new year UPDATE.

Wow. Has my life changed a LOT in the past 2 1/2 months.

For one--- as of today, I'm an official condo renter. First time EVER!! Yep, I move into the condo on the Carlsbad lagoon bright and early tomorrow morning! No more house or apartment hopping. I will have my OWN bed and living space with 3 kicka$$ people - Virginia, Sarah & Matt. The only downfall...rent every month? Iiiick. But it will be sooooo worth it. Attached is a picture of our patio, firepit & dock :)

Second of all, seeing as how I've planted a root in a living location, I am finally apart of a new gym! 24 hour fitness has great locations all over southern california and I'm so StoKed to get back to pumping the iron and working my way towards training for a full marathon.

Third of all, I am officially now a FULL TIME EMPLOYEE of LIQUID FORCE WAKEBOARDING. BOOWEM. I first became temporarily hired while one of our Customer Service reps blew out his back and is on disability leave. About a week and a half later, while I was on my way from Vail to Denver to fly home to Geebs, the VP of Sales gave me a ring, offereing me a full time position with Liquid Force saying they wanted me to be apart of their team full time. SCOREEEEE!!!! So today was my first day back on the job from a nice, lengthy Christmas vacation home & I'm learning the computer system where we enter dealer orders in. I'll still be doing social networking and marketing, along with sprayin' a little graphic design into my free time but for the most part, while Zimm is out, I'll be focusing on Customer Service and learning the industry. Everyone has to start somewhere right?!

So---from the looks of things, I'm growing some roots in Cali and am here to stay for a while. I'm still planning on working at D Street for a while, good money and great people! We'll see where life and the new year takes me! So excited for this independent chapter in my life! Life truly does begin at the end of your comfort zone. Go do something that seems out-of-the-ordinary or scary and unheard of...you'll never know how God may surprise you or bless you :)

ski patrol REsCue.

Vail, CO - DAY 1
December 18, 2010

The morning started off with an egg sandwich and Drew, Amy, Wes & I gearin' up for the 11,570 feet slopes of Vail.  A few hours of the Back Bowl and we headed in for lunch. Now, what we thought would be a short, 2 hour post-lunch quick mountain ski, turned into a scary ending. Amy and I sent the boys out to do their own thing, while we did ours - they weren't into terrorizing the double black diamonds that were closed off and being B/A like us. We studied the trail map on the way up 'perfecting a plan' to stay towards the right of the mountain, closest to Vail Cascade...Well, let's just say that when we got up to the mountain and headed down our planned trail, we saw a few black diamonds that weren't closed off and got a little lost.

Black diamond to black diamond led us to either going up hill to the left or up hill to the right - our only downhill choice was two double black diamonds:::that may have been closed off? We can't remember. And umm...closed off for good reason, possibly. Funny enough, the trail was named "BEEN THERE, DONE THAT". ha. Amy led, acting like she knew where she was going and we finally hit a point where there was nowhere to go and all we heard was water. We saw a chair lift to our left, but it was wayyyy too far away. And we saw a run to our right, but that was also far away and we'd have to cross the creek. Not to mention, it was 3:45 PM, the lifts and the mountain closes at 4:30 and that's just about the time it gets dark out too. NOT GOOD.

Thank goodness I had my cell phone. Ski Patrol needed to be notified and come find us. We waited for them for about a half hour - 2 guys and 1 girl followed our tracks from the directions we told them. It was a scary ride out of there. It was getting dark, we were riding along a ledge where there was a creek below us and we got to a point where we had to get some speed and hop the creek. Creek hoppin' & ski boot climbin' led us onto the main trail.

We could've gotten arrested or a huge fine, but the ski patrol was very generous and saved our butts from some tickets and only ended up rackin' up a little bar tab at VENDETTA'S (a local ski patrol hang out). The end of the night turned into history......

Airport chillin'...

I’ve slacked, yet again. I’ve been busy, have had a life? It’s Christmas time. I think that’s how everyone feels. I’ll spare you the details.  Well it’s been a good two weeks since my last blog. I’ve explored a few secret spots of Southern California – some being:

 • Secret way to get to Black’s Beach in La Jolla: sketchy trails in the middle of canyons and big houses to make my way down to the beach [balancing over one piece of plywood from canyon to canyon, crawling down in between tiny ridges and seeing a beautiful out of the ordinary view of the beach at sunset and listening to the dolphins talk]

• 710 in Pacific Beach: Friday Night Trivia with the girls has become a favorite of mine.

• Ramona, CA – Ramona Waterfall Hike: has hit the #1 hike I’ve done thus far. My first view was dessert. Complete dessert. I was a little nervous on how I was going to find a waterfall in the dessert-like scenery? Well as we kept walking, we ended up being on the top of a few mountains and canyons and looking down onto long valleys full of fall colors – red, yellow, and orange trees. There were beautiful rocks and rugged terrain all over. As we made our way down to the valley, we heard water. I’m not going to lie---we got lost. Well, we didn’t get lost. We just…umm…took the path on the left rather than the path in the middle, which led us an hour and a half out of our way. We found a fun little fire spot and decided to go a little deeper off the trail & we found water, LOUD water. As we went through some long, tall grass, we found that we were at the TOP of the waterfall – literally the top. We were standing right where the water was trickling down. We made our way down to the bottom, which led to a few battle bounds for me but we made it! We saw 3 guys rock climbing which was soooooooo flippin’ cool. Needless to say there was a cliff high enough and water (kinda—meaning 6 feet) deep enough to jump off of it, so we did.

As of right now, I’m on my journey home – with a pit stop in VAIL, CO to hit some double black diamonds and sip hot chocolate with good company before venturing back home to WiscO ☺
-::-::-::-Brain detOuR. I got side tracked and found some OLD OLD OLD pictures on my computer….they brought back soooo many awesome memories. From high school dances, Mr. BPH, Graduation, random nights during senior year (including Mike Englebert getting the worst wedgie EVERRRR---courtesy of me,  pictures of when my bedroom walls were still

bright yellow and blue, when Jack was not even 1 year old yet, all the fun Soccer/Cross Country team dinners and meets and times with family on Christmas Eve with all of the girl cousins...me getting mad when Krista got the Barbie I wanted hahaha) I have some kick butt friends and family and am sooo thankful for them. I was all fine until I stumbled upon one of Dootsie and I from my graduation - that made me ball like a little baby in the airport. Looking back at how cute and little she was and how grown up she is now, made me cry!!! Dang it! Okay – enough airport sobbing.

This is the point where I’m signing off…and am going to jam to some badass tunes to get me pumped for the slopes of Vail. Waiting for Drew Drew, Amy, Wes, JJ, Tris & Fish to get me outta this small pit of memories---gunna be a rockin’ time!!!

OUT-OF-BODY-SURREAL-EXPERIENCE {part TWO of ::2 Blogs:: 1 day--a little late, sorryyy!}

Saturday. November. 27. 2010
I experience the most surreal-out-of-body-not-even-scary-experience.
........ skydiving.

Yep, I dropped Drew off at the San Diego Airport and decided I wanted to accomplish Skydiving on my Saturday afternoon. I hit up my friend Looney, said "Let's go Skydiving" and he said, "Okay". Well..that wasn't hard :) [didn't need to pull an arm and leg for that! hehe.] I drove down to the Chula Vista drop zone where SKYDIVE SAN DIEGO is located, "signed my life away" and prepared for a 13,000 feet plane dive.

I saw one of my friends jumping and he said he could be my tandem partner. He's on his 1,100th-some-jump & taught me the ropes of skydiving. Decked out in my under armour capris, five fingers and 1/4 zip-up, I strapped up in my harness and ran out to the plane. I was told to put my goggles on when the plane door opened and to just rock out the plane. It was crazy---I wasn't even scared. It didn't even occur to me that I was jumping 13,000 feet with no control and praying the wind would take me the right direction.

A front and back rock out of the plane && we were off. We did a few summer sault flips out of the plane (which was FREAKIN' BOMB!!!!!) and then just free fell. I had to hold my harnest by my shoulders until Isaiah tapped me on the shoulder to flee my hands like I was flying. Before jumping out of the plane he said, "make sure you breathe out of your teeth because otherwise you'll have 120mph wind shooting into your lungs"...so that's what I concentrated on when I was falling---BREATHING correctly. haha. My friend Justin fell 4 seconds after us and when I looked straight ahead he was 5-10 feet in front of me....needless to say, when Isaiah and I pulled our parachute I realized I had a massive amount of drool alllllllllllllllll over my face. haha---yep, Justin definately saw that. New nickname--drool face? how embarressing.lol Once the parachute was released, Isaiah let me guide it. He said, "grab onto these two handles and pull one of them really really hard"---so I did. And we got to spin in spirals down in the sky.

It happened so quickly but it was so out-of-body-and-AWESOME. This was certainly the #1 rush-not-sure-what-to-think-and-i-doubt-anything-can-beat-this-feeling experience that I've ever had. I want to go again!!! It was THE COOLEST THING EVER.

Be random. Do something out of your element. And LOVE IT.

::2 blogs:: 1 day. {PART one}

Blog numero uno.

So---I had a surprise visitor this weekend. Yep, Drew bought a plane ticket on Sunday (the 21st) and flew to California to be with me on Thanksgiving Wednesday night through today (Saturday). Crazy mystery visitor :) Needless to say, we had a blast!!!

Wednesday night---I picked him up from the airport around 10:30 PM && decided to take him down town San Diego to see all the crazy people, BUMS on Sixteen St & to find a cool place to eat that was still serving food this late. We ended up finding our way to the GAS LAMP DISTRICT [which, conveniently enough was a place I sooner or later wanted to stumble upon]. We parked the G6 on the corner of J street and 4th Ave and happened to find a cute little pizza joint that had a total of 2 tables. They were small, the door was open and it was a late-night-cozy(kinda)-place to grab a slice of pizza. Afterwards, as we walked out---some older man was outside the pizza joint playing his Boombox (yes---you saw what I wrote...BOOM BOX) & Journey was his choice of the night. haha.

thursday was turkey day. We woke up early and met a few of my girlfriends to run the 5K turkey trot in Balboa Park {which may i add--was goorrrrrrrgeous!!!!} We landed a time of 24 minutes or something like that and as we were walking to the tents to grab some after-race-bagels-oranges-bananas-water...a rabbit...yep, A FLIPPIN' RABBIT...smoked my leg!!!! It was sooo funny---we almost peed our pants we were laughing and bending over so hard! After that little catostrophe, we went home and made mashed potatoes for our thanksgiving feast we were headed to. We drove over to my friend, Noah's, house where there was a good 15 of us there---we all catered our own dishes and had a feast of over 9 states different dishes. It was the cooooooooolest thing and quite the thanksgiving!!! Once feasting was over, Drew and I went to the beach--to watch the sunset. Crazy--I got to lay on the beach in an oversized sweatshirt with leggings on and watch the sunset ON THANKSGIVING DAY!!! {{certainly, was not in Wisco!}} After getting a little chilled, the PB Ale House firepit called our name. A cocktail or two there, some really awesome conversation and meeting another couple was the best way to cap off a thanksgiving away from our family. The later night consisted of some Pacific Beach fun and then our heads rested on the pillows :)

friday---ohhh friday. A sleep-in-no-alarm-clock morning was exactly what we needed. I took him down to the beautiful island of Coronado..gosh, it's beautiful down there. We walked the beach, got lost in Hotel Del Coronado, saw ice skating by the sea occur & headed back towards La Jolla to hike Black's Beach with one of my friends. We parked near the para gliding area, hiked down to Black's Beach [which might i add, is a nude beach. ha]. Once we got down there, we found the cliffs we were about to climb and tore into them.

this morning---SATURDAY. An early wake up, thanks to Drew and his Wisconsin time zone still...we woke up at 7:00 AM. The morning consisted of Honey's---for Pumpkin Pancakes!, a walk on Moonlight Beach in Encinitas and a drive up the 101 to see Oceanside Pier and work our way back down towards Carlsbad, Encinitas, Cardiff, Solana Beach and Del Mar. The coast was breathtaking this morning and the water was pure glass. Surfers paddled their way along the waves, swimmers in wetsuits climbed out of the water and the sun was at a perfect temperature to juuust keep us warm enough. After taking in the beauty of San Diego, I had to drop Mr. Drew Drew off at the airport---I have a hinch, he'll be back sooner than later :)

Spontanaeity---train ride to LA///Liquid Force love.

I’m on the way to LA right now---on the Amtrak Train---to visit a really good friend from highschool, Mr. Christopher Champeau. He’s come down to see me in San Diego, so I figured I’d do the same. We
all need a little Wisco in our life every now and then. On our agenda is just dinner and a chill night – hike a mountain tomorrow – and go our separate ways while I work at D Street and he works downtown San Diego at a club.

Not going to lie, I’m not sure what I expected from riding a train but it’s flippin’ boring! Ha! I guess when I think of a train I think of Harry Potter---and that train seems exciting! I feel like I’m on a bus /slash/ airplane. There is much more room on this train than either one of those but there’s a lot of similarities. The structure is like a coach bus—the windows, seats, curtains. The inside is like a plane with the arm rests in between the seats, the luggage stowaway above your head, and the lights and A/C above your head. It makes me chuckle when the Amtrak conductor comes around, it reminds me of the movie Polar Express—oh yeah, and I totally took a picture of the guy. Ha.

---But the train is good. It’s a good way to let loose, relax but get somewhere fun at the same time. It gives me the “me , reflect, count my blessings time” that I need. Now I can say I’ve rode a train.

I figured I’d blog while I was on the train because it’s quiet and you can people watch which lets my mind wander in great directions that lead me to brilliant ideas while I’m pluggin’ away typing. I look a little studious on my MacBook Pro with my headphones in one ear jammin’ to chill Kid Cudi music and a bohemian bandana in my hair with braids. Hehe. Ohh the simple things that make me giddy!!

Randomness---but the reason I want to write. I want to let everyone know how things at Liquid Force are going [you know, the whole reason why I came out here haha]…well in one word KICKBUTTANDILOVEIT :D
I’ve been cravin’ and obsessing a lottttttt over Liquid Force---I live thinking, dreaming, sleeping, wondering, loving and eager to learn more and more about them, their product, the people and whether or not I have a future there. This last week I’ve reached out to their Art Director & Co-Founder and doin’ some worrrrrk in the Marketing department! I want to know everything and anything about wakeboarding and Liquid Force. I’ve been learning about different board styles and shapes, thinking of new giveaway ideas and ways to promote LF and our sister company Straightline, how to become a solid sales rep, experimenting with different Liquid Force logo designs for the girls boards---so I’ve been working on Typography for that [which is EXTREMELY exciting!!!!! We’ll see if any of my ideas hit 2012 gear!!!] Tony Finn, has given me lots of insight on the industry and not to mention, he digs my tattoo a lot. He thinks it’s totally rad---yeah, they use words like that out here. Ha.

------Post train arrival update::
So I got off the train---and was completely lost. I saw every single sign imaginable in the train station...Metrotrain, Golden Metro, Restroom, Union Station, Customer Service..blahh blahh blahh but I COULD NOT FIND ANY FLIPPIN' "OUT" OR "EXIT" SIGN. Geee whizzz. ha. So I finally found my way out of the platform and saw a Denny's in the distance. Champeau had nooo idea where I was so I walked to the Denny's--to find an isolated Denny's with a crabby server, girl on girl action in the booth behind me and extreme quietness. In order to stay inside I had to order something--so a scoop of icecream with chocolate sounded about good :-)

In regards to my Liquid Force excitement---BELIEVE IN YOURSELF. Reach out and open the door that no one thought could be opened. Life is behind it! (Kelly Ann Rothaus)

hapPy thinGs 8-)

I wrote this yesterday--but am posting today :)
So today I woke up & wondered what I wanted or needed to accomplish. As I walked into my bedroom from my shower, the Mission Bay breeze blew into my bedroom and the sunshine lit up my room to where I didn’t need to turn on any icky ceiling lights (I hate fake light – looooove natural light].

Seeing as how I was extremely productive yesterday, all signs pointed towards having a reflection-chill out-organize my room-start my California photo album-and read a book day. As I was listening to my new favorite band out here---“PEPPER”…I started putting a few things away and I came across an envelope that I got from my Aunt Karla the other day. Inside held a picture of my godson, Jack. I grinned from ear to ear and put him next to my baby sister Mackenzie’s picture---this is when I started to realize all of the things that really make me smile and enjoy life.

So I decided to make a list. Last week, my mom and Amy visited—that meant the world to me and I wish both of them were still out here. I love talking on the phone with my grandma-she always seems to brighten my day, always seems so proud of me and floods happiness into my life--she always gives such good advice and she is my oldest best friend. Seeing pictures of my sisters and Jack grow up. Inspirational quotes that I find in uplifting stores---I will have something I’ve created up in a store someday. I’m actually obsessed with my friends snake, Cah [I want one of my own now].  Showers. Painted toe nails. Art. Foot massages. Listening to music. Random adventures like morning mimosas or hiking a huge mountain. Not sticking to a routine, but have enough of one to keep my head on straight. Good conversations with girlfriends. Cool breezes flooding into my room to give me just a bit of a chill to put on big sweatpants and a zip up. Bohemian-like/edgy/punk-like clothes. Fall colors and leaves. FOOD [yes, dad—I figured you’d appreciate this one haha]. Honest people. Laughing. Movie nights. Cooking nights—especially with my bestie.

I figured the list could go on and on…but I realized that there is a lot in life that you can find anywhere that will make you happy. My new quote of the day/week/my life right now is: “Happiness is like a butterfly; the more you chase it, the more it will elude you. But if you turn your attention to other things, it will come and sit softly on your shoulder.” Don’t chase happiness, it will come to you when you least expect it.

Being out here, having a flexible schedule right now really has made me understand, reflect and appreciate certain people and things in my life and what they bring to the table and what I bring to their table… life can get so busy sometimes that everyone is so wound up in their own little world that they don’t give the important people in their life enough time and attention. Everyone needs to feel wanted, loved and needed…show someone you care today. When you think of someone, tell them---you might make their day. If you see someone and you think they look good or pretty or you like their shirt, tell them. If you have people who are jealous of you, envy that and be flattered. You’d be surprised at how little things make the ultimate difference and could change a persons’ life today. Show your care in the world and appreciate who you have and what you have.
[inspired by a few friends and their stories today]

....update for today---PEPPER CONCERT TONIGHT AT THE HOUSE OF BLUES DOWNTOWN SAN DIEGOOOOO. YESSSSS =D

door BolTed. Sliding door locked. uhhhohhhh.

So this last week my momma flew in from GB and started her San Diego adventure with her crazy, spontaneous daughter off the right way...

--or one of the most interesting ways? (you choose)

tuesday afternoon airport pick-up..gosh it was so awesome to see her. we drove around for a little while, while I showed her some of my life (my NEW apartment, winding roads & Hwy 101)and educated her on the californiacan lifestyle and history. We got all dolled up to go to the CHART HOUSE (Landry's restaurant) in Cardiff---the person I'm living with is the VP of all Landry's restaurant so it was his treat. We ate a nice $300 meal--with appetizers, drinks, entrees && EVEN LAVA CAKE DESSERT (which may i add was heaven in your mouth!!!) and also with good company--Peter & Bonnie.

we got back to our hotel around 10pm--decided to treat ourselves to the hot tub. Now we were at the Mariott Courtyard in Solana Beach so we had a door that opened the room and on the backside we had a sliding patio door that led to the pool/hot tub/courtyard area. We hop in the hot tub--and I, naturally, decide I want my camera to take pictures. As I'm running to the room she says "make sure the door doesn't lock!" Me thinking in my brain (duh mom...it's not going to lock). Well, sure enough, the patio door locked behind me.

---now, this wouldn't be a bad thing if we hadn't BOLTED the front door. yep, we were locked out of our room.

Whoops...my bad!

I came back to the hot tub and broke the news to her. She thought I was kidding. "Shut up, you did not" "It didn't lock" "You're kidding"...trying so hard to keep my composure I couldn't help but bust out and laugh and say "no, seriously. we're locked out of our room. I'll go talk to someone..I bet this stuff happens all the time" I go into the lobby in my swimsuit & the maintenance and front desk lady try everything---EMERGENCY KEYS, prying the door open, sliding a credit card along the patio door..everything.

So--here we are. It's 11:00pm and I locked my mom and I out of our room. Front door bolted. Sliding door locked. In only our swimsuits, towels & we have a camera and our cell phones. Niiice move on my part. We can't get into our room until the morning now (until a really good maintenance man comes in the morning). We have no wine (it's in the room!) Bar is closed. No money...but thank you to Solana Beach Courtyard Mariott ladies...we have 2 free breakfast coupons for the inconvenience! BAAhahHAhahaHAHaHAhaha.

We got another room for the night, slept either:

1) naked

2) in our swimsuits

(we'll leave that up to your imagination sick freakssss)

and we have 2 cell phones, that are of no use besides texting our friends and family of this bizarre occurrence and we have a camera, for a good capture of memories.

Ohhh the start of my momma's San Diego adventure. My dad's comment the next day as I'm trying to get mom to go sky diving--- "I'm going to need to up your life insurance if you're hanging out with Court all week"

Bahahahha. LOVE IT.

crazy weEk.

It's been a good--but crazy busy week.

My adventures this week only concluded a few things: loungin' on the beach watching 7-8 foot waves crash along the shore, packing up my belongings to move into my new place & a few 7 mile runs on the beach.

Oh yes...and Tuesday what I haven't mentioned is I went on a 1-2 mile hike up this mountain. Let's just say, this wasn't just any mountain - this mountain had a good 30 degree incline and we all had 20lb weight vests strapped to us. We were at an area where they call it the drop zone - where the Navy Seals and others practice sky diving. On our way up the hike, we ran into border patrol because we were suuuuuuuper close to the border. When I got up to the top, it was one of the most peaceful, breathtaking sights I've ever seen. There were hills and mountains all around, East Lake and in the distance we could view downtown San Diego.

Today is a good day. I am in the process of moving into my new apartment & off to take on a huuuuge challenge - 13 mile run and 1.3 mile swim with a friend. If I make it through this, I mind as well just sign up for a half iron man :)

Sorry it's so short, but I've got the day ahead of me to get things done and hopefully not die from this workout.

double WHAMMY dayy.

so, yesterday I did one thing - TWICE. I got lost.

I woke up, went for a run down Balboa Ave after dropping my no-longer-ghetto-car-off at the mechanic [[yay! this is exciting]]. A friend of mine and I decided to set off on what we thought would be a pretty darn good hike - instead, it ended up turning into a dang good MOUNTAIN CLIMB. We got lost so we were just guessing where the trail started - we made our way up the mountain, creating our own trail truckin' through brush, pickers & climbing rocks we didn't think would be possible. Once we got to the top of that mountain, we finally saw the trail a little ways ahead which led to the REAL mountain.

Cowles Moutain - 1,591 feet:: the highest point within the City of San Diego. Located in the San Carlos neighborhood of the city, its main hiking trail is one of the most popular in the area, with a 360 degree view from the summit <- funny, we got lost finding "the most popular hiking trail in the area" eh? WINNERS.

Needless to say, the view of this mountain was nearly breathtaking. It was awesome -- here, we'd stand on one side and look at the city life/Lake Murray and in the far distance we'd scope out downtown San Diego. As we'd slightly turn there was a fine line where the city ended and the hills began. We saw EXACTLY how this city was laid out - from Imperial Beach and Chula Vista, all the way up to La Jolla and beyond...all along the coast and then plenty more. It was one of the coolest things to see. We sat up there and just enjoyed the fresh air && the view God planted upon us. Awesome enough though, I look like I got in a fight with MANY bushes and pickers - and from the looks of how scratched up and torn my legs look, many would have thought nature won that battle.

------------------------------------------
Later in the evening I had a dinner date with my 2 cousins: Mike & Matt. Funny story, ACTUALLY. Matt tells me to meet him at Brigantine--and this is where I'm going to quickly say something and then turn my head in complete embarrassment. The guy GAVE me directions. Like 2 turns of directions and well...I messed it up. I swear, I have a good reason (kinda, not really). So I got home to quickly change from my hike && freshen up--and I quickly looked up how to get to this place on my computer because I didn't want to get lost (not even thinking of his directions he gave me) So I drive to La Mesa (East County) and call him asking him where he's sitting.
He says "walk into the restaurant to the right and I'm right there"
Me: I don't see you.
Matt: There are some balloons, do you see them?
Me: Yes, I'm actually right next to some balloons.
Matt: Hmm.. how the heck don't I see?
{restaurant too loud - texting now.}
Me: Come to the front please :)
Matt: I am there...where are you? Are you at the brigantine?
Me: Yes...I'm at the front.
Matt: Outside or inside? I am by the hostess
Me: haha I am by her too..Waht the heck!
Matt: Ok, we need to get on the same wavelength. Ask the hostess which location you are at b/c we are obviously not at the same place.
...so I call Mike..asking him where he is...he says...are you in Del Mar? Hmm...BINGO. He got me. I was in La Mesa. Mmmkay visual Green Bay friends...so basically La Mesa is 30 minutes away from Del Mar. Del Mar is a beach city on the coast and La Mesa is way inland. So just imagine someone going to Appleton or Neenah and you're waiting for them in Green Bay. yep, my bad.
After picking on me all dinner, we had a great catch up dinner talking about ohhh the things men talk about and my little sass ass just laughing and shaking my head. Good to still have a piece of family out here :)

weird thought though: there were balloons at both of our locations...just saying?

PS:: My blog won't let me add pictures..I'll try to figure it out. Darn it!

Note to self: Do not cross an intersection at a yellow light.

haha - so yesterday, I was driving on my way to the bank (for the first time) down roads I've never drove on && this butthead in front of me slammed on his front breaks at a yellow light as we were just about to go through it. I was thinking "HElLlLoOO!?!?!? Its yellow - you can go dood." So I get into the lane to the left of him, me probably not having the nicest face on and he motions 'picture taking' at me with hand gestures.

And I'm like "uhh, what? take a picture?" haha - so I look around and I don't see anything rather fascinating so I roll down my window. He explained to me through our car windows that if you get caught going through a yellow light in California, they'll take a picture of you and it's like a $450/$500 fine! I was like whoahhhhh NELLY!

We ended up having like a 3 minute conversation about where I'm from and what we're both doing here - at the corner of Encinitas Blvd & N El Camino Real in the middle of traffic until the left arrow light switched to green. I thought this was humorous and when I thought this was going to tick me right off, this man brightened my day - what a nice man, to roll down his window and nicely inform me of this picture taking nonsense.

[i knew of the lights taking your picture, but i didn't know they were THAT intense and hardcore about it..eeek!]

Note to self today:
1) do not cross an intersection at a yellow light - unless you'd like to pay the city a good chunk of mooooo-lahhh$$$.
2) don't always flip out right away, because I for sure was not happy when he slammed on his breaks so i inconveniently whipped around him. But I was greeted with a warm smile and some good ol' California advice. And crazy enough, we were laughing with each other by the time the light turned green - we made each others day!

Make one person happy every day, even if it's yourself.

chiC day. [&&figuring out who i am]

Yesterday was an easy going-chic-walk around-i have nowhere to be-and everything to see-downtownSan Diego day.

We started off in what is known as Little Italy. Little Italy today represents Downtown San Diego’s oldest continuous neighborhood business district. Creative builders and architects have and are continually building beautiful new developments on India street, telling the story of Little Italy to its visitors through public art displays and amazing piazzas. On Saturdays, they have an early risers farmers market and throughout the week they have live music. In October, they have all kinds of fall festivities and nearing Christmas, lighting of the tree and a Christmas village :)

The early afternoon consisted of eating at an italian restaurant---darn it, I wish I remembered it's name! We cruised along India Street to find some unique pictures to take [go figure..me, take pictures? nooooo :-)]

After walking India Street, we headed down towards the coast where we found Seaport Village - A 14 acre waterfront shopping, dining and entertainment complex recreating a harbor side setting of a century ago. It's four miles of meandering cobblestone pathways bordered by ponds, lakes, fountains and colorful, lush landscaping. What I was most fascinated with was its quarter mile boardwalk along the San Diego Bay, viewing Coronado from a distance.

We meandored our way into a restaurant directly on the water called "San Diego Pier Cafe" - we enjoyed an ice cold margarita with the view of the bridge to Coronado and sail boats passing through the blue, sunlit water. A "funny shirt" store fished us in by a shirt on it's manican wearing a "SUNDAY FUNDAY" t-shirt...yep, we def stopped for some fun and grabbed a shirt to bedazzle for sundays :)

Another successful day in CAL-i-FoorRrrrrrnia!!

I'm trying to discover who I am by broadening my culture, experiences and outlook - try it! It's the best way to figure out what your passion is and what you love and dislike :)

discouraging day.

Today is a sad day - I'm not sure if it's legit or if it's because a few womanly functions may be streaming through my body soon. ((sorry)) The weather is kind of dungy today - which it's been like this the last 5 days. I have a horrible disgusting cough with disgustingness in my throat && all i want to do is lay around or be with one of my best friends. Because of my cough, it makes it hard to get my miles in today or do anything very active. My living arrangements are kind of on hold right now & id really love to just dive in the ocean to wake me out of this sad moment, except it's really chilly.

---but after playing the sympathy card on myself, I realize it's okay to feel like that. It's okay to just "be" for a day. As long as you have more happy days than sad days, you're living the dream - you're rockin' it. So today, I'm going to take a shower, brush my teeth & put on some comfies that I feel cute in---I feel like a chill day in starbucks or a book store or at the beach might be uplifting and refreshing. A little caramel hot chocolate and the atmosphere of nature or inspiration will do just fine for this gloomy tuesday.

everyone, have a happy tuesday. Make the most of it! Do whatever you feel like doing--it's YOUR life...when are you going to realize you can live it just the way you want?!

D Street Bar & Grill.

Mmhmm---well today and the last few days I've consumed some of my life to my new waitressing job... D Street Bar & Grill. I've been learning, studying and repeating the food and liquor menu in my head over and over.

D Street is a sports bar - with plenty of tvs to watch any game you could imagine, chill and laid back regulars, bombass food that is actually reasonably priced with awesome portions & I must add, that the people that I work with are awesome. We all help eachother out and grab eachothers food and drinks like it's no big thing. We are at team and I find that awesome.

Restaurant business is extremely different out in California than Wisconsin. Everyone is so much more laid back and easygoing - they're just there to have a good time and hang out with their friends. They usually are in no rush and will patiently wait for their food and drinks with no problem. What fascinates me is that when I'm done with my shift and I still have a table open, I can politely tell them I'm leaving & their voluntarily cash out right away. (anyone who is in restaurant business knows this is PRIME!)

I just got done on day #4 of training - I have my 5th tomorrow and shortly after that I will be all on my own.

----on a side note: Tomorrow I start at Liquid Force, wakeboarding company, as their marketing intern. I don't have a lot of new news tonight but that's my status as of now :)

1) Waitressing job going great.
2) I start my 2nd job tomorrow at Liquid Force.
3) Life is goooooood :)

chat soon!

ROADTRIP TO CALIFORNIA - Playin' cattttch-up.

Be prepared--this may be a long one.

Sorry. SOrRRy! Sorry! I'm the worrrrst blog updater ever. Please have faith in me! I've been busy on the move for the sunshine state of Cal-i-fornia! So--last week Friday morning (October 8, 2010) my dad and I filled up the G6 at 4am and headed on our roadtrip out West.....

to drop me off for at least 4 months. Alone. (yep, weird) Most might be thinking...wHaaat? Well, yeah-your reaction is the same as mine. I have lived in my parents house for 21 years and have never left. Nothing like taking the HUGE leap of faith, eh?

Friday.October.8.2010:::: After sleeping through my alarm and dad coming downstairs to get my butt out of bed, I slowly roll out of my comfy sheets (not excited that I will not be in this bed until Christmas) and throw on some comfies for a long car ride. We left at 4:06am--riiiight on schedule! I slept the first 4 hours while I let Dad do the driving honors. I woke up mid-way through Iowa which was one of the most boring states to drive in. Going down US-151, my hub cap busted off (probably should have listened to Drew when he said I should've gotten my cracked hub cap fixed...whoops). I now have a ghetto lookin' left side of my vehicle. I guess it gives it character! ha.

Once my hub cap busted off I decided to take on the 7 hour drive through Nebraska, one of the flattest states! It was an easy drive on the I-80W. Nebraska is where the storm chasers go because you can see miles and miles ahead of you. As we crossed the border into Colorado, we hit what looked like might be a bad storm - luckily we missed it and only got a few sprinkles. Around 7:00 we fueled up and went to PIZZA HUT (which was the best pizza...maybe because we were just sooo hungry & anything n' everything could have been the best? haha). Our 8am McDonalds (yuck!) and pretzels could only hold us over for so long. At this point, Dad and I set off for the Colorado mountains --- we wanted to get a little ways into the mountains after Denver. I saw Lookout point and all of the city lights from a'far and went through The Eisenhower Tunnel which was 5 miles long under the mountain. We made it to Silverthorne and decided to call it quits!

Saturday.October.9.2010~~~~ 6am wake up call. On the road by 6:30.
Mmmkay--Scratch that. We made a pit stop to a Shell gas station to top off the gas and get 2 hot chocolates..it was FREAKin' ChiLLy out!! Needles to say, our pit stop took about 10 extra minutes due to my dad over filling his hot chocolate and then it spilling all over my hand when I tried to help him. hahahahaha. After repouring his serving, I got mine and headed out the door. Colorado is one of the most beautiful states. We went under, into, through and around the mountains - some topped off with snow, others still in their fall season. As we were going down the mountain there were signs everywhere telling truckers to go in low gear and there were off ramps in case their brakes went out---SCARY. We went through the cities of Avon, Breckenridge, Vail & topped it off with Grand Juction right before the Utah border. Now...I thought Colorado was beautiful...well I just hit a whole new type of beauty entering Utah! Utah might take the cake in my eyes! So much change in scenery from 1 mile to the next. I'd be surrounded by white canyons one minute, red canyons the next, then it'd change to multi-colored canyons, then trees would be everywhere and then you could only see the canyons from miles away. GORGEOUS!! We swung into Subway and a gas station--there was a "back to the future car". Dad says it's called "The Delarian".

Arizona - we only trickled through a sliver of it but what we saw was gorgeous. Virgin River Canyon.
Nevada here we comeeeeee...right when we hit the state line, CasinO-GALorE was thrown at us! We got off I-15 and Dad drove down Las Vegas Blvd...the streets were packed with tourists and it was complete CHAOS. So after being about halfway through, I told dad to get back on the hwy - it was super rad but I wasn't in the mood for an hour of bumper to bumper traffic. Once we passed Vegas, the ride got longer and we eventually hit California. We got into a town called Ontario, CA and decided to stay there for the night. My dad has a good buddy who is the Crew Chief for a NASCAR driver, David Ragen #6 - he landed us Pit Passes and Garage passes for the race in the morning so we hung out with the crew.

Sunday.October.10.2010 (10-10-10...whoahhhhh)
ONE OF THE BEST DAYS OF MY LIFE.

Hit the road for the California Speedway - We were VIP and behind the scenes at the race the whole time. We got to hang out with the crews before the race in the garages, check out the cars on the track, stand with the crews during the National Anthem and got to sit in the pit area where the cars come into re-fuel and get new tires. I met Richard Petty "The King", William Fichtner (stars in "the dark night", "Prison Break", "Dodgeball", "Date Night" and many many more movies!), Kim Coates (from Sons of Anarchy) and NASCAR drivers Martin & Earnhardt Jr. It was one of the coolest experiences of my life.

After the race, we set off for Encinitas, CA which is where both of my jobs are. We went to D Street Bar & Grill (my serving job) and checked out the food and atmosphere. We met up with my second cousins, Mike and Matt for some food and drinks. Afterwards, we headed to Bonnie's (my moms cousins) to check out my new temporary home for a few weeks! It's kind of crammed quarters right now but it's a beautiful place to call home for a short while - inground pool, hot tub, fresh vegetables and herbs and a running trail I can train on.

---ohh yeah. Side note: I'm thinking of signing up for the Death Valley Marathon. I'll talk about that in another blog :)

Monday.October.11.2010 - the Calm before the Storm
Drove up and down the coast with Dad - needless to say, the morning was quiet. I knew and Dad knew he was leaving his 1st born child in San Diego, CA - 2,200 miles away from home at 11:30am. We exploered the coastal roads through all of the beach towns and probably said a whole 10 sentences. I pulled into SD international airport, right by his terminal and the tears came. He squeezed me harder than he's ever held me. After the emotions, I was ready to get the heck on my way and DO SOMETHING!! I met up with my 2 friends who kind of, took me under their wing - Looney & Nate. We headed to PB [pacific beach] and went body surfing in the ocean. It was pretty much fricken awesome. I remember talking to Loones about sharks biting us as Nate & I headed the heck back to shore - to see him get dimolished by a HUGE wave. hahahaha. We screwed around on the shoreline while popped the kelp on the beach with our toes and heels ((new favorite obsession)), while loones pretended to be a dragon with the massive kelp he discovered. ha. We rode the "beach cruisers"--which are bikes but for the beach...kind of like mountain bikes?lol.

We headed to Ralph's Grocery store. [side note: you park in a garage and take a moving walking ramp up to the grocery store] Monday Night Football hit--we chowed on Tennessee's famous hot wings prepared by the one and only - then went home and slept!


Tuesday.October.12.2010 ---- CoRoNado (definition: Island off of SD, you take a big bridge over the SD bay)
Ran 4 miles. Ate Grapes. Showered. I am now ready for my 1st day of work - oh nevermind. I got called into work thursday instead. WhooOoo HoOoOO - I've got a few days to explore! I ate lunch with Bonnie by the pool while reading the San Diego guide book..which gave me some inspiration to go do something fun! I set my mind that I wanted to go to Coronado. I met a friend in Coronado and they showed me the "ropes of Coronado". I saw "the letters" that spell Coronado on the beach, Hotel Del Coronado (where a lot of famous movies were filmed), saw a palm tree that looked like a PINEAPPLE and a ton of cool, expensive houses. The shops and restaurants are so neat looking - I can't wait to go back! I saw around the Navy Seal base, the obstacle course they had to master by phase 3 and we then took "the strand" to Imperial Beach (which is a little lower class side of Coronado). There were some really sweet hole in the wall restaurants along that area. I came home, ate dinner with Bonnie & Tony (her boyfriend)...pork tenderloin...mmmmmhmmmm :) then hit the sack while watching Tosh.O (funniest show ever!) and Gossip Girl re-runs ha!

Wednesday.October.13.2010 ((LA JOLLA))
I slept in today - felt good! I caught up on a few emails and did a quick and efficient Crossfit workout [100 pushups, 100 situps, 100 squats]. I showered and decided to venture off to LA JOLLA. It's for some reason cloudy today--which is rare. I decided to journal on the La Jolla Shore Beach while listening to a little DMB in my green cross county shirt and comfy shorts. My pen kept being filled with sand but that's okay. It was peaceful here - I get to set my mind free and regroup with myself and my well being. I think about a lot out here, which could be a good or bad thing....I won't get into details on that part of my life :)... I'll spare you!

After feeling like I regrouped enough at the beach, I went along the coast to "Coast Blvd" which lead me to a cave -which was neat and then a place called "Childrens Beach" where there's beautiful cliffs and seals EVERYWHERE!! I thought to myself...why does it smell...fishy? ha--then I realized there were seals making noise and I put two and two together :-) Later, after La Jolla I went to Chula Vista to dominate a sweet Mexican restaurant called "Miguels"--went there with a friend and it was yummmyyyyy.

thursday.october.14.2010
---played catch up. met a girl for a condo. and worked at D Street Bar & Grill for the first night. Well...I love it there. Awesome girls to work with - we all help eachother. And I kicked ace on my first day---we were so busy I was helping take tables all by myself. It was pretty bomb. Loved it.

Todayyyyyyy---freakin' FINALLY!!!
I'm finally getting back on this thing - after livin' and exploring I will be back on a timely basis. Kick my butt if I don't!

My inspiration for like the last month---this is what has gotten me to where I am through all the scariness of this move and leaving the only thing I know. Just be!

Gracias (yes, I'm close to the Mexican border now. he he)

the unknown

Whoah. So I've been extremely distant - from not just you my followers, but from everyone. I'm currently in Vista, CA just about ready to have the shuttle come get my booty and head to the airport. I'm homebound to Wisconsin and am very very excited.

The reason why I came out here was for an interview with a wakeboarding company known as LIQUID FORCE - they're basically awesome and the people there I learned, are awesome as well. My interview was last week Wednesday and I nailed it, so my future endeavor means moving to California in 3 weeks or so. Most might say that it's awesome - me on the other hand, its not only awesome but extremely scary.

The last week has been geared towards 2nd job searching and apartment/roommate searching - all that has not been the greatest and easiest challenge. I've had so many things cross through my mind that I never knew a brain could think all of it at the same time. From leads on apartments to playing a waiting game on hearing back from jobs and craigslist ads and from friends eager to get me to come home, give going away parties, sad to see me leave in 3 weeks, sisters that don't want me to leave until after a certain weekend - it's quite the roller coaster.

But while all the tears and fears circle through me, there's my faith and optimism that I've been taught - this will all work out and I will and can make this happen.

Regardless, it will be an emotional roller coaster but everyone has to reach outside of their comfort zone at some point in their life, right? Well, my time is now.

Quote of my day, thanks to Tara Hess:

So we shall let the reader answer the question for himself:

Who is the happier man, who has braved the storm of life and lived, or
he who has stayed securely on the shore and merely existed?

Have a good day kids :)

25 CENT cooker...best purchase & lifesaver of the weekend!

Sorry I haven't been on this thing in a few days - I was secluded to a BEAUTIFUL rustic cabin in Sturgeon Bay...

.....that not only had limited cell phone service and absolutely no wireless internet but ZERO running water, no adapter to connect the gas stove up to cook our 3 frozen pizzas we insisted on bringing for the first night and did I mention no heat?

...oh yes, and little were we aware that the posting that said "3 beds, 2 baths" wouldn't have the bed frames fulfilled with mattresses. Yes ladies & gents...we were mattressless.

Here's how the weekend went down:
Amy, Wes, Baby J and I jam packed the Mitsubishi SUV with everything from baby bottles and Amy's booby feeding kit to 36 scrambled eggs (which mind you, we weren't 100% sure how we were going to cook this purchase) and 2 spur-of-the-moment impulse bought 1990 stand up Jet Skis (which were literally bought & picked up on our way up north). Yes everyone, WESTON FLEGEL IMPULSE BOUGHT 2 JET SKIS ON THE LAST WEEKEND OF THE SUMMER. I knew this was just the start of a great weekend.

The ride up was a normal ride--coasting to reggae music and throwin' in a little hip hop every now & then. As we roll up around 7:30pm to cliff top road, our eyes are the biggest they've ever been. All of us, "THE OUTSIDE OF THIS PLACE LOOKS SWEET!" Wes & I head to find the key, open the double bolted door and walk into a cold atmosphere - yup, the kitchen is the very first thing we see. There is no faucet in the sink and no cupboards filled with silverware, cups, plates or napkins (good thing the motherly instinct in me brought plenty and came prepared)....as we walk into the so-called living room, it has one wickered chair and stone floor (this is still okay! we've got this!)...we anxiously headed up the stairs to go check out where we'd be spending a few hours a night snoozin':

walk into bedroom #1 = beautfiul wooden bed frame (peek over the frame)...no mattress.
walk into bedroom #2 = one twin size mattress
walk into bedroom #3 = just an old white metaled bed frame...no mattress

We started laughing & pondering where we're all going to sleep and how this is going to work (mind you, there is only stone and wooden floors). We figure out our sleeping situation which concludes Drew, Amy, Wes, JJ & I snuggling in the downstairs room closest to the fireplace.

Mission #1: How do we cook our pizzas? Well, pizza #1 gets smoked and burnt after our brilliant idea to roast it over the fire. (Words of Wisdom #1: don't cook a pizza over a fire without some type of topping to cover it...complete smoke taste if you leave it topless) Pizza #2 was better, but certainly not the greatest pizza I've experimented with. Let's just say we didn't even get to opening Pizza #3.

Mission #2: How do we cook the 36 eggs we bought? Brilliant idea again - over the fire! (atleast we were being creative, right?!)...smoke taste. (Repeat Lesson: Umm...cover your eggs if you're going to cook them on a fire)

Mission #3: We are heading to the grocery store to get charcoal and tin foil so we can heat up the grill and enclose our food inside the tin foil! We pass a nearby rummage sale...seeing life jackets and knowing we need some if we're going to crash the 5ft waves with the newly purchase jet skis. On our way back, we swing by looking at all the antique merchandise (the life jackets were junk) and all of a sudden...Gods light shines through the dull, overcast windy sky....AN ELECTRIC COOKER FOR 25 CENTS! This 25 cent cooker won't only cook our eggs but it will BAKE our cinnamon rolls and bring a light brown look to our toast!!

The rest of the weekend was a success. We played multiple card games of SPEED & Solitaire, TABOO, stoked the fire every 30 minutes, felt like free spirits dipping in the rocky coasts' water, fished a late game, powered up the 1990 jet ski and hopped in our shared wet suit...and best of all, enjoyed eachothers company.

Lesson #2: if you want to bargain shop for electric cookers, just tag along with Amy and I.
Lesson #3: No matter how caught off guard you are by the circumstances you are brought into, make the most of them. We could have easily called it a weekend and headed to another location, but we knew that the people we had together would make it memorable.

happy day after labor day story :)

life is a blank canvas...its mine and yours to paint

You ever get those days where you just need full balls-out inspiration? You need a bit of a push to get you back on your ferris wheel? You want to see or hear about someone who has came from a state of mind where they didn't know what they wanted to do with their lives and you, YES YOU can witness their accomplishments?!

So yesterday, instead of doing my regular 'go to Urban Frog to eat a sunflower wrap' or 'a stroll down N. Broadway street to people and car watch' or a random errand run during "lunch time" I decided to visit one of my very dear girl friends new Art Gallery. She's always been an older sister to me and it just works that we have the same type of passion with the arts. We always have something to chat about and how she puts it, "our conversations can start over here (using her left hand as a starting point) and can twirl around in circles and 5 hours later we'll get back to what the point of our initial story actually was."

I walked into "Christine's Gallery" on 111 N. Wisconsin St. in De Pere, WI at 12:00pm (ish) yesterday - my eyes just lit right up, my heart dropped and I became the most proud of her I've ever been! She went out on a limb after endless hours of thinking and processing how this could be either financially stable or financially instable - knowing that this is a big risk - to create her dream. So many opportunities presented themselves to her and she finally grabbed them by the bulk - A beautiful space opened up for rent in the MOST PERFECT location, she found a timeless, unique apartment less than 2 blocks away from her soon-to-be-gallery, she found the time to "get in her zone" to paint and explore her full potential and most of all...through all of this she found herself.

Uplifting? Yes. I had needed an extra boost of inspiration to get going on a few freelance projects and seeing all of her art was the most uplifting Thursday noon experience I could have gotten! I'm thinking I'm going to start bothering her a bit more.... [I promise Steen, I won't talk! You do your work and I'll just look at your pretty, breathtaking artwork and become inspired enough to do mine!]

Lesson of the day - if your dream is something you can see in your world, make it a reality. I just sent my sister, Kelsie off to college and my younger sister, Mackenzie (I call her Dootsie) and I gave her a memory book...a small portion of my advice for her was "Explore. Take advantage of every opportunity regardless of the time and cost. Never let money get in the way but be smart. Live out loud and remember the best things in life are silly. Be yourself and stick up for what you believe in. Remember God and ask him for help when you need it. And remember to thank him. Love yourself because that's the only way anyone can love you back. Make mistakes but learn from them."

When I walked in that gallery, I could tell her heart was happy and that made me love her even more.

I’m not a complete idiot…parts of me are missing.

Okay - so as a "new blogger" I've been checking out a few other bloggers & I found one entry that is simply HILARIOUS (like almost peeing my pants laughing at my computer all by my lonesome hilarious). I wish you could have seen me reading this blog - watery eyes glued to the computer screen (from laughing so hard!), fingers axiously waiting to scroll down to read more, big grin on my face and every time my phone would buzz I'd press the ignore button immediately.

This man has the greatest sense of humor & I've fallen in love with his blog from Monday. Check it out!!

http://www.wheelturninghamsterdead.com/

Day 1 of bloGgin'

Wow. This is exciting? Maybe. YES it totally is!!

I don't have any particular reason for starting a new blog - well, maybe I do. Just to write down my every day thoughts, I suppose. I've tried journaling on paper and I've realized I'm a much faster and accurate typer. My thoughts and feelings come out much easier when pluggin' away on the keyboard.

A little background check on me you're probably wondering? Well, I'm a 21 year old go-getter, enthusiastic, motivated & kiiiiiind of an adrenaline junkie who loves to inspire anyone I can. I grew up in Green Bay, WI and am looking to re-locate for a little while (I need some adventure outside of my comfort zone!). I went to school for Marketing & Graphic Design, took a break from that field for a little while and have rediscovered my passion for what I went to school for (heck yes, this is incredibly uplifting!!) I want to work with a team that is as crazy about their work as I am (if not more!) and it shows.

As for the people who lift me up and encourage me to become better each and every day? Well, I believe that each and every person who walks into my life puts a new opportunity on the table. I'll tell you a short (hopefully) story about one specific person who inspired me to really live the life I want:

I sat in the Detroit Airport on a late Friday night, waiting for my delayed flight to board. I boarded. I was anxious and just wanted to get home (as most business travelers do on a late friday night). A man in his 20s from New York, NY --- (I'll call him Bach) sat next to me...he was assigned the seat across from me but asked if he could sit by me so he didn't have to move all of his belongings. I said that was fine (even though I would have loved to sit by myself--there's just something wonderful about having the whole row to yourself). The plane started to take off and I recognized Bach was reading music. I asked if he was a composer and this was the point where I became inspired. When Bach graduated high school he had full intentions of going to Juilliard - YES, JUILLIARD. Once graduated, he decided he didn't want to go to Juillard-that Juilliard wasn't his dream. He picked up and left - with his parents disapproval in mind - and headed off to New Zealand. He had no sense of direction and no idea what he was going to do or where he was going to live. The first 2 nights he was in New Zealand he slept on the beach. He then met a Sociology professor who taught at a University but in the summer she travels in her van and surfs all different beaches. Bach stayed with her for quite some time learning to surf and living in her van. In the meantime, he met a man who saw the potential he had in the music industry - this man told him to take advantage of the free education in Paris, France. He lived in Paris for his 4 years of school. After college, his best friend and him took a road trip around the United States using "couch surfing" as their way of living (I've heard of couch surfing in Europe but never the USA!)

Fast forward to the present: when I met him he was on his way to visit his New York parents, who somehow retired to Wisconsin. Bach now is a freelancer who writes music for clients in New York and Europe. He lives in France for about 3 months out of the year working on premieres and working with other artists. Still to this day, he can not surf. But he says getting out of his comfort zone was the best move he could have ever made.

I'm ready to live on the edge and not always have a plan in mind. Thus far in life I've learned that things will fall apart so other things piece themselves together. Don't care what other people will think of you, they will be more inspired if you did something wild and crazy and are loving life rather than doing something "cool" and hating life. Individuals live off of and thrive on positive energy. Live the unknown - trust yourself and have faith that God will put you in the place he wants you to be.

Signing off...
xoxo