Tag Archives: San Diego

Recapping 2015 Part 1

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If you thought I’d be writing like a mad man in 2015 you were sadly mistaken. In a period of time where so much has changed for me it’s bewildering that it was the first year in over a decade that I wasn’t writing.

I managed to go over a year without a single post and it sure wasn’t because I had nothing to share. The last time I checked in with anyone on here was nearly 500 days ago. In that time I’ve made some massive changes to my life.

Unstable Cliffs warning sign at La Jolla Shores in San DiegoLet’s go through the highlights. I’ll keep this part brief, so much to share would hate to condense it into a single post! Continue reading →

Reviving My Photoblog

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It’s now officially been over a year since I last updated my photoblog. It kind of blows my mind considering photoblogs should take a lot less work than a wordy blog like this does to maintain. The process should be quite simple:

  1. Take a picture
  2. Process the photo
  3. Write a few sentences about the photo
  4. Post the photo

Ocean-Beach-Sunset

Yet here I am, without a post in 12 months. What a mess. Luckily I’ve promised myself that I would put an end to not blogging and doing the things that really make me happy. Also lucky for me? I get so many wonderful opportunities to take photos and make art out of them. Or at least what I consider my art.

This weekend my mom flew into San Diego to celebrate my birthday a bit early. I turn 30 next Saturday… Wish me luck on that one. More on all that later, I promise!

This post isn’t supposed to encapsulate all the fun and adventures we went on but I did want to use it as a way to hold myself accountable of making at least five updates to my photoblog in the upcoming week. Oh, quick note, all of the following images were taken with my Pentax MX-1. The most hipster of seriously-cool range-finder-ish digital cameras.

Venice-Beach-Collage

Let’s hope I don’t fail us all! It’s time you all start holding me accountable! There, I’ve passed my failure onto you.

Why Do I Want to Podcast So Badly?

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I’m not really sure what has come over me but for the last few weeks I’ve been obsessing with the idea of podcasting again. It’s doubtful that any of you remember my old days of podcasting back in 2006. It was a short-lived experiment in the burgeoning medium but a fun one.

The_JC_Show

Back then all I had was a Dell laptop and crappy RadioShack microphone and a quirky friend named Callie who laughed at everything I said and made the most ridiculous statements. Our show was called The Justin & Callie Show partly because we were so incredibly creative (snark) and because we thought it funny to have a “J C” show that wasn’t about Jesus.

I told you she laughed at everything. Oh dear Callie, you were too good to me. Continue reading →

How I Used Social Media to Buy a Car

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Wow, my first post since moving to San Diego and it only took 52 days to do it! That’s pretty horrible, I must admit. Here I thought moving to a new city would inspire me to be more active in my photography and blogging. Nope. Turns out moving and starting a new job means you have next to no free time. When you do find yourself void of responsibilities, all you really want to do is relax with your iPad and new season of Nikita on Netflix. Perhaps I’m projecting a bit… Clearly I really love that show.

For all the years I lived in San Francisco I never owned a car. It just wasn’t necessary. I walked almost everywhere in that city, and loved it. It was a healthy way to get around and it allowed me a little time to myself. When I needed to go further than a say a mile, I’d take the Muni. And despite what many of the locals might say, we have a stellar mass transit system.

My apartment had a Walk Score of 98 and a Bike Score of 95. My office had a Walk Score of 92, a Transit Score of 100 and a Bike Score of 89. Basically I had the world, just steps away. San Diego, well it isn’t quite the same here. Continue reading →

I’m Crowdsourcing My Next Car Purchase Decision

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All my car people, I need your advice! I’m sure you’ve all heard by now that I’m moving to San Diego. When I move there I’ll need a car. No more public transit or riding my bike to work for me unfortunately.

Honda-Civic-versus-BMW-3-Series-Coupe

My original plan was to do a two year lease on a car. That seemed like a good idea until we broke down the mileage. 12,000 miles a year just wouldn’t cut it for me I fear. The overage charges for a lease are pretty high and the amount of money spent over the two years is closing in on the cost of a decent used car.

So that leaves me with buying a car. Deal is I might only be in San Diego for six months so buying a car to own for years and years might not be practical but at the same time I don’t want to suffer through six months of a clunker right?

Here is where your advice comes in. I’ll list a few needs and maybe you can give me some ideas of what car to get, should I go used or new and maybe even where to buy it in San Diego? Continue reading →

Au Revoir San Francisco, I’m Moving to San Diego

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So right now I’m vacationing with my family in the Florida Keys. The following week I fly to New York City to go to WeWork Summer Camp and visit Keith and the Girl. I then fly directly to Texas for work meetings and get this, on August 31 I move to San Diego.

San Diego California Embarcadero Marina ParkThat’s right. I’m giving up the cold blanket of fog for the warm sunshine of America’s Finest City. Starting September 1, all things going as planned, I’ll be moved into my new home and starting work a couple of days later.

If you feel taken aback by this news rest assured you’re not alone. Three weeks ago I’d never have even thought twice about moving to San Diego. I’d never even been to San Diego! Then, seemingly out of nowhere, an incredible job opportunity opened up. I jokingly responded something like, “Oh if only I lived in San Diego!” and then boom, two weeks later I’m in San Diego on interview six or eleven (depending on how we’re counting). Continue reading →