5 Days in NYC

When I first moved to San Francisco, a few of my closest friends from college were also living and working in the city. It made it incredibly easy to acclimate to my new home and not feel like a tourist for the first 3 months. As is typical with students from UCSD, most of them then shipped off to grad school (if that’s not where they went right away) and fortunately for me, a few landed in New York City. Obviously a trip was in order.

I’d booked the trip a few months prior, and ending on October 7^th, I had 5 fantastic days exploring both Manhattan and Brooklyn. I could go on and on, but instead I just am going to show you the pictures of it all with some fun stories intermixed.

ARRIVAL IN NYC

I took a red-eye, leaving SF at 9pm and arriving in NYC around 6am. I showed up before the sun rose and saw this incredible view.

After a few minutes hanging out in the hall, Lara, my host for the weekend, woke up and let me in to her apartment in time to see the sun rising over the city. She lives in the area called Hell’s Kitchen, which is in Midtown West. She can see the Empire State Building, all of downtown NYC, and the Hudson river and Brooklyn from her window.

A quick catch up and a nap brought me to 10am when I set out to hit my first stop, Times Square. Man, it is busy!

After Times Square, I took the quick walk to Central Park. Here I just wandered around, went to see the famous fountains and bridges in all the movies,  saw a model doing a photo shoot, and then made my way to a recommended restaurant adjacent to the park.

Next I took one of those corny open-top bus tours, and while the guides were not helpful the views and the exploring it helped me do were well worth it. I saw the famous arch thing, I noticed that there are lots of water towers on top of buildings, and I saw the Brooklyn Bridge.

Most prominently, I stopped to view the 9/11 Memorial at the base of the new World Trade Center Tower. The memorial is extremely well done, and there are two fountains in the footprints of the original towers. There’s even a soon-to-open exhibit where you can see parts of the original WTC structure.

The next day was another to adventure and after sleeping in, I found the LOVE sign before we went to the Frick Museum.

Saturday, Lara got to explore with me, so we took some of the CitiBikes and rode down attempting to shop. Instead, we stopped for a food event in Chelsea.

We then stumbled across the High Line and strolled along there before we found some Blue Bottle Coffee.

We checked out the Chelsea Market, a version of the SF Ferry Building Market, before heading home to prepare for a special event that night.

Saturday night, we had tickets to the New York Film Festival’s Opening of the movie The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. It’s Ben Stiller’s first movie as a director, and while it strays from the original short story, it’s a fantastic and inspiring movie that helps the mind leap to new adventures. It’ll be out in December and you should absolutely go see it!

Sunday, I went to Brooklyn where my friend Brooks showed me around. We shopped, and I finally found local boutiques (which is what I love). We checked out the Brooklyn Flea Market as well, which had a bag I’m in love with and still comtemplating the purchase of.

Next, we visited the rooftop bar at the Wythe Hotel before I went ot shop some more then meet my friend Caitlin for Dinner.

After some amazing dinner, we visited the Ample Hills Creamery, for some of the most incredible ice cream flavors I’ve ever had. Then it was back to Manhattan for me.

On Monday, I took it easy before going on a walk to just see and experience the electricity of the city
one more time. First I went to the New York Public Library with Lara. Not only was it amazing to see the scene where Carrie and Big’s wedding was supposed to happen, the library is amazingly beautiful and the story of how it came to being inspiring!

Next, I had to find some souvenirs, but along the way I stumbled across the Time Square Museum, where I found the confetti wish wall. You can write a wish that you have for the coming new year on a piece of confetti that is later thrown out during the New Years Eve celebration in Times Square.

After, by way of a random pizza blogger, I went to _______ and had some incredible pizza, followed by tiramisu and an espresso.

And with that, it was over! I ran to the subway with rain beating down on me and after many delays and some dramatic instances with public transportation, I made it to the airport where now I sit and wait for a delayed flight.

New York was an amazing experience, and what was really beneficial is that I didn’t work, much, while I was here. Having the distance and the ability to think about he bigger picture has left me feeling re-energized and has helped me to realize the priorities I should be working on instead of the tasks that often bog me down. I’m ready to get back to the city and organize and execute the crap out of SixDoors J

On a final note, a HUGE thank you to the people who made this trip aboslutey incredible. I not only saw sights, I caught up with some of the most important people in my life. Many, many thanks to Lara for being amazing and a great host, Brooks for his Brooklyn knowledge, and Caitlin for her insights into her new realm of life and the awesome ice cream experience.

I’ll be back some day NYC!

Fabulous

You know, life is. It's just fabulous. And not in the glitzy movie star and red carpet kind of way. More in the "amazing moments just keep happening" type of way.

I'm really beginning to realize that I have a pretty wonderful gift (helped along by having recently read a book all about serendipity and luck, Get Lucky by Thor Muller) and even more I am recognizing that this is a gift that I unconsciously perpetuate every single day.

I talk about my car wreck and how I was "fortunate" to have made it through and done so well in my recovery and in rebuilding of life afterward. And I do believe a large part of this was fortune, however I think that a lot of my ability to recover emotionally was because of this relentless optimism and enthusiasm and desire to just live life and adventure as fully and compassionately as possible.

I'd like to share a few of the fabulous things that have happened for me due to my habit of creating situations wherein serendipity thrives.

1. I take every chance to learn: I miss college-both the community and the regular opportunities to learn. So, I've signed up for as many programs where you can learn as possible. I take Skillshare classes, I go to Meetup events, I found this great Women in startups group (Women 2.0) and I love the opportunity to learn from the people around me who are in different fields. It was actually a Skillshare class over a year ago that helped me land my newest job.

2. I go look when I'm curious: You know those moments: you're walking/driving along and see something that piques your interest. But you drive by and don't think of it again until the next time. Well, I make it a habit to stop and explore. Doing this I've made great new friends, found awesome boutique stores, seen great private art shows, and even made a friend at my local wine bar (hello free wine!)

3. I talk to strangers: If I'm walking along at the same pace as someone, and we both keep getting stopped at the same street lights waiting for the signal to turn, I talk to someone. Sharing those little human moments lead to fleeting connections, but being connected to someone in even the smallest way brightens my day. One of my closest friends was made when I was waiting in line to get on a plane. It's been 4 years and we've lived thousands of miles apart, but our friendship has continued to grow stronger.

4. I embrace awkward moments: If someone has an awkward moment, I call it out every time. Also if I do something awkward, aka embarrassing, I love to share that goofy feeling with anyone who experiences it around me. There's so much joy in admitting to those human defining awkward instances so you can laugh and connect with people instead of freak out and turn inward on yourself.

So right now, life is just fabulous. I hope that you can allow a little serendipity in your life. If you have an idea or see something that inspires you, just go for it. See where chance takes you. I bet you it will lead to only fabulous things :)

Winter Breakaway

I just got back from a post-vacation yoga class at my favorite studio, Yoga to the People, here in San Francisco. What a break that I had!

This year (my first ever not going home to Colorado for the break) I went with Tom down to Los Angeles where his father and brother live. On the drive down (typically 6 hours, traffic put us in after about 9 hours) we actually took with us two Zimriders (a new ride-sharing program) and had the good fortune to have a rider who had stories of live and travel galore! So while the trip was long and not particularly pretty (we drove down I-5 through the central valley of California, which looks like Kansas, just a bit more hilly) we had nice company along the way.

After dropping off the riders, we arrived at our location for a short week in Tustin. Dave, Tom's dad, was a great host, greeting us with beer and some much needed dinner. We got to watch a few movies on their massive in-home movie screen (it amazes me the entertainment stations people have!) and more than my annual allotment of professional football and basketball. Dave is a master cook, so we had great food, nice company, and even got to wake up at 5am on Christmas morning to see the only young one in the family, Hope at 3 years old, groggily come downstairs then hunt for Santa before she ripped open all her presents (little kids make Christmas feel so much more like the holiday!)



After a few days there, we spent a night in Long Beach with Tom's brother before I got to have a reunion with two of my closest college girl friends. We met Kristin in Silver Lake for a late lunch of Berlin Currywurst dogs (super delicious). That night we traveled over to the well-kept suburb of West Lake where Kat and Andy live as Kat works to attain her Masters in Nursing. A night of catching up, talking about sailing, and discussion of their upcoming adventures in Mexico ensued and the next day we left them to make our way to Santa Barbara.

The goal of this trip was to have no plan, to be home for the new year (maybe) and to just see where each day took us along the Pacific Coast Highway (hereby called Highway 1 or "the 1"). After a late start getting out of LA, we tallied along a beach somewhere near Santa Monica before driving north to Santa Barbara. At noon I pulled out my phone and booked us a room for that night, using HotelTonight of course! Feeling lazy we wandered the streets for a while before deciding to catch a double header (we watched Lincoln and This is 40, both good films in their own right).

Saturday, we made our way up to Monterey, this time booking at Casa Munras, again on the HotelTonight app. The drive from Santa Barbara to Monterey Bay is an absolutely breathtaking one. The 1 takes you alongside the ocean with waves crashing on the beach, or you drive at the edge of a cliff with the water splashing up below. As the sun was setting the road unfortunately carried us away from the water, but not even a mile in we saw a turn out that said beach. Without hesitation Tom swung the car across the road and we ended up trekking down a single lane dirt road. It turned out we made a great decision.

Just as the water dipped below the horizon we arrived on Julia Pfeiffer beach, where some beautiful rock formations did their best to obstruct the waves crashing toward the shore. We meandered along the beach, noticing that the sand was a strange purple color (I still can't figure out why) before darkness settled and we made our way back to the car.

Our next day was in Monterey, an old fishing town where every sardine you've ever eaten was likely caught. After walking along the Cannery area, we drove to Carmel to spend our final evening. While Monterey is the ugly t-shirt and snow globe kind of touristy town, Carmel is the place of luxury and international tourism. For this last night we stayed at the Luxe option on HotelTonight, Tradewinds Carmel. The property was pristine, with a zen essence and 5-star service. I enjoyed the kimono's they had instead of a bath robe and got the most out of their noon check-out time.

The final drive home felt right, still making our way along the coast, though with views far less dramatic than the last long haul. We arrived into San Francisco in the evening, just before grocery stores closed, so we could buy a few fancy pieces to make a nice new years eve dinner. I baked lobster and at midnight we went a mile down the road to see the fireworks shoot off above the Bay Bridge.

Winter!

My toes are like icicles! I know know, it's only San Francisco winter, but boy there is a chill in the air this week! I had been thinking about it for a while, but I finally got a little electric heating pad and that was the best decision I made for this winter yet. Now I can sit and write blogs, wrapped in blankets with slippers on (yet still cold) and after the heating pad warms up I feel alive again. Best invention ever.

Since I moved to California (nearly 7 years ago now!) I've found I have a lot harder time feeling in the holiday spirit. Though the palm trees have holiday lights on them and Christmas music is playing, it just doesn't seem like Christmas without snow! I guess I've just got to admit to being a Californian and accept the 50 degree 'winters'. Maybe I'll even go get some lights to decorate the apartment this year!

However, even that requires time, which I am finding less and less of! HotelTonight continues its global domination which keeps us all crazy busy. We've got a lot of excitement next week before "relaxing" (aka doing all the other things that had to be put off the last few weeks in preparation before the big announcements next week.

So what have I been doing since I posted about being settled back in the spring? Here's the highlight real :D (If you're viewing this in your email I'd suggest you find a link to view it online...there are lots of pretty pictures!)

June

Spent another busy and awesome week in Kansas City volunteering with SkillsUSA

Saw a movie in the middle of the city at Union Square.

Bowled with HotelTonight














July

I visited my good friend Kat in Healdsburg, CA where she grew up. It's part of wine country, so I had my first foray into winery hopping in Napa Valley.

One of my best Wyoming friends, Ian dropped by San Francisco for a conference. I showed him SF the local way with a trip to the Mission and Dolores Park.













August

Went to Austin for a day trip (literally was there for 24 hours) to visit two wonderful girlfriends from SkillsUSA

Went to my very first Outside Lands, a concert in Golden Gate Park and saw one of my favorite bands, .fun

Spent a long weekend at Tassajara, a zen Buddhist retreat center 3 hours down a dirt road (and 2 hours before that from the city) where my friend Caitlin (one of my very first college friends) is currently studying. Spent the weekend meditating, hiking, enjoying the natural hot springs, and writing my little heart out.

Went home to Colorado for some much needed TLC with the sisters

Had a Parisian friend stay on the couch for a week before he headed off to Burning Man (I had couch surfed with him in Paris back in 2010!)















September

Attended lots of cool yoga events including a yoga session in the SF Museum of Modern Art and an event near Golden Gate Bridge hosted by the Wanderlust Yoga festival!

Visited Calistoga with Larisa, climbing mountains and then following it up with wine and a mud bath (very weird)

Learned how to make dumplings!

Attended a talk with the founder of Uber, Travis Kalanick, hosted by First Round Capital, one of the venture investors that invested in HotelTonight!












October

An awesome girls weekend with some new midwestern girlfriends. We had a great night out dancing to the most hipster music I've ever heard, followed by a day in Sonoma and an amazing time playing on the grass at a beautiful Sonoma winery.

Visited Aliina and Chauncey in Port Townsend, Washington. Then road tripped from there to Seattle to Portland to San Francisco trying out the Portland food trucks and even Voodoo donuts and the largest used book store in the world, Powell's along the way!



Crewed in a few sailing races, one was a day race to Benicia!
















November

Watched the Red Bull Flugtag from the water on a new friends sailboat.

Had a lovely thanksgiving dinner with my bestie and her family, the Chehabs.

















And now it's December. So far I know that HotelTonight will be moving into an AMAZING new office (that I can still bike to, yippee) and that I'll be spending Christmas in Los Angeles (who would have every thought that?) New Years is up in the air, but the craziest thing of all is that it's nearly 2013!

I'll keep you all much more up to date with my adventures moving forward. Promise!

A dilemma of a decision about this blog

We all know I haven't been as good of writing lately as I believe my last post was back in April. However it is with reason. I've been in this eternal debate with myself of late as to weather this blog is the best use of space. thought and time (for both you and I), or if maybe I should instead begin to blog about something work-related as to begin to develop myself to be a thought leader (no I wouldn't expect you to read that one).

So I want to ask you...do you like these updates? Are they worth reading to you? Should I start writing regularly in this blog again to tell the tales of my adventures? Would you be interested in content other than the stories of my most recent adventures? (I do have some good adventures)

Reply to this email or comment on the post and let me know!

Settling In

I've now been in San Francisco right about 6/7 months (time flies!). I'm into my very own apartment, which I've finally managed to furnish with actual real-person furniture (okay a few things are still from Ikea). And as exciting as it is to see each piece of the new home fall into place, I get hints every once in a while of this feeling. This feeling that I'm TERRIFIED of being so settled in! We have a couch, a NICE one, that I had to move in a big truck. We have an actual bed frame (as opposed to the glorious days of a mattress on the floor). I even ended up with a fondu maker, which was included in a recent kitchen ware acquisition (and no it still hasn't emerged from its box). 

These are things that, next time I move (and we all know I'm going to move again). I might actually have to get a moving truck to transfer them, instead of stuffing things into the trunk of a mid-sized sedan and selling the rest...okay I may actually just sell everything again the next time, we'll have to see.

Okay, I have to admit I'm having a little bit of fun with it all...trying to find things that work and match and not just picking up whatever I find that is easiest to transport via a Craigslist add. While it's fun to be getting nicer stuff, always in the back of my mind these acquisitions remind me that I am getting settled here. That I can't easily pack up my life into a few bags and fly across the country for the next adventure.

But the exciting thing is that I have so much to explore here in San Francisco. While I've done well to explore many parts of this city, I haven't even made it over to the Marina area or the neighborhoods along the ocean. I haven't been to SF's own Little Italy, nor have I really gone and visited China Town. And then there are ALL the places around San Francisco that are so very close. Marin, wine country, Berkeley, Oakland, Montery...the list goes on and on!

To say the least, I have a lot to explore in this beautiful new city and I've only gotten started. While it still scares me to be somewhat settled, I think I've finally found a place that I won't mind settling in for a while. (Though a call from London today is making me realize that that's probably going to be my next stop ;)

It's REAL Good!

It's so hilly here!

Wow! Did you see how quickly that last month went by. I know it only has 29 days, but geesh!

Life is, as usual fantastically busy and full of adventure. Since the beginning of the year I've truly felt that I've adapted to this ever-so-wonderful San Francisco lifestyle. I'm familiar with the city in that I (somewhat) know it's orientation as I wander it's hilly streets. I definitely still get lost on occasion, but I know the different districts and my calves are getting super toned from all the walking I do! It's really fantastic.

Work is continually evolving as my role is figured out then redefined and my responsibilities are adapted as the company grows and changes (we added 8 employees in the last 2 weeks!)  This continual evolution is something that I think is so fantastic and so unique to startups. And I realize that all of the opportunities that I had were very much startups in that we started from scratch and I got to be part of building and figuring things out from scratch at every point. I've been able to work on a number of cool projects, and every day is truly something different. And I must say, it's pretty cool to work at a place that everyone can use and that all users love!

Another part of getting more settled in this city has been my 3rd (and hopefully last for a while) move! To update: I first moved to San Francsico and subletted a bedroom from my friend Joeva. I then moved in with Jeff and his fantastic daughter Dolores (who is now an honorary little sister to go along with my other two) in Noe Valley, the yoga-mom, friendly bums at Whole Foods quiet neighborhood just up the hill from the Misson district.

And with a house hunt more painful and challenging than any I've yet experienced (the San Francisco apartment market is FIERCELY COMPETITIVE), I am now going home to a beautiful alcove studio apartment located right by the SF Giants stadium in the SOMA area of San Francisco. It's a 10 minute bike ride to work, or a 25 minute walk and after week 1 I am 100% happy with the new digs. I've so far acquired a bed, a frame, and a bookshelf, and while it's small me and the roomie definitely have more work to do!

A group of friends from UCSD organized a big hike at Stinson beach a few weeks ago, so I've been able to get out and around oustide of the city as well (a nice break from the hustle). We did a 7ish mile hike up to the top of Mount Tam. The hike up gave some gorgeous views as well as some majestic and quite stints where we were surrounded by trees. And at the top we had some amazing views of the ocean and San Francisco. It was a great escape and a fun thing to do with friends!

On the involvement front, I've re-engaged myself in the UCSD Alumni association, and I'm hosting a speaker series featuring successful alumni in the Bay Area, to speak about their successes and give advice to the young and the career-changing or change interested. I'm doing yoga (though never enough) and I've decided I definitely need to get back into the Latin Dance scene (I took a class in San Diego and my dancing shoes are really missing being used!) I'm also looking at volunteer opportunities with The Hub SF, a startup incubator and coworking space where socially entrepreneurial startups get stuff done as they get their companies off the ground.

Life is good, health is great, and work is busy. What more could a girl ask for :)