Today is the start of a new year. New years always make us take a moment to both look back and to look forward to what is to come. For me I look back on 2009 with some fond memories, a few milestones, and a general sense of, how did another year already pass by!? Someone described our sense of time to me before as a percentage of your life. In essence, every year you get older, and so a year is a smaller and smaller percentage of your overall age. When you’re five, waiting a year until your next birthday seems like an eternity since it is a fifth of your life, whereas 1/23 of your life goes by in a flash.

This year was a tough one for many people, especially many recent grads who found it a tough time to be thrown out into the working world. I was fortunate enough to be able to depend on my family for support and encouragement, and feel I have thus far staved off my quarter-life-crisis for another year.

In 2009 I got a job as producer, was introduced to the ways of new media, I turned 23, moved to San Francisco, unpacked my belongings in my first post-college apartment, and started a new job. Those were the big things among many many more exciting, fun, silly, & ridiculous happenings over the course of the last twelve months — many of which are documented in my 2009 Memory Bank video below. Thanks to all who made this year memorable, you know who you are!

Also, just because I really liked this video, I thought I’d share it. Refresh your memory on what happened this year as we wave goodbye to 2009, and welcome in 2010!

After being in the new apartment in a new city in a new neighborhood for a little over two weeks now, I feel I am beginning to settle in and must say that I am totally loving it!  I haven’t had as much time to explore as I would like, but I’ve enjoyed going on some jogs around the surrounding blocks, taking mental notes of the awesome restaurants and shops to return to, meeting the local barista at the corner cafe, and sampling the dinner specials at the neighborhood Irish Pub.  On Sunday I went cafe hopping (one of the things I love best about San Francisco) and discovered this gem, Ritual Coffee Roasters. I just may have to try my luck working there, maybe an un-discovered startup can give me a job!

I also ventured out to the Mission Branch of the SF Public Library and got me a card and everything! Isn’t it cute, with a local student’s artwork on it. Much better than the one I had from the Orange County Library for probably 17 years, although my first grade printing of my name on the back was  quite endearing.

We, as in the three roommates and I, have been diligently compiling a list of things to do during our tenure in the city, and by diligently I mean whenever we think of something totally random and completely awesome that can only be done in San Francisco, we add a sticky note to the board. We thought the “Did” side looked rather lonely, and luckily we were able to fulfill one of our “Dos” this weekend when we had a lovely housewarming party. Seemed as though lots of friends were out of town for the occasion, but we are excited for dinner parties, tea parties, and of course, costume parties!

Tonight we received a special treat from our awesome neighbor, Matt, who lives in the flat above ours with three roommates. Can you guess what it was? Ok, you cheated and looked at the picture below. Freshly baked, chocolate chip oatmeal cookies, and they were even still warm. Deliciousness. I have to say Kara and I were a little concerned when the doorbell rang at 9:30, but it was an excellent, tasty, and friendly surprise.  Next on the agenda, reciprocate with a backyard BBQ of sorts for the three flats. Neighbor bonding!

This weekend we are all heading back to the Lair of the Bear for a staff reunion that happens every five years. I’m sure I’ll have much to report when I get back. Go Bears!

While I have no video to accompany this post, I have some BIG news!  Last week I decided to take a leap of faith and do something I’ve been wanting to do for a while.  I will soon be able to call myself a San Franciscan!

That’s right, I’m officially moving!  After a trip up to the Bay Area, a visit to the Lair (my second, or maybe third or fourth, home/Cal’s alumni summer camp), and a wonderfully fun weekend spent with a few of my best friends, I decided I had to make the goal a reality no matter how scary it might seem.  As luck would have it, those other three ladies were all looking for new homes as well.  The result?  The four of us, well the three of them (thanks guys!), found a great flat in the Mission.

I haven’t yet seen the place, but I have no doubt that it is fabulous.  It could really be a hole it the wall and I think I’d be just as excited.  It is the people, my soon-to-be roommates, who really matter and are going to make the next year one for the books!  Caitlin, Claudia, and Kara (yeah lots of C sounds to keep straight), I couldn’t ask for a better bunch of friends.

–Kara giving the thumbs up to the new home! (Sorry I don’t have a picture of the outside yet)–

For those who don’t know, the four of us all staffed at the Lair, Camp Oski, together.  We have been tent-mates, teammates, and just plain mates. Now we will be true roommates!  It is going to be a wild and crazy time, and there is no one I’d rather share the ride with :)

One of many team pictures to come…my hair is short now…and not red

Anyone following my blog knows that I’ve been looking for jobs for a few months.  The only not so peachy part of this plan is that I have yet to find one.  Luckily I will be continuing my current position remotely from the Bay until I am able to find full-time employment.  So ::hint hint:: if anyone has a lead hit me up!

In all seriousness though, I am looking forward to this new chapter of life.  It is both terrifying and thrilling and I wouldn’t expect it to be any other way.  I will be sad to leave friends and family at home, but it is something I know I want and need to do.  I am also sad to leave behind my Producer role at LIVE.  I know I have learned/gained a great deal over the past 6 months helping out on the show, and I have met some awesome people who I won’t soon forget.

So July has been an extremely busy month for me, actually the past 4 months have been pretty crazy now that I think about it. I honestly feel like I haven’t had time to step back and realize everything that has been happening. It has been like working three full-time jobs with my paying job, my “recreational” job (as my parents refer to it), and probably the most important job, looking for a new job.

I’ve realized living in Southern California again for the past year, and visiting all of my friends still in the bay area how much I really want to be up there working and living. It’s not that I don’t love the sunny weather and vibe of Orange County, but every time I head out for a quick weekend trip to San Francisco (which has been more of a detriment to my bank account than I’d care to admit) I again realize how much I love the city and the lifestyle it provides to those who live there.

For those who’ve been following my life, I had an interview in Mountain View with a great company called Tiny Prints. They are a start-up company in the online stationery business. I love the quality of their products and the effort they put into them, but more than anything they have an incredible appreciation for their employees and I could really tell that everyone was happy to be at work. It made me realize how much I value that in a work environment.

When you think about spending 40 hours or more of you life each week somewhere, you really want it to be something that you enjoy, something that is fulfilling, and something that keeps you learning. I would love to join their team as a Site Manager and start the career phase of my life in the bay area, however if it doesn’t fit this time, I know there is something else waiting. With each experience I have I feel like I learn a little bit more about myself. One of the greatest parts about this often awkward phase somewhere between student and grown-up is the act of growing. Like the quote says, “Happiness is a journey, not a destination.”

This turned out to be a little more reflective than I thought it would be, but reflection seems to be a common theme among my friends right now. People going through break-ups, big moves, major adjustments, culture shock, and altogether life changing experiences. It is often hard to know how choices affect our lives especially when they are major ones. In the end you have to take a step back and be grateful for all you have and trust that you will end up where you are supposed to when you are meant to.

I recently got two of my best friends into blogging. The three of us were roommates while we studied abroad in Rome. And despite being on opposite sides of the world all pursuing different passions we have managed to remain close. Chiara just graduated from UCLA and was crazy brave to head back to Rome by herself, with nowhere to live, and start an internship with the Associated Press. Follow the adventure of her life and read her incredibly well written insights on politics and Italian Culture on The Clarity Post (Chiara means clarity in Italian).

Lauren, who we more commonly refer to as Valdez (since we were both Laurens living together), just graduated from Cal and is pursing her passions in architecture and solving global poverty. This is one girl who I can say without a doubt, will change the world. She has crazy stories about meeting Al Gore and Bill Clinton, and working in South America. She’s currently working on a sustainable project for an island in French Polynesia and is ready to up and leave to move to Bolivia afterwards to continue a project she started there last year. I just helped her get a site started and you can follow her adventure at LaurenVeronica.com.

Phew, if you aren’t exhausted by now, I present a video of my recent San Franciscan adventure:

PS. I just got my new Mac Book Pro and had fun playing around with the new iMovie making this video. Forgive that I didn’t have much video to work with, but I’m heading to San Diego this weekend and still have lots of video from a recent trip to Vegas which will surely be posted soon! Check back for that :)

I recently linked a 12Seconds.tv account to my twitter account. For those of you who don’t know, with 12Seconds, you create, you guessed it, 12 second videos! They have all sorts of challenges and contests and cool things you can do with your precious 12 seconds. I haven’t used it that much yet (I admit it would be a lot more fun if I had an iPhone instead of my ghetto 5 year old phone), but from what I can tell it has a lot of potential! We’ve even got a 12Seconds account for Live! From the Future, where I’ll be posting the show…in 12 seconds.

Getting back to the upcoming holiday…I got the 12Seconds newsletter today and heard about “The Boob Fund Challenge.” Take a second and let your imagination wander with that one.

OK, the actual fund is a great Mother’s Day project started by Dude to Dad. His wife, Amy, recently gave birth to their first child and will be celebrating her first Mother’s Day as a mother herself. Amy’s mother, Vicki, was diagnosed with breast cancer while pregnant. She refused to give up her child to save herself, and after fighting the disease for a year after Amy was born, Vicki passed away.

Listen to Hugh’s Story:

As a tribute, he’s started the campaign for “The Bood Fund” to raise $30,000 for breast cancer research, $1000 for every year of Amy’s life. He’s using social media to make the cause a reality and wants to get Ellen Degeneres’ attention.

Share your Mom’s story in 12Seconds and tweet it back to @theellenshow! It’s really simple, here’s mine:
@theellenshow Mrs. Dude’s Boob Fundraiser – My Mom’s Story on 12seconds.tv