This fire is outta control...

Its too wet and cold here to catch on fire. +1 for Denmark.

More than 100 homes burned in California blaze

• Story Highlights
• Three people suffer burns, 10 smoke inhalation
  
• Winds of up to 70 mph could fuel flames through Saturday
  
• Fire threatens roughly 1,500 homes in Montecito, officials say
  
• Fire covers about 2,500 acres in Santa Barbara County
  

SANTA BARBARA, California (CNN) -- A wind-driven brush fire roaring through the canyons of Santa Barbara County has burned more than 100 homes, injured 13 people and charred more than 2,500 acres, a county spokeswoman said.

Fire pours from a home ignited by a wildfire in Montecito, California, on Thursday night.

Michelle Mickiewicz said residents of more than 4,500 homes were ordered to evacuate as flames from the Tea Fire engulfed multimillion-dollar mansions and modest ranch-style homes north of Los Angeles. The blaze began Thursday evening.

Oprah Winfrey and Rob Lowe are some of the celebrities with homes in the upscale, oceanside enclave of Montecito. It was not known if any celebrities' homes have been damaged.

Large homes continued to burn Friday morning.

The fire threatened roughly 1,500 homes, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said.

Winds calmed at daybreak Friday, slowing the spread of the fire, but were forecast to pick up to 50 mph to 70 mph through Saturday.

One firefighter suffered burns and was transferred to Sherman Oaks Burn Center. Two civilians who sustained burns were transported to the burn center in Irvine.

Ten were treated for smoke inhalation, officials said.

More than 500 firefighters are fighting the blaze.

A firefighter said overnight that the environment was ripe for a fire.

"A lot of the brush and trees and stuff are right up against the structures, and this one happened so fast that nobody had any advance warning at all, so there was really not much we could do or the homeowners could do in this case," he said.

"You can just hear the explosions ... of vehicles, homes," Michaelo Rosso told KCAL as he prepared to leave his home. "It sounds like the Fourth of July out here."

"It looked like lava coming down a volcano," resident Leslie Hollis Lopez told the Associated Press.

"We drove through tunnels of thick gray smoke," CNN's Paul Vercammen said. "Smoldering embers are floating everywhere. ... There's orange glows of similar burn areas all around us."

The flames roared onto the campus of Westmont College in Santa Barbara, forcing students and staff to take cover in the school gym.

Several buildings, including dormitories, the school's physics building and more than a dozen homes in Westmont's faculty housing area, have been lost or "significantly damaged" by the fire, the school said in a statement on its Web site.

College officials said they hope to evacuate to a Red Cross shelter as conditions permit.

Authorities ordered evacuations between Mountain Drive and Highway 192 and between Cold Springs and Sycamore Canyon Road in the Montecito area of Santa Barbara County.

Props to Drew for publishing the First Official Tea Fire Press Release. Hope you and everyone else are doing alright in smoldering Santa Barbara

Mastering Swedish

Yes. I can relate.

Week 42 - Potato Vacation

I love this.

It's been unusually quiet at the office - most people have taken the week off for the "Potato Holiday." See, in old times the schools would close down in order to have extra help with the potato harvest. Well, they now have machines for the potatoes... but the tradition remains. So kids are out of school and my co-workers have gone on vacation. Maybe it’s more appropriate to call it the "Couch Potato Holiday" =)

Yay for Danish Traditions.

Giggle

Original text:

Mandag den 20. oktober 2008 inviteres alle til housewarming på Fabriksvangen 1, hvor der på parkeringspladsen foran bygningen vil være en pølsevogn, betjent af to kønne piger. Pølsevognen vil være åben i kantinens almindelige åbningstid.

Translation: Danish » English

Monday 20 October 2008 invited all the house warming on Fabriksvangen 1, where the parking lot in front of the building will be a Pølsevogn, operated by two pretty girls. Sausage Cart will be open in the canteen normal trading hours

How IS the weather here???

I take it back. The minute I pushed the “Publish Post” button on my last entry, the clouds rolled as if on cue for a theatrical comedy. It suddenly became very cold and gloomy and started to drizzle. Fine, Denmark, bring it on!

A note on the weather here – I cannot find the words to describe its bizarre behavior. It is absolutely unpredictable. I have seen clear sunny skies, to black looming clouds, to pouring down rain and back in the matter of an hour. All of sudden, the wind will pick up and you’ll see the beginning of a big nasty storm and 10 minutes later everything will be calm and serene. One thing is for sure: it’s much different from the weather back in Santa Barbara.

The current problem I deal with is acclimating to the temperature changes when going indoors or outdoors. Inside, I will be quite comfortable in jeans and a t-shirt. In order to head outside, I’ll throw on boots, a sweater, a heavy winter jacket, gloves and a scarf. This will either be entirely necessary or way too much clothing and I find out the moment I open the front door get my first douse of the outside air. Of course, then I start walking and my body temp heats up. So pretty soon I’m sweating and trying to strip off all the extra clothing. By the time I get back indoors, for instance into a shopping mall or onto the bus, I have clothing hanging from both arms and I’m back to just my basic t-shirt. To others, I must look quite ridiculous, because everyone else treads around totally bundled in their winter coats and scarves. How do they do it? If I keep my jacket, sweater and scarf on, I’ll faint from overheating! Hopefully my body will adjust and this little dilemma of mine will just disappear. Otherwise, people will start recognizing me as the crazy Indian girl who runs around with no clothing! I guess it’s one way to get noticed…

Stand Still

Ugh. I knew some things were too good to be true.

My Danish CPR card (which basically acts as my Danish ID) was returned to the kommun in the mail. Great.

My stuff from the States has yet to arrive… apparently it finally shipped this Monday. No bicycle, no running shoes, no comforts of home for me... :(

The bank forgot to place an order for an ATM card on my new Danish account. So I’ve got No Monet to buy Degas to make the Van Gogh, sadly.

I get a 7am wake-up call every morning by the construction site across the street. The Danes start damn early!

And the internet in my apartment won’t start up until October 16th. Fantastic.

On the plus side, the weather has been very nice. We’ve had sunny days and warm temperatures (relatively speaking). Yesterday, I attended an all-hands meeting that was conducted entirely in Danish. I lost 1.5 hours of my life - painfully. Yea, I won’t attempt that again until I can actually understand some of the language! Note to self: learn some Danish.

I Heart Google

5 words:

THANK GOD FOR GOOGLE TRANSLATOR!

Now that I'm on the RAS R&D mailing lists I keep getting all these e-mails in Danish and I have no idea what they mean - oh, but wait a minute, yes I do! I've enjoyed translating the RESONNET internal announcements - those have been fun :)

From Santa Barbarian Chica Meats Denmark

Original text:
For helvede da også….

Translation: Danish » English
Goddamn also ....

These boots were made for walking...

My new "Hi Nice to Meet You", "Party Time!" and "Get Out of My Way Or I'll Kick You in the Face" boots. A Danish essential.

Fabulous October 1st

Why October 1st was so great:

• Got my first Danish Paycheck
• Got my first Danish mail (confirmation of my CPR number!)
• Got keys to my new stellar apartment
• Found $30 in a pair of pants I haven't worn in a while

Ahhh. Things are going very well here. I spent the first night in my new apartment. To get an idea of how this felt, first you have to understand that I signed the lease for this apartment before ever having physically seen it. Back in July, twenty-seven pictures were sent to me from HR in Denmark and from those pictures I made my decision. So for the past 2 months I have been studying those photos, dissecting every detail and corner to get a feel for my new living quarters. Yesterday, while I was lying on a mattress pad on the floor tucked under some blankets in this big (and very empty!) apartment I couldn't help but feel like I was stepping into a dream. It was all very surreal - imagine the feeling you would get if you stepped into your own pictures. This new pad of mine is by far the best living arrangement I have ever had. For starters it's huge - a one bedroom apartment with a living/dining area the size of my old studio. It's on the third floor of the building looking over shops and cafes. There are vaulted ceilings with skylights which makes the place very bright (when there's daylight, that is). Everything is brand new - a well equipped kitchen with a dish washing machine and a washer/dryer combo in the bathroom. I found myself thinking, am I really here? What did I do to deserve this? It really is an amazing place (ahem... have I enticed you enough to come visit?)Now all I need is: lights, a bed, furniture, kitchen supplies, groceries, Internet connection, and all my stuff that still hasn't shipped from the States (which includes my bike). Ha! Ok, so it's going to take me a while to feel settled, but I am definetely off to a good start.

Back Where We Started – Our 2 Year Anniversary

Sliding doors. What if? In the case of me and Tommy, there are so many coincidences…

Tommy and I first met in the July of 2006 while I was working the receptionist desk at RESON. I was fresh out of college, a UCSB grad, and he was a project manager that had been living in Santa Barbara for 3 years. For me, working as a receptionist was a temporary fix for income. I was applying for full-time jobs and internships at various companies, while I sat at the front desk and answered the phones. Tommy and I bonded over the fact that I was investigating a position at Telelogic in Malmo. He was the only person I met who knew of the company. Little did I know he was Swedish.

The Telelogic gig was an IASTE internship that was available to college students / recent grads and for me it was an enticing opportunity to travel. Somewhere I have a piece of paper on which I had made a list for myself (I’m a BIG list person) and I had written, “Malmo! I want to go to Malmo.” Well, I applied for the internship and waited. In the meantime, my tenure as a receptionist at RESON resulted in a full time job offer as a Software Engineer within the company. I jumped on the offer. After I had already accepted the position with RESON, Telelogic called and requested an interview. I informed them that I had signed a contract with another company. No Malmo for me :(

In August 2006, Tommy and I had our innocent flirtations. We both admit (now) to liking each other and having crushes on one another during that time – but given that we worked together and that there was a big age difference between us, nothing ever sparked from nights out together. Copenhagen changed it all.

Five weeks into my new position at RESON, I was put up for an assignment with SAAB Underwater systems in Motala, Sweden. Having been a student traveler in former years, to get out to Sweden on the company dime was one hell of a trip for me. Many colleagues gripe about business travel, but for me it is always a thrilling and welcomed experience. I had a great time in Motala, and in fact my co-worker and I finished our project one day early. I ended up back at our Danish headquarters (RESON A/S) on Friday, September 29th 2006. It had not been part of my itinerary to be in Denmark that day. Coincidence #1.

I spent half a day at RESON in Denmark that Friday. I went around the company, was introduced to fellow employees, had lunch, etc. There was an All-Hands meeting that day, which I was able to sit in on. At that meeting it was announced that Tommy Sturesson had accepted a sales position with Reson Denmark and would be moving from Santa Barbara to Malmo by December 06. I think my heart fell a little when I heard that. Shortly before I took off from the office that day, Tommy, (who happened to be on business travel as well, coincidence #2) approached me and asked what I was doing that night. Me? Copenhagen? Friday night? No clue, I said. We exchanged numbers and he said he’d give me a buzz when he left work.

Well, that night was magical. Tommy and I went out for dinner and a few drinks and so started the beginning of our now 2 year relationship. I flew back to Santa Barbara on Saturday morning, conflicted over having met this great guy. So many things were not right: 1) he was due to leave Santa Barbara 2) we worked together 3) there was 16 years between us… but I just couldn’t shake how much I liked him and how much we had in common. Tommy returned to Santa Barbara a few days after I did, and we decided that we would pursue a relationship together however short lived it would be. (I think he ultimately won me over with his skills in the kitchen – considering I’m a hot pockets and pop tart girl myself).

Tommy managed to delay his move back to Sweden and we got a good year and some months together in Santa Barbara. He’s a traveling business man and between October 2006 and December 2007, he made five one month trips to Europe (November 06, January 07, March 07, June 07, October ’07) We also managed to squeeze in our own travels: Hawaii, Portland, Venice Beach, San Francisco, Jalama Beach, Los Angeles (Disney Opera House), Santa Monica, and Avila Beach. We moved in together in August 2007. In December 2007, Tommy had postponed his return to Sweden too long and was forced by Reson to move over to Europe. We threw him a Muppet Goodbye Party and he dressed as the Swedish chef.

Tommy as the Swedish Chef and I was his "Chocolate Mousse"

The next 9 months were difficult. From December ’07 to September ’08 we lived on opposite sides of the globe. Long distance is tough! We kept in touch over Skype and texted each other a lot. I visited Tommy for New Years in Sweden and he came out to Santa Barbara in May. We realized we couldn’t stay together unless one of us moved. I requested a transfer through RESON to work at our Danish headquarters. In June ’08, RESON came around and granted my request. We hashed out the details of my contract and on July 11th 2008, I signed the offer to work in Denmark. I was in Europe on business for 4 weeks during the summer, so Tommy and I got to celebrate together. I returned to Santa Barbara at the end of July with the intention of packing up, saying good-byes and preparing for my trip back to Scandinavia. I threw a Viking Goodbye Party and dressed like a true Santa Barbarian.

The Santa Barbarian Viking

I arrived in Denmark on September 16th 2008. Tommy picked me up at the airport. Since the lease on my apartment doesn’t start until October 1st, I’ve been given permission to work remotely from Malmo (where Tommy lives) until the end of the month. So here we are, celebrating our 2 year anniversary, in Malmo. Right back where we started and right were I’ve wanted to be. It’s the completion of one cycle and yet the beginning of many new things to come. What happens now? Only time will tell. I better make a new list!

Reliving Onati (Basque Region, Spain)

I don't have much to say... except YUM! Tommy went wild preparing a "light" dinner for our dinner guest (Thomas Meurling, RESON, his boss) and he got inspiration from the "Quick and Easy Tapas" book compliments of our lovely friend Kara. We even had a nice bottle of Campo Viejo Tempranillo - a wine I've enjoyed back in SB w/ my first
and only dinner guests at Mulberry Ave (Liz and Tyler). Ahh, Espana. Can we go back?

A Wine Lover's Paradise

For those who travel to Sweden and wonder where they can pick up a bottle of Bailey’s… well, there is only one place: the ALCOHOL store. System Bolaget is the ONLY place you will find that cherished Swedish Absolut, because here in Sweden the government has a monopoly on wine and liquor sales. No more Jack Daniels from Ralphs for me! And fat chance that they are open on Sundays. You have to pre-plan your drinking around here. Considering the price of liquor, this could be a good thing. In System Bolaget’s defense, you do find a mighty selection of wines – perhaps the best in the nation (ha, ha).

Demonstrations in Malmo over the Weekend

Swedes are interesting people. In the few weeks I've spent in Malmo, I've almost always come across some kind of march or protest parading the street. Where do these people get the time? Oh yea, they are "professional demonstrators." And who funds them? The 45% tax that is taken out of my paycheck! The most frustrating example is the one we encountered this weekend. It was your average Saturday afternoon and Tommy and I went out to go grocery shopping. When we got to the car, which was parked LEGALLY on the street, and for which parking had been PAID, we were greeted with a ticket on the front windsheild of the car. In fact, every car on the block had a similar ticket. What the hell? Looking around we saw a temporary sign that had been put up (not too much earlier than our arrival, we assume) that stated: "No Parking Between the Hours of 1-8pm" The ticket was written at 1:07pm. We got to the car at 1:15pm. What was the reason for the restricted parking? Because demonstrators were going to march the streets, and they needed to clear the path. We were charged 700 Swedish Kroner (approx. $100 USD) so that those goons could parade around and scream their heads off about injustice towards the lower class. Hell, maybe I should have joined them and made some use of that money collected off parking tickets!

Apparently there were 10,000 demonstrators in town marching for human rights and social reform. According to local news, for the 10,000 demonstrators, they funneled 4,000 police into town. The pictures in the slideshow were taken mostly from the window of our apartment in Malmo. I'll tell you one thing you get for a $100 parking ticket - a front row seat.

Den første uge

I survived my first week in Denmark! It has been a surprisingly relaxed and crisis free transition - much smoother than I had anticipated. Having lived through the frustrations of getting setup in a new country before (France '02) coming to Denmark has been a breath of fresh air. And given my track record of drama and issues over the past 2 months, I am still in awe at how simple and easy the process has been.

I began Tuesday morning by first coming into my new workplace, Reson A/S, in Slangerup, Denmark. After making small mods to my laptop and re-issuing my key card, I was set to go as far as new job matters. (Jorgen Krull extended my key pass until September 16th, 2019 and I told him that he has more faith for me staying in Denmark than I have in myself!) Next came breakfast in the canteen. There was a total spread of delicious dishes: eggs, bacon, sausage, breads and jams. The breakfast was a celebration of some major milestone that was met w/in the company but I like to think it was a “Welcome to Denmark, Shobs!” feast. Afterwards, Anette from HR took me to the police station in Roskilde, where we picked up my work/residence permit. We then headed to Frederikssund (soon to be my new hometown) and checked out my new apartment. Pictures of my new pad are found at:

http://picasaweb.google.com/shobhna.shastri/ApartmentInDenmark?authkey=yTCPH6F6mAM#
After conversing with my new landlord, who speaks great English by the way, we went to the Commun (Town hall) and requested a Danish Social Security (CPR) number. The CPR number is my ticket to everything in Denmark: bank account, salary, healthcare, etc. With the CPR in hand, we were able to go to the bank and open up a new checking account, which took all of 15 minutes. In half a day I was “Dane-d” and I’m still impressed with the efficiency of it all! The best part? Every person we encountered at every administrative desk was NICE! Let me repeat that. They were ALL NICE! I find it unbelievable that I didn’t get a single rolled eye, there were no big exasperated sighs, no person that seemed like they hated life or especially hated me for disrupting their day by walking into their office. Every individual did their job with a smile on their face – I’m starting to believe maybe Danes really are the happiest people on the earth. Amazing.

So there you have it, in half a day my administrative matters were taken care of. What have I been doing the rest of the time? Working, getting over jetlag, meeting people from RINC for dinner, and adapting to the cold climate (brrrrr). My time in Denmark is going to be a fun expedition that has already gotten off to a great start!

Oh What a Santa Barbara Weekend!

Friday

• (!) Missed my flight from Portland to San Francisco (on my own stupidity)
• Met Mom back at airport. She gave me back my CC after returning luggage.
• Flew standby to SFO
• (!) Had a fat chance to get on the SB flight (8th on waitlist).
• Paid $75 to "buy" my seat
• Picked up by Nazia


• (!) West Beach Music Festival to watch Jason Mraz. Gave up waiting for him to play "I'm Yours"

• Met up with Justin and Dave

Saturday

• Got to office - repacked bags and boxes.
• Picked up eye glasses from Goleta Optical.
• Dropped by Liz and Tylers. Got avacados from their tree.
• (!) Walgreens - got in car accident in the parking lot. Hit Morgan who incidentally is the girl who took over my studio.



• (!) Rolled cart loaded with boxes from Building A to Building B. One box with glass items fell over and everything broke.
• Lunch at Fresco w/ Pawel, Eric and Howard.


• Weighed my check in bags at Reson. One was exactly 50lbs the other was 42lbs.
• Burge dropped me to Shnabz's (Sazia, Nazia, Habiba) house.
• Shnabz dropped me to Nordy's
• Jesus picked me up at Nordy's. Took me to International Dance Fest.
• Watched Naz, Saz Habiba and Co shake their groove thang.


• (!) Got yelled at for using my camera.
• Left Dance Fest. Shnabz dropped me at Bob's.
• Met a Blue Jay on Bob's Balcony.

• Walked to Paseo Nuevo.
• Ran into Masha on the street

• Went to Ann Taylor Loft. Purchased snazzy yellow jacket.
• Walked to Chase. Had dinner #1 (pasta) with Bob and Mike @ Chase
• Walked to Blue Agave. Met Sazia, Nazia, Alex, Jesus and Tyler.
• Dave comped my drink. Gabe Lackner gave me a CD.
• Played music outside the Palace Grill
• Sat down for dessert at the Palace. Joined by Jess, Maricela and Mark
• Hugged by a woman in line for the bathroom (?)
• Ate dinner #2 (steak) plus bread pudding and rum punch.

• Went to Madisons. Met Terrell, Ramel, and
• Went to Wildcats. Stayed till closing (they played Jason Mraz as a closing song!)
• Outside of Wildcats met a Swede.
• Six crazies jumped in a cab and went to the Spearmint Rhino (including the Swede)
• Went into Spearmint.
• (!) Got yelled at for having my cell phone
• Went out of Spearmint. Talked to Tommy. Had the Swede talk to Tommy (it's a recurring theme)
• 3:30am returned home to Shnabz
  

Sunday

• Packed remaining items in my bag.
• Got to the airport. Flight delayed.
• Met Justin at airport.



• (!) At check-in found out that my bags were each 5 lbs over. Had to pull out items.
• (!) Went to RESON to drop off items. Opened door and set off Fire Alarm. (Thank god for Cindy!)
• (!) Went to SNABS and found out the sandwich I was banking on had been eaten.
• Flew SBA to LAX. Beautiful view. Shed some tears :(
• (!) Raced through LAX. Barely made LAX to Frankfurt connection. No time for food, bathroom or phone calls.
• Met a nice 80+ yr old couple on flight to Frankfurt.


• Flew Frankfurt to Copenhagen
• Arrived Copenhagen. Sighed releif.

Tribute to Santa Barbara

Things I'm going to miss:

Viking dress up parties	Rebelution and Local Music	Mexican Food (Yoli's Chile Relleno's!)
Flavor of Red Pepper	Santa Barbara Bowl	Sunny Cali Weather
Beach BBQ's	Halloween, Thanksgiving	Bob's Patio
Donuts w/ Ice Cream	Jessica's crazy bday wkend	BEACH
Hot tub @ Willow Springs	Beach Cruisers	UCSB Pool
Good (cheap) draft beers	Mojito's @ Palmeri's	Bread Pudding - Palace Grill
Driving my car	Visiting LA and the Bay	English
SB Wine / Wineries	Hiking SB	SHNABZ
Co-workers and Happy Hour	OTT	Goleta Pier
Bacara Beach	Montecio, Carpenteria	Riding the Bike Path
Mulberry Avenue	Pure Joy Food and Weddings	Taco Tues
Fresh Fruit!	Sandals and Bare feet	US Dollar

Avacado Tree, Liz and Tyler at Anderson Lane (not Steve though!)
Friends that will stay out with you till 3:30 am just so you'll have a good night in SB
Being a brown girl in a predominantly white town... oh wait that's the same in Denmark!

Why Denmark? A Q & A session...

The top two questions I've been asked when I tell someone that I'm transferring to Denmark are:

1. Why the hell would you move from Santa Barbara to
Denmark?!?!
2. What do your parents think?

Here are the various answers I've been known to respond with:

Question 1:

• Why not?
• It's a good opportunity, and a good career move
• I want Danish vacation
• I wish to experience 4 seasons (since there's only one in Santa Barbara!)
• I wanted to get closer to my Swedish boyfriend
• I need a repos in a dark, gloomy environment where I get to be cooped up indoors so that I can read books, and play with pictures (and not feel bad about it!)
• Danes are pronounced to be the happiest people on earth - I want to be a happiest person
• I'm trying to live in a nation where the general population is as far from Indian looking as possible so I can appear exotic and gain sympathy for being a long way from home
• I needed something cool to blog about
• I LOVE Danish cuisine. (Boiled potatoes, fish, pickled herring - yum yum!)
• I'm just doing it to have a baby and go on Danish maternity leave, which by the way is 1 full year
  

How about a vote on which one is the most fitting? Maybe I'll do a little revisit to this post in a year and praise the people who got it right.

Question 2:

To be entirely honest, I don't really know how my parents feel about my move. I basically made my decision and told them that I'm doing it. There are a few factors that you have to consider about my parents: 1)they both primarily live in India, and 2) I talk to them about once every 2 months. I like to think that they like the idea. When I'm in Denmark, I'm closer to India which means that the flight is less expensive. Plus I get more vacation time (5+ weeks!). So I would think they are happy with the possibility of me visiting more often. Maybe they will comment?

The Santa Barbarian Meets Denmark

Due to popular demand, I've decided to carpe diem and join the blog world. For those of you who aren't aware, I have signed a contract with my company (RESON) to transfer from our US (Santa Barbara) office to our Danish (Slangerup) Headquarters. It's an "as long as you want it" stint and I'll be happy if I survive two years. I haven't exactly chosen the best time of year to arrive, since it starts getting cold and dark in September and the winter doesn't let up for a good 6 month. I'm excited to be here, happy to start my new job (getting back to work is a relief!), and ready for all the adventures to come.

Choosing a title for this blog took some effort. I started thinking, "Who am I?" and "What could I name this blog to reflect who I am?" The list just started flowing...

Who am I?

I am a/an

• Portland / Pacific NW Girl
• American Born Desi
• UCSB Computer Engineering w/ a French Minor Graduate (5th female to finish the program!)
• 5 time Oregon State Gymnastics Champion Title Holder
• World Traveller
• French Speaker (1 yr. abroad in Bordeaux , France will do it!)
• Camp Counselor - Raindrop - at Gold Arrow in Huntington Lake
• Handstand Maniac
• Triathlete
• Indian Fashion Show Model
• Mover (10 times in the last 8 years!)
• Hotel Clerk, Waitress, Receptionist, Web Developer and Ice Cream Scooper
• Bordeaux Gymnastique Entretien Champion
• Middle Child
• Software Engineer
• Oudoors Lover, Picture lover, Music Lover
• Shobo-de-buttflop
• Senior Chica
• Biker, hiker, runner, stresser, eater (but not a cook or grocery shopper)
• Clothing shop-a-holic
• Wanna-be-cowboy (especially with the recent hat!)
• Huggy Bear, Peach, Princess, Wiggle Worm, Pretty Pink Petunia and Mmm Ball
• Sister, friend, girlfriend, classmate and colleague

Essentially, I'm just a girl... I'm 25 yrs old having the time of my life. I finally decided I would use the latest chapter of life story to title this blog, and so I arrived at, "The Santa Barbarian Meats Denmark". I found it fitting. According to Carl, a local resident of SB, I haven't quite earned local status in Santa Barbara just yet. Well, I'm giving myself an honorary title anyway, after having lived in SB the better part of 8 years. I showed up to Santa Barbara a shy 17-yr old UCSB freshman in September of 2000 and I depart 8 years later with some of my fondest memories and having met some of my closest friends. And like most people have said, "If it gets too cold in Denmark, you can always come back!"