MLK Weekend in LA

For MLK weekend, Arne and I headed down to Los Angeles and the Lei-Out beach ultimate tournament. It was a great chance for him to see some of my SoCal friends and me to meet some of his relatives and friends in the area. We were blessed by sunny warm clear weather all weekend.

Friday Night: Heading Down

We dropped the dogs off at our parents homes and then flew down to LA. We headed over to my friend Priya's house in Santa Monica. Once there we walked down to the Promenade and had gelato and hot chocolate and fun.

Saturday: Lei-Out



Saturday morning Priya and I headed down to the beach to play with the Supper Wobbly Amazing Pinata. It was sunny and beautiful out and I just had fun running around in the sand. Arne slept in, then I took a break from ultimate to go have lunch with him on the pier.



After the day of ultimate, we headed out to Arne's friends home in West Hollywood. George lives in a church and it was great for Arne to catch up and meet to get to know one of the characters from Arne's college days.



Sunday: Lei-Out and Dana Point



Sunday morning was more ultimate, where the team just kept winning...until we decided to play no more and just enjoy the day. After the morning of ultimate, Arne and I headed down to Dana Point and his Uncle Richard's house.



On the way we stopped at the Mission San Juan Capistrano, one of my favorite Missions, and then watched the sun set from Dana Point. After dinner with Richard and Myriam , I feel asleep exhausted.



Monday: Heading Home



Monday we had a great breakfast with Arne' aunt and uncle and then headed north. First to meet up with my friend Tracy for a beach walk and lunch, then to the airport.



Sadly, our plane was delayed several hours, but eventually we made it home to the bay area after a great SoCal adventure.

Happy New Year!

I hope that everyone had a wonderful 2008 and is looking forward to a great 2009. Looking back on my 2008, I can truly say it was one of the more amazing years of my life.

In January, I got settled into my new house in downtown Palo Alto, and started a few house projects to get everything just right in the new home. With some furniture and a new bathtub, it became a great place for me to live - my Forest House.

Over the course of the Spring, Summer, and Fall, I competed in 4 triathlons, from big ones in Hawaii and Wildflower, to some short local sprints. I had a great time swimming and biking, and, well, I ran when needed. I also got into the swing of rowing, competing locally, up in Sacramento, and down in Southern California. All those early morning workouts were worthwhile at the end of the year, when I got another gold medal from a woman's 8 race.

In May, I brought home Summer Doodle, my little Aussie rescue dog. It has been GREAT having such a wonderful addition to my home. She also gets to spend lots of time at mom's house when I am off on work travel - and sometimes she doesn't want to leave the big yard and source of lots of treats!

Work at Intuit has been amazing. I have a level of responsibility and control that I have not had before. It has been great getting to know the different businesses, taking on additional responsibility, running open source programs, and working on my favorite task, M&A. I received various awards throughout the year and feel that I have found a great workplace for me.

Onto the most exciting news, Arne, my boyfriend, moved into the house in Palo Alto! We met over the summer and it has just been amazing having him in my life. You can see some of our adventures here, in the picture book of our first 6 months together: Arne and Karna Photobook He brings to the house, Bogey his beagle, who adds company for Summer during the day.

All in all, 2008 has been great, and I am looking forward to an even more amazing 2009!