Life Changes

Well life has taken quite an interesting turn since my last blog. I knew that I wasn't planning on going back to the ranch in 2018 but I wanted to continue doing the marketing for the ranch since I really enjoyed it. It was a lifesaver the past few months to have a job to do besides looking for a job. But the majority of my time was devoted to looking for a job. I really hadn't been job hunting since I graduated from my MBA in 2010. After countless iterations of my resume and searching and hearing nothing back, I finally got a break in January with an interview. It was in an industry I had absolutely no experience in but it was a small, growing company so I was excited. I was turned down for that after an in-person interview and I got frustrated. So I decided that maybe my next stop should be doing my own thing. I had really enjoyed all the marketing I do for the ranch and figured maybe other small businesses would like the same type of marketing services. I cold called and emailed many places around Rochester. I got a few bites and put some proposals together but was really just making it up as I went along. I was still looking for full time jobs but I found myself not even applying anymore because nothing was capturing my interest. All the job descriptions and companies seemed boring. I got to thinking one day that people always told me I should work in a National Park because that was my passion. I never really considered it in my job hunt because I didn't live near any National Parks. The whole reason I didn't want to go back to New Mexico was that I missed my family and I hated leaving my house sitting empty for 2 years. I didn't really want to work for the government so I started thinking of companies that work for the parks and looked on Xanterra's website. I had known their name since they are a concessionaire in many parks. They had one year round marketing position listed so I applied. The next day I was asked to schedule an interview, which I did two days later and then was hired three days after that. All of a sudden I had a job offer to live and work in Yellowstone National Park doing marketing.

Me at Yellowstone in 2009

It was everything I ever wanted, I just had to move 2,300 miles to get it. As much as I love my family, and especially the past few months of being with them all the time, I knew that I really wasn't happy being in NY because I didn't have a fulfilling job. So thus commenced a fast and furious couple of weeks to prepare to move across the country again. Dad again offered to drive with me. This time however, we rented a 15' Uhaul and towed my car behind. I was able to push my start date back to April so I could spend Easter with the family. The day after, Dad and I spent 3 hours loading up the Uhaul and I had to say a bittersweet goodbye to my beloved Cabin in the Woods. Then it was time to hit the road!