Last weekend I celebrated 35 (!) years on this planet, and 14 (!) in this vibrant city, San Francisco, that I’m madly in love with! Thanks to all my dear friends who made my weekend so wonderful!! Click here for my photos, if you didn’t see them already.

Thinking back over all these years, part of me feels like I’ve had so many different lives. We live in different apartments (my current one of 7 years may be the longest I’ve ever lived in a place, in my whole life!), we have different jobs, friend groups, relationships, and habits in our day to day lives. But of course, through it all though, I’ve always been ME, and I feel grateful to be 35 years into this life, and to have learned so much about myself through all of the above. So, to celebrate and acknowledge how amazing my time in San Francisco has been, I thought it’d be fun to put together a post that has a few photos for each monumental year thus far.

A quick pre-SF catch up (it’s quick, I promise):

• 1993 – Graduated high school in Steamboat, CO, where I was born & raised [photos]
• 93/94 – Attended art school in Denver, CO for Visual Communications [photos]
• 94/95 – Dropped out of art school and moved to Boulder, CO. [photos]
• 95/96 – Lived & worked in Boulder, CO, where I worked for a Chiropractor who I had talked to about my wanting to move to SF, and when he moved his offices back to Beverly Hills, he asked me to move there and help him, so I figured that was my ‘in’ to California! I knew one friend there, Paula – who I’d met in Boulder, along with Sandy – who introduced me to her friend Aletha, who I ended up moving in with in West Hollywood. Everyone asks if I hated LA, but I enjoyed my time there. I was really active & did a lot of hiking in the Malibu hills and Runyon Canyon. :) Anyway… eventually I realized I was looking for FT work again & was like, wait a second… I was on my way to SF! So I packed up my little car with all of my possessions and headed north… moving to SF on my birthday weekend, June 20, 1996.

1996

This was technically when I lived in LA (where I was for 4 short months before moving up to SF), but this was taken probably within a month or so of my moving up to SF; on my birthday weekend, June 20, 1996.

I had met Sandy in Boulder, when she lived in Wisconsin, but once I got to LA, she was living in San Mateo and came down to visit with a few of her girlfriends.

Again, this shot isn’t taken in SF – but it marks the time (it’s hard to find a bunch of digital photos documenting so far back… we didn’t have digital cameras or cell phones yet!). Moving up to SF, Sandy was my one close friend here, so I took her on a family trip to Lake Havasu. How cute is my little sister? (She’s 16 years younger, and just finished her first year of College!)

Drinks with some coworkers from my first job in SF, where I basically answered phones & stuffed envelopes at the Academy of Art. Hey, it was at an art school, so that was close right? :) Sidenote: I can’t remember any of these people’s names, and don’t keep in touch with any of them, which is so rare for me! Anyone recognize any of them?

1997

My boyfriend Dan (who I met through my friend/coworker & his sister, Deanna, at the Academy of Art) & I on a river trip with my employer, The Learning Annex. Getting a job there was a dream come true at the time, even though to start it was also envelope stuffing and phone answering. But the good news is I eventually moved up the ranks to Events Coordinator and had my first salaried position (and my first business cards!).

To save money I got my hair done at Vidal Sassoon by a student, who asked me to be a model in her hair show. heh

1998

Me with the awesome spiritual teacher, Shakti Gawain. I read her books when I lived in Boulder, and after meeting her through my work at The Learning Annex, I volunteered at a weekend workshop of hers, and a few other events. It was probably around this time I also did a lot reading and learning from SARK, too.

[It’s hard to find a lot of photos online for this time]

1999

On NYE 98/99 I randomly met Matt at the bar. I had been watching movies with a friend’s house around the corner, but by midnight we were bored and decided to go around the corner to a bar & ring in the new year. My hair wasn’t washed & I wasn’t dressed up or anything… funny how that works, huh? I love this photo of us.

There’s a gap in here I can’t find photos to represent as well, but in 1999 I left The Learning Annex & got hired on to my first start-up, working as a Production Artist at Care2.com… my first art job!

2000

Visiting Matt’s family in PA… I love this photo of us, too.

In 2000, I left Care2 and was hired on as a Flash Designer at Spunkytown! Dream job, and back in SOMA (vs commuting down to Palo Alto). But, sadly didn’t last long.

What was left of our team in late 2000.

After taking some time off, I got a job as the lead web designer at Fine Brand Media, in Potrero Hill [view my old portfolio from this time].

Also I think it was some time in 2000 that Matt & I moved into our first place together, which was on the back side of Potrero Hill, near SF General.

2001
Matt surprised me with Kazoobie on my 26th birthday!

Tired of the natural blond, I went fire engine red! aww yaaaa

2002

I got bangs. Also cue “One of these things is not like the other…” ♫

Drinking mojitos at my 27th Birthday Party 2002

I actually got my first digital camera in 2003, and finally started storing some photos online! phew. Except I have a feeling it’s going to make it really hard to just choose one or two photos to represent a year. :p

2003
2003 was a REALLY big year in my life… as you’ll soon read.

Living in Bernal Heights again! Matt & I’s second place together, a cute little place on Lundys Lane. (I had lived in Bernal for maybe 4 or so months (?) when I first moved to SF in ’96.)

Jane & I met online and quickly became close friends. Where before I had been a web designer and blogger on my own, I hadn’t yet met others doing the same thing. Jane introduced me to her community, and honestly I owe SO many incredible relationships & connections to this time.

It was also really key to meet this amazing group of girls & friends, because in May of 2003 – after 4.5 years, 2.5 of living together – Matt & I separated. I moved in to the place I live now, and actually no more than a few months later got laid off my job. 28 years old + Saturn return = Ch-ch-changes!!

Old school crew. This was my birthday weekend, exactly 7 years ago! After my super fun birthday party the night before, this is Ev, Jane, Sarah, Goldman, Chris & me, post hangover breakfast at Boogaloos.

Here’s another fun one from that time:

Ev, Jee, Jane & me, at Kat’s party. Funny because while these shots are from two different days, I think Ev is wearing the same shirt. hehee.

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Wow… OK, diving even a little into the last 1/2 of 2003 & 2004 is making me realize I am definitely going to have to do a part two to this puppy!! Well, I got the first SEVEN years covered, eh? :p

Before I complete this chapter, let me just say that pretty much ALL of these friendships are still in tact, and have wonderfully grown, morphed and blossomed into friends whom I consider family. Should you be curious:

• Sandy, Paula and Aletha (from 1996) are all still very dear close friends of mine!! Sandy’s back in Wisconsin now (and coming to visit in just a few days!), Paula’s in Vegas (saw her in Feb) & Aletha’s in Oakland (saw her here on my bday!)!
• Dan (my boyfriend from 1997) & I are still in contact on Facebook & have been able to see each other a few times over the years (he lives in Santa Rosa with a wife & 2 kids)
• Matt (my boyfriend of 4.5 years & who I call my “kittydaddy”) & I are family for life. Matt has a bigger heart than anyone I know (and is always happy to go to Emmy’s Spaghetti shack, or make you blueberry pancakes). I love how close we are after all these years, and feel truly fortunate to have him as a friend for life.
• Jane moved away years ago, but now works for WordPress, so we’ve been able to see each other more lately, which has been cool. Sarah moved to Boston & I’m hoping to see her when I go visit in a few weeks! Ev & Goldman are busy rockin’ Twitter, and I’m so incredibly proud of how far they’ve come (but not surprised, because they’re awesome). And CW (Chris) is at Brizzly, along with Shellen, and I’m loving doing illustration work for them!

My friends rule, and I’m excited to recap the last seven years in an upcoming post. But right now I’ve got to get ready for my fabulous new friend, Adrianne – who I met at SXSW this year, and I suspect will be a dear friend for years to come! – who’s coming over for dinner.

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