It all started when two lost souls went on an adventure to find themselves....

Telluride was a small town amidst the the mountains of southwest Colorado. Not many people lived there, and only a few select have even heard of it. Mike and Hanna had never been there before, but somehow the universe brought them both here at the same time, in the same employee housing hotel.

Hanna was itching to get out of nursing school, and the mountains were definitely calling. She answered, and on the spot got a job working as a barista in one of the fancy resorts in Telluride. Within a month she packed her belongings, told her school she would not be enrolling next semester, said goodbyes to friends and family, and drove across country for what would be the beginning of the rest of her life.

Michael had been working in Chicago all summer slaving over trees. Winter came around, and with him getting laid off for the season, he didn't want to sit around collecting unemployment. One day as he was driving home from work when he saw a bumper sticker that read "Telluride, Best Snow on Earth" and he was destined to be a ski bum that winter. After calling up the resort, he landed a job at a restaurant, and that was enough to get him where he needed to be.

Rico Hotel was the cheapest place where the ski bums could sleep for the season. It was packed with people in their mid 20's, who loved to ski, smoke weed, and party every night. Most of the kids had arrived in the hotel at the beginning of December, Mike had gotten there a few weeks before Hanna, so he had time to get to know some of the others, settle in, get a different job at a ski shop, and make friends. Hanna didn't check into the hotel until just before Christmas, so naturally she was the last one to the party, and "the new girl". With only a handful of women in the hotel, mostly men who occupied it, lots of eyes were on her. The first time Mike and Hanna met, was a brief introduction, and honestly they both forgot each others names. So no this isn't a "I knew from the moment I laid eyes on you" love story.

It wasn't until a few days later that Mike and Hanna actually met. He was in the gas station getting oil for his car. Earlier that day he was driving through town and smashed his oil pan on a speed bump. She had just drove her car into a ditch on the first big snowstorm in the mountains, and was looking to get a number for a tow. When Hanna opened the door in a panic, Mike was standing right there about to exit. They both recognized each-other as they had been living together for the last few days, and had another quick introduction, exchanging names. This time, their names and faces stuck and a spark lit... (probably someone outside lighting a joint 😆 ). Mike told Hanna not to call a tow truck, he could help her later that day after he fixed up his car. Needless to say he never helped but got some other people to do it... so that night after the oil pan was fixed, Hanna's car was safely in the hotel parking lot, the Rico Hotel crew walked down to the bar and Hanna bought a round of beer for the people that had helped her. Mike slyly got a free beer as well, Hanna gave him shit for his little trick, and they spent the night talking and drinking. From that day they were best friends, they would ski together, cook dinner together, & talk by the fireplace for hours. They spent Christmas together, decorating the hotel, talking about their lives and how it was both their first Christmas away from family, and hard core flirting, again by the fireplace. That's when they realized it, another spark, (this time from the fire behind them 😉 ). A few days later on New Years Eve, they went on their first date, shared their first kiss, and the rest is history.