Sabattical

This week has been slow on the friends front. I'm getting ready to go on vacation next week, which also means that I have to tie up all of the loose ends for the next issue of my magazine. Although I did go to a work happy hour on Monday, it was with two girls...from work, so I didn't meet anyone new. I did discover a great new bar, though. Always exciting! Needless to say, this week and next week will be slow for my mission. I'll get to see some old friends and my family, so I'm excited nonetheless. Happy (friend) hunting. I'll be sure to check in after the break.

Weekend Updates

OK, so the Twilight screening was pretty much what I'd expected: a bunch of tweens with their moms and moms with their friends. I went with a group of girls, some were current friends and some friends of friends, which would have been great to meet new people except that the atmosphere was not conducive toward meeting new people. Yes, we stood in line together for an hour, but there were too many people shoving up against us and moving around us to have much of a conversation. Plus, the screams that drafted through the line every 15 or 20 minutes immediately stopped any normal conversations. So Twilight screening was interesting, but a bust for the mission.

I did learn that my friend from Pittsburgh, Suzie, is moving to San Diego. I got to hang out with her and her friend who lives here, so that may be a potential. She came into town for the weekend to look for a place to live when she moves out here in August. I'm interested to meet Suzie's new roommate who's also new to the area. Maybe we can all be friends :)

So, now it's Monday. I'm supposed to go to happy hour for work tonight and possibly ballet tomorrow. I'm thinking maybe I can make a friend at adult beginners ballet. Or, I can just have some fun!

Helpful or Just Crazy?

You never know, but I doubt that the mission will be in effect tonight while I'm at the special viewing of Twilight. I'm assuming I'll be in line to get into the theater with tweens and divorcees mostly. These are the Twihards after all...the people who get tatted up with Twilight symbols and quotes so they can carry the message with them for the rest of their lives. Really, people? Now, Jane Austen, she's someone I could see getting tatted for...JUST KIDDING! It'll be an adventure at least: getting downtown, on time, in line, fed, and in the theater in the midst of the climax of Comic-Con. (This takes over San Diego every year around this time, which hopefully will help get us out of our financial slump!) Will report back if Twilight helps my mission ;)

Mission: Widen Circle of Friends

So here's the deal. Although I've been living in San Diego now for two years, I still need friends. I have a few great people in my life out here in SD, but many of them have families and other obligations. I don't need DIFFERENT friends, I just need MORE. Like the kind I have from college who I could call up and say, "Hey, I just woke up, I'm too tired to brush my teeth, but I'm starving. Panera?" and they don't judge.

I've heard about tons of people nowadays who are putting time lines on finding a husband, finding a job, getting discounts, moving to San Diego (oh, maybe that one was just me), so why not put a time line on finding friends? As my mom would say, "Give yourself a goal!" And at the end of the designated time, if I don't have a new bff then I'll just move on to another city. Just kidding! I love San Diego! (And I don't need a new bff.)

I haven't yet decided what the time line will be, but I think it should be about 6 months to accomplish Mission: Widen Circle of Friends. It worked in Pittsburgh (yay, Laura!) so why not in SD?

I know I'm not the only 20-something out there who's looking for new friends. We're in a transitional stage in our lives. It's not as easy as finding friends, say, your freshman year of college or at your kid's little league practice. So, maybe my journey will give someone else the encouragement he or she needs to get out there and meet people! (You're not going to meet them on your couch in your apartment!)

I officially kicked off the mission last night at my first meetup group (story coming soon), so maybe the mission should end December 31st. That way, if I don't make my mission then I can start a fresh, new year. Who's with me?!

In Today's Paper

"Large squid are washing up on beaches in La Jolla and scaring divers in the area, the National Marine Fisheries Service said yesterday. 'The ones that we are getting right now have a big beak on them, like a large parrot beak. They could take a chunk of flesh off you,' said John Hyde, a biologist with the agency. Schools of Humboldt squid--also known as jumbo flying squid--have appeared along the county's shoreline several times each year since about 2001. Researchers aren't sure why they converge there, Hyde said. The creatures weigh about 20 pounds and typically measure less than four feet long, he said. Many of the squid have been spotted about 100 yards off La Jolla Shores since late last week, and waves have stranded dozens of them in that time. Hyde suspects those squid swam too close to shore in search of food and got washed up on the sand. 'The squid come up and will actually tug at people's arms, tug at their gear, tug at their mask,' Hyde said. 'They can drag you down deeper pretty quickly.'"
Um....HELLO!