What I Did: MLK Day!

What I Did: MLK Day!

On Monday I was really excited to have a holiday off! All the previous holidays I worked :( And what was also great was that all me and my friends were off work! AND everyone has had some really good news in the job front lately. So we all packed into my car and drove down to Monterey Bay for the day.





It surprisingly was a quick drive, I'm sure our funny jokes and conversation helped, and it was BEAUTIFUL down there. It was a little chilly, but the sun warmed us right up. I can't believe I'm able to walk on the beach without shoes in JANUARY! Actually this entire long weekend was awesome, I went on a picnic on Saturday, we had a BBQ at Mike's on Sunday, and walked the beach and ran up dunes on Monday.

It was bliss.






Of course the guys grabbed the giant kelp/seaweed stuff and started whipping it around. At a certain point Mike got whipped in the foot and Adam got himself in the ass. It was hilarious. We sat around and watched the waves crash against the beach talking about life and when we all moved here. It's great being friends with people that are experiencing California with me. We all are from different places and it's great to have that comradery.




When the sun started to get low we started back towards the car and drove into Monterey. We parked in the Canning district and walked around in all the crappy tourist stores. It was really empty and great to walk around. We walked under some piers and buildings along the shore (of course we weren't supposed to... oooops). We watched some scuba divers awkwardly crawl out of the water, and of course watched cute otters splash around!




 

After we were done with putzing around we found a nice restaurant on the shore and ate some awesome burgers and fish and clam chowder.... Man I really feel like we all are making amazing strides here in SF Bay.

We are such little adults. I love these guys. I love it here. And I love visiting the beach.

Huggles,
Lauren

Tripp Tuesday!

Tripp Tuesday!

Haven't done this in awhile! But it's Tuesday! So here is Tripp in all his super cuteness. He has had a hard week, I had to take him to the vet to get a tick removed, poor buddy.

Huggles,
Lauren

Where I've Been: Mt. Diablo

Where I've Been: Mt. Diablo

So yeah I know I said that I was going to post about my Christmas and New Years... But eh. I had fun this weekend. I have unfortunately (or fortunately) between my two jobs been uber busy. So on my only day off this week me and buddy Mike, nursing a hangover, decided to go to Mt. Diablo State Park. It's the highest peak west of the sierra nevadas, and you can see the entire bay, including the golden gate bridge and the farallon islands.






So we drove up to the park, and it's surprisingly close to Oakland, and you can drive all the way to the 3800ft summit. We totally thought there would be walking but were super happy to find there wasn't. I think when it gets a bit warmer we're going to try to do the hike!






There were so many interesting trees and massive pinecones, and as you can see it was super super windy. At a few moments I thought I'd be blown over! Mike and I hiked down the mountain path a bit just to get a feel for how hard it was and man was it steep! I was walking in front of Mike for awhile until I realized if he fell he'd totally take me out. So for safety I hiked the rest of the way down behind him.




At a point we came to a beautiful landing just a tad below the summit, it had amazing views and I'd have loved staying there for the sunset but we had to get back to my car at the top. The park closes soon after sunset and there are warning signs that you'll be locked in the park if you don't get out in time!




Look we're at Endor hanging with the Ewoks! The top of the summit totally looks like it's from Star Wars.





And there you have it. Awkward photo of us before heading back down the mountain. It was an amazing sunset, and I'm sad I didn't get to see the sun go all the way off the horizon, but I'm happy I didn't have to drive down the mountain in the dark! I think there will definitely be a camping trip there in my future!

Huggles,
Lauren

Well Hi There 2012

Well Hi There 2012

So here it is another year. I'd say I've gone through hell and back this year, and with everything that has happened I'm sometimes surprised that I still get up every morning. But that isn't what this post is about... Maybe I'll do a recap on my year, but I don't think I want to pull out those feelings, they are safely locked away.

This is a post about what I've been up to this past month. I started a dream job in November at Minted.com, but sadly it was a seasonal job. I had the fortune of meeting amazing people, whom I adore. And I made every single day count working there because I knew this good time could be fleeting. I danced awkward dances for everyone when we had late overtime shifts. I went out and shared drinks and stories. We ate lunch in the park when it was sunny, and made lot's of trips to Starbucks. I enjoyed bagel monday a little more than I should. I met someone who went to CCS working there, and found friend soul mates in giggles and teasing.







I am so thankful to have found a job that is in the field I want to be in. And luckily I'm still there part-time after the season ended! It was amazing meeting hundreds of young people at an amazing company. But sadly it came to an end for most of the seasonal employees and people left to go off into the real world and the desks got cleared. I'm so so happy to still be around, and with an amazing group of guys who also got past the seasonal hurdle.





It was great having this little Minted family over my first holiday season on my complete own. And most of my roommates were gone as well, visiting their families, so I created a safe haven at work and put in a ton of overtime. Christmas Eve, I was making cards... day after Christmas, I was making cards. It was just what I needed, keeping busy with awesome people. And man are they awesome, I love walking to the Bart station every morning to get there and have my day filled with absurd jokes and awful puns. Just what I love. So who knows what this now part-time position will turn into at Minted, but I'm so happy to be there and working with an amazing company.

I'll be back with my funtimes from Xmas Eve, Christmas, and my awesome New Years. Don't know who sill reads this other than my dad (hi dad!) But I love sharing with you guys my new life here in the bay, and of course its something good to look back on.

Huggles,
Lauren