Flannel shirts and Barbecues

I did it. I am so sorry. I bought a flannel shirt.

I was in Plato's Closet in Indianapolis before I left and saw a cute green button down flannel shirt. I decided to buy it (and some jean shorts) because I knew it was a trend in California.

Problem is I had no idea it was such a big trend! Everyone wears flannel. It goes casual on the beach with jeans, keds sneakers, and a fedora while cruising down the boardwalk on your bike to LA chic where it is used as a layering piece under a hoodie and over a vintage tee.

The first time I wore my new flannel green and black shirt was my second weekend. I went up to LA to drive around and get the feel of the city. I was able to stop over by A.SweeT boutique on Beverly Drive to say hi to my friend Jen. (If you are ever in Beverly Hills check out this store it is so cool!)

I was feeling my LA street cred increase when I stopped into the Coffee Bean for a Chai Tea Latte. Afterward, I went back down to Newport. My friend, Mark, knew of some friends throwing a barbecue on their rooftop deck.

I was in! How neat of a first weekend out to go to a bbq on the beach. I felt like I should be in the 1960s and call it a Clambake as Moondoggie walked out of the ocean after he landed a neat-o wave.



Back to reality, I met up with the gang at Mark's. I made sure to grab some beer - never want to show up empty handed. Mark, his roommate Paris, her friend Kimmy, and I jumped on some beach cruisers and hit the boardwalk. When we showed up to the party we were the first one there. We helped ice down the beer, bring up the food, then the girls had the daunting task of lighting the grill.

It was spring break 2009 all over again! Shelby and I are trying to grill steaks on a charcoal grill and we have only ever used gas growing up. We found lighter fluid and lets just say that meat did not taste too good.

Luckily, the boys next door came over and helped us get it started. Yes, there was a house full of good looking surfer guys next door... pinch me. As one guy helped us as the others came in from the beach. I swear this started to turn into a teeny bopper TV show. Hair dripping wet, wetsuit half way off, abs I could wash my clothes on. (But egos to boot which lessens the hotness).

As the night went on we all grilled out, had some drinks, played some tunes, then it started to get chilly. Yes, it gets cold in California once that sun goes down.

Oh I almost forgot about my flannel. It was complimented on! (say what?!?) The hot surfer guys were all like, "hey nice flannel." Um, thanks?

As it got colder on the roof, one of them even asked if they could borrow it. I said no because then I would get cold plus it wouldn't fit them. He laughed. I was confused.

I haven't quite made up my mind about the flannel. I have yet to wear it again but it was very warm and comfortable. Thoughts?

A week of firsts

First day of work - yahoo!

To quote Billy Madison, "Back to school. Back to school, to prove to Dad that I'm not a fool. I got my lunch packed up, my boots tied tight, I hope I don't get in a fight. Ohhhh, back to school. Back to school. Back to school. Well, here goes nothing."

It really did feel like my first day of school because my mom dropped me off and picked me up. They took the car for the day and spent it leisurely on the beach. See below - tough life.

I know all of you AT girls are wondering what I wore. Army green wrap dress, gray cardigan, pearl earrings (duh), and neutral flats (ALL Ann Taylor).

Speaking from the future: I cannot tell you how much I love my job! I love all of the people and the environment. Not to mention my team is OUTSTANDING! Am I raving enough? :)

Another first - First night out!
Did not make it. I was so tired from work and the time change I ended up falling asleep in my going out clothes. Smooth move, right? On the upside, Sunday my roommate, Sherry, and I took the boat out. It was such a relaxing way to spend my first weekend in SoCal.

Another first - grocery shopping.
Wow who knew it was so hard?! I mean there are a million different types of the same thing. I never know what to get. I made a list but as you shop you get really hungry. To help me on my first journey I called Michelle, one of my best friends from grade school. She listened to me whine and groan, complain about people and their carts, and ask how you cook everything. Needless to say I am sure it was quite entertaining. I promised myself (and Michelle) that I will try to cook. After living at home, then living in the dorm, then living in the sorority house I have always had my meal cooked for me (and trust me I never took it for granted). I have never had to really dig in a recipe and cook for myself. Here goes nothing... stay tuned.

Family dinner and the Oscars

It is the night before my first offical day of work. I am so anxious, nervous, excited... I feel like I am an actress nominated at the Oscars (well not quite, but a little).

Speaking of Oscars, it was so neat to be so close to Hollywood on that night. I was able to watch it in the hotel room with my parents. After recieving several texts from friends about how cool it is to be near LA, I decided I am going next year. I have several ideas how:

1. Become an actress and get nominated (easy)
2. Become a seat warmer person (when a celeb has to pee I steal their spot and smile and clap)
3. Haven't figured out the third yet

Oh wait, pause, rewind, we had a wonderful dinner before the Oscars. Apparently I have family in Laguna. Who knew? They are my mom's cousins. It gets very confusing but they are part of the Shuba side (aka Mom's side) of the family. They are absolutely fabulous and I am so grateful to have them nearby.

Bookcase for shoes

I am defending my decision to have a bookcase of shoes.

A couple people commented, "why do you want a bookcase of shoes?" Well let me tell you:

1. Heels are pretty and can be used as decoration,
2. Did you see my closet? It is packed full.
3. I already have an under the bed shoe thing.
4. Again, shoes are pretty!

To quote a movie that I bought at a Blockbuster going-out-of-business sale, Head Over Heels:

"How much room do you need to sleep? But shoes, they need their space."

So true :)

IKEA

Oh IKEA let me count the ways I love you!

Honestly, I love IKEA. We do not have one in Indiana and the closest store is in Cinci so it is kind of an all day trip.

Alright, let's review: I have a room in California now I need to fill it. I grabbed my parents and we go to South Coast Plaza.

I walk in and am overwhelmed. Suddenly I am Zooey Deschanel (my favorite actress) in 500 Days of Summer... sadly, I am missing Joesph Gordon-Levitt.

See clip below to know how I felt:


"Honey I don't want to alarm you but there is a Chinese family in our bathroom"

So cute and clever, that movie :)

Back to IKEA... I was set on a bed because I am in love with Ashley Goehler's bed so I decided to steal it. A nicer way of looking at it is that we have twin beds (but they are actually a full and a queen... you do the math).

Once I had the bed I decided on the matching six door-dresser and TV stand. Plus, the matching bed side table. Now for the fun part, assembling it.

Side note: DO NOT GO TO IKEA ON A SATURDAY!!!!!

If you have never been to IKEA. The idea is to have cheap furniture mass produced from Sweden and the customer assembles it at home. They have everything from furniture to mattresses to bedding to kitchen appliances to decoration to rugs.. seriously! The one on South Coast Plaza even has TWO food courts and a daycare center (P.S. Fro-yo only one dollar).

We opted for the home delivery because my little Civic could not carry everything. The only problem with this is the delivery time is not specific so you end up waiting in 4 hour time periods. It was worth it though!

Once the delivery arrived it was building time. We were able to get everything completed in two days. This was necessary because mom and dad were flying home soon and I had to start work. I actually enjoyed building everything. It made me feel accomplished.

This is what my room looks like all said and done. However, I did end up buying a floor to ceiling bookcase for my shoes.







Oh heck, let's enjoy another super adorable clip of Zooey and Joesph:

Roommates

Once we were all settled in the hotel it was time to look for a roommate.

Yes, ladies and gentleman, I moved out to California WITHOUT a roommate (Again I pose, Am I nuts?)

I have heard good and bad reviews about Craigslist so I started sending out generic emails like this:

Hi!
I saw your place on craigslist. I am looking for a place to live. I am from the Midwest, Indianapolis to be exact. I just received a full-time job in Irvine-so no worries about a roomie not making rent. I am 23 years old, fun, reliable, friendly, outgoing, straight, non-smoker, socially drink, and I do not use drugs. I enjoy spending time with friends but am very respectful of not bringing the party home.

I am looking for all female roommates, no kids, non-smokers, no drug use.

Can you tell me more about the place? Address? Pics of the room? More about you? Other roommates?

Thanks!
Adair

Responses:
CRAZIES
-Must be 420 friendly
-Must be able to live with couple, heck no I do not wait to be your solution
-Must be willing to live with pregnant woman and husband, hello mistress/nanny
-Must be comfortable with different lifestyle... I don't even wanna know
-And the average post just to hit on women

Tips:
-Make a 'must-have' list
-Make a 'no way in hell' list and stick to it!
-Budget your money before searching, I found out my max and was looking for anything below it because that would mean more 'fun' money
-Take a look at how long your commute will be to work, in California traffic is SO bad they tell it by time not miles. For example, yes it is only 20 miles North on the 405 but it is about 30 minutes. It takes me an hour to get to LA on a good day, on a bad day three hours.
-Shop around, do not commit to anyone
-Imagine yourself in the room
-Make sure it is in a safe neighborhood
-Go eat lunch at a local deli or coffee shop to get the mood of the neighborhood
-Make sure you can live with your roommate, no you do not have to be best friends but make sure you both value the same things. ex. cleanliness.

While in my roommate search, I posted a profile on roommates.com, which I heard from friends was a safe bet. I did not prefer this site because you had to pay for service and people did not always get back to you. Not to mention, the pickins were slim!

So off I went to find a place to live. I started in Huntington Beach. Surf City. I thought, heck, this would be a sweet place to live! I had been there before when I was younger for a surf competition. My mom and I arrived early so we parked (in the all day lot-opps) and went to have lunch at a pier resturant. I ordered shrimp tacos - needed that seafood fix being so close to the ocean) and my mom ordered some kind of soup that was fabulous as well. Like I said, it was kind of chilly outside.


After a couple photo opps, see below:


It was time to meet the potential roomies. They has a house about three blocks from the pier. It was a nice house, did not have a home vibe. The ladies were very nice and seemed like great people. Unfortunaltey it was not for me when I found out they wanted cash and one had lost her job the week prior- can you say red flags?

Defeated I went back to the car. On to the next one. The next one was not near the beach but a nicer house and room. About $1000 a month which was the max of my budget. It was a nice house but there was one woman who had a kid and it was just not right for me.

Luckily, weeks prior to my move my dad was searching online and found a house on a lake. I started emailing back and forth with the owner, Sherry. She was very nice and was renting out a room. I had a great feeling about this and so did my parents.

Once my dad flew in from Indy we all went to check it out. It was perfect! Right then and there I was in. Ta-da no longer homeless! It was a great situation because it is safe, close to work, month to month etc. I do want to move closer to the water when I have a good group of girls to share a house with.

I was so happy! My parents and I celebrated with a dinner at Habana in Costa Mesa. This restaurant is an Ahlers' family favorite. It is a little Cuban restaurant with AMAZING food! I recommend sitting outside in their candle lit patio. Order Ropa Veija or the Halibut if it is in season. In fact, the first night my dad and I talked it up so much, once my mom tasted it she asked if we could come back again the next night.


After dinner, we went back to the hotel and started compiling a LENGTHY list of everything I would need. Tomorrow we would go to IKEA :)

Road Trip: Day 3 (and 4)

The next morning we woke up in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

It was a million times colder than I imagined. Road trip advice #2: Bring layers!

My mom and I met up with my Aunt Dee, her daughter, Stasha, and Stasha's little boy at a breakfast nook called the Flying Ship.


I highly recommend the Morning Sundae. It was like dessert only as breakfast. Imagine organic vanilla yogurt with fresh and dried fruits, walnuts, homemade granola, with drizzled honey on top.
YUMMMM


After a lovely breakfast we were back on the road. The day seemed better because we knew it would end in California (cue Tu Pac).

Pit stop off Route 66 at a diner in Flagstaff, Arizona.

Enter: cutest diner ever created.

The diner had a total of five people in it. Three worked there. Then my mom and I made five. It was so cute and I could not wait to eat some warm home-cooked food! I went with the beef manhattan or as I called it 'the carb meal'. I will post pictures soon but I am having blackberry technical difficulties. None the less, the restaurant was friendly, and creatively decorated following a train theme. They even had a little choo choo train running along the ceiling's perimeter.

After stuffing our faces, and my brief food coma, we were on our way to Cali.

Before we made it to the Golden Coast, we had to cross the desert, but we were prepared. Many people warned us to gas up, get water, grab snack because the last thing you want is to be stranded. However, there are more than enough rest stops and we traveled across in the dark so there was not over heating danger (just sayin). But it is a great reason to grab some Twizzlers.

FINALLY we arrived!!!

(insert picture of me and the Welcome to California sign)

Yes, we pulled over in the middle of traffic and took pictures. Our final destination was Barstow then the next day we drove to Irvine (not a big road trip day so I'm not blogging about it... I'm already far behind in my blogging and need to catch up)



****In the future****
So, that is it for our road trip. It was so much fun! And I am so grateful to have a mother that jumped at the chance :) All in all, it was a roller coaster. I cannot tell you how many times I asked if I was crazy, if we could turn around, or "I just wanna go home"s, but I understood this is an adventure. That is how I am suppose to look at it. Even now in hind sight, while I am blogging on a Saturday night and everyone is out celebrating the Butler victory I am happy to be taking chances.

Mark Twain said it best... "Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than the ones you did. So throw off the bowlines, Sail away from the safe harbor, Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."