I am from the Wisconsin - Illinois border, a farmer’s daughter. Two key factors stuck from my childhood: hard work and frequent travels. Work hard to play hard as they say ( focusing on increasing the play hard part of my life :) ).
A couple years ago, I graduated from UW Madison and found I didn’t want to use either of my degrees (Spanish & International Studies). I now work in the management side of Food & Beverage. In April of last year, I packed up and moved away from my fellow Badgers and set off to the West coast with a one way ticket and a couple of hopeful interviews. The spontaneous move panned out as I was hired and met my boyfriend on day 3 in the city. I love what SF and California in general have to offer, and as much as nostalgia hits for my family and the Midwest, I will likely spend the rest of my life here. You know, standard “I moved across the country and fell in love” story.
I feel so very blessed for the opportunities that have come my way over the past year. Last week, I as blew out candles for the 24th time, the realization dawned that it’s too easy to get caught in the day to day routine of work and relationship and I am too young to not take advantage of my surroundings. All of the events that happen daily in this city spin in circles around me - all you need to do is jump in for the ride. It’s time to jump and take advantage of today!
For Valentine's Day this year, I took myself on a hike to watch the sunrise. Just a short drive from the city, crossing the Golden Gate Bridge, you can find this quiet hike near Tiburon. Park along the side of the road near the trailhead, bring your furry friend if you have one, and make sure you have a flashlight with you or on your phone. Not going to lie - I was girlishly scared to do this alone in the dark, but the view was worth it. And to be honest, there's nothing to be afraid of other than tripping over a rock or tree stump in the dark - if you know anything about Marin County, you know it's a safe place to be.