Colorado

I've never been a fan of cold weather; I think it's mainly because I get cold anytime the temperature drops below 80 degrees.  But over the last few years, I've discovered that cold weather isn't that bad when you have a warm coat and a nice view.  My favorite cold weather view includes snow-capped mountains.  Unfortunately, there are none of those around here.  The nearest snow-capped mountains are in Colorado, so it's a good thing I like the Rocky Mountains.

The last time I was in Colorado, my brother took me snowboarding.  Up until then, I had never been snowboarding or skiing, but I'm a relatively coordinated and athletic person, so I was convinced that I would be able to pick it up pretty easily.  Actually, I told my brother that it would be a piece of cake, but I knew better.  Things are never quite as easy as the people on TV make it look, and it took all of about 30 seconds for me to realize just how hard this really was.  I fell constantly, my body hurt, and I was very frustrated.  For the life of me, I couldn't understand why people actually enjoyed doing this.

After I'd fallen for about the hundredth time, I was sitting in the snow trying to catch my breath, feeling very disappointed in myself and thinking maybe this had been a mistake.  Just then, my brother glided over on his snowboard (yes, glided; he's much better than I will ever be) and sat down next to me.  I hadn't said anything, but I think he knew that I wasn't having the greatest time.  He just looked over and said, "Look around you.  This is why people like skiing."

So I looked around.  It was a crystal clear day and I could see the snow-capped mountains all around us.  People were going by on skis or snowboards, or sitting in the snow enjoying the sights like we were.  I couldn't help but feel like we were one top of the world, and it finally made sense.  This was the picture perfect postcard, and I was in the middle of it.

At the end of the weekend, I ended up with a lot of sore muscles, a few bruises, and a lot of great memories.  I haven't been in Colorado since, but I'm thinking it's time for a vacation.