university of never leaving vegas

Twelve years ago this month I packed my car full of my belongings and set out on a quest to fulfill my educational goals.

I didn't have much going on at the time. I was just going through the motions, with little progress made in building a stable life. I had completed more than two years of general education requirements at community colleges in Southern California and took a little more than two years off to work at the former Surfer Publications, publishers of Surfer, Snowboarder, Powder, Skateboarder and Bike magazines in San Juan Capistrano. During that time I was also one of the very first employees at a Capistrano Beach advertising agency that served clients in the action sports industry. Both jobs were incredibly fun, but neither paid much. I was barely able to feed myself and I was tired of renting rooms from other people. I knew that in order to get into a good place financially, I needed to finally earn a college degree.

With the car packed, I left my native California and drove across the Mojave Desert into Nevada to attend UNLV. It wasn't my first choice in a long list of colleges to which I applied and got accepted. Among them was Boston University. I actually got accepted and received a substantial scholarship, but I still couldn't afford the remaining tuition. The same went for University of Tampa and Colorado State University. All I knew is I wanted to go to college outside of California and it had to be someplace where job opportunities were plentiful, because I had to work my way through school. UNLV was out-of-state, but close enough for weekend visits back home.

The city was booming and had plenty of jobs for hungry college students. Las Vegas turned out to be a good choice for me and I sailed through my classes and completed a B.A. in communications, with an emphasis in public relations and a minor in English. During my time there I also had two to three jobs at any given time. They included the college newspaper, a local television station, casino, restaurants and health club. I was a jack of all trades. I look back now and I can't imagine how I survived all of it. I'm exhausted just thinking about my 18-hour days.

Upon graduation I promptly returned to Southern California and landed a job with a prestigious public relations/affairs agency that had offices throughout the state. I spent nearly two years there gaining valuable experience and working on some interesting and often controversial clients. But returning to California was hard. It's expensive there and I continued to struggle financially. It was only a matter of time before I made a decision to return to Las Vegas, where, at the time, life was much easier.

And there is where we get the phrase "UNLV - university of never leaving Vegas." Well, at least for me. There are many different reasons why people use the term. Mine is simple. I have left this city and returned so many times. It's like a giant magnet that keeps pulling me back. Twelve years after first moving here I often drive down Interstate 15, which runs below the towering hotel/casinos along the world famous Las Vegas Strip, and I think to myself "holy crap, I live in Vegas."

Who knew I would end up in the Sin City, married, owning a home and raising a family? Twelve years later it's still strange to me, but at the same time surprisingly comfortable. I guess we're here to stay...at least until the water runs out.