Trivial Matters

When I recently saw This is the End, I had no idea that the film's screenwriter Evan Goldberg was also a McGill alumnus. That, along with Jay Baruchel's Habs hat in the movie's opening sequence, warmed my heart. I am also proud to announce that McGill was ranked as a top 25 university for the tenth consecutive year.

Upon graduating from McGill University, I wish that I'd had access to "5 Epic Career Lessons I Learned in My 20s." It's a good read for anyone who does not want to make avoidable early career mistakes. And although my blog documented my time in the MBA program at HEC Montreal, I recommend checking out "A Day in the Life of a B-School Student" to see what one student's day is like at Harvard. It's an accurate description of any MBA student's schedule, regardless of the school.

I am also pleased to share that Los Angeles has been ranked the third hottest startup scene globally.  See the infographic here. In related news, my former boss of bLife was announced as a new partner of venture firm Upfront Ventures.

For those of you who enjoy trivia as much as I do, you might like to read "20 Things You Didn't Know About the NFL." Since I am especially fond of movie trivia, though, last night I enjoyed the Greg Proops Fan Club's podcast and screening of Sexy Beast, where Proops spoke about the film like a true cinephile.

Labor Day Weekend

I was ecstatic to stumble across this article "Please Stop Complaining About How Busy You Are" because I 100% agree with the writer. Everyone does seem to wear their long hours as a badge of honor. But it should be about getting your work done, enjoying what you do, and then spending your free time doing other things you like to do. I am happy to say that that's exactly how I live my life.

On that note, I had a great Labor Day weekend! I was fortunate to get a ticket for the LA Tech Happy Hour 2 Year Anniversary: Mansion BBQ and Pool Party! The celebration took place at an incredible mansion in the Hollywood Hills with an infinity pool (photo below) and it was unlike any other tech event I've attended.

On Monday, I went to the LA County Fair where I saw deep-fried everything (pickles, watermelon, etc.) and saw The Motels, Berlin, and The Bangles perform. It was certainly a flashback to the 80's.

Then, last night, I flash forwarded to modern times at the Tegan & Sara and Fun. concert which was amazing from one of the first few rows! Watch a clip of Fun. performing "One Foot" from last night's show here.

State of Grace

Working from home certainly has its perks, one of which I have previously mentioned. But one major downside of the home office is loneliness. Fortunately, I came across an Inc. article "6 Ways to Combat Loneliness When You Work From Home," which provides some great tips to handle this. I've also started to go into our office (the ROC) more often, so I can see my friends and co-workers.

I have also attended a few networking events recently:  Silicon Beach Young Professionals August Mixer Sponsored by Google, Lesbians Who Tech (and the people who love them) August LA Happy Hour, and Girls in Tech LA Summer Sip Mixer 2013 (photo below). Furthermore, last weekend was the weekend of birthdays, as I celebrated two of my friends' birthdays all weekend long. My constant social interactions have left loneliness to wayside.

Additionally, I have continued my summer of entertainment. Last Friday, I attended the Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swift concert (with surprise guest Ellie Goulding). See a snippet of Taylor opening the show with "State of Grace" below. I also returned to my new favorite movie theater, the Laemmle Monica 4-Plex to see Blackfish, which was great!

Now I'll be enjoying a fun-filled Labor Day weekend! I hope you all have a great long weekend!

Reunited

Living in Los Angeles, I am fortunate enough to be in a location where many of my friends pass through, whether it's to visit family, vacation, for work, or something else. In fact, in the past week, I had four different friends in town. See the photos below.

Also, the Santa Monica team of Single Grain has just relocated from Coloft to the ROC, the co-working space where I worked previously. So I have been reunited with my startup friends, and I once again get to enjoy the glorious rooftop workspace pictured below.

Interestingly, there was a recent article about the benefits of eating inside, rather than outside. I wholeheartedly disagree with the writer and actually laughed out loud at the comments that other journalists had on the topic.

As for local startup news, there was an email exchange involving the co-founders of Cross Campus, another Santa Monica co-working space, and PandoDaily. This is probably one of the most insane articles I've read concerning Silicon Beach and I'm surprised I haven't heard anyone talking about it.

In happier news, Santa Monica has the #2 spot for the Top 10 Zip Codes for Venture Capital Investment in Orange County and Los Angeles. And if you truly want to be happy, try one of these 10 simple things that you can do to make yourself happy today.

Home

Working from home and living just a few short blocks from the beach means that I can spend my lunch hour like this:

I must say it's a pretty great arrangement! On the flip side, seeing my co-workers twice a week is a lot of fun, too, especially since we go for lunches together and bond. Today, my boss even brought in three Single Grain shirts for me to wear, which I will proudly be sporting around town.

In news from the other coast, my adopted hometown of Montreal experienced a sinkhole recently. During my years in Montreal, I often passed through that particular street corner, so it's freaky to think about the incident.

In happier news, I came across an article about simplifying your life. As anyone who knows me well is aware, I try to live my life by two credos: "Simplify your life" and "Under-promise and over-deliver." With that being said, I am excited to share this article's tips so that others can live by my ideology, should they choose to.

Full Stack

I am happy to say that my first week of work went very well! My new team is amazing! For the first month, I'll be training for two days a week at Coloft, a co-working space, and the rest of the time I'm working from home. For the two days this week when my coworkers and I were all together, my boss took us out for lunches, including a fun one at a nearby shabu-shabu restaurant (photo below).

When my boss asked for information about networking events for startups, I was excited to share all that I know about the local Silicon Beach community. On the topic of networking, I thought this article presented some helpful tips on how to ask for an introduction. My co-worker Eric Siu also has a great blog, and I found his entry "The Beginner's Guide to Becoming a Full Stack Marketer" particularly essential.

In addition to work, I also packed my week with a ton of fun. On Wednesday night, my friends and I competed in bar trivia. Though we didn't win, I was ecstatic that I was able to contribute my knowledge of pop culture for the team's earned points. Thursday night I returned to the Santa Monica Pier's Twilight Concerts to see Nikki Jensen and Xavier Rudd. Lastly, I've spent this weekend soaking up the sun and enjoying a couple movies at the theater - The Way, Way Back and Twenty Feet From Stardom. Both were great! I leave you now with a live performance of my favorite Xavier Rudd song "Messages," as I recall the wonderful memories of Thursday night.

Last Hurrah

This is my final weekend before starting my new job, and of course the Santa Monica weather is not cooperating. Although I haven't been able to sit out on a warm beach, I've certainly been enjoying a last hurrah prior to my new grind.

On Friday, I volunteered for the TechZulu Final Friday. I got to meet another b-school graduate from the east coast, as well as learn about cool new startups. In fact, one company called Recruiting For Good is funding free safaris!

In related news, my friend Robert Lambert who runs Silicon Beach LA just released a video from his Summer Hiring Blitz. If you want to learn about how to get a job in this community, check out the video below.

I am also continuing my musical tour of LA and got to go to Angels Stadium in Anaheim for Kenny Chesney's No Shoes Nation tour, which also featured Kasey Musgraves, the Eli Young Band, and Eric Church. The concert was so fun that I might now be a country music convert!