the beginning of the blogging:

Last week I took the Bar exam in Colorado and completed 22 years of schooling. I'm no longer a student for the first time since I was 3 years old. No more studying; no more homework; no more Socratic method and having to be prepared for class; no more finals. It's rather refreshing!

So now what? With 2 weeks off of work I decided to take a road trip. It all started with this nagging urge to lay on the beach. So I decided to go to San Diego. And of course I can't leave home without my bike, so I decided to take a road trip. This all came together with about 2 days of planning. Here's the plan I came up with: Denver to Durango for a few days; Durango to Arizona; Arizona to San Diego; back to Denver (route yet to be determined).

I left Denver with 5 books on CD, 4 novels, 2 bikes (one road bike and a newly-purchased mountain bike), and one bag 'o clothes. Bring on the adventure!

Durango's a great town. I went for my first-ever mountain bike ride this morning. It was awesome! Elke Brutsaert, a Durango local and pro downhiller, treated me to an epic ride. After she gave me a few tip, we headed up the Colorado Trail. What a blast! Somehow I managed not to fall. Although I learned a very important lesson - when following a pro, it's not always wise to attempt to do everything she does! Elke was climbing over logs and rocks I had to walk over. Once we hit the downhill section, she busted out her mad downhill skills and took off. I had to book it just to keep her in sight. But 3 hours later, I no longer felt like such a novice! Thanks Elke for a great ride!

I was going to float down the river on a tube this afternoon, but it got cold and started to rain. That'll have to wait until tomorrow.

You know what the great thing is about not having cable TV at home? You don't feel guilty about sitting in your hotel room and watching a movie on HBO. It's not something you can do at home...and that's what vacation is all about!

My big decision tomorrow is do I go for a mountian bike or road ride? Tough choice!