Some lessons learned during my trip to Stanford:

1// Life is truly full of surprises. No, really. Quirk and I have been friends ever since we were on student council together in the dark ages, a.k.a. high school. Never, in a million years, would I have guessed that years later we'd be exploring San Francisco with his friends who instantly felt like lifelong friends who I've known for ages. 

(That said: Cody, Isaac, & Juliet, thank you for making my weekend legendary. It was a blessing to meet each of you and I really hope our paths can cross again in this lifetime!)

2// Pugs are my new 2nd favorite breed of dog, preceded by wiener dogs. Scroll through these pictures and you'll see why. 

3// Creating a picnic out of cheap wine, cheese, and baguettes in Golden Gate Park is truly the fanciest I've ever felt. 

4// I've never been much of a water drinker, like ever... sorry kidneys. But that all changed when I met Cody (or should I say Isaac) last weekend. This guy is the ultimate hydration role model. I'm serious: he drinks over a gallon of water a day! As a result, he has flawless complexion. I'm quite proud to say that since meeting Cody, I've been inspired. As I write, I've officially drank more than 64oz of water today. Cody, please be proud of me :-)

5// Once upon a time, some creative entrepreneurs thought it would be a good idea to fit two standard beverages into a container the size of a tennis ball. Alas: BuzzBalls. They are an experience. To clarify, definitely a one-time experience, but still a good one. For the maximum experience, I'd recommend consuming them with friends in a gorgeous San Francisco park.  

6// San Francisco is so trendy its fog is named Karl. Karl has over 220k Instagram followers... even fog can go viral. We can all learn a thing or two about marketing from literally some suspended water droplets. In San Francisco, anything is possible!

7// The Palo Alto police are so generous that they'll give you 2 parking tickets instead of one.

8// The SF coffee shop scene is almost on point with the Minneapolis coffee shop scene. Clearly I'm not biased. If you're in the area, check out Pentacle Coffee. This is in no way sponsored, I just recognize a dang good oat milk latte when I see one! (Also, I recognize I'm bleeding millennial when I say that... but you know what, overpriced coffee is one of the simple joys in life and anyone who disagrees is probably lying to themselves.)

9// A little bit of honest reflection... after a semester in Europe and a 5-day trip to California, my bank account is near empty but my heart is absolutely full. Thankful for great friends, great views, and memories made! 2018 has been the best year of my life so far and we are only 5 months in -- I cannot wait to see what else is in store. 

Hope you enjoy these photos.... I've curated some of my favorite moments and views into this little blog post.

Cheers,

Meghan

P.S. I've never really written personal blog posts like this for fun, but I'm thinking I might have to start.... :)