This week has been long.

This week has been busy and in a way, it felt like some of the pressures and stress that I had at work melted away.

Maybe it had to do with me figuring out the whole HRM Tagging color coding issue and that it has gone live. There’s still work left to do with that site and project, but the bulk of the work is done.

Another thing is the trip to Italy is coming to fruition. We just booked our plane ticket and will get our hotel reservations soon.

Things are busy but slowing down. Things are good.

I have a vacation coming up and I’m already on vacation mode. It doesn’t mean much now, since I have so much work to do, but it means something.

* * *

My week started out with the trip to Miami.

It was my first time and I really didn’t know what to expect. Again, everyone said I would hate it.

I can’t really say that I either like it or hate it since it was for work and wasn’t representative of what a normal vacation trip I would have done.

Since this was for the client, they put us all up in a fancy resort hotel, the Fountainebleu on South Miami Beach.

The view was awesome. The location was great, but then again, it was a resort.

Sure, we had a car, but we were so busy with the event and work, I really didn’t get to explore Miami the way that I would have wanted.

So, right off the bat, it had everything going against it.

It was fucking hot. It was fucking hot and muggy. The temperature was already 87 degrees at 6AM.

It was the day of the shoot, going to breakfast, walking outside — WHAM! Fucking heat.

Ugh.

That wasn’t good.

I haven’t sweat that much in a long ass fucking time. It was ridiculous.

Drivers. I don’t like their drivers. They are slow and maybe it’s my LA impatience, but hot damn.

There were toll roads everywhere. Like, a shit ton.

We took the long scenic route to the event and that took forever. On the way back, we took the shorter, faster, toll road. Fuck it. I’ll eat the cost.

The event.

Overall, it was good. We shot the shit out of it.

I had to go to my 18-200 DX lens because I needed the focal length. They’ll be fine with the DX crop. It is what it is, but they got the pictures.

I took over 5,000 pictures for that event and I still haven’t seen the other photographers.

The day was hot. We were outside most of the day, in the sun, in the heat.

Fucking hot.

Sweat.

Everywhere.

Down my face, back, body.

Yuck.

Disgusting.

But that’s our job.

It was an amazing opportunity for me, something fun and interesting that broke up my work year.

Definitely glad that I had the opportunity to shoot it.

I do have to admit, I was a little disappointed that I didn’t get to drive the Type R. I know that I’m not too comfortable with a stick, but I know the basics and can do it.

I would love to have a chance to just drive it on the track.

But, c’est la vie. It wasn’t meant to be.

I stopped by the beach after we got back to the hotel, before dinner.

The Atlantic was warm. The sand was nice. The air was wet. The heat was torching.

Miami.

I don’t know how I feel about you.

It was an experience that I would have never planned for myself, but it was a good first taste.

I know what to expect next time.

There will be a next time.

* * *

I’m fucking burnt. I’m fucking red.

My skin peels.

My face. Fucked.

I have another hiking trip coming up. Another chance to get fucked up some more.

I forgot to wear sunscreen while I was in Miami. That fucked me up. To say I got burnt is an understatement.

Denver, definitely will need some sunscreen.

* * *

Denver.

Right now, Denver is off to a Rocky start, pun intended.

So, it seems that the original Inn that we were going to stay in Estes Park was sold and the new owners didn’t want to honor all the reservations.

No one contacted me about it. My bro told me to check it out and I did.

So, I rushed and frantically called Hotels.com to make other arrangements. They found another hotel about 30 minutes away in Lyons, Co. It wasn’t ideal, but considering we are about a week out from the 4th of July weekend, all hotels/motels/inns/b&bs were sold out everywhere or the prices were just ridiculous.

It is what it is and we’ll just have to deal.

Either way, I’m looking forward to this trip. I’m looking forward to a break and a vacation.

It’ll be good.

I don’t know what I’m going to do besides hiking. I have no solid plans yet, besides the Night Tour at the Stanley Hotel.

I’m just going to wing the hikes that we’ll do and just base it on how busy it is.

Considering it is the 4th of July weekend, it’s going to be fucking crazy. I mean, how can it not be if every fucking hotel in Estes Park is sold out.

It’ll be a ridiculous weekend.

I’m sure I’ll do some more planning throughout the week.

I’m on vacation mode.

* * *