Updates, Decisions, & the Future

There has been a lot going on lately in my life so I thought it may be a good idea to throw a post together.... Since I did tell myself I would try out this whole blogging thing.  Jennie and I recently (it has now been awhile) took a major road trip to Colorado to check out some places we have been talking about moving to for some time now. Although the Monterey Peninsula is one amazing place to live and train, it is quite pricey for two poor recent graduates to live on their own. This is especially true since we are looking to finally getting a place with just us two and no more multiple roommate situations.

We have been looking into Colorado for a while after hearing such great things and getting destroyed by runners who are from altitude. The altitude, cheaper living, and the mountains are all big factors in this. I grew up near the Sierras and although the ocean is great, there is something special about training in the mountains. The need for adventure also is inspiring us to make this huge move.

We have lived in Monterey for the last four years going to school and running cross country at CSUMB. Now we are both graduated and deciding what the next chapter is going to look like. With most of our ties and responsibilities in the Monterey area diminished, it is the perfect time in our minds to go search for a new place to live in and explore. Our attitudes seem to be that if we do not love it after a year then we can search for a new area to begin another chapter.

Our roadtrip came as a little bit of a surprise when Jennie randomly got a week off work. We had done some planning but not nearly enough. Things always turn out more fun when there is less planning. The trip consisted of about a 3,000 mile loop where we would go through the four corners area, through Colorado, then back down through the Phoenix area to San Diego where we would visit Jennie's family, and then back up north to Monterey. We only had about 9 days till we had to be in San Diego, so we had to make the time count. We took Jennie's new car packed with a couple bags of clothes and a tent. Some nights were spent sleeping crammed in a Civic in hotel parking lots while others were spent outdoors in some beautiful country.

Some cool stops we made!

• Flagstaff & Grand Canyon

• Silverton & Ouray

• Crested Butte 

• Salida, Buena Vista, & Leadville

• Colorado Springs

• Alamosa

• Joshua Tree & some more desert 

After this trip we honestly were more confused about where to live then before we left. Driving through the mountains and then ending in the bigger cities made it hard for us to consider not living in a city like Ouray or Buena Vista. As much as we would love to live simply in a small mountain town, we decided being in a bigger spot with more career opportunities should be at least sought after...for now. If attitudes shift in different directions after a year then we know we can always say screw it and look for living situations out in the hills. Colorado Springs was an absolutely beautiful city with some amazing mountains, endless trail networks, and close proximity to the deeper mountain towns. The next year will surely be an interesting one. Things will be missed here in Monterey but this is simply a new chapter and who knows what will come and where we will be after next year.