Category Archives: photos

Elitists

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I’ve been using Yelp since 2008, but had never heard of the Elite Squad before this year when I saw the “2013 Elite” badge pop up on a friend’s profile. I signed up to join immediately – not because I wanted to attend parties and get free stuff (though those are fantastic perks), but because I wanted that little badge. Being among the Yelp Elite means your reviews are considered more credible, and people are more likely to interact with you through the site.

And we all know how much I love making friends online.

So a few weeks ago, Leela and I went to our first ever Elite event. It was drinks and hors d’oeuvres at the headquarters for Rover.com, a website that matches you with pet sitting services. I was excited to check out their HQ and hear more about the company, especially because Dan and I don’t have our go-to boarding place for the dogs now that we’re no longer in California.

Rover is a godsend. They screen all their sitters extensively, require constant communication between the sitter and their office as well as the sitter and the owner during the stay, and have pet owners submit reviews once the stay is over. And with Dan and I planning a trip back to California over Thanksgiving (!!), we’re going to need trustworthy, reasonably priced care for our furbabies.

But back to the party! Leela and I had a blast. We participated in a kissing contest (where your dog had to kiss you consistently for five seconds), and actually made it to the final round, but eventually lost to an adorable corgi puppy who REALLY liked the way her mom’s chin tasted. Leela made up for it in the photo booth, though:

In fact, another couple thought that she was so good at taking pictures, they asked to take a picture with her, since they didn’t have a dog of their own with them. Of course, Leela and I obliged, and got what is possibly the most awesome picture ever out of it:

We ended the evening with some Frosty Paws ice cream (which is made specifically for dogs). Suffice it to say, Leela was in HEAVEN.

Thanks to Yelp and Rover for an awesome evening! And for any of you looking for pet sitters to take care of your dogs (or cats!), check out Rover.com!

Home Sweet Home

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It’s taken me six tries to write this post. Six tries to articulate what it feels like to leave the only home you’ve ever known, for good.

I planned my trip to Seattle so thoroughly, there was no room for error. I piled the animals into my car, meticulously considering every detail. A litterbox for the cats. Sedatives all around. Halters instead of prong collars for the dogs, so they could sleep comfortably in the backseat. Audio books to keep myself awake and aware on the long drive.

I passed cherry blossoms and run-down farms as I drove through the Central Valley and into the mountains. One of the last things I saw as I left California was snow. I pulled over in Mt. Shasta to get something to eat and let the dogs out to stretch their legs. It was beautiful out – sunny and clear – but the ground was covered in snow. Most of it had been plowed by local residents, but there were still some drifts – like the one under these trees – that made me wonder exactly what I was getting myself into.

We stayed overnight in a small hotel just off the freeway in Roseburg, Oregon. The hotel was great, but being in a two hundred square foot room with four animals was challenging. The cats were still thoroughly drugged, to the point where Marley actually head-butted Nixon while he was trying to eat his dinner. He barked a warning at her and Marley, my normally “hidden kitty” who lives in cabinets and under beds, afraid of everything and everyone but me, retreated to the safety of a chair barely a foot away.

And hey, did you know that you can’t flush kitty litter down the toilet? Ask me how I know.

When we finally got far enough north to see the peak of Mt. Rainier jutting out of the horizon, I felt this strong sense of relief come over me. After planning every second of this journey for the last eight months, we were finally here – our new home.

It’s still strange to think of how far away we are from our family and friends. The distance doesn’t feel that great thanks to technologies like Skype and FaceTime, but there is something to be said for being able to text someone and invite them to lunch tomorrow, and not in three months when you finally save up enough money to afford a plane ticket home.

California will always hold a special place in my heart. But both Dan and I knew that it was time for something new – a new adventure, new jobs, a new housing market that might actually allow us to own our own home someday.

That’s not to say we won’t be back. We do certainly plan to come back and visit, to see our family and friends, the people that we left behind. But for the foreseeable future – and possibly forever – Seattle is home.

Are you ready to feel old?

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Today, Dan and I celebrate our first wedding anniversary.

You heard that right. It’s been a YEAR. So we did what any couple would: We high-tailed it to Santa Cruz for a romantic overnight stay.

We had made reservations at Oswald, which is basically the fanciest restaurant in Santa Cruz. I wore a dress, Dan wore slacks and a button-down shirt, and when we got there, we were completely overdressed. When Yelp says “dressy,” I assume that means DRESSY, and not “You can get dressed up if you want to, but a t-shirt and jeans are fine, too.” So we pretended that we were at Morton’s instead, and plowed through our (delicious) dinner of mussels and steak and seared tuna.

Why were we in such a hurry? Because Marini’s closes at 9:00.

Dan’s sundae (right) had Motor Cop Crunch (whatever that is) with hot fudge and peanuts. My sundae (left) had Horchata and Mexican Chocolate ice cream with hot fudge and almonds.

YOU GUYS, IT WAS SO DELICIOUS, I DIED A LITTLE.

(Okay, not really.)

But you can clearly see by our faces that we’re having a tastegasm.

We spent the remainder of the evening snuggling and watching Mermaids: The Body Found, which was such a delight, because we NEVER get to do that, thanks to Dan’s insane work schedule. Things better than laying in bed discussing conspiracy theories about the US Navy’s cover-up of the existence of mermaids with the dude you love? NOTHING.

On Monday morning, we headed down the wharf to go kayaking. I was thoroughly amused to find that the job of seaweed cleaner-upper does actually exist, though the dude driving gave up after three hours of shuttling seaweed back and forth. (For the record, there was probably another twelve hours of work ahead of him. Job security, I guess?)

So kayaking may not have been the best idea, given that I’m terrified of water, but it turned out to be AMAZING. We spent two hours paddling around Monterey Bay, where we determined that Leela is a long lost relative of the sea lions that live under the wharf (they bark almost as much as she does), and I fell a little bit more in love with otters. I wasn’t allowed to get close enough to them to take a picture, but believe me when I say that they were swimming and playing and squeaking and it was the CUTEST.

I can’t believe it’s been a year since our wedding. Mostly because I can’t believe we made it this far without killing each other, but I also can’t believe how much we dealt with and survived – unemployment, a semi-long distance relationship, depression and anxiety, three moves. People say the first year is the hardest, and given how much I’ve learned in the last twelve months alone, I can’t argue. But even if things get easier from here (which I hope they do), I’m glad I got to experience all of this with Dan.

#photoadayjune, Part Deux

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I’m finally finished with the #photoadayjune slideshow. Voila!

 

I think the last photo I took (“Day 30: A Friend”) is my favorite. The original caption was “A friend to technology,” and was a joke about my dad finally coming into the twenty-first century and buying an iPhone. (He’s been using a flip phone for the last six years. Prior to that, he didn’t use a cell phone AT ALL. Can you imagine??)

Anyway, he just discovered FaceTime yesterday. So here’s a hilarious picture of him not knowing how to use it.

A World-Renowned Braggart

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This morning was one of those mornings where my eternal optimism (that’s a joke, y’all) and deep breathing techniques came in handy. I left my house fifteen minutes early (YES!) which means I had time to get Starbucks (DOUBLE YES!) and hop onto 84 just in time to get stuck in traffic FOREVER.

Normally, traffic makes my blood boil. But this morning, for some reason, I was able to take it in stride. In fact, the only thing that annoyed me on my entire morning commute was this (apparent) USC alum I got stuck behind on my way onto campus.

I get it. I really do. You’re proud that you went to one of the most respected private universities in the nation, and that you survived (presumably) four years in one of LA’s scariest neighborhoods. But do you really need the sticker AND the vanity plates? It’s like wearing plaid and paisley together. You really need to pick one or the other, because together, it’s just not a good look.

The Battle of Bedwater

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In spite of Token’s “GET OFF MY PILLOW” angry glare, I want to be totally clear that Nix was on the bed FIRST. Which confirms Dan’s theory that Token is angry for the sake of being angry, as well as my theory that Nix is perhaps not as smart as I’d like to think he is.