for burritos before they even opened. Dad is the only person I know to date that can handle the "hot" burritos at Santiago's - I still think his taste buds must be totally burned off by that. We headed to Estes Park and spent the day browsing the mountain shops and feeling very Colorado. We headed home when it started to snow unexpectedly. And this wasn't regular snow - it was snowing Dippin' Dots. (You know, the ice cream of the future?!) Well, not literally Dippin' Dots, but it was definitely the same size and shape! Weird. I may have eaten a couple just to make sure. Would have been so much cooler if they had been vanilla flavored.

We stopped at Nederland on our way back and went to the cutest coffee shop that was in old circus train cars. So fun!

We also had to stop at the Alpaca Store. It was pretty much what you would expect. Unfortunately there was no alpaca outside in the pen. Must have been moved inside becuase of the Dippin' Dots snow...

Sunday after church we headed to Stella's for some coffee - I wanted Dad to get a few hippie experiences while in Colorado so he would have something to discuss with the CMI guys at lunchtime this week. Then we went to Golden and toured the Coors Brewery. (No, B, I didn't have all of my free beers. It was only 12:30 after all, but I did have a Blue Moon!) Then we took the windy windy road up to the top of Lookout Mountain and saw Buffalo Bill's grave and the extremely tacky souvenir shop. On the way back to Denver we stopped at Red Rocks and climbed to the theater to check it out. There were very dedicated athletes running the steps... my they looked motivated. Much more so than I.

After a Pete's Kitchen breakfast this morning Mom and Dad headed back to Omaha. I had a great time; I hope they did too. Thanks for coming, guys!

The ultimate sacrifice

This year for Lent instead of giving up chocolate, which let's face it, I've NEVER been able to actually do, I've decided to bring Lent into the 21st century. That's right... I'm giving up Facebook. Ugh. I don't even like to say it. Admitting that I'm giving it up makes me sound like a junkie. (It's like admitting that I have Bieber-fever or that I know the N'Sync dances. Only one of which is true.) The fact that "giving up" Facebook would even enter into my mind makes judge myself, just a little. But it is not in the way you think. I don't think FB users are all shallow and immature. I personally love FB - it lets me see what my friends are doing, lets me see photos of my nieces, nephews, and baby Mason, and it lets me catch up with far-away friends whom I haven't seen in years. And it is so EASY! 

But maybe that's the problem. It is too easy. It is too easy to not put the effort to actually write an e-mail, letter, or *gasp* make an actual phone call. And it is too easy to judge others and myself. Not in the "look how fat she's gotten since high school" sort of way, perhaps compare is a better word for it. And I am totally guilty - especially now when I'm trying to figure out my life's direction in, let's face it, pretty much every aspect. It is so easy for me to browse through profiles and think "look where person XX is now - I am no where near there". Not that I want to switch lives with anyone, it is just so dang easy to second guess your decisions when you see the result of others' plastered all over your computer screen. Some good, some not so good, but I compare nonetheless.

So  I think it will be good for me. Not that I spend ALL my time on FB by any means, but it is so easy to just "check in" when you're working on your computer. And then *BAM* 20 minutes, gone. It will be interesting to see if I actually find myself with free time, or even if I notice a difference.

I highly doubt that at the end of this I will have an epiphany and delete my account - I really do like FB for many reasons. But for now, I just need a break. With that said, I still want to see pictures of people's adventures! Molly's trip to Africa, baby Mason, my youngest niece who just began to walk... so I'm putting out a call for e-mail photos! (Is that cheating??) Eh, oh well. I'm a photo-junkie, and some habits die hard. That one, I'm not too concerned about :)

Much love from the Rockies!

bad blogger...

Yes, I've been a bad blogger lately. Mainly because I'm afraid that I don't have anything newsworthy to put up here. Well, let's be honest, none of it is really "newsworthy"... maybe we'll call it blog-worthy instead. But in the interest of my fans (thanks, Mom!), I'll give you an update on the latest...

Job-search: Well, it is still going. I had two interviews last week with CraftWorks Foundation (http://www.rockbottom.com/craftworks-foundation) for the position of National Events Manager, and there was talk about bringing me in later this week or next week again. But I'm the first person they've interviewed, so take from that what you will. Hopefully my stellar thank-you card sent via snail mail will tip the scales in my favor :)

House-search: Travis and I drove all around town last Saturday looking for 1-bedrooms for him and 2-bedrooms for Kate and I. We found some things that were horribly out of our price range and some others that were within our price range but horribly dodgy. Now to find the happy medium... we've got a while, though!

Etc.: Well, it has only taken a year and a half but finally, dun dun dunnnn.... my Mom and Dad are coming to visit! Apparently the dungeon basement was not enticing to them. (Just kidding guys, I know you were waiting until school was done!) Our plan is to see all of Denver and the mountains in one weekend. And don't think we can't do it. I'm a planner. I'm definitely looking forward to it!

And because blogs are boring without photos, below is a photo of Sunday night trivia at Goosetown Tavern. The siracha pizza was extraordinary, but our trivia team, on the other hand, was average. Which we are totally okay with. As long as we don't come in last we consider it a success! The best category was App or Crap, and let me tell you, it turns out there are some truly crappy iPhone apps out there!
(photo taken by the trivia people. not the greatest. stick with trivia, not photography)

bits and bobs

(That is British-speak for odds and ends - I almost like it better.) Anyway, I thought I could give you a quick update as to what I've been up to lately. And really, it isn't that exciting. I'm still searching for a job and have officially expanded my search to include Omaha, KC, and maybe Chicago. There are days I wonder why I went back to school just to be stuck job searching in month two with loan payments looming not-so-far into the future. I KNOW that it will all work out, and lord knows I've putting the effort, but that doesn't mean that I am dealing with the month two transition all that well. Thank you to all my friends and family who have been great at allowing me to let off my steam... Hopefully something will turn up soon! After all, I have applied for nearly 40 jobs... sheesh.

But I am able to cross things off of my to-do list, like make banana bread (very important), do my taxes (okay, I haven't technically done them yet, but it is on my list for today), and, of course, give our apartment the two-month notice that they require to tell them we're moving out. But you just moved in!, you might say. And that is very true. But our lease is for three months, and the complex requires you to give a 60-day notice when you are moving out. And since I'm still not in a position to sign a longer lease... looks like we'll be packing our stuff up in April. Luckily we didn't throw away any of our boxes. Phew. We really think that given more time (than the two weeks we had to find this place) that we can find something we like in an area that we really want to be in. This one is okay, but not the greatest. So I'm going to chock it up to "everything happens for a reason" and believe that we'll find a better place. And start gathering friends to help us carry this dang pull-out couch again. But at least we'll be going DOWN three flights of stairs this time... Definitely better than going up!