2009 in review

Consider this my Christmas letter of sorts - a year in review of one of the most interesting years I have had. 2009 started out with me continuing my year long career break that started in September 2008. My plans were mostly to travel, wine taste, and spend quality time with family and friends. Other than the US and the UK, I spent the most travel time in 2009 in New Zealand. I took buses across the North and South island at the end of the Southern hemisphere summer, spending a month on each island. New Zealand is so beautiful, and I loved that I could surf, hike a glacier and work on my tan all in the same country. I also loved how such a small country has so many wine regions and excellent wines at affordable prices.

Another highlight of 2009 was being able to spend so much time with my best friend Brea, and helping her prepare for her wedding on May 25, 2009. From the girls cruise to Mexico, attending one of her wedding showers in Boston, and being able to help prepare for her wedding for the entire week ahead of time, I was able to be closely involved in one of the most important moments of her life. It meant a lot to me, and I wouldn't have been able to do all those things if I had been working abroad.

A downside to the year was my rejected UK visa (and the associated loss of the $1,000 application fee). For reasons such as differences in opinion on what constitutes "original" documentation, and then a subsequent change in the eligibility rules, I didn't have much luck trying to re-enter the UK work force. But, I didn't let that get me down too much. Instead I took an Advanced Wine and Spirits course, spent a month traveling around Spain in July, and then enjoyed August and September in London, attending musicals and plays, and spending time with friends before flying back to the US at the end of September.

The timing of my trip home was ingeniously coordinated with my 30th birthday celebration with wonderful friends in New York City. We lived it up like rock stars for a weekend of fine dining and tourist attractions, and it was a great way to close out my year of travel and my 20s. Back in the US, I have spent October - December house-hopping, couch-surfing, and pet-sitting amongst friends in San Francisco, and enjoying the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays at home with my parents. I also landed some contract consulting work to help refill the coffers and get back involved in the industry.

2010 is starting out well. I have a few job opportunities I am pursuing, which will determine whether I stay in the US or go back to the UK, and I have a sublet in San Francisco starting tomorrow. Also, just one hour into the new year, I was able to get a cab in the Marina district of San Francisco back over to Noe Valley. That alone is an auspicious start to 2010 and if this luck continues, it will indeed be a fantastic year and I should probably start playing the lottery!

I am so grateful to my family and friends who have helped me out in the ways I have needed this year (i.e. food, a roof over my head, and the borrowing of cars) and who are making me realize how dear they are to me. I hope that I do, and will, return similar favors in the future.