My New Job.....

Well, I know it's been a while and I haven't told you yet (here at least), but it's official....I finally got a job!!!

Okay, truth be told, I've had the job for two weeks now, but I wanted to finish the Road Trip series before posting it (and I was struggling to finish that.....so that's the delay).

I will be teaching 4th Grade at The Louisville Collegiate School in Louisville, KY. Yes, that's right, I'm staying in the States! I know, I know, some folks are going to be really excited (mom, dad) and others might be a bit disappointed (you know who you are), but I'm excited about this opportunity.

The school is a beautiful little private school in a nice neighborhood of Louisville, Kentucky. There are only three classes in the entire Fourth Grade, each having around 15 students. I will be responsible for teaching Math, Language Arts and Social Studies, which is an exciting prospect (considering Science is my weakest area).

School starts on August 21 and I have so much to do!! If you'd like to check out my new school, the website is now a link on the side. Check it out!

Dios te bendiga

My Springs of Colorado (Final installment of My Road Trip 2008)

After leaving Albuquerque, I ventured up to Colorado Springs to hang out with my buddy Shaun, who I worked with in Venezuela. He had been hired to work at a new school up there and it was close to his family, so he pounced on the opportunity. Shaun was hanging out while his wife Susan was visiting her family and friends in California and Nevada, so I went to keep him company for a few days.

Dick's Sporting Goods Park, home of the Rapids

I arrived on a Saturday and was really, really excited because Shaun and I were going up to Denver to catch a MLS game, the Rapids vs Houston. I absolutely loved the stadium and the surrounding area was really nice, however our game ended in the infamous 0-0 draw that all soccer fans dread.

Coors Park

Then on Sunday I asked if we could go catch a Rockies game. They were in town playing the Mets and I know that Shaun loves baseball, so I thought it would be fun. It had been years since I attended a MLB game (I think the last one was an Oakland A's game that my dad and I went to 14 years ago), but I was excited. Again, the stadium was stunning and we had great seats, but sadly, the Rockies lost to the Mets and I was officially banned from Rockies games for the rest of my life.

It was then Monday and Shaun asked me what I wanted to do. I had been seeing the stunning views of the Rockies for the past couple of days, so I asked Shaun if he would take me up to the top of Pike's Peak. Shaun obliged and he drove me up to the top of the mountain, passing through many beautiful scenes and some pretty sweet views.

Myself atop Pike's Peak

Sadly though, on Tuesday I decided to head back to Iowa. I had been away for a while and still needed to find a job, so I ventured back. I took the long route, driving through eastern Colorado (kind of flat, not really exciting), Kansas (which was much more beautiful than I was expecting) and Missouri, where I hit a nasty thunderstorm (I honestly couldn't see 5 feet in front of me, but I still didn't pull over!) and finally into Iowa.

Overall, I had an amazing road trip! I went through 11 different states and was able to visit some places for the first time. I hope that I have a chance to do something similar next year, but time I need a co-pilot and I need to venture off to another part of the States!

My Week with Pops (Part IV of My Road Trip 2008)

So I left Austin very early on a Friday morning and started the 12+ hour journey to Albuquerque to spend some time with my dad. I wasn't sure if I was actually going to make it in one day, but I left around 6 am and crossed my fingers.

Now I'm notorious for making many, many stops when driving, especially if I have a beverage with me. Luckily though, I made it four hours without stopping! I almost shocked myself really.

Secondly, I don't know how many of you have ever driven through Western Texas before, but if you have a long way to go, I don't recommend it. At first, it was great, different scenery, desert everywhere, rolling hills and some plateaus. But after about two hours......it gets really, really, really painful and boring. It got sooooo bad, that I actually changed my route! I decided to come up through Carlsbad, Artesia and Roswell, NM....places that my dad and I went to many, many times as a kid. For instance, once Dad and I spent an entire day (maybe two, I'm not sure, I think I've blocked out part of this memory) in SW New Mexico, searching for the grave of Billy the Kid....which is the source of a legend in itself.

Luckily (and probably with a little divine intervention) I made it to Albuquerque in a day. Awesome. The next day, dad decided he wanted to try and kill me, so we went on a "short" hike up the mountain to search for a plane that crashed 50 years ago. We had tried this same trip 15 years ago, with no luck (I think the end result was me crying in a fit because I was standing and thought I was lost in the woods....again, another memory I've blocked out). He said that he had been there at least 3 or 4 times since that experience.....and that he now knew the way.

Well.....three hours later, many lost calories and lots of rest breaks, we finally found the plane. Score!!!

Sunday was Father's Day and I told Dad that I would go anywhere he wanted....anywhere. Just think of a place he wanted to go and check out and we would do it. At first, we were heading to Taos to check out a museum, but then, he changed his mind and went into classic Larry & Bill mode:

"Bill, have you ever heard of the VLA?"

my response: "The VL-what?"

"It's a bunch of radio-telescopes out in the desert on the Plains of San Jacinto west of Socorro. I've wanted to go for a while, but no one is willing to go."

That said--I'm in. We ventured to the VLA or Very Large Array, located about 40 miles west of Socorro, NM. It was about a two hour drive south of Albuquerque and into the desert. And again, it will go down in the lore that is the Larry & Bill New Mexico trips. Right up there with the search for the tomb, The Lava Tubes, Climbing Sandias, Chaco Canyon, Mesa Verde and my personal favorite, the giant rock that lots of people wrote there names on....including Spaniards when they came up from Mexico (I think it's called El Morro, but I'm not sure).

The VLA wasn't too bad. It was a bunch of giant radio telescopes, which look like satellite dishes) in the middle of the desert. They are shaped in a "Y" so that they can provide a better resolution. Unfortunately, we weren't able to go inside one of the telescopes, but we did get to stand pretty close. Good times.

The VLA

After that, we headed back to Albuquerque. To be honest, it was a lot of fun. We spent the rest of the week hanging out, watching movies and playing golf. It was a ton of fun and I really enjoyed it. It was also great to go back to the city that I used to live in and to relive some of the fond memories I have of there.

However, by Saturday it was time to run, with Colorado Springs the next destination.

Dios te bendiga