Best of 2012: Experiences

I have been trying to figure out a good way to recap the year without being too cliche, and Lisa gave me just the idea. So, here it is, the best of 2012, in list form!

1. Becoming a better runner. This year I learned a lot about myself as a runner. I learned how to run smarter and faster and I had a great time completing many races, including my first ultra marathon.

Nike Women's Marathon

2. Spending more time with family. This year was full of family. My cousin got married, my grandma turned 80, I had wine and swam in the pond with my other grandmother Back East and I spent countless hours making food, eating food and running with Broski and the lady friend. Not to mention the normal get togethers like Christmas and Thanksgiving.  It's been a great year for family!

3. Going to Kansas City to visit Red. In March, I visited my friend in Kansas City, and we ate BBQ, lots of self serve frozen yogurt and had a great time catching up and hanging out and exploring the city.

4. A trip to Tampa for some fun in the sun. I had a great time in the Sarasota and St. Petersburg areas of Florida, where I spent lots of time on the beach reading and relaxing, as well as trying paddle boarding for the first time, going running near the beach and gorging myself on all-you-can-eat crab.

 5. Starting a new job. This has been a challenge, but a fun one. I completely switched industries, which has been hard. Nobody likes to start at the bottom again, and it has been a crazy journey, with new things coming along every day.

6. Girls day out in Berkeley. My mom came down and we went out with a few friends and my aunt and cousin for brunch, shopping and cupcake eating. It's always fun to get together with the girls, although it happens less often than I would like.

7. Living in Santa Cruz for the summer. I couldn't have asked for a better place to spend the summer. I really enjoyed being able to go the beach each day, to run with the view of the Pacific in my sights and to get to know this fun little town a lot better. While there, friends S&R came to visit and it was really fun showing them around my new home.

8. Road trip to Amherst, MA. Mr Lovely decided to go back to school and so we took a road trip to Amherst to find him some housing. The towns of Amherst and Northampton are really cute and actually reminded me a little bit of a mountain version of Santa Cruz. They are little hippie filled college towns with nice earthy vibes.

9. Hosting Lisa in San Francisco. Except for the rain, which I was a little mad about since it kind of makes it hard to stroll around the city, I had a great time hosting Lisa for a quick two days in the city. We took a trail run, went to the Castro, walked on the Golden Gate Bridge, went to the park to visit the bison and much, much more. It was fun to finally get a chance to pay her back for the excellent visit I had to Minneapolis last year.

10. Hanging with friends in Oakland. I've made a few new local friends this year and it has been nice getting to know them and some of the fun places in Oakland as well. They are all great people and Oakland has some great sights to see and places to visit. New Years Eve was spent with them and we had a great time eating dungeness crab and playing Scategories before watching the ball drop.

11. Qualifying for Boston. This was something that I really worked hard for and I was really, really happy to qualify for, and sign up for the Boston Marathon in 2013. I even had over 5 minutes to spare.

12. Going to see some great bands. I love live music, but I don't always make time to go to concerts. This year, I was lucky to see several bands, including The Kaiser Chiefs, The Killers, Of Monsters and Men, Imagine Dragons, Passion Pit, and The Shins.

13. Growing a garden. I grew stuff. Stuff that didn't die. Yes, it was exciting. And there is nothing better than a home grown tomato straight from the vine. I can't wait until next year when I can start planting again. 

14. Being in San Francisco. I love wandering around the city, and have really enjoyed the walks I have been taking a few times a week. I am enjoying getting to know little corners of the city that I never knew were there.

15. Going to baseball games. I am so glad that the Giants won the world series and I was really excited to not only be in the area for this, but to go to many of the games. Going to the games is a great way to see a fun sport and to spend time with friends and family as well.

16. Yosemite. I went to Yosemite and had a great time taking long hikes and seeing the sights again. Winter is the area is beautiful and we were lucky not to have too much snow, so we could do a lot of the higher hikes.

17. Going to Oregon with the ladies. I went to Sisters with my second family and we had a great time eating ice cream and hiking and enjoying 30 degree weather in June. We ran every day and it was great to have the snow capped mountains as a backdrop for my runs.

What have been the highlights of 2012 for you? Did you go to any concerts? Did you take any fun trips?