Well, it’s been a while since I’ve posted anything here. My blog must feel neglected. Time to remedy this with a little post about what’s new with me on my new venture here in SF.

Life continues to fly by meeting new people, preparing for Burning Man, hanging out at the Movity offices, working from cafes, and exploring SF (mainly restaurants and parks lately). Aside from this, I’ve started to get cabin fever working at home and am on the constant lookout for great free wi-fi spots where I can work…mostly cafes so needless to say I’m drinking more coffee than ever.

And, I’ve been on the lookout for great new startups…and found MyLikes which is a cool word of mouth advertising platform. I highly recommend this to all you super social media gurus (you know who you are…you’ve got over 1,000 friends) because it’s a great way to raise money for a cause (or make money for yourself) by doing what you already do: sharing what you like on facebook and twitter. So, checkout MyLikes.com!

Where do I begin with the saga of apartment hunting in San Francisco? It started over a month ago when I ventured down to the city by the bay, optimistically thinking it’d be so fun to adventure across the city in search of the perfect apartment. There were many clues that the process would prove much more challenging than I had ever imagined.

First, there was the Craigslist challenge. There were hundreds of apartments, many posted duplicates over and over every day, most without pictures, often lacking key details (parking?, laundry in the building? dishwasher?). Luckily Movity.com will be coming along soon to alleviate the web’s lack of tools for apartment hunters. In the meantime, I found padmapper.com and love the fact that it puts all craigslist postings on a map!

Then, there was the location challenge. We had to be within a few blocks of either Bart or the N-Judah (muni light rail/subway). We had to be very close to bars, restaurants, and a grocery store. Some of these criteria were Vaughn’s, some were mine. I cared more about the cleanliness and aesthetics of the interiors, he cared more about location. And, we searched for many weeks. And, we saw over 30 apartments. And, in the end I came back to Seattle unsuccessful; we had not found an apartment after three weeks of full time hunting.

But, we carried on the hunt. I poured over craigslist every day, setting up appointments for Vaughn and he tirelessly viewed more and more places (sending me detailed photos of every one).

I was about to settle for a ground floor unit in Cole Valley (mainly because I liked the location and it was spacious) despite the fact that it had no natural light, kitchen cabinetry was falling apart, rear courtyard was a weed pile, and the living room window looked right out onto the sidewalk….and then I saw the ad for a modern loft in SOMA. It had everything we wanted. I frantically arranged a meeting, Vaughn saw it and liked it, we made an offer, submitted the app…then we waited. And, finally, we got the news: it’s ours!

I’m so glad we got a place before I showed up in SF with a uhaul full of boxes and furniture. It was such a pain finding a place that I’ll appreciate this apartment more than any I’ve ever lived in. Hope you enjoy the pics.

It’s been a beautiful two days here in the Marin Coast! Stayed in Inverness and saw Point Reyes lighthouse, Drakes Bay, Tomales Bay, Bolinas, Stinson Beach, and Mount Tam.

We punted the Avon in Christchurch and enjoyed the pretty English gardens and tea. It felt a little like being in England except much hotter!

Milford Sound was amazing. We stayed in a very rustic hostel through a very rainy and stormy night to wake up early and cruise the sound before the tour bus masses arrive. It was quite rainy on the cruise which is very normal for the area and produced a lot of waterfalls. Milford Sound is dramatic and absolutely worth the very long bus ride from Queenstown. I got bit by some kind of insect which apparently I’m allergic to and have two fairly large bites, but other than that, all is well!

Swimming with dolphins in Kaikoura yesterday was spectacular and one of the most amazing experiences I’ve ever had. The dolphins pretty much swam past us without much notice, but it was amazing to have them swimming under and around us. We were in a pod of about 500! Everywhere we looked there were dolphins jumping and swimming. Also saw a huge school of baracuda sharks, lots of albatross and some beached seals (resting). Finished the day off with some yummy crayfish.

Video of Dolphins

From Kaikoura Day 2

Went on a whale watching boat today and saw one sperm whale. The males come to New Zealand to eat and go back to warmer waters for mating. Also saw dolphins which swam alongside our boat and were really beautiful. Tomorrow we’ll be swimming with the dolphins!

We took the ferry from Wellington to the South Island a few days ago. Exploring the Marlborough region. Went sea kayaking and hiking in Abel Tasman national park. Spent a few days in Nelson. Then, did wine tasting in Blenheim!

We had a great time in Wellington. Went to the botanical gardens and stayed on Cuba Street which is one of the most eclectic parts of town.

Some pictures of beautiful Goat Island where we went on one of our first days here. The black sand beach and deep blue water were great, though the water wasn’t very warm, so we wore wetsuits. Saw a few fish and three eagle stingrays (Maria saw four).