Back in San Diego, but not for long.

I left Dallas at noon Thursday, July 23rd. I used the (crappy) camera in my Blackberry Bold to take photos while driving which was dangerous but came out surprisingly well even though I was driving 70+ mph. I arrived in Las Cruces, New Mexico around 1:30 a.m. Friday, July 24th. I wanted to drive through New Mexico and Arizona during daylight so it worked out great. I stopped in Deming for breakfast. Then drove on to Tuscson, Arizona where I spent the night.

I arrived in San Diego on Saturday, July 25th late in the afternoon unsure of what the job market would have to offer. I'm staying at a hotel off of Hotel Circle and Taylor. It's not a bad location and is adequate for my needs.

The only interview I've had so far was with a 3 person "web shop" located about 10 minutes away. Since they cannot afford the staff they hire contractors when needed and that would have been the case with me. I'll pass.

I'm 15 minutes from almost all the beaches and about thirty minutes to Del Mar where I had applied for a web project manager position at a larger corporation. I have yet to hear anything from that company or any of the other companies in San Diego I applied to before I left Dallas.

It turns out that San Diego doesn't offer much for advertising jobs. There are a few independent, medium-sized agencies but L.A. and S.F. attract all the big agencies and where all the jobs are at. I'll be leaving San Diego on Sunday, August 2nd for L.A. to visit family in Santa Monica and stay overnight. Monday, I'll drive up the PCH through San Louis Obispo, Big Sur, Santa Cruz, San Jose, San Mateo, San Francisco, and finally across the Golden Gate Bridge to my hotel in San Rafael or that's the plan right now. As of Wednesday, I have 3 interviews in S.F. (2 with agencies, 1 w/recruiter) setup and I hope to have more on my calendar by end of this week.

Back to San Diego...
I have taken quite a few photos with my Nikon D40. I am finally learning how to adjust exposure which has lead to better shots. I just figured it out tonight while taking photographs of the Presidio in San Diego with bright afternoon sunshine. The photos came out pretty well.

Yesterday, I went downtown to Petco Park and watched part of an away game on the big screen located behind the stadium. It was a perfect day to be outside (73F). After taking some photographs of the stadium, I decided to lay down on the grass and watch a few minutes of the game.

Today, I went to Starbucks and sat outside listening to Pandora radio enjoying the sunshine and cool breeze for about an hour. Afterwards, I went up to Del Mar to try to find the beach. I think I could live in Del Mar as well. Anyway, I found the beach, but parking was not available and it was packed so I didn't get any photo opportunities other than with my crappy camera on my phone. On the way back, I stopped at Mission Bay and walked around the park. I took a few photos, mostly with the camera phone. There really wasn't much to photograph. Next, I stopped at the Presidio near my hotel. This will be the highlight of my time in San Diego. I was able to get some great photographs and am anxious to see how well they turn out when I have prints made.

I still have 3.5 days left to soak in San Diego. It's been great to just relax and enjoy this place and not worry about anything.

Random link I wanted to keep to visit later:
Audience Picks: 100 Best Beach Books Ever

Is this the right thing to do? Hope so.

I booked my hotel in San Diego earlier tonight. I have spent the last few days trying to figure out where to stay and for how long. I'm starting with 8 days in San Diego and I already have an interview the 2nd day I'm there. I think the company will offer me some contract work which depending how long it takes I may do it. The craigslist ad they posted was for 25-30 hours a week of work. It's a small shop and that to me like I may be regressing in my career. They don't want me to do project management but instead were "more impressed with my programming skills". I am not a programmer, so I am curious why they think I am. Their website isn't too bad, but they probably just hired a flash guy to knock out something quick. I noticed they haven't touched their blog they link to from their site. Not good.

So, I'm worried. Am I making the right decision? I want to believe that I am. This will make the third time that I've been to San Diego in the last 5 years. I interviewed for jobs but was not offered the position before.

I have 8 days in San Diego. If nothing substantial happens in that time I may continue on North to LA and then to SF.

Salary Comparison:
San Francisco, San Diego, Los Angeles, Dallas

The San Diego Trip

Views from Pacific Terrace Hotel- Pacific Beach





Trip was alright. The hotel room was kickass. I had a High Def 42"+ tv in the room to watch the mavs game. At night, as the temperature dipped below 70 degrees, I opened the sliding glass door to the balcony and slept to the sound of waves crashing along the beach. The weather was beautiful and sunny as you can see from the photos. Since parking was difficult to locate, I opted to pay the $18/day and park in the garage so I wouldn't have to worry about it. The staff at the hotel was nice and helpful. I would definitely stay at this place if I wanted to be on the beach in San Diego.

Ate at mostly cheap places - Mama Testo's located in the Hillcrest/SDSU area, and also The Cheese Shop in La Jolla. I had read some reviews that mentioned both places were worth checking out.

What I realized though was that it's really too expensive to live out there. It would be a great place to start your career at in your 20s, but I'm not so sure that it's worth it now that I am single and don't make friends easily. That and having to worry about using retirement and savings to get out there make it not so attractive.

I looked at two different apartment complexes. One was $1350 and another that was located near Qualcomm stadium was $1525. Between pet deposits, security deposits, and rent it was just going to cost too much. The realization that I would be starting over in such an expensive city also began to set in. It's not going to happen. I won't be moving to SD for now.

Not bad for a free trip.

Pacific Terrace Hotel

I'll be visiting Visiting SD this weekend. I have been reading forum posts at ChowHound and I think I have a good list of places that I can try while I'm there.