City By The Bay

March 26, 2018March 26, 2018Leave a comment

It’s well known that San Francisco is gorgeous AF. We really are spoiled here, between the rolling mountains, wine country, ocean and bay, amazing Victorian architecture and more, it’s no wonder SF is one of the most sought out places to live in the world and why I thank my lucky stars that I have rent control.

But if you aren’t a local there are many other unique and interesting things that make SF eclectic….like:

Hanging out “in the park” is what everyone does – there are parks EVERYWHERE, and it’s a perfectly logical thing to get together at one of them (Golden Gate, Alamo Square, Dolores, Crissy Field – many more!) and picnic ALL DAY, day drink, play games, or even smoke on the weekends.
There are more costumed events here than in any other city! Bay to breakers, the binge drinking event built around wearing costumes and walking a running race route, is the biggest costumed event in the Bay all year. Of course there is also Halloween, but there are many themed bar crawls and events that require costumes at all times of the year (Victorian ball, anyone?!), no one bats an eyelash when seeing many people dressed up (or even nude, as we are the biggest nude town in America as well).
It’s perfectly acceptable for vendors to walk around parks, selling edibles and their baked good treats like brownies and truffles, for consumption in public.
Apparently, as I learned on a documentary show on Vice called Slutever (omg great name BTW) that there are weed oriented sex products and parties on the reg in the Bay. I’ve lived here 10 years and never knew that, but now I do and am not surprised one bit!

I love this goober’s smile ❤ R E S P E C T

Whether or not you want to partake in any of those things, the Bay is a CHILL place to be, where you can be a mermaid any day of the week and no one would think that is strange. I love this big weirdo of a town! ❤

33 And Me

February 12, 2018Leave a comment

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MEEE ❤ . Last Friday I turned 33 years old and had a big ole Olympic themed birthday extravaganza to celebrate. It was a special birthday and the vibrations were high on life! Maybe because of the energy of the Olympics, since it comes every 4 years, but things felt great and now I’m even older than I was before.

I’m aging like a fine wine and some things that I’ve really started to love in my 30s are:

Staying in to cuddle / play with my cat. Yes I am a cat lady and have always been. But I didn’t get Beatrix until about 3-4 years ago. My 20s were all about exploring events, meeting new people, finding things outside of my home to occupy my time. I wanted to have my own cat for many years before I finally did it, and I’m glad I waited because I don’t think I would have had the full 20s social experience that was mine here in one of the biggest cities in the country. Plus my cat rules so hanging out with her is always a win in my book! I think it makes me MORE creative…
Habitually reading before bed / going to bed at a reasonable hour / getting up earlier in the day. YES. I know. I am NOT a morning person by any means. However getting up around 8am on a Saturday morning to make tea and head to an early yoga or boot-camp class…SIGN ME UP. I love being productive earlier in the day and relaxing at night. And the crazy books I’ve been getting into lately….MORE PLEASE!
Realizing that food / drinking / lack of sleep affects my body differently now. You have to change your habits from your 20s because they make you feel like ass in your 30s. It might sound sad to you if you are in your twenties now, but believe me it’s not sad at all. In the last few months I’ve realized a LOT about my health and patterns that I needed to change, and honestly I LOVE FEELING PHYSICALLY good!
Personal / life reflection. I’ve been really introspective in the last year. 32 was a super challenging year for me emotionally, realizing things about myself that I wasn’t very aware of in the past. I believe it’s always good to be open and honest about who you are and where you want to go. Sometimes you can’t get there without letting go of some baggage.
Wanting more podcasts and documentaries. YES. I never thought I would not listen to music regularly or want to watch something scripted, but LEARNING is where it’s at in your 30s my friends. WELCOME TO THE WORLD OF REAL LIFE STORIES!

I can haz Rick & Morty?!

We are all unique individuals who live on this rotating planet, on the third rock from the sun (anyone else here grow up watching that gem??) and it’s a pleasure that shouldn’t be taken for granted. I MADE IT ANOTHER YEAR! I get to learn even more crazy things I like about myself and evolve! Here’s to many new adventures in 33 🙂

Team Palm Springs

June 20, 2017June 21, 2017Leave a comment

Palm Springs had been on my list of vacation getaways ever since I moved to California. I don’t know how it is that I’ve been living in this beautiful state for 9 years without ever crossing paths with PS, but it finally happened, I loved it, and I can’t wait to go back!

My old roommate (or as we used to joke, wombmate, since we were practically attached at the hip for a good several years) is getting married next month, so she invited a gaggle of girls to celebrate the end of her single-hood in the glamorous desert city. Our AirBnb house was AMAZING, complete with a salt water pool, and I don’t think I would ever stay in a hotel in the future knowing how beautiful and affordable the homes are.

Some of the only pictures I took from the inside of our retro place.

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I practically lived in this pool all weekend.

Once I knew we were headed down south, I looked to see if there were any crazy art exhibits close by that we could check out and I found out about the mirage house. A full house art exhibit, completely covered in mirrors in the middle of the desert! IT WAS GORGEOUS!!

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The only picture of all 11 ladies!

It was fun to be with a good group of women who, even though we are all spread out across the country, we are all from Texas (except Amy I still got you girl!). Just to be silly together and celebrate #Merkelle was exactly what the doctor ordered. Plus, because we are Texan women, we brought our own INFLATABULL float! (This thing is a terror if you aren’t careful! I could NOT mount it at all #fail. Also look how HUGE it is – takes up SO MUCH SPACE and also took forever to inflate, but man was it WORTH it).

This little PRICK nabbed my hand! We pulled out about 10-15 little needles and it wasn’t too bad, although I still have scars.

We all heard stories about gay bars in Palm Springs not being particularly welcome to bachelorette parties and for us to be cautious. We didn’t dress up in sashes or crowns or penis whistles or anything because that is TACKY AF, but we were pleasantly surprised at how accommodating every place was once they knew we were a bachelorette party. It was the exact opposite of what we heard! RetroRoom Lounge was a complete delight and had some of the best Whitney Houston drag I’ve ever seen! Long story short, Palm Springs is like the Austin of California in the way of many bachelorette parties everywhere. #gonnaseeleythedealy

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A few girls stayed an extra day over at the infamous Saguaro Palm Springs hotel, and I SWEAR it felt like MTV Spring Break 1994. The pool was so intense: people danced on floats, shots galore, there was a full on bathing suit photoshoot, and an EDM DJ at like 9am. It was so lit! I am glad I went because I got to see the hotel without having to stay there, PLUS there was thee cutest Barbie doll shadowbox exhibit in the lobby and I almost DIED. It’s no secret that I love Barbie art…

It was a great time! We LOVED celebrating Raquel, and hope it was everything she dreamed of ❤

Baiiiii Palm Springs, let’s not let another NINE YEARS go by without saying hi.

Spring Cleansing

April 4, 2017April 4, 20171 Comment

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Spring has sprung y’all and I am feeling it! I think this last winter was a bit of a roller coaster for me, emotionally and mentally, and I feel like I’m in a good spot at the moment, taking it all in, and working on my “spring cleansing” if you will.

I am an idealist. My Myers-Briggs personality profile is INFP. It’s literally part of the idealist category. I also struggle with perfectionism. I think of grandiose “shoulds” in my mind and get down sometimes at the fact that I’m not even close to my grandiose vision, when in reality, the only person who could even be close to those goals would be a superhuman like Oprah or Elon Musk. And I’m NOT a superhuman, so why do I create superhuman goals??!

We live in a very different world now than our parents and our grandparents. Everything is a lot easier now. We communicate much more quickly. Think about the middle ages and how long it would take to even get a love note!!! And now we live in a world where people can “swipe left” and instantly connect with a love interest. We NEED instant gratification now, and not everything is set up that way. So we get down on ourselves when we don’t lose weight fast enough, or we didn’t save as much money as we thought we would, or the fact that we don’t have a boyfriend just yet. It can make you crazy and it definitely makes me nuts sometimes. And when you toggle a lot of things ongoing like work goals, fitness goals, hobby goals, relationship goals, financial goals, etc – it’s pretty easy to be “goaled out.”

I do this to myself. I am my own worst critic. I give myself way to much to focus on and when I start to feel like I’m stretched thin or that I don’t have the energy for something I get REALLY down on myself, that I didn’t get to where “in my perfect world” I THOUGHT I would be. But one thing I’m trying to focus on this year, is removing this way of thinking from my patterns and be more present. At the end of the day, I want to congratulate myself on what I DID vs. what I DIDN’T accomplish.

I’ve also decided to pause my efforts on some things that I didn’t feel I was putting 100% of my energy into, like my radio show. I just got to a point where I had my obligations, work-life balance, social calendar, fitness calendar, etc etc and I wasn’t happy allotting my precious time to hobbies or interests that weren’t making me happy anymore. And you know what, I feel a lot less stressed out! I want to talk about music, how it’s influenced my life, where I am now in a bigger post, but right now I wanted to share that it’s ok to take breaks. It’s ok to feel like you can’t do everything. It’s ok to take time to yourself for a breather and re-focus. Some people call it spring cleaning, and I call it spring cleansing 🙂

You got this! Pause the things that aren’t working for you anymore, reflect, and listen to yourself. Maybe there are new interests waiting for you around the corner!

Happy Holladaze!

December 21, 2016January 6, 2017Leave a comment

MERRY EVERYTHING 2K16 – and happy winter solstice! We are heading off on a holiday extravaganza trip to Texas where we will stay in San Antonio and Houston, and then make our way to NOLA for NYE. I can’t wait to embark on our journey and I hope you have a festive holiday as well. And if not, there’s ALWAYS alcohol…

Be back in 2017 to blog more about everything and nothing. Xo – Emily.

Sunday Fundays in the City

December 12, 2016Leave a comment

One of my favorite things about living in San Francisco are the weekend strolls. John LOVES walking everywhere. And coming from Texas, my old Texan self would think this is crazy. (NO ONE WALKS ANYWHERE WHEN IT’S TRIPLE DIGIT HEAT!!!) In my first few years here I constantly rode the bus. Then I got a bike and biked everywhere for 2 years. That was fun and all, until more and more people would get hit by cars on their morning commute. NOT LYING – even my friends who rode more than me were becoming damaged! When I changed jobs and the new office was located around a bunch of construction, I didn’t feel comfortable riding to work, so I took the bus again. Then I met John and he doesn’t have a bike, thus my bike riding sorta stopped. It’s weird when you go on dates and one of you has a bike and the other doesn’t, #amirite?!

But John has been a great influence because I find myself walking to places more so now than I ever did before, and I enjoy seeing my steps after on my health app. It makes me feel productive 🙂 PLUS you get to see cool things like PURPLE VICTORIANS!

We had a nice stroll around the city yesterday and ended up watching Fantastic Beasts later in the afternoon. I love going to the movies on Sunday afternoons, it feels like a nice way to chill from the weekend and relax before starting back up on Monday.

Look at THAT FACE ❤

Anyways – have a great week! Oh and start walking a bit more maybe and enjoy your neighborhood 🙂 And SUNDAY FUNDAYS FOREVER!

Thankful & Stuffed

November 28, 2016November 28, 2016Leave a comment

2016 has been a crazy year full of tremendous change. We saw loads of sudden musician deaths, an insane presidential season with our first reality star president elect, and had never ending hangovers (I don’t know about you but I don’t think I’ve been more drunk in my life! And getting older, these hangovers don’t feel any better). While it’s easy to get down about losing our favorite celebrities (<tear for Prince & Bowie>), the fact that the Giants lost their chance to play in THEE World Series in an even year (WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?!) AND Golden State Warriors lost the playoffs, or the state of our country (ahem #notmypresident)… I was thankful to celebrate what I DO have in my life, instead of what I don’t.

Things like:

An awesome boyfriend. John moved in earlier in the year and things have never been better. While I know of some other friends who are already married with kids, newly married or newly engaged, or just plain been living with their significant other for a while (or recently split from living with a significant other) – THIS is my first live-in boyfriend and a really big step for me. Not to mention, he’s a cutie ❤
Our adorable baby cat. She is the best emotional support cat there is (look up #beatrixvonwhiskerton on my instagram if you want proof).
RENT CONTROL Y’ALL.
A loving family, even though they are another state away. While we might not always agree on everything, I have a very supportive and loyal family who is always there for me no matter what. Also, I have the most diverse, eclectic group of sisters that a girl could ask for and they are great role models.
My awesome friends! I love those weirdos! CAN I TAKE YOUR PICTURE SO WE CAN MAKE MEMORIES?!
This damn city. SAN FRANCISCO YOU ARE WONDERFUL! I feel that I have really come into my own the last almost decade I’ve been here. (WHAT I’M GETTING SO OLD). Where else can you witness the rolling fog (Karl), run in Golden Gate Park, have bonfires at Ocean Beach, get #lit at Gay Pride, experience Bay to Breakers, see too much, see things you never even knew could happen (FOLSOM STREET FAIR if you want specifics), go hiking – wine tasting – camping all at your finger tips, and wear costumes for any and every occasion?!
Tapping into my creative outlet. Whether it’s through podcasting + djing, art, THIS BLOG, cooking, or attempting the new makeup tutorial, I am thankful that I possess drive to try new and creative things.
My health.

Here’s to the best stuff out of our shit bag of a year, y’all. Let’s make 2017 GREAT all around 😉

Big Pimpkin’ @ Da pumpkin patch

October 25, 2016Leave a comment

Anyone order a disco-ball pumpkin?

Did I mention how much I absolutely love Halloween?! It’s seriously my favorite day of the year. Why can’t costumes be accepted more on a regular basis? Like, hey I want to be a mermaid today (or Ronald McDonald Trump), and it’s all good cause no one would care. Well that’s why I love living in SF because there’s ALWAYS a reason to sport a costume. But Halloween IS around the corner, so this past weekend was spent with friends doing what BASIC people love to do best in October: watch Hocus Pocus, drink RIDICULOUS scary-themed red wine, and carve pumpkins. I got to do it twice! And I’m not ashamed… #basichalloween

Lunatic Red, Once Upon a Vine (Big Bad Red), and Besieged.

In years past I have always carved some sort of cat in my pumpkin. The most elaborate pumpkin I’ve ever carved was a profile of a unicorn WITHOUT a pattern. That was intense you guys. This year I opted for the disco ball pumpkin because #whynot and I’ve never seen one before. ALSO we bought a crazy battery operated pumpkin carving POWER SAW because ain’t nobody got time to carve pumpkins anymore folks!

“I can haz pizza and pumpkins and Hocus Pocus?!” – Jasper the tuxedo cat

I know that I am in my 30s and still thoroughly enjoy Halloween activities, and I will continue to do so until I’m much more of an old lady. One day I will travel to the biggest pumpkin patch I’ve ever seen and do a full on costume photo shoot, that I will indeed turn into a calendar and can sell. Until then, I’m gonna keep doing me and continue to be the biggest Halloween + costume nerd that I know.

Creepin’ It Real

October 13, 2016Leave a comment

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It’s fall y’all. I hate to sound basic, but it really IS my favorite time of year (all you other people are posers). Ever since I can remember I’ve been eager to carve pumpkins, create unique costumes from scratch, and perform a seance (ya know, the BASICS). I love haunted ghost shows, anything paranormal, and creepy serial killer stories. “What say you, he ate their organs and did WHAT to their decapitated heads?! DO TELL ME MORE!” What kind of weirdo thinks that, let alone says that??? THIS ONE.

One of the reasons that I love living in San Francisco is that it’s practically fall all year round! Autumn wardrobe is the best wardrobe by far and the time of year that I buy 70% of my clothes. 25% of my wardrobe consists of costumes and the last 5% is a nice grab bag. (Hey, costumes are a way of life in this city!) I have BIG PLANS for my Halloween costume this year but I won’t get into details just yet…

For now, I’m going to enjoy crisp evening walks with my love, apple cider, PUNkins, scary movies, and my BOOtiful tuxedo cat before the holidays blast us off into another dimension (srsly though where does the time go after Halloween? Into the upside down?). But back to horror movies, we recently watched Deathgasm and were pleasantly surprised! It’s a horror-comedy (kinda like Shaun of the Dead) from New Zealand about a metal band that accidentally opens the gates of hell by playing The Black Hymn, unleashing the Apocalypse. It was a such a surprise hit that they are making Deathgasm 2: Goremageddon, you guys. DEATHGASM FTW!

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Does this wall make me look more fall?

Running, because dieting is not an option…

October 10, 2016October 10, 2016Leave a comment

I am not a natural runner by any means. If I don’t keep up with my practice, I have to start from scratch all over again and build up my miles. I run slow. Like, I’m always towards the back in terms of lining up for races by MPH, just ahead of the tortoise. You know those people that don’t exercise ever, drink like a fish, eat whatever they want and roll out of bed and run a half marathon like it’s no sweat? I am NOT one of those people!

I first started to get into running when I was 17. My parents gave me the gift of a gym membership and I ran with it (pun intended). There have been times in my life where I could easily run 7 miles. There have been times where I could barely do one. I have forced myself to run two half marathons (that’s 13.1 miles people and INSANE!) along with various 12K, 10K, and 5K races. I like to keep something on my calendar to focus on so that I don’t give up on running because I know if 2 weeks go by without a run, I go hulk mania and bolt out of whatever building I’m in to GO, Emily, GO. It sounds like I run crazy miles and I seriously don’t, but I would say that I run more than the average person and that’s because running is something that is pretty important to me, so I make time for it when I can.

I love the time to MYSELF that comes with running. I really, REALLY hate working out with people. I mean don’t get me wrong, if you want to go to a barre class together or whatever, let’s plié away! But I love the idea of running or doing intense workouts alone because I get to clear my head. It’s sort of meditating in that way. (Running to meditate, are you NUTS?!) But I also have anxiety. (WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING AT?! DID I SAY SOMETHING WRONG?! WHY DOES EVERYONE HATE ME?! and so on) And while sometimes people might think running is a horrible punishment, it actually works wonders for the mind, especially mine. I also have this condition that makes me want to eat everything in sight so basically running is the only option I have to control my #hungerpains. Food is delicious and I would have a much harder time sticking to a strict diet than maintaining a hardcore physical regimen. The very idea of giving up pasta is so upsetting to me #icanteven.

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So, because of my love for running outside and because I haven’t run an event in a year, I figured I’d sign up for the Bridge to Bridge 12K. While I have run parts of the course in the past, I had never run this particular race and thought “let’s do this so that I can squeeze into an amazing halloween costume” and signed away. Not to mention, the course is gorgeous!

I had a lot of doubts about this race before I even got down there and psyched myself out about it more than usual. The thing is, I’m not super young anymore and I’m not a quick runner, and I haven’t even been running a distance longer than 4.5 miles over the last few months, so having to run 7.4 miles seemed daunting to me. But then I remembered how it’s ok if I’m not able to run the whole time. Sometimes I think I have to be the perfect best version of myself so much I don’t allow myself to just BE, even if I’m not as prepared as I’d like. The truth is, I don’t care about times – I just like to finish and continue to PUSH myself, which is really what running is all about in my mind. That and brunch. (In case you are wondering I ended up walking only one mile out of 7.4 which I was pretty proud about).

So for all of you out there that struggle with running or who want to get back into it – know that it’s perfectly ok to be slow and work your way up. Rome wasn’t built in a day. And for those of you that don’t get running at all and think I’m a glutton for punishment – I totally feel you. Sometimes I wonder if I’m a masochist myself. It ALWAYS feels worth it though in the end. And as long as there is something that gets you to move I’m ok with that!

Daydreams & Disco

A blog about everything and nothing.

Tag: Lifestyle