To blog or not to blog?...That is the question

You know how you have those friends that you want to talk to, but it's been so long that you kinda put it off until you have a lot of time, and then the time with a lot of time doesn't come by soon enough...So as more time goes by...well, now it's just gotten awkward. Why not just put it off indefinitely...???

Welcome to my blog. Yet another example of this phenomenon. You see, one day at a time it feels like nothing has really been going on over here...then a few weeks slip by, and uh oh!...Now there's just too much to really cover it all. 

So, I'll do a really lame attempt now - pretend it catches me up - and perhaps I'll get my groove back...

Last time I posted, it was my downnnn weekend. Happy to report: I'm MUCH improved! I've been selling restaurants, going on more outside hikes, and have met even more friends here. Best part, I've been traveling! Those of you on facebook have already seen my attempts at making you jealous, but for those of you who haven't seen them, let me post a few of my favorites here. 

First of all, last weekend (April 15-17) I went to Portland. I went to visit my best friend from college, Melissa, and her husband, Uri (pronounced Oodi, and referred to as "uri monster" quite often - We have the same bday too, fyi). It was so amazing to see them! They have a baby now!!! Baby Giovanni. His baby room even has his name spelled out in jumpsuits which is so cute when his name is so long. Gio is the best baby in the whole world...No offense Sista, but behavior-wise. HOLY COW. I don't think he cried once. Well, maybe once...but that's it! The whole weekend! 

Friday Uri and I worked from home for a bit, went and got pizza, napped, and toured Portland. Portland appears as though it is stuck in the 90s...in all the fun ways. When Melissa got home from work, we made fish tacos, and then eventually made our way to Voodoo donuts...the famous late-night joint with amazing people watching. We called it a night pretty early due to the next day's festivities. Wine tasting! Always my favorite...We had a great day with their friends, and I was super sad to leave the next day. It is so fun to feel like no time has gone by and to have friends who are just like family. Always my favorite feeling!

The following week I was supposed to go to San Fran with Cath - just to top things off as the best week ever! But as life would have it, she got super sick :(  sidenote: We are all very happy she is better now! Anyways, I ended up just going there and back in a day, instead. This was definitely a bummer as I missed my girl time, but since I hadn't traveled SO recently, I made it a point to spend Easter with Austin, Lauren, and my Aunt/Uncle/Cousins: Ellen, Bill, Mary, Philip, and Laura...something I may not have done had I just spent 3 days in San Fran...Again we went wine-tasting, and we also did some amazing hikes/trails. It was GORGEOUS out there. So good to spend time with family I hadn't seen in years (I mean LOTS of years), and to feel so welcome. An amazing Easter.

I am one blessed and happy girl. NASHVILLE HERE I COME!!!

It was the best of times. It was the worst of times.

Sound familiar? I made it up...ok fine...but it really does describe my life right now. Yes, your melodramatic (and sometimes fickle) friend seems to be on a pendulum swing these days that goes from one extreme to the other throughout the week, day, and even hour at times, but in essence, is enjoying the ride. 

Rather than having one riveting story to share with you today, I thought a bulleted list of my highlights from the past week would be an interesting post. I have made a lot of realizations and accomplishments in the last week, so I'm going to put them all into one exhaustive list for you...starting NOW:

The Fun Stuff:

• I  made some southern friends -- thanks to Tyler and Nicole, and Mrs. Tucker. Yes, people from Florida who I actually watched NCAA basketball with (although drinking wine rather than beer - a trend I could get used to!) and even a CPA alum! -- who knows about this blog, so hey Andrea :) in case you didn't know, we're officially -- and publicly - friends now.
• I went on a crazy hike to a waterfall that had 3 snakes and crazy slippery cliffs that I nearly plunged to my death off of...but was totally worth it. 
• I scored a meeting I've been working on for nearly a year! that Cath and I get to go to in 2 weeks
• I have officially signed up 9 great restaurants for our gift certificate program (and expect a lot more to turn in their papers next week!) -- :)!!! 
• I am officially a part of a "supper club." 7 great ladies who are entirely different than me, but all great people and interesting to be around.
• I learned that working at a coffee shop is super fun for people watching!
• I joined match.com on a free trial...then got creeped out by the people in San Diego and deactivated...then got bored again and joined. Being winked at by asians is pretty confidence boosting, and I think I could use a little bit of that right now.
• I tried some delicious and expensive wines...and held one that was worth $15k!
• Roscoe came and visited for a night! We went to a fabulous breakfast the next morning overlooking the cove, too :)
• I've decided I love what I do. I love talking to new people, and I'm a pretty convincing sales person (when I believe in what I'm selling)
• I watched Black Swan alone and still managed to sleep okay.
• Mika booked a trip to visit me!!!
• I got approached in the grocery store and talked to for an hour by a man named Bob who could feel my "good energy" -- this may have been the highlight of my week.
• I cooked a meal that was actually delicious (perhaps even by standards other than mine!)

The Blah

• I got homesick for the first "real" time. Friday (yesterday) I was really just dying for one good friend here and got pissed for this whole "move" idea.
• I realized that working from home is not for me. Not only is moving to a new city hard...I think I could manage that...but working in isolation, PLUS being in a new city...is for the birds!
• It was kinda ugly this week (by San Diegan standards) with a couple rainy days and colder temps...One restaurant owner told me he thought it was going to snow any minute! (it was 55).
• Several restaurants said No to my program that I thought would be "yes"es...My dad and I decided I don't handle rejection well. It also sucks to be screened, if you're wondering.
• I made my 2nd trip to the laundromat. Yes, I have only done laundry twice since Feb 18 -- bitches! (but as you can imagine it was a lot...and took a very long time)
• I am unable to make it to Kelly's bachelorette party bc of $$$.
• I get sleepy when I don't have people interaction. Took several naps this week with no legitimate excuse for being tired.
• I emailed a girl I really liked who said she wanted to hang out again................she never responded. Girl dumped! :( 

As you can see, the good has WAY outweighed the bad. I'm much better out of my funk today, but just realized I'm not so good with down-time. I like to have fun every moment of everyday, but I'm learning. Patience is everything, right? Hope this wasn't too depressing ;)

You're Not in Nashville Anymore

Over the past month +, I have been noticing a lot of things that make California very different from Nashville. Thought you might be as surprised as I was by some of these:

• Pedestrians rule. There is apparently no such thing as jay-walking here. People cross the street whenever they want, and for the most part, the cars are happy to stop for them!
• 80% of women over 40 here could kick my @*$ and wear cuter clothes than me (hard, right?). It really does match the SoCal stereotype -- All the girls (scratch that-- women) have fake boobs, wear lululemon, and are ridiculously in shape. And they are everywhere!
• Everyone owns a dog. Dogs are allowed in any stores/restaurants, you name it. If not, there's a post outside for them to hang out. Also note, dog-walking is an entirely acceptable career path here. 
• Country is not a real genre of music that people admit listening to. It is merely something you suggest to mock people.
• There are a lot of people who work in "labs" out here. I think half the people I have met (being modest) are engineers/scientists/geneticists, etc.
• The roads here are awful. Potholes and uneven-ness everywhere. On the flip-side, there are more ridiculously nice cars than anywhere I have ever been. This is probably thanks to the Ferrari, Maserati, Rolls Royce, Lambhorgini, and Bentley dealerships that are within a mile of my house. Not kidding...and that's not even all of them.
• You find yourself constantly and accidentally being active. It is so pretty here, I am tempted to walk peanut daily (whoa!), would rather walk to the grocery store, go on a hikes when I have a spare hour, or find some excuse to be outside at all times. (I can't wait for Summer!)
• When it rained twice in a week, people were all gushing about how terrible the weather was. Mind you, rain here is more like drizzle and wind...and only for very short periods of time. A rainy day = 1 hour of rain and 23 of sunshine (minus night). It has pretty much been between 60-70 and sunny everyday since I got here. (Supposed to hit 80 this week!)
• People say "bro" - in all seriousness.
• No one has heard of LocalEats...Absurd, huh!?!  I'm working on changing that ;)
• Boys wear bright colors. Think: neon pink. I don't know if all boys want to and just don't have the courage, or if it's just a trend here that boys feel they must follow. I'm okay with it. 
• You can't use your cell phone while driving, unless with a headset. You WILL get a ticket. 
• Working for an iPhone "app" isn't that uncommon. 
• Rush hour is at 3pm. I'm not sure if these people actually have jobs...but the trafficky time of day is definitely around 3 (the only real logic I have for this is that people are working with the west coast).
• You can meet someone with a tattoo sleeve up their arm, and then they will tell you they teach kindergarten.
• Casual attire is acceptable for anything. (woohoo!!!) And all girls wear Toms.
• The gov't takes a lot more of your paycheck. 
• It's always the perfect day to fly a kite. 
• Their carwashes are um...confusing -- see sidestory from my facebook status earlier this week: Just bought a car wash at the gas station pump. When I pulled around back to the pull through machine, there was a man standing with rags. Now I'm sitting in my car right next to the car wash machine while someone hand cleans my car. The automatic is only for at night. Only in la jolla...10 minutes later...so the man starts cleaning my car...tells me to roll up my window. i don't realize the right front window is cracked, i just roll up mine. he sprays water all into my car (clearly, my fault). THEN, he tells me ...to pull forward. i ask "all the way?" i dont guess he understands me, because he says yes. i drive through the auto car-wash, and he is waving his hands for me to stop. apparently he soaps me first, then rinses the car, and the auto car wash does a 2nd job of both, in case the first time didn't get it. i am now stuck halfway out of the autowash, and halfway almost into a main road. i am trying to reverse back INTO the car wash, nearly hitting all the signs and metal tracks. Pulling back, fwd, back, fwd, until i finally (thank god!) got back into the car wash -- without hitting anything, i must add. but now i am sweating. after the rinse, i pull forward, and the man towel dries my car. how incredibly awkward. he thinks i'm an idiot. and i do too.
•  There are like 7 interstates here and 25 neighborhoods to remember ie: We may have East Nashville, West End, Brentwood, and Cool Springs...but they have a name for every 4 blocks or so...and each one has its own identity. 
• People are pretty passionate about burritos and locally grown food. Locally brewed beer is also extremely popular here -- and there are TONS of breweries to choose from.
• Not knowing English is entirely acceptable and common here (and gives me motivation to be fluent in Spanish!!) - Did you realize I'm only a 20 minute drive to Mexico?
• And last, my favorite -- Boys here don't watch or seemingly care about sports. They want to know what the waves are like today and watch "surf films" instead.

A Family Trip to Vegas

As many of you know, I went to Vegas this past weekend. It may not be fair to blog about something/someone who doesn't even know you have a blog, but if you don't know that I have a blog, maybe you shouldn't invite me with your family to Vegas either, huh? I guess that makes us even after all.

Many of you thought I was crazy for accepting this invitation (although several of you rooted me on for your own entertainment), but low and behold, I drove the 5+ hours to Vegas this past weekend to go on Chris Craig's Family Trip 2k11.  There was supposed to be more people, it was supposed to take less time, but as I've posted before, things rarely go the way they're supposed to...and thank God, as you will soon read. I went, I'm glad I did, and I had a lot of fun...here's why:

I left out of town Friday at approximately 3:30pm, straight from a restaurant appointment in Del Mar, and headed into the desert. After a ridiculous amount of traffic, I finally arrived at the Hilton Las Vegas. The same Hilton that gives me nightmares from my previous work trip which forced me to commute 30 minutes to and from my first Bank Director Conference which I was entirely terrified at. Anyways, the Washington game is ending just as I get there, and Chris Craig promptly greets me with not one, but two! cranberry vodkas. We talk about what we should do that night, but since he knows some people with a table at Tryst (and if you have ever been to a Bachelorette Party in Vegas, you know that's the place to be!)...we decided to go there.

So we get in line at Tryst. Me, Chris, and his parents. jk...Just Chris and me (although sidenote: his parents are awesome)...Anyways, it's a ridiculous line...but ohhhh the people watching! There were foreign people popped collars and slutty Miley-Cyrus-look-alikes everywhere. We made good friends with some Argentinians in line and explained to them what America was like (in our own ways), and finally Chris's friends showed up so we could get specially escorted to the back corner with no heat lamp by the waterfall. I may sound negative, but that's just the cold in me speaking. I was actually having a lot of fun (which says a lot for being at a trendy bar)...But we decide to call it a night at around 1:30am (or so we think) and get in a cab line that takes close to an hour...or fifteen minutes, but at this time of night/morning, it felt like an hour. However, much to our surprise, the night is SO not over!

We get back to the Hilton and are heading to the elevators when we overhear a commotion. We look to the left and see what is a cafe by day, transformed into an electric light dance floor...make that an electric light dance floor filled with black people breaking it down. Clearly, we have to join. Without any hesitation (I don't think), we head in to dance, and that's when it happens...

As we are dancing our hearts out, as best and worst as we can, the floor kind of clears, and all of a sudden it is just me, another girl, Chris, and..........MARK CURRY! like THE Mark Curry. In the words of Lauren, "if anyone else told me this story I'd think they were lying," but I swear...it happened. As the Hangin' with Mr. Cooper fanatic that I am, this entirely makes my night/month/life (even if I'm just a fanatic all of a sudden)...Chris and I exchange equal "OMG!!!" looks, and make it entirely obvious we are obsessed and star-struck (sidenote: we did know he was performing at the hotel that night, but never dreamed we would actually get to "Hang with Mr. Cooper")...Mark wasn't really having me, no matter how hard I tried, and eventually sat back down behind a velvet rope, but it really didn't matter to me. My night was complete.

I must say that for someone who is so funny and lively, he kind of seemed downright depressed, but that is neither here, nor there. (I just want to help you, okay Mark? - call me?)...We finally had to leave as I think Chris had worn out all of his dance moves (which were equally as ridiculous as they were fantastic), but no worries, on my way out, Mark gave me a flirty wave + a wink, so I'm pretty sure he was in love after all. The rest of the weekend was fun as well, but not nearly as good of a story. The end.

Oh hey, Mark :)

An Emotional Hangover

Definition of Hangover

1: something (as a surviving custom) that remains from what is past

2 a : disagreeable physical effects following heavy consumption of alcohol or the use of drugs 

   b : a letdown following great excitement or excess 

 

See 2b. That was my yesterday. Of all the days in San Diego (I've almost been here a month! = tomorrow), yesterday was my hardest. 

Erin left Tuesday at 5pm, and after five days of having a best friend in town, I was exhausted. I fell asleep around 9pm, and slept clear through til my morning alarm...but when I woke up, for lack of better words, it sucked. I had tons of work to catch up on, I was tired, and I just felt completely unmotivated and alone...not having coworkers isn't so fun all the time, if you ever thought it would be. Rather than harping on my bad mood, which I am now out of (thank Gawwwd), I'll recap all the things that Erin and I fit into 5 days...some of my very most favorite days here so far!

• Friday I picked her up from the airport, and we went out for a beer. Ended up meeting my first San Diego friends, which happened to be other mobile app developers (some more famous than others), and then stayed out til 4am.
• Saturday we walked down to Pannikin for breakfast eggs & bagels and then down by the cove, met Erin's cousin and Aunt for a bit, went on a long hike up to the monument on Mt Soledad overlooking the city (where there was actually a swimsuit + lamborghini photoshoot taking place of course), and then showered to meet Nate for an Italian dinner down in the Shores. From there, we ventured downtown to the Gaslamp District, met some more funny characters, and were back in bed by 2am.
• Sunday we went hiking at Torrey Pines Nat'l Park. Had to turn around bc there was a rattlesnake on the path, but saw a lot of cool views. From there, we traveled up the 101, ate mexican by the beach, went shopping, and then had AMAZING takeout pizza from Naked Pizza that was only 100+ calories a slice for a large. Clearly, we both ate half a pizza...
• Monday is the day that best friends are for. Erin actually went with me to the DMV, and I qualified for my CA drivers license! It should come in the mail any day now, but seriously, she didn't complain the whole time. Who does that? From there, we went to the zoo where we saw a monkey poop into his hand and eat it...and lots of other fun animals. The polar bears were even out! That night we cooked salmon + asparagus, then went and got gelato in the village and watched the Bachelor finale.
• Tuesday I had to work a good bit, but we did manage to fit in a walk by Windansea beach, and then we got my most favorite tacos at Luche Libre with Nate. 

I'm sure you don't care about all those details, but for me, it's fun to reflect on all that we fit in to five short days. Those ive short days are even better when they're with your best friend, and I couldn't have had a better weekend. Hopefully this will motivate more of you to come visit...Use Erin as a reference. This place is GORGEOUS, and even better when I have my friends to share it with! 

ps - Peanut found her dogsitter yesterday for when I travel, and totally fit in with the other 6 dogs in her "pack"...I was so proud! What was she most interested in though? The three cats...Should make for interesting times...Next stop for me, Vegas! :)

 

Me + Mika's Giraffes

Just because he came out this time. Austin and Lauren didn't get to see.

 

Dog + Cheetah are best friends. My favorite exhibit.

Before the rattlesnake. Pictures don't do Torrey Pines justice.

The monument on Mt. Soledad with view overlooking city.

The Unexpected

The phone rings this morning. 4:44am to be exact. "You do realize it is 4am my time, right?" I politely answer the phone. "Yes! Have you seen the news? Turn on your TV! Southern California is being hit by a tsunami! You need to get Peanut and drive inland! A huge earthquake hit Japan! Turn on your TV! Turn it on!" screams the other voice on the phone. 

It is, of course, my ever-trusty (and overly precautious) Boss Lady, Linda. 

I turn on the TV, and what is this? The speed limits of the interstates are scrolling. OMG! People ARE evacuating! What in the world do I do right now!???...a million thoughts go through my head...UNTIL I realize that this is actually an update on the interstates related to fog, NOT an update on the evacuation routes from town. False alarm! They do mention the tsunami eventually, but thank goodness, San Diego/La Jolla was not going to be seeing much of an impact. Shortly thereafter, my friend Nate comes over with coffee, and we walk down to the cove to see the effects, which were actually completely unnoticeable.

What a morning...and what a wake up call, literally. I can't help but think that this was probably a much larger "wake up call" (in the general sense) to many other people. Life is precious and unpredictable. You hear it time after time, but then you forget again (or at least I do). My heart goes out to those who were impacted by this natural disaster, and from witnessing it in my own town, I have seen first-hand how terrible these unexpected events can be. While I find this whole event to be tragic, I can't help but be reminded about how little we know about our futures, and how truly unexpected life is -- both in good ways and in bad.

Rather than harping on negatives (as we have all faced unwelcomed surprises), I'd rather just highlight some of the happy "unexpecteds" that I've experienced, both lately and in life. I'm in hopes that this may spread the idea that not knowing what's coming next is just a fact of life, and should we view it right and embrace it, this can be extremely invigorating. I don't know about you, but many of my favorite things in life are not things I could have planned, nor would they have been as fun if I did. For all of these things and times, I am extremely grateful...and I think not knowing to expect them may have even been the best part.

A few of my recent favorites:

• I met my most sincere friend in San Diego and and amazing person -- at a club in Las Vegas at Nicole's Bachelorette party
• I received a life-size picture of one of my friends in the mail (seriously, it's 6ft tall...Jess)
• Peanut received a greeting card
• I have been to fantastic meals with pretty much strangers who both opened their worlds to me and were extremely welcoming
• My sweet neighbor left magazines on my porch to help me "get to know" the city
• The "snootiest" restaurant in town was amazingly nice and receptive to our award/program
• Which people have been constantly reminding me that they care
• Deep fried lobster head AND octupus are both good!
• I love pure barre! (who'da thought?)
• Finding an amazing place in La Jolla

And a few solid life surprises:

• Spain, enough said
• Meeting some of my best friends on an accidental cruise my senior year of college
• The lady sunbathing at the neighborhood pool turning out to be my 2nd mother, and her family becoming my own
• Dropping out of school being the best thing I could've ever done
• Grace
• Meeting Kelly (aka a blind date with Daniel's girlfriend)
• Driving anywhere with Lynza
• Finding my job and passion -- through Bill
• Living in California (like, for real)

The picture below I took on my hike today. As corny as it may be, I view life as being like this picture. This is typically a gorgeous view overlooking the city, but today, it is covered by fog. To me, this is kind of like life...God chooses what he wants to show to you and when. Sometimes it's hazy, and you can't really see what he's trying to show you...but when you finally do, it's beautiful.

Today's View.

Not the same exact spot, but another opening on the same road -- this is what the fog was covering.

I can't wait for tomorrow to see what unfolds in the weeks/months/years to come, and I am definitely excited for all the unmade memories that lie ahead of me...

Now, speaking of things I can't wait for -- I must add (and in completely opposite news) that Erin gets here tonight to visit until Tuesday -- which I've been looking forward to all week.

I must admit, while I love the unexpecteds...I love the things and people you can count on too ;)

I feel strong when...

That was just one of many thought-provoking questions I was asked tonight. Do you know your answer(s)? 

In the most literal sense of the question, my answer would simply be "now" -- although that's not exactly what he was asking in context. My other answers would be:

• when I'm making my friends laugh, 
• when I'm on a sales meeting - in person, 
• when I know I have made someone else happy,
• when someone comes to me with a problem,
• when I am finished with my to do list, 
• when I meet a new person/friend
• when I am carrying on an intelligent/analytical conversation
• etc...

Let me back up a bit now and tell you what I've been up to.

As a few of you know, I signed up for a "church conference" this weekend. This means Thursday + Friday night, and all day Saturday, I was going to go be with 200 strangers, broken into small groups, and then forced to talk about God publicly -- a semi nightmare of mine. San Diego is about new experiences for me, so why not, right? 

No, that probably was not a good enough reason. There was more to it this time. You see, I attended Flood Church the very first Sunday I was here. It reminded me of Crosspoint from its website and reviews (yes, I researched), and I knew I needed to not break a good habit. So I dropped off my dad that Sunday am and went to the 9am service. It was the last day to register for their annual SOMA Conference that morning, and I can't explain it, but I felt compelled to sign up.

Some of you have heard me say this before. It's not like I sit there and say, "God is telling me to do this" at that very moment, but I have had many times that hindsight sees that that is exactly what happened...This is one of them. Last minute I even thought about just not showing up, but no, I am going to just try it...Worst case-scenario I waste 3 days; however, the theme of the conference is the Courage to Be You and it involves a Myers Briggs Test and Strengthsfinder assessment, so at the very least, I'll walk away with some knowledge of myself, if not a couple friends. 

The Myers Briggs was a fine/interesting test (I was an ESFJ for those familiar), but what really struck me was the Strengthsfinder test. What this one does is ask you a lotttttta questions (timed), and then tells you your top 5 characteristics based on your answers AND speed in selecting them! Mine, in order of my capacity to grow in, were Empathy, meaning I can often sense another's feelings & then I tend to feel them myself; Includer, I am accepting of others and like everyone be invited to join things; Woo, I enjoy winning over people and meeting strangers; Achiever, I take great satisfaction in being busy and productive; and Communication, clearly, I am an open book with no filter (yes, that one is my definition). Here is the complete list of descriptors for those of you interested.

So yes, I found my results quite fun, spot on, and kinda flattering! -- but what was really cool about the whole thing, was the speech around it and the theory behind it. Essentially the idea behind this test says that it's not about bettering your weaknesses, but rather, improving your strengths. Once you know your strengths, you can focus on them, improve them, and be an even better you (which is why God created you with these talents in the first place!) Besides, no one cares about who you are not -- it is who you are that matters, right?

In an example, the speaker talked about two groups of students that both took a speed reading class. If I knew how to make/insert graphs, this would be prettier, but I'll explain in words. One group of students was made up of Average Readers (90 wpm), and the other was made up of Above Average Readers (350 wpm). Here's the crazy thing, they both were given the exact same speed reading course and then their improvement was measured...The Average Readers improved from 90wpm to 160wpm BUT the Above Average Readers went from 350wpm to 2,900!!! I thought this was a very strong point (no pun intended). We also laughed about the comparison between Rudy and Joe Montana. Apparently both went to Notre Dame during the same amount of time (news to me! - sorry, Austin) but his joke was that Rudy's talents clearly lied in his ability to speak about his story -- not to play football. Another easy illustration of his point though.

Another stat: Only 20% of people agree with the statement "I get the opportunity to use my strengths on a daily basis." When he said this, all I could think was "how lucky am I?" And that is what I want this post to be about.  For my friends who are doing what they are passionate about regardless of the circumstance it takes to get there (Rachael Bell), I admire you. For the ones who are finally feeling alive at work and happy although it took a lot of missteps and courageous moves at first (West Cain), I am so happy for you -- And to my friends who are still searching for those "right things" -- I will pray for you. I strongly recommend anyone to think about this concept, whether it's in work or hobby or life...Aren't you better when you're doing something that fits your natural talents and passions?

With the job that I have and the life that I lead, I am happy to report that I get to use all of my strengths on a fairly regular basis. I think I always knew this, but not in such a direct way. I have a boss who understands me on a personal level and lets me create my own schedule/work style, a job (two right now!) that keep me entirely emotionally and intellectually enthralled (although very up & down at times), and I get constant human interaction that keeps my social side happy (friends, family, AND coworkers!). What is also really cool is that I feel completely ME, even in California. This may not make too much sense, but I thank you for that. All of you.

Odds are, if you are reading this blog, you are one of the people who has really affected me. If not, thanks for even caring enough to read about me. 

I am overwhelmed with Gratitude tonight. One of my favorite words, period. I am blessed beyond reason, and I have so many people that have helped shape me into the person that I am. I have really been working on getting to know myself over the past couple of years, and I am getting closer everyday. I have a lot of improvements to make, but I also realize that I have a lot of great qualities too. While my test results told me that one of my greatest talents is being quick and easy to love other people (lots of them!), I do think that loving ME is one of my biggest battles. Perhaps some of you can relate, or perhaps you prefer my funny posts to serious...Either way, thank you all for loving me, because what I realized tonight, is that I really do too. 

If anyone wants to talk to me in more detail about the conference (or anything!), I could tell you so much more, and I'd love to...but as usual, this post got a little long.

Things I Cannot Do

For those of you who think I can do anything...this post is for you. 

When I first decided to move to San Diego, I knew it would be a time for personal growth. I didn't really know what this meant, but I decided to go ahead and take control of the situation by creating my own mental-make-believe-list of all the things I would learn and start doing once I got here. A "bucket list" per se...After all, with no friends surely I could pick up a few hobbies, read some best-sellers, learn another language, and acquire some new skills with all my free time, right? I'm sure I'll get to that ground-breaking post eventually, but for today, as my dinner experience has inspired me, I have decided to let you know a few things that I have learned I cannot do upon moving here. A little motivation for my bucket list...

1) I cannot follow a GPS. I have had 3 specific instances of this in the past week, and no, this does not include just being lost.  Not knowing where I am pretty constant these days (and I'm fine with that), but making ridiculous navigational errors has become my new forte. Forget physical maps! Even with the latest technology of all kinds, I still can't manage to find my way. This talent really came in handy when I was with my boss in San Francisco, and I convinced him that following the blue dot on my iPhone screen was a safe way to get to our appt on time...or at least it was until the satellite realigned us up a street and in the opposite direction after I bragged about it being a fail-safe technique (note: we were only 5 minutes late, and hey, it's not like we wanted to appear over-eager). Jump to the weekend now, where I led a car-full of people to the wrong Washington Street for dinner using my high-tech Tom Tom GPS machine. You better believe that when they say West Washington Street instead of Washington Street, they mean it! Different zip codes and everything...Then there's my personal favorite, when I set out on a quick roam by foot around the neighborhood. I eventually made it home 6 miles later after realizing that the loop I thought I was making ran smack into a gated neighborhood. Surely I could find a way back that was shorter than 3.2 miles of back-tracking...but what turned out to be 2.8miles instead actually ended up putting me on a freeway in the bikelane with puddles splashing at me from passing cars. Needless to say, it was not really worth the saved mileage.

This is what makes getting lost in Southern California okay.

2) I cannot speak Spanish. Although I have taken Spanish for about 7+ years of  my life, and I even lived in Salamanca for a Summer in a Spanish-only speaking home -- I have realized this week that I still don't even know enough to get by in casual conversation. Sure, I can do some exercises in a workbook, or get a vague idea of what a paragraph says/means, but if you think I know how to say things like: "Are you the one collecting my boxes from the UPS man and placing them in a secret location?" or "Have you seen my bed frame?" or "No, the problem is now that the blinds are stuck down in my bedroom, and I cannot get them to roll up" or "You have been named a top local restaurant in San Diego, and I'd like to come by to give you an award" -- you are mistaken. After I finish this post, I'm actually on to Rosetta Stone practice, so at least in the future I may be more prepared. Bucket List! 

And finally...

3) I cannot cook. This is really my favorite one, and I'm considering my inability to cook as the new theme of my blog. Let me give you the proper set up...As you know, Austin and Lauren just came here to visit this weekend, and we had a fantastic time. It was full of delicious food, good times, and fun people. Saturday night we went to Lucha Libre (WTLE's vote for Best Tacos!) and ate the most amazing tacos of my entire life (which is when I fell in more-than-love with homemade corn tortillas). Follow that up with Sunday night, when Lauren cooked some ridiculous home-made pizza for the Academy Awards. She made it look very easy and encouraged me that I'd definitely love cooking if I just tried. "Very therapeutic," she says.

Taking both experiences into account, I decided that tonight was the perfect low-key night to make my first real dinner at home, and I was craving MORE CORN TORTILLAS! So I walked down to the store, picked up some ingredients, and had all the necessary parts to make a chicken sausage, spinach, jalapeno, onion, and cheese quesadilla. Sounds like an easy dish to start with --That is, until you put me into the mix. See my masterpiece below.

Mmmm

This actually pictures better than it looked, by far.

The first problem came with the initial flip, which caused it to completely fall apart; however, I  decided aesthetics weren't going to get me down. Not tonight! "This will taste great!" I thought to  myself...All ready to go, and I take my first bite... :(

Turns out, the sausage was not exactly cooked, but rather, it was just burned on the edges. Oops! I decided to eat it anyways for a couple more bites (smart, I know), but then after googling "undercooked sausage" I decided  that low and behold, I had to pick all the sausage out and cook it longer...So much for my oh-so-pretty quesadilla! Fine. Still not going to care. 

After all, who isn't allowed to mess up once? and I have plenty of tortillas...Now for round two. This time I decided not to even bother with meat, but to just use spinach, onion, and cheese. Right as I'm getting cocky about my latest improvement, I realize that my wrist is kind of hot (I am pressing down on the tortilla so it all melts together and doesn't fall apart on the flip), and when I look down, I realize that my sleeve is down in the gas flame...After doing this to both sleeves (yes, I did it again after this time), I called it a night with my singed long-sleeve shirt, ate my ugly (but cooked!) quesadillas, and considered this cooking experience a FAIL.

I took this picture before I burned the other one too. The marks you can see in this are actually hard & plastic-y now. Do you have a shirt with such memory & character?

In conclusion I must ask, dinner anyone? I'll drive, or should I say, "Puedo conducirte" (???). 

Carmen San Diego

With all this travel lately, I'm really starting to feel like her...but without the free time to go spelunking or commit crimes. This week I've been all over San Diego, to San Francisco and back in a day, and next week I go to San Jose and Oakland for another work trip. Not only am I being hard to keep up with, but I even have no idea where I am 90% of the time these days. The good news is, since I can't slow down, I don't have time to get too sad about Nashville (but yes, I do miss you!). I'm looking forward to my weekend and some relaxing...and who better to do that with than Austin and Lauren!?

Right now I'm anxiously awaiting their arrival to SD (t minus 1 hour!), but wanted to put some pics up of the place for everyone and to update you on California. I freaking LOVE it here! It's been pretty cold, but that's good bc I have had so much to do that I haven't really had time to be outside. I'm really thinking it might be torture to work in paradise everyday, but I will try not to complain too much ;) I did get to go on one walk this week, and surely things will settle down eventually.

Since I got here, I have been non-stop working, moving, and getting lost -- I have had some great meals with great company, found a church I like, and most importantly, Peaaa and I have really rekindled our love. It's kinda like the Bachelor when they make them scale buildings to build trust...the whole trauma of the flight out here has made us grow closer than ever. We'll see how long this lasts, but she is officially eating again, as of yesterday - Woohoo! See evidence below of our new bond and more pics for you to envision where I am. Keep in mind, this place is a work in process:

Look! We share pillows!

This shows my "mama house" and the view out my front window - ps - I have blinds now.

Austin and Lauren's bedroom/my living room. The wall behind Peaaa goes to front of house view above. Note: TV stand.

This is how the TV stand started. My greatest accomplishment to date.

My room. I did not clean it for this pic. Bedding to come soon.

My office (technically still the living room to the right of Peaa in top pic) - Yesterday Lauren asked if I was still in bed, and I said, "No, I'm at work." In all seriousness. Weird...

My kitchen. This is pretty much the whole thing. Oh hello, Kelly in the corner! I did not see you there.

The view from my parking spot. See the water? It's only 2 blocks away!

Peanut's fun run shoot - aka - the side of my house.

So that's pretty much the place! Will post more pics around town and of pretty stuff soon, but thought I'd deliver the basics first.

I like to move it move it - Peanut does not.

It's official! My first blog-post from California...does my font look different? Just kidding. Still the same me :) but for those of you who would like an update on how the move went...Here goes:

Cut to Friday - Move in day is finally here! You'd think I'd be sad, but instead, I wake up thinking that I just can't wait for Sunday (and breakfast w/J Bop). I have been attempting this move for almost a year now (1 year = March 1st), and ever since, I have been living out of boxes without a place to call my own. Don't get me wrong, it's been a great year! BUT, having my own stuff, quiet tv nights, and most of all, no boxes! sounds pretty freakin fantastic. I think most people expected me to give in to my fickle-ness (and I doubted at times), but moving day was officially here, and I just want it to be over!

More than the goodbyes...More than being in California with no friends...What I am dreading most is...MANUAL LABOR! The actual logistics of getting to California with all of my stuff is a complete nightmare to me. Little did I know, this nightmare was about to get worse, and all because of 'sweet' little Peaaa.

The antagonist herself - Before.

I realize earlier this week that yes, Peaaa is slightly large for her carrier, but as long as she fits at all she's good right? Wrong. As I look to see if there are any special rules about arrival time with pets, I see something I seem to've looked over before: Southwest specifically says that dogs not only have to be able to fit in their carrier, but they also have to be able to stand up and turn around in it, or they will not be allowed on the plane. Cue Crisis #1. I immediately call Austin to calm me down, and while he confirms that this has been an issue for him before traveling with Max and Belle, we come up with a plan that can't fail...I'll just lie and be really convincing about it (oh, and drug Peanut early enough to where she is calm in the process and doesn't give me away).

All is going according to plan. I'm all packed up in the car, I drug Peanut, and she takes the Benadryl in cheese like it's a real treat. An hour goes by, and just when I get all excited that the drugs are working, I try to put her in her carrier to head to the airport. Cue Crisis #2. She is NOT going in there. This is my first hint that Benadryl is not going to work. After a few moments of wrestling Peaaa, I eventually win, but she is now miserable in her little cage and probably hates me more than ever. This sucks...and breaks my heart, but I must. keep. going.

We get to the airport, to the Southwest kiosk, and it's time to check her in. I strategically hide Peaaa behind the counter to minimize the amount of time the worker can see her size issue, but Peanut has a plan all her own. Whereas mine was to get her on the plane and past security as quickly as possible, Peaaa's is apparently to call for help and hope that animal services will come arrest me. I'm happy to say she didn't win, but I'm not going to declare victory for myself either. 

Good thing pictures don't have sound.

As we stand in line, Peaaa begins making the most terrible noises you have ever heard. Crisis #3. They don't even sound dog-like, and she generates quite the buzz from those around us. At one point she even knocks her carrier over on its side because she is bucking her little heart out on the inside. Maybe she has enough space in there after all? The Southwest lady is now much less concerned with the space issue, but more about the mental health of the dog inside. She gives Peaaa her ticket, but truthfully, it's obvious she'd do anything to save her ears from the terrible shrieks and commotion Peaaa is making. This scene is now officially making her look bad too since we are at her kiosk. She rushes us away with ticket in hand. Whatever. I'll take it! Home free...Until security. 

Now that we have our ticket, I just have to put Peaaa's carrier through the Xray and carry her through the metal detector. It's that easy, right? -- On a side note, if you don't like the new Rape-a-Scan machine (Rapiscan is the official name), then taking a dog is a great alternative. I didn't even get a pat-down! -- The lady at the other side of the belt even offers to hold the cage still for me to put Peanut back in, but I inform her that this is going to be less than pretty, so she carries my stuff off to the side for me. Little did I know how opposite of pretty this would truly be. Peaaa is definitely NOT going back in this time. Crisis #4...here we go. This time she is determined and naked. I attempt to forcefeed her more Benadryl, but she's not having it. Not only does she beat me in this game, but she also makes me accidentally put my knee down on the square of cheese, which comes into play in just a minute. Just as I have about got her forced in and half-zipped, Peanut goes one more hard push and bursts out of the top of the cage...Then, she make a run for it. I am now chasing Peaaa through security with cheese pressed on my jeans, and if people weren't watching me before, now they are.

I catch Peaaa after about 10-15 long seconds, which feels like an hour. For those of you who think I don't get embarrassed, this one definitely did the trick. Once I catch her, I still have to get her back in her carrier, and needless to say, it was an abusive scene. At this point, I don't even care. Just get me to my gate. Give me a tranquilizer gun. Anything. We sit down, and Peaaa begins more of her drama. I guess this is what the mom on board with the crying baby feels like...Or ar least she should. Being the caring mother that I am, I put a jacket over her cage and pretend I don't notice as I endure angry looks from everyone at the gate (who secretly hopes they aren't sitting near me). B34. Looks like where I sit isn't even up to me!

Look at all that leg space!

After what was definitely the longest flight of my life (yes, longer than Europe and even Hawaii), Peanut and I land in sunny San Diego with a landing that even Mika would give a 7 or 8. Only thing is, it's pouring rain. You win some you lose some, and at this point, I don't even care. The day is over, or at least the travel piece, Peaaa is released from jail. It's time for some Peruvian food and live band with Pops. Peaaa is still facing issues today, but we are making progress. For those of you familiar with Lifetime movies, sorry for the abrupt ending, but I realized this has gotten way too lengthy for your own good. More later! 

Peaaa promptly christened her new yard. The end.

Girlfriends

My sweet sister Lauren (to avoid confusion, my sister-in-law, but that is only a technicality) sent this email to me on Saturday:

 
 They Teach It at Stanford
 
"I just finished taking an evening class at Stanford. The last lecture was on the mind-body connection - the relationship between stress and disease. The speaker (head of psychiatry at Stanford) said, among other things, that one of the best things that a man could do for his health is to be married to a woman, whereas for a woman, one of the best things she could do for her health was to nurture her relationships with her girlfriends.
 
At first everyone laughed, but he was serious.
 
Women connect with each other differently and provide support systems that help each other to deal with stress and difficult life experiences. Physically this quality “girlfriend time" helps us to create more serotonin - a neurotransmitter that helps combat depression and can create a general feeling of well being. Women share feelings whereas men often form relationships around activities. They rarely sit down with a buddy and talk about how they feel about certain things or how their personal lives are going. Jobs? Yes. Sports? Yes. Cars? Yes. Fishing, hunting, golf? Yes. But their feelings? Rarely.
 
Women do it all of the time. We share from our souls with our sisters/mothers, and evidently that is very good for our health. He said that spending time with a friend is just as important to our general health as jogging or working out at a gym.
 
There's a tendency to think that when we are "exercising" we are doing something good for our bodies, but when we are hanging out with friends, we are wasting our time and should be more productively engaged—not true. In fact, he said that failure to create and maintain quality personal relationships with other humans is as dangerous to our physical health as smoking!
 
So every time you hang out to schmooze with a gal pal, just pat yourself on the back and congratulate yourself for doing something good for your health! We are indeed very, very lucky. Sooooo let's toast to our friendship with our girlfriends. Evidently it's very good for our health."

How true is that? This email totally hit home to me as my girlfriends (you will note in my previous post) are my favorite people in the world! Lauren sent it to me attached with a note saying she would be visiting me in San Diego as often as possible, and I hope she means it. Just think of the health effects of pinot + girl time! And speaking of wine + girl time, did you know that Applebee's actually sells wine by the bottle for $9.99!? I'll start at the beginning...

I had a little bit of Girl Time last night with some of my favorite ladies in Nashville to celebrate Valentines Day. I ever-so-thoughtfully invited everyone over for dinner at my place, and then we all drank margaritas and wine while Jessica slaved over the stove to whip us up a fine meal. Hosting can be so hard...Did I mention she did all of this in a prom dress? 

With this group of girls, we can't seem to do anything normal. From Meat Parties to Fur Parties and Are You Afraid of the Dark Marathons to Macarena Live Tapings, this group is far from boring. Naturally, we couldn't just have a formal, nice Valentines Dinner with filet mignons (bc Ashley and Forrest did that the night before and we'd be copying), but we could DRESS formal, and then eat tacos...I mean hey, why not? So Julie, Camille, and Ashley get dressed at home in their formal gear, which I must note takes quite a bit of confidence in their girlfriends to not be playing a trick. Lucky for them, we weren't. Jessica brings over all of her old prom dresses for me, her, and Kelly to fight over, and I quickly pick the one covered in sequins. Then I hold my breath the rest of the night. 

After tacos, chips, salsa, rice, and guac (do we sound fat?), we decide it's time for dessert. AND for the rest of the world to see us. We pile in the cars to the closest Applebee's and request a table for 6. After a solid 5 minute wait while people stared, we were finally seated at a nice table surrounded by Beer Flyers, what I believe is referred to as "flair" in office space, and Valentines memorabilia everywhere. We decided we needed at least four desserts and a bottle of wine. Want to know what the total check was? $22.00. No, I'm not lying. 4 desserts. One bottle of wine. Applebee's is not paying me for this promo, but seriously, you should probably go there. 

The conversations we had should probably be kept proprietary, but the time we had, I thought should be shared. After all, it better've been fun for the boyfriend/significant other feathers we ruffled by throwing this Vday curveball. We ended the night with some "Kardashian" moments (Jessica and Kelly attempting to molest me for a camera shot) and some sad, but happy goodbyes, as I may not see some of these girls for a while. Without further ado, here are some (but not all) of our pics - RB, you were missed:

Love you girls. Happy Valentine's Day.

While I can't wait to find more girlfriends in Cali, you could not ever be replaced!

 

 

Hello, Goodbye...for now

Welcome to my blog...I was a little hesitant that people would really want to read about my life, but a few of you said you would, so this is for you...and me :) doi. Hope I don't let you down.

My first post is officially dedicated to those of you who showed up last night for my surprise Going Away Party. I've gushed and gushed to everyone I've talked to/seen today (and I am going to continue to do so probably for weeks to come). I still can't seem to register why so many people would get together to celebrate ME!

Let me set the scene for you. February 10th was just your typical (and very stressful) day. Snow-day in Nashville. I'm working from home juggling both jobs I am attempting to keep up, visit the doctor for a last minute check up before my move, and eventually have a breakdown due to the impending packing I have to do, so I go take a nap. I wake up from my nap in a frenzy, realizing that depending on the snow traffic, I may be late for my one-on-one dinner night with Kelly! 

No time for bras! Or to think of what to wear! Must leave now!...so I grab the wrap/comfy robe jacket that I wore the day before to work, and I hit the road. We're going to Nero's, so what are the odds of seeing anyone I know, right? 

Much to my surprise, I get there in plenty of time. In fact, I'm 15 minutes early. How did that happen? Don't worry, Kelly has this covered. Kelly knowing me, knows that I am addicted to being punctual (although normally this results in the penalty of having to save tables for others/sitting alone while everyone else is late), so she is prepared for the curveball I have thrown. I meet her at the front, and the hostess promptly escorts us to our "table for two". We walk. and walk. and walk. to a funny extent. I laugh to Kelly that we must be getting special treatment in the "back room"...still with absolutely no radar going off that this is weird. Hindsight is a silly thing.

In the words of Kelly McGinnis, I walked into the best-worst surprise ever. There stand my closest girlfriends, a hatch print designed by Kelly for everyone to sign, a slideshow on a large screen with pictures of all my closest friends, and wine by the bottle, everywhere! They calmly inform me that everyone I've ever met is on their way there, and even offer to run me to the mall for a quick change of clothes. Whatever...I'm going to just embrace it. I've never felt so embarrassed (and not just bc of my look)/happy/shocked/nervous/special/loved/etc! It was a surreal mix of emotions.

Kelly, Jessica, Rachael, Catherine, Camille, Julie, Jess, Laura B, Ashley, Forrest, Nathan, Gary, Daniel, Blake, Andrew, Stef, Tom, Lizzy, Ginger, Les, Wes, Wadih, Meredith, Amanda, Michelle, Mika!, Morgan, Dillon, Nicole, Lori, Emily, Tyler, Haden, Drew, Erin, Lynsi, Brad, Linda, Laura S, Chris-Craig, and even my most wonderful Sista -- (although not all could make it physically) were all a part of this very special night, and I don't think you will ever understand the feeling you gave me. 

The only thing missing was Peaaa, but apparently she sent in photos for my slideshow, so I couldn't be too mad at her. (and Austin & Lauren, but they get me in California).

Good wine. Good food. Good company. Presents. Amazing hand-crafted decorations. The best friends in the whole world. What more could I ask for?! If I'd been any bit smart last night I would've gotten a group picture, but this is the only one I took, of my "Flat Kelly":

I must admit, I cried on my way home and was thinking -- Why the hell am I moving?!?

My friends are my world, but the party isn't over. Y'all are stuck with me.

So Goodbye for now Nashville - Hello California, Blogging, and New Adventures. Keep you posted...

And a birthday shout out to Lynza! Happy birthday sweet friend.