L.A. livin' for a Midwestern gal

I've realized these last few posts consisted of mostly relationship jargon and less of art, travel, and whiskey; or - at least there was thought of art and travel, but not enough whiskey drinking and for that, I'm sorry. 

Now, back to business. 

I wanted to write about life here in L.A. since this is where the universe has brought me to on my quest for, as we all know by now, I'm not entirely sure. Regardless, I moved 2,282 miles to learn something so here's what that is:

The un-surprising things about L.A.
When I first started telling people I was moving to L.A. I received a surprisining amount of responses that went like this:

"You're moving to L.A.? You know it's expensive there!"
No? Really? I thought all cities were like Detroit! Thank you so much for telling because I could've made a really bad decision had I not known! 

"Oh the traffic is so bad in L.A.!" 
What!?! It's probably like I-75 - been there, done that!

"It's going to be very competitive - there are a lot of actors out there." 
No shit?! You must be reading People Magazine! I better get myself a copy if I'm gonna make it out there.

"You're gonna see so many celebrities!" 
Oh yeah, and I'll probably get noticed at a grocery store by some big name like George Clooney! We'll get married and move to the Palisades!

The list goes on and on of idiotic responses...

I know some may have been said out of love but c'mon. Now, let's say someone from the boondocks of say, the Smokey Mountains, who has never been out of their hometown wanted to move to N.Y.C. I would see why someone might make these observations. Me on the other hand, I've been to all the 48 continental United States and have not only visited, but driven through most major cities including L.A..

With that being said, I knew to expect the traffic and cost of living. I also knew that the best place to get into the industry would be to go where the industry thrives. It's other things that have actually caught me off guard in L.A. 

Surprising little nuggets about L.A.

The traffic isn't that bad. If you expect it, you'll be fine. But yes, there is traffic - always. And there's nothing else like it. Depending on your schedule though, you can avoid the really really bad traffic.  Driving around L.A. at 3am is the coolest thing ever. You get to see everything with no one and no car in sight! 

You do have to drive to get just about everywhere L.A.. Unless you live downtown, L.A. is like a ginormous sprawled-out suburb with urban areas sprinkled throughout. I love walking and bike riding but you don't see many of either on the streets. The sidewalks are filled with hobos (and I don't say this to be funny or cruel) and the streets are scary to ride bikes on. If you do just puff up your chest and wear a helmet.

Although - L.A. drivers aren't as bad as you think they are. In fact, I'm probably worse! When I came out here, I was given the mentality by others living in L.A. that you can't double-think, you just gotta drive - aggressively! So I do. You'd think I was a former stunt driver with some of the moves I've made but you have to if you're going to get anywhere and people around here don't utilize space like they oughta! 

The cost of living isn't as outrageous as N.Y.C. and isn't that bad in most areas. Where I currently live for what I pay is way better than anything I ever looked at in Ann Arbor.

But - be aware of sneaky costs! There is a law in California in which they have to charge 10 cents per bag at a grocery store. I'm not sure all cities pay attention to this law but the big cities like San Fran and L.A. do. Be sure to bring your reusable bags. 

Depending on where you go, drinks are not that expensive. I don't really go to them fancy joints and have therefore found dives where you can get wings, fries, and 2 beers for roughly $15 bucks! 

Gas isn't that bad. Everyone said it'd be like $5.00!!! I haven't paid over $4.00 (I've found it as cheap as $3.36) (knock on wood). 

While the industry (everyone in L.A. refers to the film industry as this) does employ thousands of Angelinos, the majority of the people are just regular ol' workers like me and you. Most of my friends all work in other non-glitzy fields from mortgage brokering to aerospace technology; advertising to retail management. 

But yes, you do meet a lot of working actors. Emphasis on working - not celebrities, but actors who make a living by doing commercials and such. I've met a ton of actors, but have had only one celebrity sighting. 
Spoiler alert!!!! They're just like us. 

All the really cool things that the rest of us want to do in L.A. are all tourist attractions. You most likely won't see a celebrity on a Celebrity Home Tour and Hollywood is a place where you can go see wax statues of stars like Leo DiCaprio and Angelina Jolie - not the real deal. Stars apparently live in the glitzier areas like Santa Monica or Malibu (although my celeb sighting was in Los Feliz). Granted, I still really want to do all those cheesy tours because I love cheese. I think it's fun. 

The funniest thing about living in L.A. is when people from other states ask about the weather. My friend reminded me that when I decided to drive around the country, I told everyone my purpose was to see if people still talked about the weather. I'm glad to say they do.

Everywhere else but here. The thing is, the weather doesn't change much in L.A. 
Now, now, it does get cold. As in, 60 and sunny. The lowest has been maybe 52 but it was still sunny. It's always sunny. When it does get cloudy or rainy everyone is like, "what the fuck!?" Then there's total mutiny and people start doing really strange things. But luckily that doesn't happen too often. So when my mom asks how the weather is, I can't help but laugh and repeat what I've said for the past three days, "It's 70 and sunny... again!" 

I have yet to get acclimated to the weather because apparently if you live here long enough, anything below 70 is out-of-control cold. It's a sight when I see my grandpa of a roommate wrap himself in scarves and sweaters while I chill in a tank.

I see the Hollywood sign everyday. This is actually really cool and often surrealistic. I live pretty close to Hollywood which, from most places, gives you a great view of the Hollywood sign and Griffith Observatory. I can walk to Runyon Canyon where I hike and where I can also see the sign. The sign is always visible. But the coolest thing which had me think to myself, holy crap I live here, was when as I was heading into the store from the parking lot on the second level and there it was, off in the distance. I could see the sign perfectly from the grocery that is literally down the block from me where I can walk to anytime I want.

Living in L.A. has been pretty surreal for a lot of reasons. When I see something I've only ever seen in the movies I get really excited and I have to hide my joy with a slight smile to myself. When I walk by a place they filmed in a scene - I'm not going to lie, it really gets me going. What's even trippier is when I go to the beach to write. Repeat: go to the beach to write in the fall and winter. That's incredible! 

I still feel like a visitor some days when I see big billboards for movies and shows that I know are being filmed at the studios directly next to them. It's an intense feeling you get when you walk by Whiskey a Go Go or see a show at the Comedy Store where people like Richard Pryor and Robin Williams have stood. I can see how people can get caught up in the energy and mysticism that L.A. holds. I once wrote a poem about L.A.. in which I was questioning why so many people wrote songs about such a cruddy place but I think I'm starting to get it. L.A. can make you want to do some crazy things... I think I like that.

I have yet to do go to all the touristy areas and venture to all the places I've only dreamed of. I still have 10 months and am finding my people to do all these things with. 

Let's just hope I find a job soon to help support this L.A. livin'. Praying, crossing fingers, and rubbing the Buddha belly. 

Thanks for reading again! I know, I know, I've got to start sharing the juicy stories of whiskey filled nights and sleazy actor boys. 

In time my kiddies... In time.