Me on my last night in Pacific Beach. Yes, I'm usually this weird.I'm back from my week-long trip to San Diego, and I have to say it went by way too fast. At first I was reticent about the journey. I was born and raised in Santa Cruz, so I've always had beef with SoCal, especially LA and San Diego. (I think its an inherent NorCal/SoCal thing. So stupid.) I'm glad I took this trip, though, because I had an amazing time and I love San Diego! (LA, meanwhile, still eludes me.)
Some things I did:
- Watched my little sister, Sophia, graduate from college. Can't believe she's already 21 and out of school. I'm happy for her but now I feel, well, old. (I can't imagine how I'm going to feel when I actually have kids.)
- Got to hang out with my whole family again as everyone was down from Northern California celebrating Sophia's graduation for Memorial Day weekend.
- Ate fabulous food. Lunches at cozy Italian bistros, breakfasts at House House a Go-Go and beyond, and enough Mexican food to fuel a small army (I heart you Cotija's Taqueria). It was all delicious and high in calories, but I've been so good about my diet in the past few months that I thought "What the heck, you only live once". Right? Ed. Note: My figure, although gorged with excess calories last week, still seems svelte. No real damage done.
- Visited the beach more than once. For this beach-starved DCer, this was an absolute must. A special highlight: Checking out the tide pools at BirdRock beach in La Jolla.
- Embarked on debauchery with old friends while meeting new ones. Sophia introduced me to an incredible guy who she calls her "best friend". Why they aren't dating is beyond me. Perhaps its because he's going to Columbia University in the fall for his Masters? Pressing onward ...
- Enjoyed not being connected 24/7 to Blogger/Facebook/Twitter/email/etc. It was actually quite liberating and didn't bother me in the slightest. Not sure if that's a good thing for a Gen Yer to be saying in the 21st century.
- Decided that if I absolutely had to, I could live in San Diego for a while if Love ended up getting a job here out of Georgetown next year. This is big, people, because as I mentioned above I've always thought I hated San Diego. But, it turns out, I actually love it. Especially Pacific Beach. It reminded me of the years I spent living in Isla Vista while I was a student at UC Santa Barbara. Though I could live down there, I wouldn't want to make it my permanent home as I'm a Bay Area girl at heart. Still, it was 10 folds better than living out here so I'll take it.
- Finished my first short story. Oh it felt delightful plopping the ending on to my first piece of finished work. After having Love read it, he thought it needed some rewriting here and there (totally cool, it was a 1st draft after all), but that it was a good story overall. Since returning to the East Coast I've finished my second short story. It's a humorous piece that made me (and subsequently everyone else who's read it) laugh out loud, so I'll be submitting to various magazines sometime this summer.
10 comments:
Why all the SD hate? The worst thing about the place is the tourists. :::side-eying you 55mph driving 'Zonies:::
Haha, I think I was just always there with the wrong people. No fun when you aren't with a good crowd!
Sounds like a fabulous trip and a much needed vacation! Welcome back to the rainy DC-metro area. ;)
So fun! I love the beach! And I am intrigued by your short stories! Is this a hobby? What do you write about? How does that whole thing work? I might have to do some digging in your blog to read more about that!
Wow - looks of great stuff! :-)
Your NorCal vs. SoCal comment is so true!
Growing up in Socal, I always though I hated NorCal - until I visited. Santa Cruz, San Fran, Sac - all awesome places!
As far as San Diego goes - it's an amazing place. I lived there for 5 years and everyday wish I had the guts to pick up and go back. Glad you got to experience some fun in PB!
I LOVE San Diego, but HATE LA. So you're not alone.
As a former San Diegan (9 years I lived in the beautiful city), I simply saw LA as a 5-8 hour road block to get to the rest of the beautiful state.
Bonjour !
First time i come across your blog so i'm gonna visit it now :)
well if you wanna be inspired by my collages/Scrapbook come and take a cup of tea in Boubouteatime :)
a bientot !
Boubouteatime xx
Whoo! UCSB :) Still miss the gorgeous location. SD is awesome. I'm a SoCal girl, born in SD, went to school at UCSB, and am now living in NorCal (Wine Country). It's a tough change, but there's always a city in the opposite side of your hometown where you can live happy. =) It's great that you had such a fun experience.
As a native San Deigan, I hated LA growing up. I still have a dislike for LA, despite attending Long Beach State.
Next your in the area, spend a bit of time around the balboa park area. Gorgeous park, great museums, a world class zoo- just a great place to visit. Make a picnic out of it! =)
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