Relay for Life 2014

As April gets closer and closer, that means it's time to start thinking about Relay for Life again.  As I mention in the video, we recently lost my good friend Nick to his battle with lung cancer.  While we were definitely shaken as a community, we have come together again over planning for this event and I really cannot wait to take part in it again.

If you would like to donate, you can visit my page HERE.

The Cutest Little Studio in Sausalito

This weekend was the beginning of the end.  And by that I mean it was the last weekend before classes start.  So to celebrate my last weekend of freedom (and the US premiere of Sherlock!),  I took a short trip to Sausalito to stay with my friend Justine.  I've stayed with her multiple times since coming to school, but this time was a little bit different because she moved into the little studio "apartment" down below her family house this fall.

It is quite honestly one of the cutest little studios I've ever seen.  She has a really cute, shabby-chic style and was kind enough to let me take some pictures to share with you guys!

Her little jewelry/nicknack shelf.  I did the drawing on the top right for her sophomore year!

Her cute little kitchen and our breakfast.

Friday Feature: Matt's Dorm Room

Happy Friday, lovely people!  I've decided to try a bit of a series of features here on the blog, and as it conveniently happens to be Friday, I'm calling it Friday Features.  Yep, I am just that talented.

For the first feature, I would like to introduce you to my lovely friend Matt.  He's a junior here at school and he's a resident advisor (RA) in my old dorm.  He has his own YouTube channel, MattNazario, where he makes videos about college life and traveling and whatever else strikes his fancy.  He's got a super funny, quirky way of putting things, so I'd highly suggest checking him out.

Anyways, for those of you who have followed the blog for a while you know that I attempted a few different decoration ideas during my time in the dorms, which you can find here.  Once I moved in with my grandparents I also decorated that room, and I think it's safe to say that my decorative skills have definitely improved.

But I have nothing on Matt.  He's a three-time dorm room survivor, and his room always looks fantastic!  After weeks of bugging him about it, last week he uploaded a tour of said amazing dorm room, which you can find above.  I'm still in awe.

Do you guys have any tips for decorating a small/dorm room?

Senior Retreat

This past weekend, I was lucky enough to go on retreat with my academic program to the beautiful Applegate in the Sierra Foothills of California.  We stayed at the Jesuit Retreat Center and it was an absolutely magical place.  The buildings were of fairly modern construction, yet simple enough to really feel as though we were getting a "natural" experience (if that makes any sense).

They had a little chapel on site, along with a recreation/cafeteria building, a gathering hall, and a few different dormitories.

We were only there for one full day, so we really tried to cram a lot of activities in.  We began the day with some guided meditation and reflection and then headed out to enjoy the great outdoors.  We started off playing kickball...

A few members of our group had been on retreats there before, and planned on leading the rest of us on a short hike to visit the local river.  We were all packed and excited, when a random thunderstorm decided to descend on us!

We ended up sucking it up and going on a short walk anyways, but our completely soggy shoes forced us to turn back.  We ended the day with a pasta dinner (yes, the food is very good!) and an interesting Japanese film.

Hope you guys enjoy the pictures and video!  Have you taken any weekend trips lately?

Back in the Sand

When I first started this blog, I was a scared 17-year-old who did not know what to expect going into her very first year of college.  Today, I'm a more confident, more knowledgable, and more inspired twenty-year-old who is halfway done with college.

Isn't that terrifying?  Only two more years before I will be tossed out into the real world, and it will take all of my skill to survive.  Okay, well, that might have been a touch dramatic.  Can you tell I'm a fiction writer?

I finished finals on May 17th, and after catching a weekend baseball game with my family in San Francisco, my dad and I made the long drive home.  I have to admit, I didn't realize how much I've missed Southern California until I got back.  The weather has been glorious, my local friends happy to see me, and my dogs just as cuddly as I remembered.  And even if I have no definite plans for summer aside from finally, finally getting my driver's license, I'm loving being back.

Relaxing on Laguna Beach after lunch

A few friends from high school and I decided to celebrate my return to a trip to Laguna Beach for lunch and a little chat on the sand.  If any of you happen to be looking for a quick and easy lunch while in the area, you should check out Coffee Pub.  The service is great and the food even better!

Walking on Crystal Cove Beach.  No one else was there!

Beach bouldering?

Hopefully there will be a lot more beach trips this summer!

30DDC: Days 11-19

Apparently, I can procrastinate at practically anything, including fun drawing projects that I assign myself.  This past week has been absolutely crazy with school work, and I didn't actually get around to working on the massive amounts of drawings that I missed until late yesterday.  Here they are, and I promise to try and stay on track starting tomorrow!

Day 11: Turning Point in My Life - Moving to SF!

Day 12: Most Recent Accomplishment - I know it looks lame, but I think actually earning my own money qualifies!

Day 13: Comic

Day 14: Favorite Fairytale

Day 15: Family Picture

Day 16: Inspiration - What inspires me is line, color, and pattern.  Also decided to use this for Day 18, which was a doodle.

Day 17: Favorite Plant

Day 19: Something Different - As I've already been over, I don't normally draw people, so I thought I would attempt to sketch my roommate.  Didn't turn out too horribly, but I can't seem to get her mouth/chin right!

I apologize for the lameness of some of the drawings, and hope to actually stay on track this week!

30DDC: Day 5 - Best Friend

Today's prompt was to draw your best friends.  Now, I think the intention was for it to be a formal portrait, but it's my challenge, my composition, and as we've already gone over, I'm not the best at drawing people.  So I picked the biggest things I associate with my best friends and drew those instead.  The best part is, only those who know these characteristics will know who I've drawn.

How's that for intrigue?

Little Ladies in the Kitchen

This past Friday, I took another trip to Sausalito with Justine, to surprise her dad with dinner.  We battled the wind and rain to get there, and when we did, immediately took over the kitchen.

The cupcakes were amazing, especially after we added homemade cream cheese frosting!  And aside from a slight mishap with the chicken, our dinner plans went well, too.  I now know not only to double check the date on meat before you buy it, but also to bring a cooler-bag if you plan on taking said meat on an hour long jaunt from city to city.  That's what college is about, right?  Learning from experience?

Wishing you a good week, friends.  Look for more food pictures as Thanksgiving approaches!

A Sunny Day for a Birthday

Yesterday was an amazing day. Not only did I turn a whopping 20 years old, but it was probably the nicest day we've had so far. This made it the perfect day for my friend Justine to complete what was possibly the greatest assignment ever: walk through Golden Gate Park to the beach. I tagged along while she took beautiful pictures in sunny weather. We looked at the trees...

petted adorable dogs...

played with balloons...

and got lunch at the cute little cafe called the Java Beach Cafe. Even though they were recommended to us based on their coffee, we were happy to discover that their sandwiches are just as tasty. Their menu is seriously impressive, with tons of sandwiches, pastries, and both hot and cold drinks. I personally enjoyed the ice tea, though it was a little bitter. Over all, it's good food in a cute, beachy atmosphere!

Have a great week, everyone!

Let's Go Giants...

... beat the Dodgers! And luckily we did, when I got to go to the Giants vs. LA Dodgers game this Tuesday night. I have never been to game where San Francisco has won before, and to have them beat my least favorite team in all of baseball, I was quite excited. I know that sounds rather harsh, especially from someone who grew up in Southern California, but I can't really help it. I was raised to be a Giants fan by a group of San Francisco natives; it's in my blood!

One of the perks of the game was that, because it was an outing through our academic institute, we did not have to pay for our tickets. Yes, that means we got to go see the reigning World Champions for free! The only downside was that we were in the nosebleeds. Scratch that, we were in the nosebleeds of the nosebleeds, on the very top row. But it was an exciting game to watch, so we willing braved the hundreds of steps and the freezing gusts of wind.

Justine brought her new camera, and took some amazing shots, especially given where we were sitting. She was nice enough to give me some to share with you:

The nearly bird's eye view from our seats

My favorite player: #55 Tim Lincecum

#17 Aubrey Huff

#48 Pablo "Panda" Sandoval

#5 Pat "The Bat" Burrell

Rookie of the Year #28 Buster Posey

My other favorite player: #21 Freddy Sanchez

I was pleased and surprised to see fans of the two different teams behaving well and respecting each other. The Giants fan that was beaten shortly after attending a Giants - Dodgers game in Los Angeles is unfortunately still in an induced coma. Before their series opener on Monday, the two teams came together to support the injured fan and his family, and encouraged fans to respect the team rivalry but not to act on it. If you're interested in helping support Bryan Stow and his family, you can go to Support4BryanStow.com.

Here's to many future ball games!

Breakfast in Heaven

I must live among the nerdiest people on campus, because we spent practically the entire long weekend studying! Our one brief respite was to go to breakfast on Sunday. We walked down Cole to visit La Boulange, a little French bakery chain that we've become quite fond of. They have amazing food, and it's just a cute place to sit and talk for a while. Just talking about it makes me want to go again!

On a completely separate note, my friend has been working on some songs, and I can't stop listening to them. Check him out!

That's What Friends are For

This has been a tough week. I've had so much work that for a few days, I literally felt like I was drowning, or at least having a hard time keeping my head above water. Then last night, Wade and I were hanging out, and I showed him some of the songs I had recorded on Garageband. This led to a whole evening of goofing around with the default tracks that come with the program, which we recorded in this little improv video. It was so much fun, and just what I needed to relax, but "singing on your feet" is harder than you would think!