Sirs and madams,

I realize it’s now been more than a couple weeks since I last wrote. Please excuse the delay as a sign that all has been progressing swimmingly. Now the adventures continue with stories from my jaunts through Kansas and Colorado…

I realize that Kansas is not known for its big-time adventures, and my experiences there can verify that assertion. The land is flat and vast, and as my mother points out “held unbelievable promise for the settlers so long ago.” As I’m not particularly adept with a backhoe, the plains hold less promise for me. Yet, the small town of Lawrence actually changed me for the better. After my impromptu adventure on the Missisippi River, I continued on to Lawrence where I stayed with a young man named John Henry. While he behaved nothing like the magnificent, mythical man I learned about in social studies, he was still a pretty hip guy. An astounding photographer, he took me on adventures around Lawrence to sharpen my photography skills. Although my level of expertise pales in comparison to his, I was encouraged by his enthusiasm to share his knowledge. Who knew Kansas would provide a reason for me to hone any one of my limited skills?

From Kansas, I continued on to Colorado, a state of immeasurable beauty and a friendly granola-eating population. When my plans to stay with my friend Abby in Boulder fell through, I stayed with a friend of a friend named Chris. He welcomed me with open arms and an open futon, inviting me to participate in his kickball league’s tournament, taking me on a tour of Boulder on his motorcycle (yes, family, he suited me up in head-to-toe leather and an extremely goofy helmet), and taking me on a hike with his friends in the Rockies. After spending a night at Chris’ place, I managed to get a hold of Ann Dankof, an old high school pal whom I’d not seen in years. Ann was kind enough to host me for a couple days, lending her time and apartment space to this dirty, homeless traveler.

Upon learning of my thirst for adventure and my desire to further explore the Rockies, Ann’s friends Cody and Ross offered to take us off-roading in the mountains. The deal was that we’d meet them at 9am sharp the next morning, climb into Cody’s mud-covered Jeep Wrangler, and they’d take us to parts of the mountain range that “practically no one ever gets to see.” I’ll say now that the ride did not fail to deliver.

The off-roading escapade wound us up steep, narrow paths barely wide enough to accommodate the Jeep. We wiggled between trees, past boulders, and up rock faces to reach places in the Rockies that I doubt even Colorodo’s bravest livestock have come to see. We rolled past streams and tore through rivers, and once the air was cool enough to house large mid-summer snowbanks on the peaks, we stopped to have a snowball fight. The change from low to high altitudes left me in an oxygen-deprived state of delirium that made the trip all the more amusing, and the shifts from hot to cold left my mind and body in a happy state of shock.

As if that 7-hour trip weren’t magnificent enough, I returned to civilization to an e-mail from one of the producers of the Amazing Race. He wanted to know if I was interested in a job. The producer of the Amazing Race wanted to know if I was interested in a job that I didn’t even know existed! While I couldn’t accept the offer because I don’t yet live in Los Angeles, I look at the offer as a good omen for things to come.

And, as if an off-roading adventure and a job-offer weren’t enough, I finished the day by joining some Travel Channel hosts for dinner in Denver. Albin and Melanie Ulle were the hosts of the popular program “1,000 Places to See Before You Die” (based on the still more popular book by the same name), and Albin and I have been in contact for several months regarding travel media positions. The two of them were absolutely lovely, treating me to stories, advice, and Thai food. They even offered to try to get me a position on crew for the next taping of Survivor!

All in all, ‘twas quite a day. I’ll leave you for now, choosing to take in the splendor of Arizona instead of staying indoors. The next e-mail will cover my continued Colorado adventures, as well as the grand time I had in Utah. Looking forward to being contact again soon!

With red rock staining palms, I leave you.

Safe sojourns,
Rachel