Category: Uncategorized

One of the items on my 101 in 1001 days list is to watch 50 movies from the IMDB top 250 list. Here’s a list of the movies I’ve selected and the dates I’ve watched them.

1. 3 idiots
2. A Beautiful Mind
3. A Silent Voice
4. Amelie
5. Avengers: Infinity War
6. Back to the Future
7. Before Sunrise
8. Before Sunset
9. Casablanca
10. Casino
11. Catch Me If You Can
12. Coco – watched 4/24/2021
13. Dangal
14. Dead Poet’s Society
15. Dial M for Murder
16. Die Hard
17. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
18. Fargo
19. Fight Club
20. Finding Nemo
21. Gone Girl
22. Gone with the Wind
23. Good Will Hunting
24. Green Book
25. Hachi: A Dog’s Tale
26. Hamilton
27. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
28. Inception
29. Inside Out
30. Into the Wild
31. It Happened One Night
32. Joker
33. Jurassic Park
34. Klaus
35. Life of Brian
36. Like Stars on Earth
37. Mary and Max
38. Memento
39. Monsters Inc.
40. Monty Python and the Holy Grail
41. Shutter Island
42. Singin’ in the Rain
43. Snatch
44. Soul – watched 5/2/2021
45. Spotlight
46. The Dark Knight
47. The Green Mile
48. Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
49. To Kill a Mockingbird
50. Your Name

Late last year! I signed up for the Disneyland Tinker bell Half Marathon that took place in January earlier this year. I was determined to train for it, especially since it would be my first race…ever, but never got around to committing to a true training plan.

As the new year started, I decided I’d make a commitment to getting some good run time in…and I did for the first week and then got a bad sinus infection the second week. There was no way for me to run with that stuff going on. I rested up and with just one week before the half, I felt good enough to get out for the longest run I had ever done in my life of 11 miles. And I completed it! I knew that I would at least be able to complete the half marathon, even if I had to walk part of the time, within the 16-minute mile requirement set for the race.

And I did it…with an official time of 13:12:43.

Holy what?!? I completed a freaking half marathon!!! And I even got a cute medal to prove it. I’ve already signed up for the Tinkerbell Half Marathon in January 2014, and no I haven’t started training yet, but I know I’ll beat my personal record for that race.

Now, a few weeks ago, I got a crazy idea to sign up for the Rock n’ Roll Half Marathon in Las Vegas on November 17. Their time requirement is a 20-minute mile, which is definitely doable, but I have been so busy the past few weeks with conference production, that I’ve barely made time to take a shower and eat, let alone get outside for training runs. I know–priorities, right?!

So today, I finally got my butt off the couch and decided to get out for a longer run. I usually run in my neighborhood, but wanted to get out somewhere with a nicer view. A friend suggested going out to Boulder City near Lake Meade, and so I made my way out to the Far East side of town.

I decided I’d do around 6 miles, which is at least double what I’ve done most recently, and considering I only have 15 days before the race, I figured it was a good distance. Three miles out and then three miles back. On the way out it felt great as I had some decent speed but didn’t push it. I know my limits and seeing as I’ve been sitting things out for a while knew that I should take it easy, even if it was good distance.

What I wasn’t expecting was the ups and downs of the run…like literally the inclines and declines. That, combined with the bright sun and lack of water (I drank it all on the drive out), I was not in the best shape as I started back to the car. My left hand and wrist started swelling and felt very tight, which I’m guessing was due to the elevation and heat. Then I started getting cold chills and realized I wasn’t sweating that much, even though it was warm.

I just kept telling myself, “I can do this. It doesn’t have to be fast. I only have to get back to the car. Take it step by step.” The last mile, I even sang out loud together my mind off of my left hand and the chills. It worked…before I knew it, I came to the trailhead and as I looked at my phone to stop my Runkeeper app, I realized I did it…

6 miles–completed!

May the training efforts continue…

A few years ago, I sat across the table from a London colleague who said with great passion, “You all live in a f*cking bubble in San Francisco,” and I agreed with him.

I fell in love with the beauty of San Francisco the first time I visited in October 2007. I was only in town for 4 days, but before I was boarding the plane back to Madison, WI, I had decided I was moving to the West coast. Just 6 months later, I sold all my furniture, packed my car, and drove across the U.S. to my new home. My love for the city continued to grow as I experienced the sites, parks, food, wine, and special events calendar that never fails to offer something for everyone. I also enjoyed getting messages from friends all over the world saying they were coming to SF to visit and wanted to hang out. No one ever visited Madison, WI.

So let’s get back to this bubble comment…

It was February 2008. We were in the middle of a major economic crisis. People were losing jobs and it wasn’t pretty. I had only been in the Bay area for less than a year and wasn’t making much myself. It was a stressful and depressing time for most.

When my colleague mentioned the bubble, he may have been referencing the ‘tech bubble’ we are familiar with. But that’s not the bubble I love. While it’s been exciting to see technology bloom over the past few years from the heart of the industry, I’m more impressed with the people BEHIND the technology everyone uses; the entrepreneurs.

Let’s be honest…San Francisco is NOT a cheap city to live in. Cost-of-living is a lot higher and I often can’t believe I pay more for my rent than most friends pay for their mortgages in other cities across the country. But there’s a reason people live here and continue to move here. The entrepreneur spirit that creates the bubble around the Bay area. This spirit is one of passion…creation…dedication, and not one that’s only focused on money.

So yes, I truly believe we live in a bubble in this city I, and many others, love so much. There’s plenty of room in the bubble and it isn’t just for tech. It’s an Equal Opportunity Bubble that embraces art, health, food, wine, environment, and all shapes and colors.

Are you passionate? Creative? Dedicated? You have an open invite into the bubble…
*Cheers,

I’ve been teasing for a while that I have some BIG news coming and it’s time to share more about what I’m doing. I’m very excited to announce that I’m starting an event production house with my business partner, Janetti Chon, who I deeply respect and admire as an event professional. Check out our new venture:

As Janetti and I had lunch together almost a month ago, we talked about what we were passionate about both in work and in life and it just clicked. We needed to not only work together, but PARTNER together to join forces to create and produce events.

It’s been a fast and furious four weeks, which should not surprise you at all if you know Janetti or me. We have a website, are getting our business needs squared away and are lining up clients. I’ve always thought about starting my own company; it just never felt like the timing was right…until now!

So what do we do? EVERYTHING! We can manage, produce, design and create strategy for a variety of events ranging from conferences, C-suite summits, offsite employee retreats, themed dinners and creative corporate events. Want to work with us? Email hello [at] golightlyhouse [dot] com to tell us more!