It's all about the real world

My blog neglection has gotten bad and out of control. I've been too busy living in Aspen and too tied up in work to take the time to reflect on my experiences. The reason I'm blogging now is sadly not to share my experiences and what I've been up to the last month, but to share links that I found beneficial. Indiana Intern requested to follow me on Twitter and looking back on their recent tweets I found some interesting and helpful links.

Since my internship is coming to an end I've started to think about how it has helped me and how I have benefited from it. This link sums it up in 5 points.

http://www.iaam.com/magazine/college/5-Ways-Internships-can-Help-College-Students#.Up4yNGRDvAL

And this link is giving some career tips...I am still a ways a way from applying for an actual job, but not too far away.

http://www.pinterest.com/pin/234468724324105063/

Recap: What it's like to be me

Aspen has taken over my life...well, my blogging life anyways. The last couple weeks I have been working hard and playing hard leaving me very little time to update you all on the life I have created and settled into here. I can't even remember what I have been up too, but it has been fun and I've had a few learning experiences. My life is always better explained using photos, so here we go...

What happens when our photographer is out of town? I get to run around town and snap photos...while I was supposed to be taking construction photos I stumbled upon some skaters practicing some tricks and found these to be much more fun to photograph than someone putting a roof on a bathroom or putting shingles on a store front, so I had another front page photo :). 

Happy Halloween!! I got to go to the senior center for a preamble to my evening festivities and this here is Woody dressed in drag as Miss. Nebraska bobbing for apples. Best photo I've taken here. It's just so funny and it made great front page art once again. 

My awesome Halloween costume...Experiencing Halloween in Aspen is like nothing else in the world. It is the greatest holiday and was probably one of the best nights I've had here. 

Of course I had to post a photo of food. I went down valley to Whole Foods and had a delicious piece of Brisket pizza and it made my stomach very happy. It was also an amazing day of bonding and girl time with my bestie :). 

And onto my writing because that's what I'm really here for...

http://www.aspentimes.com/news/sports/8622032-113/polo-aspen-glick-group

http://www.aspentimes.com/news/snowmass/8676374-113/portillo-salon-snowmass-village

http://www.aspentimes.com/news/8776981-113/aspen-program-women-military

http://www.aspentimes.com/news/snowmass/8777382-113/aspen-challenge-petersen-race

I've had the chance to cover some pretty exciting topics and go outside my comfort zone these past couple weeks. I've definitely been reminded that I'm here to learn and grow from mistakes I'm guaranteed to make because I'm still young and still learning. I'm becoming a better reporter and writer. I'm becoming more confident and more sure of who I am and who I can be on my own. This experience isn't limited to my internship, but it's been a chance for me to grow as a person. I've taken chances and they've all paid off. I still have no regrets in the time I've been here. As much as I don't want to ever leave I am excited for what is still yet to come.

Action-Packed, No Regrets

After counting down the weeks and days, Friday finally came and my best friend, Hope, woke up super early to come fly to Aspen for her fall break. It was a jam-packed weekend giving Hope the ultimate tour of the unique Colorado city.

We started with a low key Friday night where Hope came to the office while I finished up work and then we went to CP Burger for a quick dinner, nothing fancy but really yummy food. We spent the evening catching up with each other and eating our delicious burgers. We then came back and layered up for the walking tour we signed up for. At 9 p.m. we arrived outside the Wheeler Opera House to begin our hour-long Ghost Tour of the city. We walked around hearing about the haunted Hotel Jerome, Red Onion, Ted Bunte serial killer and more. It was an hour filled with scary stories about murders, ghost and tall tales that haunt the city of Aspen. It left me glad that I wasn't sleeping alone in my apartment.

Saturday, was when the real action began. We rose early to go to Bikram, which was the longest hour and a half of hot yoga I have ever experienced. It was a great start to the day, but man was it long. Then, we set out on an afternoon of shopping hitting up every store in town where Hope put quite the dent in her credit card. We wrapped up the afternoon with a late afternoon walk on the Rio Grande trail before our girls night out.

Sunday we stuck to just working out and a nice dinner out on the town. We hiked up Smuggler Mtn. and took the Hunter Creek trail (an 8.5 mile hike that took us 3 hours). It was a bit slippery through the freshly fallen snow and all the rocks down the steep hills, but we made it through. We ended the day with a trip to yin yoga to stretch it out and rounded it out with a fancy dinner at Jimmy's.

Monday we went on another hike up Smuggler Mtn. but explored a couple different trails - the behind the sign trail and the tootsie roll trail. It was a shorter hike than Sunday coming in at 6.5 miles but still was a good workout. After our hike we returned to run errands and have another girls night in. All in all it was a fantastic weekend and I'm so happy I got to spend it with Hope.

Photos speak 1000 words

Despite the lack of feeling in my fingers, my aching ears and chill in the air I still continue to press down on my shutter button to snap pictures. Being able to freeze a moment in time is beautiful whether it is a sporting event, nature walk or family gathering. The fact that we have the ability to speak through pictures is a truly amazing thing.

Here are some of my photos from the soccer game at Aspen High School today. It was the last home came of the season and as tradition holds, senior night.

Another perk to my job...last Friday I got to enjoy a delicious lunch for free since I did a restaurant critique for my weekly beat. Here are the picture of the amazing food I got to sample:

Biscuit n' Brisket: cheddar biscuit, black kale and bbq briscuit 

Andouille corn dog with homemade mustard creole 

Green salad with tomatoes, parmesan, and a light balsamic dressing

Crab tacos with an avocado lime dressing

And last but not least, I wrote a features on water polo and snapped a few photos at that too...

Time Flies

Something I don't understand is how I have been in Aspen a month. I knew my weeks would start flying by and I would no longer be counting down my days here, but boy has this happened so fast. I am finally in my own rhythm and loving every minute I have here. I am taking life by what is thrown my way in the present and not missing out on a single opportunity whether related to my internship or not. I have gotten to the point where I can no longer keep track of what I am reporting on.

Some days have been rough where I am consumed by my past and what could have been. This has not only become a time where I am exploring what it is like to work in a professional newsroom, but it has become time for me to examine myself. I haven't been alone in a long time and even though I just started my fifth week here I'm still meeting people. I'm still learning what it's like to live by myself in a city that I have never been to before.

I am moving forward in life and becoming an adult. This experience is part of my college career and even though I am not starting a new chapter of my life in Aspen it is still a new chapter in the larger scheme of my book and for my time at DePauw. Time does move fast here, but now I am beginning my second month and it's a little strange. I thought I would be better transitioned and know more people, but even though I keep putting myself out there it is really difficult to meet people when your not thrown into a situation like a study abroad program or a program with other interns. It's a learning experience and I know when this is all over I'll miss it and be so thankful I had this experience, but being consumed in the middle of it going through some tough emotional drama it's hard to see it that way.

Looking back on my past week, I had some great articles published and took some risks. The weekend took a turn as most of them do when I have to entertain myself and come up with things to do, so I was a little homesick and missing what I just recently lost. Now it's a brand new week and I need to look forward. It's another week where I have great opportunities to publish more great articles, take risk and this weekend I get to see my best friend.

Bliss

I've finally had the perfect weekend even though I still have 8 hours left, but my next eight hours consist of watching the Cardinals, Bikram and watching my TV shows later tonight (Once Upon a Time and Revenge).

You may be asking yourselves why my week has been so great....well let me share:

Silver Queen Gondola Ride

We took an 18 minute ride up to the top of Aspen Mountain to see the amazing views and hang out on the sun drenched deck Saturday afternoon.  

Puppy on Board

Mack, a 13-week-old English Bulldog, shows his skateboarding skills at the top of Aspen Mountain. Mack is being trained as an avalanche retrieval dog by his owner Brad Dingess, a snowcat operator for SkiCo. "He's definitely an outside dog," Dingess said.

This weekend the Silver Queen Gondola offered free rides to the top of Aspen Mountain, so I obviously was all over taking the ride up to see the beautiful views. Everyone and their mom was up there, but it was a great decision to go up. There were so many adorable dogs and little kids hoola-hooping and having snowball fights. I definitely got caught in a snowball fight between another co-workers kids and my boots took some pretty hard hits. 

Mountain High 

Just one of the beautiful views from the top. Snow on the caps, sun high in the sky and hot cocoa makes for the perfect afternoon. 

Not only did my day include a great trip to the top of Aspen Mountain, but I started my day off with a great morning workout. I have been going to Bikram the last three weeks and yesterday was by far the best class I have had so far. I was able to push myself and reach positions I didn't know I could do. 

To conclude my Saturday, I came home to read my book and catch up on a TV show, Hart of Dixie, that I used to watch. 

Today has been another great day where I have had some great Me time. Aspen High School had their annual college fair so I stopped by to say hi to the DePauw admissions counselor and then came back into town where I had a nice lunch outside. It was my first time eating at a restaurant alone and it was actually really nice. I got to people watch and listen in to some of the other conversations around me. It also helped that my sandwich was deliciously yummy. 

It's been the first weekend where I have been completely happy to be out here by myself. I've gotten out of my apartment and hung out with people, but I've had some nice quiet time alone. 

Hump Week

My Top 5 favorite things that happened this week:

1. My grandparents stopped in and visited. 
Who doesn't love when their grandparents or anybody from their family comes and visits them? I got to play hooky and show my grandparents around town, go out to eat with them and relax by the pool on a beautiful Tuesday afternoon when it was 70 and sunny out. It was fun to be an adult and show them where I work and who I work with. I also got to talk about how much I love my internship and all that I am doing which makes me feel great about this opportunity that I have been given.

2. Took some pretty awesome soccer pics at this week's game. 

The team unfortunately faced another loss losing to Roaring Fork Valley 3-1. 

3. Had 3 stories published this week and 2 photos. 

Hunger Games: Hi2t at the Aspen Club Host Hunger Benefit Saturday
Town Tattle
Windwalkers Profile

4. Got to spend a lot of time outside in the gorgeous weather and see the fall leaves. 

5. Was reminded by my sorority sisters how much they love me and miss me. 

Despite it being a very odd week it's been a good one. It's officially the first week of the off-season, so things have been very quiet and slow. The newsroom has run into a lot of dead ends trying to come up with things to report about - except for the lovely government shutdown providing us with lots of news midweek. We've also had strange weather with another early October blizzard that set in last night. I got to wake up to about 5 inches of snow and there's supposed to be more coming down tonight. I guess this is what I get for not being in St. Louis and able to go to a World Series Game. The snow is pretty though. There is definitely something different about mountain snow and the snow that the STL and the Castle get. It's more powdery here and prettier looking.

I've had a lot of me time this week, which I've loved. I've gone to work, gone to hot yoga, and have come home and just relaxed. I have finally gotten used to living by myself. Now don't get me wrong give me all my sorority sisters in one house and I'll immediately take it, but I've enjoyed having my own space to come back to where I don't have to worry about other people interrupting me. I can watch TV, read my book, cook myself whatever I want for dinner and really just relax. I'm so busy at school that I very rarely have time to just relax and not worry about things, so it's been nice to go to work and come home and not have to worry about what's going on at work. I like having the separation.

I did discover one thing I hate today...cleaning an oven. First of all, I love to clean. I always keep everything very neat and organized, but there's something about really cleaning everything that just calms me down. Not only does it relax me, but I just love being in a place right after it's been clean and smells good. So, I scrubbed my entire bathroom, vacuumed, dusted, and cleaned my kitchen. I decided to be brave today and actually use the spray I have for my oven because I have only used it once because I was afraid it would burn the apartment down by how bad it smelled...and I was just trying to cook my mac and cheese. So, I sprayed it down and almost suffocated by the inhaling the lovely fumes and then I attempted to scrub the shelves and that was an absolute fail. And the catch, I'm doing the overnight cold oven cleaning so when I get up tomorrow I get to take a wet sponge and scrub the inside of my oven to actually clean it. Something to look forward too...

I'm actually really excited for tomorrow. The Gondola is offering free trips up to the top of Aspen Mountain, so I am definitely hitting that up. It's nice to finally be settled in and I really do feel at home here. It's going to be sad to leave at the end of this. I'm loving the experience and it's making me really excited to have a career in journalism. I'm not excited about the applications I have to fill out to apply for the internships I want, but I am excited to see if I get one for next summer. I can't imagine not working at a newspaper now...It's definitely the career I want with no hesitations.

Football, Exploration and Good Company

Layering up for Friday's night homecoming football game I was not looking forward to being outside, but I survived and the work paid off.

This was my first time every shooting a football game and with the poor weather conditions it wasn't too much fun, but the photos I ended up with were well worth my toes and fingers losing feeling.

I took about 300 photos but ended up with some good ones. These are two of my best and the bottom photo was the one used in the paper. 

After coming home from the office around 10pm last night I rose early to explore Maroon Bells. We got out at the perfect time on an unbelievable day. There was no wind, just the right amount of snow and not too crowded yet. 

The weekend is not even halfway over and I've already accomplished so much. It's crazy to think that I've only been here 2 weeks. I still have not met many people outside work, so I don't have a friend group yet, but I am settled in and adjusted to life in Aspen.

Another week comes to an end

Concluding my second week here in Aspen I have begun to settle in. I have no strict schedule like I am used to and am not running around like crazy suffocating from what I need to get done. It's been a quiet and relaxing week. There was a lot of time spent at the office working on stories, but I also got out had some fun, met new people, got some great exercise and relaxing moments.

On the reporting side, it has been a great week at The Aspen Times. I have worked on four stories that all came together quickly and smoothly. Each was a different type - sports (game and press release), profile and personal. These stories have given me the opportunity to show everyone what skills I do have. I have also snapped a lot of photos for the paper this week since our main photographer has been out of town.

I have definitely learned that if I want to do something I just need to step up and say that I want to do it and am capable of doing it.

Writing about my hike over the weekend showed me the freedom I have here to accomplish what I want to accomplish. If I come up with a story idea my editors will let me run with it. Tuesday, the day my story appeared in the paper, I also had a photo that was my idea. I wrote a story for last week's paper about a local's fundraising efforts and a companion of his was throwing a fundraiser at his restaurant to further their benefits to the Boulder Flood Relief. I knew it didn't deserve a story, but I thought it would make a great photo opp. and my editor agreed.

The Meatball Shack, a local business in downtown Aspen, hosted a fundraiser to support Boulder Flood Relief Monday evening.  Manager Aidan Wynn and his restaurant raised over $10,000 dollars and collected numerous donations. 

Tuesday I was able to finish up my press release story about the Denver Cutthroats minor league hockey team coming to play in Aspen this winter. The story wrote itself and once I got my local quote I was set. It is set to appear over the weekend.

Wednesday, the EIC went out of town so I have been left to do my own thing. I've had enough to keep me busy and have had the chance to get out there. I've stepped up to take photos, write sports, news and features. I'm always talking to someone about what's going on to come up with my next story, so I'm not always assigned something new.

Since day one I told the sports editor I wanted to help cover some sports and Thursday I was given my chance. I was able to go report on the Aspen High School boy's soccer team. Now, compared to my high school team (who won state 8 years in a row) they weren't that impressive, but a gorgeous day made it worth it. The team put up a good fight and it was an entertaining game.

I got to see my byline in Friday's paper for the fourth time this week making my grin a bit bigger than usual (2 photo credits and 2 stories).

Thursday I also got called into action to run over to a hotel to snap a quick photo to accompany a news reporter's story.

Dusty Diaz, right, sponsorship and events coordinator for Aspen Skiing Co., hands over a T-shirt and other materials for The Meeting to David O'Connell, of Edwards. Registration for The Meeting, Skico's annual pre-winter conference, started Thursday. 

New Family Member

I was pleasantly surprised to see a package at my door this morning. When I opened it I not only found the items I left at home but I had a surprise waiting for me. I pulled out the box and read that it was a fish tank with fish.

I am no longer living alone in my new apartment. I now have two new members of my family...okay, maybe they really are fake fish but that doesn't matter. I now have little friends I can talk to.

So, much of my day has become what to name my two new pets in addition to working on a couple articles for the paper. I am responsible here and can multitask.

Using the must trusted search engine of Google I searched for "creative fish names."

I came along many sites but my favorite was this one...http://www.wikihow.com/Name-a-Fish

Now my task when I go home will be to sit in from of my itty bitty fish tank and closely stare at my fish and pray that some creative name comes to my mind.

This is my list so far...

Boomer
Atlantis
Bubbles
Flipper
Goldie
Pearl

Now I have two fish so I need to decide if I want to name them as a cutesy pair or just name them, after all they are fake. There should not be this much effort going into this task right now.

Stay tuned to find out my fishes names and to hear about more of my Colorado experiences.

"Get Lost"

A morning spent exploring the well known mountain known as Smuggler. A trail where as many as 600 people can be spotted in one day. A trail nicknamed "housewife" - now I did see many women walking up the mountain so maybe there is truth to this...I don't really know.

All I know is that the casual 1.5 mile hike I set out on today was a lot more of a grunt than I expected. Mountain = going up did not click in my pretty little head. 

Completely out of breath and drenched in sweat I reached the look out point. 

The views were well worth it. But instead of stopping here I decided to take the advice from a new friend who I met along the way up. He told me, "Get lost, explore, have fun." 

I set out on the Behind the Scene trail on a .65 mile add on. Best decision I made today. I saw a family of deer and stumbled upon a couple mines. 

It was a great day to be out and about exploring. There is so much beauty in the Rockies that I am going to explore all that I can while I'm here these next few months. 

Even if it is only the first day of fall and there's already snow. 

Something unique to The Aspen Times is that the editor encourages the staff to write about their experiences around Aspen, so taking the opportunity I jumped at the chance to share my hike up to smuggler.

Check out the article here (article pg. 2 and photo pg. 3) ... http://aspentimes.co.newsmemory.com/?token=

Just Ask

After I completed my first story Thursday afternoon I came in early to work Friday to get a head start on my next story, however, my story was put on hold. With nothing to do I asked if I could shadow a reporter to a court sentencing that afternoon.

Sitting in court for the first time besides the tour of the courthouse I had in elementary school I was filled with excitement. I was instructed to take careful notes, which I did, and when we returned to the office the story was handed over to me much to my surprise.

Picking up the paper the next day my byline appeared on the front page - a happy accident.

http://aspentimes.co.newsmemory.com/?token=

Work Hard, Play Hard

I have officially wrapped up my first week here at The Aspen Times publishing my first story, meeting new people, trying new things and having one super fun week.

Top 10 Lessons I've learned this week:

1. Altitude really does effect you - Running and walking up a mountain are a lot harder than in St. Louis. I was heaving to catch my breathe and have felt so out of shape this week.
2. Learn to love the game of phone tag - A lot of reporting this week has turned out to be me leaving many messages for sources in the hopes that they will call me back so I can get what I need to write my story.
3. Have confidence - don't be afraid to make a phone call, ask a a question or do something that makes you feel a little uncomfortable.
4. Try new things - this week I have tried hot yoga, learned to hackie sack, play rugby and explore by myself. I have learned new things about myself and have seen beautiful things.
5. Don't be afraid to introduce yourself to new people - being in a new place where I know no one I have gone out of my comfort zone to meet new people and this has paid off.
6. Take criticism positively - Turning in a story is always nerve racking because you want your editor to like it and not make any suggestions to it, but the fact is the suggestions make it so much better. Yesterday I completed my first story turning it over to two other editors in my newsroom to give me their feedback. It was a little scary being at a real newspaper, but I wrote a good story that needed only minor fixes. These fixes made my story so much better and I am so happy I had another set of eyes or two look over it.
7. New shoes give you blisters, buy bandaids 
8. Have an open mind - be open to everything that comes your way and take it as an opportunity to grow and learn new things.
9. Go with the flow -  I don't have every moment of my day scheduled out like I normally do and don't know what my days will entail so I have to go with what is sent my way and not worry about anything not happening or what is to come.
10. Have a little fun - you can't work hard and have no time to play a little bit. I'm in a wonderful place where there is so much to do in addition to the hours I spend in the office. It's time to take full advantage of hanging out with new people, trying to new things and enjoying the time I have here.

To read my first article to ever appear in a real town newspaper check it out here:

http://www.aspentimes.com/news/8204078-113/nakagawa-aspen-flood-donations

Trying New Things

Today was my day of first.

Arunja Yoga gained a new student this morning as I walked in, signed up and took my place in the studio. After an hour and a half Bikram I sweated out all my toxins, stretched and lengthened my body and rejuvenated my spirits. I am so excited to see where hot yoga takes my body and my mind these next 3 months. 

After pressing my nose to the Aspen Times front windows Saturday evening I stepped inside the office this afternoon. I am proud to say that I have a desk, a schedule and assignments soon to come. Look for my name and articles online at the aspentimes.com. 

When I walked my six blocks to my office this afternoon it was pouring down rain as was my walk home, but after I came inside my apartment with my peppermint tea and pumpkin bread from the little cafe across the street from my place the sunlight started to shine into my window. The rain after all was only a quick shower, so I put on my hiking boots and went exploring. 

Walking left and then right I followed Original St. up towards Aspen Mountain but veered to the left taking the Ute Trail. 

A 2.2 mile hike up if I had actually stayed on this trail, but instead being me I took my tea with me and could not figure out how to work the first trashcan I saw so I went to the next one I saw at Ajax park. This time I successfully figured out how to open the trashcan and found a new trail that looked cool, so of course I took it and stumbled upon nature's beauty. 

Ute Cemetery - Remembering those who died in the War

A beautiful sight to walk into - The Roaring Fork River

Today has truly been a day of adventures which every day is looking to be. 

Reality Kicks In

I've been talking about coming to Aspen to intern at The Aspen Times for almost a year now. Last fall maybe early winter I heard about this great internship and knew this was the one for me. Without hesitation or taking a second thought I demanded this internship is the one I wanted and no other one would live up to the sounds of this one. And with that, I did not look at any of my other options or second guess my choice.

Now, after all my talk and dreams I am finally here. I am 999 miles from home and there is no going back. I am officially locked into this.

The comforting scent of burnt coffee and warm vanilla surround me in this new space that I will be calling home for the next 12 weeks. My clothes are hung up in the closet and folded neatly on the shelves, my shampoo and conditioner sit in the shower, my makeup on the counter and medicines in the medicine cabinet. I have groceries in the fridge and in the cupboards. Plants sit on my counter and my TV console. A day ago this apartment was abandoned and a bit scary. Today this apartment is mine. It is my new home.

My mom has left leaving me to live the dream I have talked about for so long now. It's no longer just talk or dreams. This is real. I am alone in this foreign city where I know no one. This is the time where I become an adult and this is my time to discover who I really am.

Tomorrow begins my journey and for tonight I take a deep breath and remind myself everything will be okay.

Scoop Found Me

Where oh where do I even begin?!

It all started with a 5a.m. wake up call (why people even wake up before the sun I have no idea. It just makes for an extremely long day especially when one is traveling to another timezone which happens to be an hour earlier). So, I put real clothes on and some make up to not scare normal civilians and we drive to the airport.

Security....check
Coffee...check
On plane...check

Now, we're off the plane (FYI I'm traveling with my mom here) and we hop the shuttle to the rental car place. This is where our trip becomes interesting. Let me start by telling you the lessons we have learned thus far...

1. When you go to pick out your rental car and it is a push start and you are able to push start and therefore start the car the keys must be somewhere in the car, however, when we made it to the gate to take the car the keys were no where to be found. So, we drove back to the little self help area and the nice man came out and searched the entire car finding no such keys....Then I looked down and volia found the keys...yeah they were right next to my seat in between my seat and the car door.

2. Because we are no longer in the midwest the crossings on the road now say WATCH OUT FOR ELK instead of watch out for deer. Shall we take a moment here and remember the article I wrote for WGRE, DePauw's radio station, last fall about what Greencastle,IN police were doing to make sure the deer were safe....it was awesome and so informative let me tell you...go look it up on past WGRE news broadcast

3. When walking into your apartment that you will be staying in for 3 months with no prior knowledge of what it looks like or what is in it STAY CALM. I repeat STAY CALM. Do not do what my mother and I did - FREAK OUT. That was a great 2 hours I never want to relive in my life.

Continuing, we drove up to the beige building I was told to find and claimed our parking spot. Then we carefully studied the fence to figure out which part of the fence pushed open...after figuring this out we walked up to a sliding glass door and slid it open and that was all she wrote...just kidding.

So, we come into the apartment and already I have my first friend (an animal friend must I say). All of a sudden I turn around and on the bed, my bed, a grey little cat is curled up and has made himself at home. Let me inform you I hate cats. But apparently all the cats know I am single and are coming to meet me as I spent my night two nights ago babysitting and all three cats were cuddling with me throughout the entire night. Anyways, I was informed by my friend, who interned here before and the lady at the grocery store, that this cat has a name and he is the Aspen Times Cat. My first official friend in Aspen has been Scoop and I look forward to seeing him more and who knows maybe I'll become a cat person.

Anyways, back to my story...

After our 3.5 hour drive I really had to go to the bathroom and of course the toilet wasn't working and couldn't flush, I was left a sweet note telling me that the front door doesn't work because the handle is not on the door and my screen is not on my sliding glass door - these were the three things that set my mother and I into a world war three freakout.

Now, at this point we discovered the hardware store and the market and the pharmacy and another store and another store. We got all the essentials except for some unknown reason we have yet to find a yummy delicious smelling candle to make the apartment feel a little more homey.

I ask you how hard do you think it is to find a candle? Well let me tell you it is way more difficult than you would think. My mom and I explored four different stores and came home empty handed.

Getting back to the point now, I am settled in - all my groceries are put away, I changed my sheets and organized all of my things.

Tomorrow I will go explore and get used to my surroundings, but for now I am off to a relaxing dinner to fill my tummy with some good food.

T-24 hours till I start my internship!!

Ready, Set, Record...

My new friend just arrived to accompany me to the Aspen Times. 

Not Long Now

Success has been achieved! The last of my belongings have made their way into my suitcases and all my zippers are zipped! Exhaustion has officially set in after three days of packing, babysitting and an array of emotions.

My nerves still have not set in though. I'm officially ready to go and start out on something new and out of my comfort zone, but I'm still not fully aware that this is happening tomorrow.

After everything that happened this past week  in my personal life it's time for a clean start. And what better way to start fresh than in a beautiful mountain city where anything is possible. Colder weather, pilates/yoga/barre classes, hiking, skiing and meeting new and interesting people.

Now, my countdown really begins...twelve hours till I am on a plane to Denver and officially not in St. Louis or on campus at DePauw.

Packing Crisis - Alert the Press!!!!

After entering into the Media Fellows class of 2015 at DePauw University three years ago I never thought this time would actually be upon me. The vague internship I was told that I would go on four years ago seemed so far away, but here it is. Now, it's not what I envisioned I'd be doing. I'm not in Rome or New York or LA. I'm not doing TV or internal communications. I'm continuing my print journalism dream and interning at The Aspen Times in Aspen, CO.

And my suitcases are beginning to tell my story...

So, you would think it would be helpful to hang up all your shirts, dresses, skirts, etc....in your second closet and then fill a laundry basket with everything else you might need two weeks prior to when you will be filling your suitcase to the brim, but of course this way is not working. I decided to start carefully picking out my outfits a few weeks ago after I had a couple big shopping excursions to buy fall/winter intern appropriate clothes for the Colorado weather. This in theory was a great idea.

I laid out all my clothes on my bed, separated my clothes out by pants, tops, blouses, skirts, dresses, workout clothes etc. I then had a very fun fashion show in my room for hours on end one night seeing how many different outfits I could make out of all my clothes - after all I do have a itsy bitty addiction to buying clothes and putting outfits together that say "I am professional, yet young and ready to have fun." It takes a lot of work. And then, I had to narrow down my shoes and scarfs and coats.

 By this time I was completely drenched in sweat and let me remind you that I have not even attempted filling my one large suitcase, on rolling R.E.E. duffle that loved me when I took it to London and Paris last January and finally my carry on duffle because I really do have this much stuff.

Two days ago since I leave Sept. 14th on a 7am flight on Southwest my mom dug through the attic and brought me the luggage I will have to pack in. Better to start packing early than too late. Now, I have packed all three bags once - a lot of stuff is still on my bed, desk and scattered around my floor, but hey at least most of it's in there, right? Well, now I have realized that because I am me and I can not cut down anymore of what I am taking I will just have to unpack myself and repack myself to make all my obnoxious about of stuff fit into 3 bags because I really don't want to pay for an extra bag.

My nerves about leaving St. Louis and traveling to Aspen, Co, a resort town that I have never been to before and know absolutely no one, have not yet set it. I guess I'll just have to get through the stress of packing to actually become nervous about setting out in a new town in a real newspaper environment for the next 3 months of my life.

Here I am less than 48 hours until I embark on a new adventure and I am preoccupied by packing...of course this would be how I am right now. Forget what my actual adventure is at the moment and let's just focus on what I will be wearing throughout al of it and being able to get it there in one piece.

Don't get me wrong, I have stressed a lot about my housing, my reporting skills and what it will be like living on my own for three months in a town I have never been to before, but when you put a girl into a room that looks like her closet threw up a black hole her life suddenly becomes what can fit in those bags and come with her to keep her company before she actually meets new people and starts out on her new adventure.

Packing first, excitement/nerves for adventure second.