Small accomplishments

I like to think of life as a conglomerate of little accomplishments. Sometimes they may take a little longer to achieve; eventually, however, they can be done. I would like to say I had a few accomplishments this weekend.

First accomplishment: learning BART. It needs to be said that America sucks in the whole public transportation department compared to our friends in Europe. But ah well, Bart will still save me time and money (I think). So my grandparents and I took Bart for a test run into the city. There was this HUGE farmers market on the water. IT... WAS... AWESOME. The picture to the left is a shot of this farmers market (the man in the burgundy shirt is my grandpa bob--great guy, you should get to know him).

Second accomplishment: tackling, and for the most part, conquering the California freeways. Wowee! These people are intense... especially coming from my laid back driving experience in good ol' Spokane where we have a ONE freeway. I only had to pull out the map a few times!! I was meeting my good friend Kim Paul at Golden Gate Park, who just happened to be in San Fran for the weekend. We had such a fun day acting like true tourists in a city full of culture, history, and astounding scenery. I was on cloud nine. We went to Golden Gate park, Coit tower, Telegraph Hill (which is in the picture to the right), Lombard street, Ghiradelli Factory (mmm....), St. Peter and Paul's church, and Little Italy. We went everywhere... which brings me to my next point...

Third accomplishment: driving a stick in San Francisco! Have you ever SEEN these hills?!? Yeah, just take my word... steepest hills a stick driver will ever encounter.

This is a pic I took from the top of Coit tower....

Fourth accomplishment: going to a new ward! Although I have to say, this experience wasn't so much an accomplishment as it was a miracle. Without getting too mushy or spiritual on you, today I was reminded of how much the Lord loves me and is taking care of me. Sometimes I feel like He has to hit me on the head to remind me, but He gets through. I got out of my car, took a deep breath, and confidently open the doors into the church building. Who is the first person I see? Jake Rice... a kid from my Enclave ward in Provo. WHAT?!?! Am I in the wrong city?? I seriously was so confused. Then I turn around, Kevin, another friend from accounting and whatnot is standing to my right. After sacrament I see Paul Broadbent, another friend from the Enclave. THEN I am sitting in this room where all the new people were sent, and the girl leading the little meeting was the girl who took me to my pre-interview dinner for P-dub last November. What is going on?! Later on I met another guy working at my office, two guys working at KPMG, two girls from my freshman ward, and a girl who knows two of my past roommates. It was.... amazing. I left church never feeling so loved and comforted. I don't know why I got so lucky. Either way, I am very grateful and excited for what is to come.

So how am I liking San Francisco? As you can see below, I give it a big thumbs up.