What Happens in Vegas...

...Stays in Vegas...except herpes.

Happy graduation present to myself...Viva Las Vegas!

The girls and I (and a token boy or two) headed to other side of the Rockies to celebrate the Labor Day weekend. How was it you ask? It was Vegas, so you can only believe that it was a total spectacle and when we all woke up in the morning we weren't feeling like P. Diddy.

It was nice to get out of Denver and head to hot desert. We spent most of our days floating in the pool consuming buckets of beer surrounded by beautiful people--beautiful people that were mostly plastic and tatted up from head to toe. I have never see so much art work on people before. Between the plastics and tattoos I don't even want to know what kind of money was hanging out near the water.

Lets talk about this pool though for a second. Had beer not been involved (for several hours) I probably would never have gotten in. It was absolutely disgusting. When we would get there in the mornings the water would be crystal clear and cool--by the end of the day the water was murky to the point of almost not being able to see the bottom and the water felt like a bathtub. I don't even want to know what was going on in that water.


Since it was so toasty warm out if we weren't hanging out in the pool we were at the tables. Normally I'm not a big gambler, but this Vegas trip I found my game--Craps! Thanks to uncle Frank (a guy we had met at one of the Blackjack tables) for teaching us the game, cause I got hooked, and I'm pretty sure a few of us ended up playing till the wee hours of dawn one night. It was also one of the few gambling games I played that didn't take all my money.
You can't go to Vegas and not go to a club. So we all got glammed up one night and headed out for a night on the town with our final destination being Tao at the Venetian. We had met a group of Canadians earlier in the trip and they had just so happened to have ordered bottle service that night and had invited us to meet up with them, so of course we did and we were lucky enough to have a table on the rooftop patio.

In the end we all survived...well minus an iPhone--may it rest in peace...at least it wasn't my phone, and none of us lost our life savings gambling. Oh and we only lost two people...but they showed up eventually all in one piece.

Playing Catch Up

So I apologize for not keeping up with this deal...the last month has been pretty intense! Since the last time I posted I have become 'The Master,' attended the opening gala of Denver's newest childrens hospital, moved to a loft downtown with my friend Alex, and I have been to Vegas...so needless I've been a little busy and will probably break this blog into several different entries.

So lets start with becoming 'The Master'...
I graduated with honors on August 13th with master's degree in public relations and marketing. Jill and I chose not to walk in there ceremony but attended anyway...or at least attended until the speaker put us to sleep and we were out of champagne...we popped the first bottle at 7 a.m....we thought it was appropriate figuring that the ceremony started at 8 a.m. ... really who starts a ceremony that early so we figured we should get the party started.

To celebrate we all went out to dinner to Rioja (YUMMY!) and then out on the town for the night. It turned out to be a pretty fun celebration.

(The commencement book)

(At graduation at 7:30am)

(Cocktails before at Corridor 44)

(THE MASTERS!)

And then we have the opening of the Rocky Mountain Hospital for Children...

Our friend Jill had been working on the PR for the new hospital so we all went to the opening gala to support her. It turned out to be a great event and was very well done. Great food, great drinks and we got to tour the new hospital. The hospital is absolutely beautiful and doesn't feel like a hospital at all.

I'm a little monster...

As stated by Lady Gaga! BEST CONCERT EVER!

Last Wednesday I had the opportunity to let loose and attend the Lady Gaga concert here in Denver. It was amazingly fabulous and she is a true performer...I still can't get over it--best concert I have ever seen by far...and I got to see it from the floor directly in front of the stage! If anyone ever gets the chance to see her live in concert DO IT! I feel like when I tell my kids and grandchildren in the WAAAYYYYY future that I saw Lady Gaga in concert from the front row they will actually think I'm cool. Again, she was the best performer I have seen hands down!

The costumes, stage changes, choreography, and of course the music were all top notch. And you should have seen the crowd...freakshow! Some of the outfits people were wearing should have been illegal...but it was Lady Gaga so it was completely acceptable! I'm talking lots of wigs, people wearing little to no clothing, fishnet stalkings, faces painted, dyed hair, crazy make-up people wearing only leotards...guys and girls, and homemade "Gaga" type costumes--it was quite the spectacle!

The opening band fit the atmosphere of concert and crowd perfectly...very glam rock! They ended up hosting the after party at the Beauty Bar afterward and were entertaining to say the least!

Here are some pictures I got during the concert:

(All of us girls ready for the after party)

(Lead singer from the opening band Semi-Precious Weapons...love the glittery walls--it was a very fitting place for them!)

As said by John Wooden...

Lately I have been feeling completely overwhelmed and I am so ready for life to slow down just a bit so I can catch my breath. I am soon going to have to make so big decisions and I feel slightly torn on what I should do and I've been trying to not let other peoples opinions influence my future, which can be difficult cause it any of you are like me you don't want to hurt or disappoint anyone.

While I was completing my research for my thesis last week I was looking for a strong quote by a true icon. During my research I ran across a page on ESPN's website with John Wooden quotes. The life lessons taught by John Wooden have become legend and lately I have been completely taken by some of his quotes. Here are a few of my favorite John Wooden life lessons:

"Success is peace of mind which is a direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing you made the effort to become the best that you are capable of becoming"

"Be more concerned with your character than your reputation, because your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what others think you are."

"You can't let praise or criticism get to you. It's a weakness to get caught up in either one."

"If you're not making mistakes, then you're not doing anything. I'm positive that a doer makes mistakes."

"Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do."

"Talent is God-given. Be humble. Fame is man-given. Be grateful. Conceit is self-given. Be careful."

"Success comes from knowing that you did your best to become the best that you are capable of becoming."

"Success is never final; failure is never fatal. It's courage that counts."

- John Wooden, Head Basketball Coach, UCLA

...Now what...

Friday was a day I had both been waiting for and dreading...my thesis was due for its first review. I now have a one week break till I get the stinkin thing back for edits/revisions and I'm not sure what to do with myself in my free time now that I don't have to be attached to my laptop and Blackberry. Oh and just a heads up, after August 13th you can just call me The Master!

This week I do have a couple of things that I am going to be doing to fill my time. I have an interview one morning with a downtown communications firm that handles clients such as Stetson and the magazine Cowboys and Indians (pretty much the Vanity Fair of cowboy magazines).

Also Wednesday night my friends and I are all going to Lady Gaga. My friend Cortney and I were lucky enough to score floor tickets to the concert and I can't wait...I'm still in the process of trying to put together an over-the-top outfit to wear to the over-the-top concert! After the concert she is going to be spinning at a club downtown so of course we are going for the after party!

Now that I do have some free time I am looking forward to being able to read for pleasure again so if anyone has any recommendations let me know!

The Biggest Loser

Summer is finally in full swing! When I'm not spending my time attached to my laptop
(which I'm starting to think is another body appendage) writing my thesis (which has been taking up 90% of life) I can be found on the driving range, soaking up the sun poolside, or on a patio somewhere taking in happy hour or Sunday Funday (bottomless mimosas anyone?!?).

In celebration of JHT and I finishing our thesis and master program in August we decided we needed a way to celebrate...we (the 4 of us) are headed to Vegas for Labor Day weekend! Since we are planning this fabulous 4 day vacation in Sin City we are doing what every other girl does before a big trip/event and decided that its time to shed a bit a weight so we will all be in fine form.

All of us are frequent watchers of the show The Biggest Loser so we decided that we would get a little competitive when it comes to our weight loss. The prize is yet to be determined but we are leaning towards to loser having to buy the other three tickets to show while we are in Vegas...we are thinking maybe Peepshow. We are creating a chart to record everyone's progress and we will do weekly Monday night weigh-ins.

So its on. Time to start rocking the gym and get this expanding behind of mine back in shape--I'm going to win this deal! If anyone has any tips or advice please share!

Flip Cup for a Cause

Yes the title says it all.

This weekend the girls and I competed in a flip cup tournament (yes the beer drinking game) at Washington Park here in Denver. Not only was it a beautiful day at the park, but we got to spend the afternoon drinking beer and playing a beer drinking game with friends while raising money for leukemia and lymphoma.


Each team for the flip cup tournament consisted of five people and you had to have a team name and theme or costume. Originally we had planned on naming ourselves the "Drunken Sailors" but the name ended up changing over time as we got closer to the tournament. In the end, our team name (which came about on the wee hours of a Saturday morning) became "Slorealicious Sailors." Of course by sticking with our team name we dressed as sailors.

Your probably wondering what "Slorealicious" means. For a full definition of "slore" refer to www.urbandictionary.com -- they have 15 pages defining the word. The word "slore" became a common vocabulary word for all of us while we were all in Cabo and we still use it in every day conversation so we thought it would be a unique team name to set us apart from the rest. Sorry mom and dad your probably not going to be too impressed by this one once you find out the true definition.

In the end, we didn't win...but at least we looked good losing :)

(Team Slorealicious Sailors L-R: Alex, Myself, Halley, Jill, and Cortney)