Soakin' Up San Francisco

The first ten days of the most recent chapter of my life has officially concluded. It was exactly one month ago that I received the offer that would change my career and flip my 2014 upside down; It was one week ago Monday that I drove to the cliched heart of the Silicon Valley over the Dumbarton bridge and landed in Mountain View, CA -- only to flirt with my neighbors Facebook and Google and, ultimately, go home with and to the renowned professional networking and talent tool, LinkedIn.  I've said it daily and I'll say it today: I love this city. A big part of this stems from the interactions I've had with people over the past week. So fittingly, one of LinkedIn's primary values states that Relationships Matter. This means a great deal to me, as I've considered relationships a high priority in both my career and personal philosophy for a long time; I am now reading a non-fictional piece by LI founder Reid Hoffman that echoes the sentiment, stating that relationship...

Last weekend amidst the uncharacteristic LA rain, I drove northwest on the CA-101 like I do daily. I was a little sleepy, enjoying a food-induced coma from an amazing brunch on Ventura Boulevard with my best of friends. I felt slightly hungover - not the kind of hungover that comes from too many fruity drinks, but the type that follows a well-hydrated yet unjustifiably late night of non-stop, hard-core dancing. That afternoon, I peered through my windshield at the grey skies above me as I approached the airspace of a particularly poised-to-burst raincloud hovering over the El Camino Real. I both dreaded the continuation of this gloomy, atypical Southern California weather and also pondered gratitude toward Mother Earth and the heavens for finally watering the parched Southern California landscape around me. Rain always brings me a tinge of familiar refreshment. Every time that a day-long sprinkle or weekend-long downpour rinses the gray buildings and beige chaparral surrounding...

Two weeks ago, I ran for both the longest uninterrupted period of time and distance that I ever have in my adult life. Back in the day, I dashed through weekend-long soccer tournaments and hustled for three-hour long tennis matches, but never have I set out upon a long stretch of tree-lined asphalt road and run, without water or rest, for six-some miles. On Sunday, February 23rd I awoke promptly after five am with a nervous alertness surging through my veins. It was the kind that prevents you from sleeping through your early alarm - with the help of anxious dreams - at the expense of a good night's sleep. I had hot oatmeal drenched in melted brown sugar, and set out on my drive into Los Angeles where I'd convene and then carpool with my partner in crime, Stepha. I drank water, listened to my Firecracker 10K iTunes playlist via Bluetooth, and prepared myself for the feat I was about to attempt. I was confident... anxious, but confident. The hustle and bustle at the St...

My day off today called for a few treats, including but not limited to some pampering and an internet-free, iPhone-less date at one of my favorite caffeine escapes. I decided to treat myself to an iced mocha from Alfred , despite having no date this morning and very few friends who can typically day-date with me anyway. Rather than miss or dwell upon this memory-filled neighborhood of West Hollywood, I figured that I should do exactly the opposite of what my mind was telling me to ( drive far, far away , that is). No, instead I was determined to enter it whole-heartedly, embrace the stomping grounds and comfort spots which used to (and still do) bring me so much joy, and start to re-create some new memories within them: alone, and with new friends once in a while. Take this cafe, for example: In my entire year of living in my second WeHo apartment, I’d frequent this quaint spot with my nearby neighbor Ailie and sometimes my second roommate, Nili. I fondly remember their kind supply o...

Recently inspired by this month's letter from the editor of Los Angeles magazine, I've decided that it's time to truly explore my greater city. I have known for a long time that I was born to be an explorer of the world. It began with long days of playing Rainforest beneath the backyard sprinkler, naming our most dependably recurring flowers and blending concoctions of pollen and au natural aloe-vera jelly in ivy leaf petri dishes. It continued on trips to Grandma's "mountain house" in Frazier Park, CA - where we'd take walks in search of craft-worthy pine cones bigger than our hands, and cousin Nick and I would set out sledding between the icy backyards, gone long enough to worry my usually laissez-faire Gramz. The childhood strand of my travel bug peaked when Mom and I jetted off to France and Germany for cousins Greg and Elvie's 1996 nuptials... in which I side-starred as the all-American flower girl. Mom and I fed the birds outside Versailles, to...

I am officially twenty-five, and tgif . My first day back at work this past Tuesday - after a long birthday weekend - was joyous; everyone seemed to have missed me and continues wishing me happy birthday, which is sweet. It's nice for it to seem that I've been effective and influential in my short time as a leader in my current job, at this current location. It was also amazing to get good and helpful feedback from my recently-appointed new boss: a confident and friendly female leader who admirably balances work with a family, constructive feedback with positive encouragement. With new management often comes change, so I hadn't known entirely what to expect in our environment as well as my particular area of responsibility in recent weeks. As I identified and then told an old friend from the fruit stand on the phone tonight: when something feels uncertain in my life, it is my natural inclination to want to rectify it, to begin planning or considering alternatives accordi...

On the eve of my quarter-life crisis (seven days until age 25): As I chatted with my oldest and bestest friend Chels while driving home tonight, I noted the topics we touched upon. Superbowl, our parents and siblings of course, the notion of "college envy." We talked about our finances, the imperative-yet-impossibleness of saving money, and our constantly teetering living situations. I envy her current downtown apartment, with gorgeous skyline view and desert-weathered patio... she reassured me of the wisdom behind my current situation: living at home rent free with Mom and Dad. It's just for now; at first it was intended to be "just for six months," and it would also make a lot of sense for it to be "just for this year" while happy and thriving at my current workplace - a twenty-minute commute away. We then discussed our impending dream destinations: #1 being Hawaii for Chels's sister's wedding, where she'll be a guaranteed guest as MO...