The best year of my life, again. 1

10:35 PM by Ren , under , , , , , , , , , , ,

I have managed to have the best year of my life once again. 2007 brought me so much fortune, friendship, family, love, peace, and adventure. Words can't completely describe the ride I had those magnificent 365 days so I have compiled this photo journal of my year.

2007 started with freezing temperatures, cold drinks, warm-hearted friends, and heated battles on a Nintendo Wii. Friends from Humboldt had rented a house in South Lake Tahoe and my friend Ray visiting from Australia plus my official partner in crime of 2007, Ryan Slater, and I, partied with them. This year Ryan and I did so much together that people at school started calling us "Lenny and Karl" (a reference from the Simpsons). Anyway, that night we block-partied, house-partied, and downright over-partied! I started the New Year off right by delivering a bakers dozen of doughnuts to my drowsy friends at around noon. I am pretty sure I ate at least two for myself. Oh ya, and I got Ryan some chicken strips too.


South Lake Tahoe block party





Snowboarding a couple days later




I toured my Australian friend all around northern California including Tahoe, Humboldt, and the Bay Area. While he was there we both befriended Brandy from Illinois and started a strong friendship that I am fortunate to have. Neither of them had ever seen the Bay Area so we all adventured around and had a good time.

The song "White & Nerdy" was written about us



Australian Ray having a Humboldt moment



My old stomping/slipping grounds



In the month of January my friends and I were always up to fun stuff like going to see music (that sometimes never played), bonfires on the beach, karaoke in Japan Town, and so much more. I had been working on the video crew for the Golden State Warriors since October so I was busy with that as well at the time. School started late in January and thus I became very busy!

Karaoke in Japantown




At a jazz club



Bonfire and BBQ on the beach






Breakfast overlooking the beach at Ryan's place



The weather seemed to be pretty nice through February and because of this I did a lot of outdoor stuff. A bike ride accidentally led Ryan and I to the Painted Sisters, a place in SF that neither of us had seen yet. We often skimboarded on the beach and tossed the football around as well.

Skimboard


The Painted Sisters



BBQ on the Chinese New Year






Valentines day was so much fun. We participated in the "flash-mob" pillow fight in the financial district. John (another good buddy of 2007), Brandy, Ryan, and I made panda masks and took to the streets as a team. The uniqueness and creativity of our masks worked to our disadvantage because people ganged up on us and beat us badly. Still, it is a fond memory and allowed us all to say that on Valentines our head touched the pillow of someone of the opposite sex.

I look dangerous













March was full of school, of course, but there were plenty of fun times and awesome memories made. Ryan and I, always having a blast at the beach, decided to try and get as many people out for a BBQ as possible so we invited dozens of friends with over a weeks notice. The weather was incredible. It was hot, people wanted to swim, and with our fabulous cuisine keeping people's bellies full (we even catered to the vegans), I have to admit this was one of the best days I have ever had in San Francisco. I even got some friends from high school to come from Santa Cruz which was was special because I got to collaborate the close people of my current life with the close people from my past.






That very beach was the location for a fun turn of events a few days later. Ryan and I were studying for a midterm and were so bored so we decided to go throw the frisbee on the beach. Ryan wore his sand-colored sandles and took them off while we played. The problem was that he couldn't find them when we were done so he asked some girls if they would tell us if they saw them. If my memory serves me correct he spoke to them in Japanese and we all got to talking and decided to hang out the rest of their short stay in San Francisco before heading back to school in Seattle. We did lots of fun stuff and became good friends.

Within 2 hours of being strangers on the beach



In late March I began my internship working for the San Francisco Giants. I was really intimidated by this, as this was basically a dream come true for me. For the most part, I filmed for the scoreboard from left field, and eventually pregame ceremonies. I had an incredible experience with the Giants but it was not without its low points. In fact, the very first game of the season, a preseson game against Oakland I was yelled at by the director over the headsets we use for communication. I think it was because I filmed an Oakland flag right when he chose my camera which really made him look bad. He even said "We can't have an intern on that camera." Obviously things got better and I like to think I was a cameraman they could depend on for decent shots.

My name under my camera's image on the director's switchboard



Shooting pregame




One day of work at a Stanford football game

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April's glory was in the roadrip Ryan and I took to the Canadian border. We absolutely planned on going into Canada, and even had accomodations arranged, but the Canadian border patrol wasn't in a very good mood and decided to get technical which kept us out of their country. Being that this was just a single day after Ryan bottomed out his SUV on a dirt road to the point where it needed a new transmission in the mountains east of Seattle, we were starting to have our regrets about commiting to such an adventure. We still had our successes, for example we had tons of fun with our friends going to school at the University of Washington. We also went on a very cool bike ride and really enjoyed the sights between San Francisco and Canada.

www.roadtripnation.com sponsored our trip



View of Shasta from a bike trail













 May was quite a month. I had finals, the Warriors were in the playoffs, and the Giants regular season was in its second month. The experience I had at the Warriors was quite a memorable one. Two of the three Playoff games that I worked at I was on camera the entirety of the game. The other game I was pulling cable for one of the guys on a handheld camera. The 2006-2007 Warriors season was my first experience ever at an NBA game and as the Warriors suprised everyone by making the playoffs, the games because intense and downright electric. Celebrities such as Snoop Dogg, Jessica Alba, Carlos Santana, and more were in attendance and our scoreboard show was as important as it has ever been. The Warriors eventually lost in the second round which was somewhat of a relief for me because I was being stretched thin with all my responsibilities. Around this time the Sharks were in the playoffs as well so video crews were scarce and I was asked to do my first hired job not as an intern, working on a Fox production of track and field at Stanford University.

Before a playoff game




The weekend before finals I was talked out of studying and talked into having one of the coolest days of my 2007. The Bay to Breakers is a race through San Francisco where people dress up as wildly as possible and travel by foot from the bay downtown, to ocean beach. The fun atmosphere turns the event into more of a moving block-party. It was quite a day.

I had great company
(Candice, on the left, is another great friend made in 2007)







My buddy John got my friends and I hooked up for the debut of a play being shown downtown as well as its after party. I really enjoyed the show and getting to meet the actors and staff at the party. It was my first experience seeing live theater in San Francisco.

At the after-party with Brandy



After finals I got to make a quick trip up to Truckee with some friends. We stopped at the Jelly Belly factory in somewhere in the valley and checked it out for a while.

Arnold never looked so yummy





My highlight of that trip was getting to borrow a friend of the family's jet ski and take it to a reservoir. Here is my mom and I just prior to going for a ride.





A few days later I began work in Santa Rosa at the Harmony Festival. I have worked at a lot of Music Festivals but this has to be the best one. The music is so diverse, there is no dust, there are toilets that flush, there is nice grass, and great demonstrations. I highly recommend this show to anyone. Some of the headlining bands were The Beach Boys, The Roots, Common, and Erykah Badu.

Between shoots at the indoor stage



The indoor stage



A stray cat slept in this flypack worth over six figures




Two of the friends I was in Truckee with were on a West Coast tour and had been all around Southern California while I was working in Santa Rosa. They invited me to join them in the Las Vegas and Grand Canyon leg of their trip and I couldn't refuse the offer. They hooked me up with a place to sleep in their Vegas hotel and I hooked them up with all my camping gear and driving abilities for the Grand Canyon.

I had always wanted to go to the Grand Canyon, but I never could have prepared myself for how much I was going to enjoy it. We drove there early and arrived around 1pm. As soon as we got our camp setup we made our way to the nearest viewpoint. From that point on I was stricken with awe over the majesty of the canyons. I seriously began to shake and my heart rate accelerated as I processed what was before my eyes. It was that great! All it took was a $60 flight to Vegas, a $25 dollar rental car (after the under 25 fee!), and National Park fees and I had one of the coolest trips of my life.

Might as well be flying



Death-defying friends




Shortly after that trip ended it was back to work and this time I was in Boonville for the Sierra Nevada World Music Festival. It was work as usual there. My sister Rhea was working there as well so I hung out with her from time to time. At the time I was thinking that this festival was much better than Reggae on the River in Humboldt but this year's show ended up being a whole lot better and it improved its reputation in my opinion.

This black widow and its babies at Rhea's house in June




I still had responsibilities working with the Giants so I was really bouncing around for a while. June ended with work at the stadium and meeting Miho for the first time in the Mission District. From then on we began hanging out regularly through the time she went back to Japan in late August.

Party of three smiling all the way to the beach





Taking a nap on Miho's hostsister Jade




The 4th of July was a really fun day. Miho, John, and I hung out together with plans of going to see the fireworks at Fisherman's Wharf. We changed our minds after realizing there we weren't ready for the crowds and instead we went to the roof of a high rise building of a videogame company that John works for. It was really beautiful up there and we were able to see both the fireworks at the wharf, and Oakland.

Getting involved in video in the Bay Area intermingled me with some really great people. At the Warriors, Giants, and other events my more experienced coworkers were always so generous and taught me so much. Some were even in the position to get me work which is what my friend Hauna did by landing my a position working for the international telecast at the All Star Game. It was six long days of work but it was a great time. It felt so cool to be a part of an event with such a huge, global audience.





Japan versus the USA womens soccer game






After that I was off to Humboldt to house-sit for my dad. It was nice to return home and a change of pace not having anything to do or long distances to travel.

Black Sands Beach



August began, like always, with Reggae on the River (now known as Reggae Rising) taking place on my birthday. The show was a major improvement from 2006 and though I was working, looking at it from a fan's point of view I think it was a great show.



Minutes after Andrew turned 21 on Aug 8




Free time continued in rural Humboldt and I spent most of it at the beach or hanging out with friends.

I had a week of work with NBC Sports in San Jose for a gymnastics event that went well. After that I went to San Francisco and hung out with Miho and her family visiting from Japan. They all returned to Japan together and I headed back to Humboldt.

At the end of the month my entire family gathered at Usal State Park for a campout where we celebrated Sami's birthday. It was a great time and we all had lots of fun.

Goofy people






A great crew




After that September began and I had just ten days before my departure to Tokyo. As the day approached I said bye to everyone and made sure I was ready to leave the USA for 11 months. Things went smooth and I made it here without a hitch.

The last 20 days of September through the first half of October were mainly orientations, welcome parties, and special events.

Halloween








Shinjuku Tokyo





At one of my school's baseball games



Being pretty busy with classes I didn't do a whole lot of exiting things. One notable things was the one-day trip to Nikko that we Californians took as a group. My computer broke so I am missing most of the good photos from September to Halloween.

The California crew plus some locals



It started getting pretty cold in November and December here in Tokyo. I went to Tokyo Disney Sea around Thanksgiving which was a lot of fun. I also got to eat at a military Thanksgiving dinner here in Tokyo.



Christmas was celebrated a little early this year. Miho and I went to a part of the city called Odaiba and had a really good time. We also spent New Years Eve together at Tokyo Tower.

Christmas




New Years at Tokyo Tower



I hope you all have a great 2008. Try and keep to your resolutions and if you don't have one yet how about you vow to keep in touch with your pal in Tokyo a little better! I love hearing from you all. It isn't always easy being so far away from so many friends!

There are a lot of potentially heavily impacting events that may take place for me this year so I am eager to live them out. I recently went to a shrine to make a wish for 2008 and get my fortune and it turns out that according to the charm I received I have to be on the look-out for a potentially bad year. Stay tuned.



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1 Reply to "The best year of my life, again."

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