Quick, Catch Up

I'm a bad blogger. Quick catch-up:

So much beer!

March - Portland with the boy. I LOVE LOVE LOVE Portland! The drunken train ride down was awesome, the city was lovely, the people friendly, and the beer was flowing! Eric and I hit six different breweries while we were there, and we were only there for two days. Seriously, Portland rocks! We also ate under a bridge, like homeless people. It was uber romantic.

Hey kids!

April - Hawaii with the family. Holy hell are my nieces and nephews cute! We frolicked in the sun, a lot. I love hanging out with kids, but good lord are they tiring. I don't know how parents do it, I was exhausted after my week in the sun.

Seriously, no dumping. 

June - LA with Lis! I love Lis, but still don't love LA. The Getty Museum was fantastic and some unmentionable adventures occurred. Unmentionable adventures seem about par for Lis and I.

Jarod, frolicking in a glacier-fed lake.

July - Valemount to visit my boyfriends with my boyfriend. The village is beautiful, we dipped our toes in a glacier-fed lake and strolled alongside waterfalls. No big deal.



August - My view came in handy. Both the Celebration of Light fireworks and Pride Parade were visible from my balcony, so parties were had. Yes, apparently I have parties now. Weird.

The past five months have been pretty great. My life in Vancouver seems to have finally settled into something awesome. I credit that, in equal parts, to the boy who changed my outlook on boys and the apartment that (literally) changed by outlook on Vancouver. It's hard to hate on a city when it has produced two of the best things in your life.

So thanks Vancouver, I'm finally starting to get you.

toon-erific!

One of my favorite things about my podcast co-host (there are only a few) is his ability to capture our little conversations and turn them into toons.

This week he released another toon. I think they're freaking brilliant, and I'm sure you will too. For the rest of his toons, check out and explore. Enjoy the laughter, I know I do.

The Year That Was 30

So 30 was kind of awesome and I feel totally unphased by 31.

Thirty brought me travels to Europe - Rome, Florence, Venice, Milan, Berlin & Amsterdam. Of them, Amsterdam was my favorite, Rome had the best food, and Berlin the best beer, but the Venetian men were the hottest. Hands down.


Thirty brought me closer to my parents - our trip to Italy made us appreciate how special this family of three is and how important it is for us to fight for each other, rather than with each other. While it didn't help my co-dependence, it did make me a better daughter.


Thirty brought me the biggest test of my professional life. From leaving the job I loved so much, to hastily taking a job I knew wasn't right, and finally finding my way back to where I want to be. Thank goodness Reputations wanted me back as much as I wanted to go back. I am so happy to work in an environment that encourages my wackiness and believes in my talent.

Thirty brought many men into my life, but only one stuck, and well, he's pretty fucking awesome. We'll see how long it lasts, but I really hope it lasts a while -- he's got some serious potential. I was starting to believe that smart, funny, kind, normal, straight men were a pipe dream; ladies, I'm here to tell you, they're not. And some even live in Vancouver! For the first time in my life, I'm starting a new year with a boy by my side. It's kind of awesome.

Thirty brought me talkfoolery. I love that I have a weekly outlet for my thoughts, ones that are sometimes too questionable to share elsewhere (Have you checked us out yet? No! Well you should, we're all kinds of awesome)

So yeah, 30 was definitely a good year.

Moving on up!

For the past four years I have lived in a huge garden suite in Kitsilano. I love the size of my apartment, but hate how little sun it gets. Also, I actually dislike Kits as a neighborhood, though I really enjoy how quiet it is. I have never really spent much time in my neighborhood, often living my life in downtown.

While I was being all flakey over the summer, I decided that come what may, the new year would mean a move--either to another city or a different apartment. I knew I wanted out.

So come January 1 I began looking. A couple of days into the apartment search process, I stumbled upon the unimaginable: an unobstructed view of the ocean!

You read that right.

It's the size of a shoebox, but within my budget, and it gets a ridiculous amount of sun. I sign my lease papers later this month and then start the moving process. I'm sofa king excited it's silly.

Listen, I can move to any city in the world, into any building in the world and look into another apartment -- that is likely my future -- but I can only live in one city in the world and have a view like that.

How excited am I? I voluntarily sacrificed (a lot of) closet space. That means there is going to be some serious consigning going on.

No seriously, anyone looking for a dining table? It's really nice.

Follow your gut

There are many phrases to describe it - instinct, intuition, hunch, sixth sense, suspicion - whatever it may be, it's real and you should not discount it.

For the past month I have been miserable. Crying before going to work, angry at life, bored for more than eight hours a day, with each passing day I realized I was ignoring my gut. This wasn't the right job for me.

At all.

The people were fantastic - funny, smart, talented, super nice, good to work with - which made my decision all the more difficult. But at the end of the day, life is too short to be miserable for 40 hours per week (at least).

The company's actions since my departure have made it evident: I made a good life choice by leaving.

So boys and girls, what did we learn through this? Trust your gut. Don't disregard your knowledge. Do what you know is best - life is too short to not.

Way too short.