Entry 1 – 08/06/2017

**Cue Maroon 5’s Sunday Morning in the background**

Lazy summer Sundays are made for self-reflection, right? Well, I think so! So here it goes – I I am four months away from turning 25 years old, a quarter of a century. Transitioning into adulthood has given me experiences that I will never forget. It has been a little over a year since I graduated college and I have done a few things to keep me busy:

• Gave a best man speech at my brother’s wedding
• Landed my first adult, full-time job with all the bells and whistles
• Moved to Baltimore and rented my first non-college apartment
• Joined my first after-work social league
• Moved in with my girlfriend and rescued a puppy (named after my college mascot – Duke!)
• Secured a promotion at the Association of Academic Physiatrists
• Received another job offer to work in the nation’s capital giving me my second job on my career path
• Moved to Washington D.C.
• Traveled to new places to check off my bucket list that include: Denver, New Orleans, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Bahamas, Dallas, Orlando, Chicago, Phoenix, Austin, Raleigh
• Hiked the Manitou Incline
• Stormed the field of a major sports stadium after my college football team won the National Championship
• Drank a cafe au lait at Cafe du Monde and walked down Bourbon Street
• Watched 1.5 million bats fly out from under South Congress Bridge, swam in Barton Springs, and ate at one of the top BBQ places in the world, all in Austin, Texas
• Saw my first wedding between friends that was not family related
• Saw Shepherd Fairey’s (creator of OBEY and the Obama HOPE poster) artwork in person
• Watched an improv comedy show at the famous Second City Theater in Chicago
• Gambled at the Bellagio
• Attended my first ever championship parade for the 2018 Washington Capitals
• Hiked up to the Hollywood Sign
• Stepped inside the Magic Kingdom of Disney World for the first time (not as magical when you are by yourself)
• Attended my first televised national awards show live (The IHeartRadio Music Awards)
• Watched the sun set over Santa Monica beach and pier
• Went to Smorgasburg – One of the most famous food festivals in the country
• Saw Miracle on 34th Street in Hampden
• Stopped by the original Chipotle in Denver and feasted on a pre-crisis meal

 

The list goes on but one thing I know for sure, “adulting” is not half bad.

#LivingMyBestLife

All the best,

Colin Hautman