Go west young man...

Some would say I’m crazy, but the adventurous side of me did it anyway. In April I had the goal of interviewing for a job or two, seeing family and friends, and also reconnecting with the city that raised me through my adolescence. As I hate the idea of “puppy jails” and asking friends to watch my two could always lead to trouble (and the possible loss of a friendship) I decided to embark cross-country and take the pups with me. So I packed the car and headed out on my journey. A journey from Atlanta to Denver that has yet to feel settled to this day, as I still feel I’m trying to find my place here. Kind of ironic since this is where I grew up!

So anyway… two days prior to leaving I had to have all four wisdom teeth extracted, so not much of my mind took in the sights on the way out to Denver but was more centered on the pain and getting to my first night’s destination pop a percocet. A brief stop over in St Louis to see Mike and Kevin was too brief and I headed out first thing the next morning to get to my ultimate destination. Having heard the joys of traveling through west Kansas I had prepared myself with purchasing a few books on cd. I like variety in life so I had a broad selection of books to listen to. “Marley and Me” seemed to do the trick (Earnest Hemingway’s Short Stories were starting to put me to sleep)... although I had not been warned of the ending. Tears ran down my face as I heard the author and narrator tell of his beloved labs last days as I passed by the “Welcome to Colorful Colorado sign.” Suddenly I felt like I was home again, and in some strange way felt a new appreciation for the lab of my own curled up in the back seat with his ‘sister’ Cloe, my Weimeraner.

Soon mountains came into view and I knew that a new chapter of my life was about to begin.