16 Days Until Takeoff.

Current list of things to do before I leave home for the longest period of time yet:

• Take my car in for VEIP inspection
• Maybe get an oil change and new tires (might be loaning out my car for the summer)
• Cut my hair so it can grow out well (it's been decided that a ponytail will be necessary)
• See people before I leave
• Finish conditioning my cowboy boots (I've completed only step 1 of 2)
• Get old riding boots repaired (to use as a second pair of boots)
• Pack
• Various doctor's appointments (which will all hopefully be finished after this week)

So...not much progress but I thought you deserved an update.

31 Days Until Takeoff.

Hi guys.

I'm off on another adventure and I thought I'd continue to chronicle my days with another blog.

Per requests, I will NOT be talking about what I eat (come on...what else is one supposed to do in Italy?) and I will try to complain less. I will probably be too busy and too tired to complain anyway.

This next adventure will take place in Colorado during the summer (May 12th-September 16th, exactly). I will be working for Sombrero Ranch in Estes Park, right outside the Eastern entrance to the Rocky Mountain National Park and two hours North of Denver. Sombrero is a trail riding outfitter where you can go and take a horseback-riding trail ride. I'll be working in the office handling bookings and the cash register but I'll get to ride one day a week. It's a 6-day-a-week, 12-15 hour-a-day job but it should be a fun (if exhausting) summer.

So be prepared for fun tourist stories, loopy-from-exhaustion antics, stories about my fellow "wranglers" and lots of horses. I hope to see a rodeo (again), learn to live without sleep (seems it will be a necessity), lose 5-10 pounds, and maybe even fall in love with a cowboy. Haha. Just kidding (maybe not?).

I have a lot of things to do before I leave (almost only a month left!) but here is a list of things I've already gathered for my trip West:

• Sleeping bag (using the one I got for Christmas!)
• Twin sheets (oh goodie, back to a twin bed--just like college!)
• Cowboy boots (still have them from when I rode Western a couple of years ago)
• Leatherman multi-tool (woo!)
• Lots of airy, light, plaid tops (part of our Western wear uniform)
• Cheap jeans that I won't mind having ruined by the end of the summer
• Straw cowboy hat (from my trip to the Grand Canyon)
• New sports bra (you totally wanted to know)
• Barn jacket (apparently there is a wide range of temperatures)
• Light zip-up sweatshirt

I don't really need to buy anything else but there are a lot of things I still need to do like:

• Take my car in for VEIP inspection
• Cut my hair shorter (maybe?)
• See people before I leave
• Finish conditioning my cowboy boots (for waterproofing and flexibility)
• Get old riding boots repaired (to use as a second pair of boots)
• Pack

Supposedly we have internet in our rooms so I'm bringing my laptop and intend to give regular updates but they might be weekly updates like I did in Alaska so it should be a good balance of information rather than my boring entries from Italy which were similar on a day-to-day basis because I had classes and such.

Anyway, I hope to have some good stories for you so start tuning in on May 12th for my Colorado Chapter!