Stephen and California culture shock
A few weeks before we left I stopped by where Stephen was working and met his coworker and friend Randall. Stephen worked in the office of a place that makes custom frames for artwork. They have some big-name clients and do work for some of the major museums as well. Most days it was just Stephen and Russ, the owner, in the office. Randall comes in a few days a week to do accounting.
Stephen and Randall are really mean to each other - but it's clearly affectionate. And really really funny. I am like that at work with my favorite coworkers as well. You have to laugh and inappropriate humor makes the time go by.
Randall must've liked me immediately because he got me a going-away present even though we'd only met once. A nice little journal for the trip:
In which he penned this heartwarming inscription:
Even before I opened it Stephen said it was most likely something making fun of him - and of course he was right. I laughed out loud. I have to say that before we left I was a little worried about all that uninterrupted time Stephen and I would be spending together. But I think I am a decently good judge of character and nothing about Stephen had yet made me anxious. A good sign.
Luckily Randall's gift has not (so far) been prophetic.
Today I am at the laundromat which is conveniently within walking distance from our temporary rental. It's the 13th day of our trip and this is the first time Stephen and I have spent any time apart. Far from a disaster, we have turned out to have very compatible temperaments, traveling styles and, most importantly, music and radio program tastes. If you are going to be sharing a small truck cab with someone for seventy some hours, a major divergence here can be a deal breaker. All the music he put on was great - partly stuff I knew and partly stuff I am glad to now know. And we both developed a real fondness for the NPR program "Wait, Wait Don't Tell Me!" which I would download extra podcasts of whenever we had a wifi connection somewhere.
I have to say coming to California has been a bit of a culture shock. Not bad, but I am most definitely not in New York City anymore. Not only is the vegetation and climate different but the people seem different. Friendlier is the usual take on it, but I have never found New Yorkers to be particularly unfriendly. In a place like New York City where you are more likely to share space with strangers more often, it is a form of politeness, hence kindness. to give people space. Ignoring them is one way to do that. But drop your gloves on the subway or whip out a map on the street and you are certain to have someone engage you. In California, private car time is the norm. Too much of it, in fact. I am already sick of being in a car from the road trip, but here you just have to spend even more time in it to get from point a to point b. So I think Californians, having spent a good portion of their day trapped in a lonely speeding metal box, are a bit more hungry for human interaction when they arrive at, say, the laundromat. So direct looks and smiles are more common. Maybe they have to remind themselves they are social animals in a way that New Yorkers would sometimes like to forget.
Everywhere you go there are references to surfing culture. The laundromat I am in has little carved and painted surfboards on the wall. It's called Sparklean and the logo has a big wave about to crash down on the "S." Surfing, though certainly popular in New York, has far more of an outsider feel. Surf culture is a novelty there, here it is absolutely mainstream. And no wonder. It's hard to miss those beautiful waves pounding the coast here - Rockaway in New York is a little more out of the way.
There are also different stock characters out on this coast. The "bro" is one of the mainstays. It is sort of the West Coast take on the jock, but far more laid back. A dude or tough guy for sure. Probably stoned. I imagine most of them don't think they are a "bro" the same way most skinny-jean and kaffiyeh wearing guys on Bedford Avenue don't think they are hipsters. The old surfer dude is one of my favorites - long gray hair, grizzled, and in good shape. Been around forever and full of very useful information. Sick of the crowds but not hesitant to give you some great tips on spots if they like you. Cosmetically-enhanced and/or excessively fit women are everywhere. Most likely blonde. Actually far more people seem to be blond here in general, even naturally, than the East Coast. Then there is also a nice ethnic mix. Japanese, Mexican, South American....
There are more campers and RVs out here, which makes me happy to see. Unfortunately biking as a mode of transport doesn't seem to be as popular as it is in New York - I saw far more bicycling hobbyists than bicycle commuters. You often see little groups of middle-aged men on extremely fancy carbon fiber bikes, all geared up and decked out in spandex outfits cruising along the PCH. But I wouldn't be surprised if they had driven their cars, bikes strapped to the back, to a spot to ride. If I lived here, I would have to find a place where I could walk and bike for most of my tasks. But I wonder if that's possible. Neighborhoods and cities out here are built around the assumption of automobile use. That's just how it is.
Stephen and Randall are really mean to each other - but it's clearly affectionate. And really really funny. I am like that at work with my favorite coworkers as well. You have to laugh and inappropriate humor makes the time go by.
Randall must've liked me immediately because he got me a going-away present even though we'd only met once. A nice little journal for the trip:
In which he penned this heartwarming inscription:
Even before I opened it Stephen said it was most likely something making fun of him - and of course he was right. I laughed out loud. I have to say that before we left I was a little worried about all that uninterrupted time Stephen and I would be spending together. But I think I am a decently good judge of character and nothing about Stephen had yet made me anxious. A good sign.
Luckily Randall's gift has not (so far) been prophetic.
Today I am at the laundromat which is conveniently within walking distance from our temporary rental. It's the 13th day of our trip and this is the first time Stephen and I have spent any time apart. Far from a disaster, we have turned out to have very compatible temperaments, traveling styles and, most importantly, music and radio program tastes. If you are going to be sharing a small truck cab with someone for seventy some hours, a major divergence here can be a deal breaker. All the music he put on was great - partly stuff I knew and partly stuff I am glad to now know. And we both developed a real fondness for the NPR program "Wait, Wait Don't Tell Me!" which I would download extra podcasts of whenever we had a wifi connection somewhere.
I have to say coming to California has been a bit of a culture shock. Not bad, but I am most definitely not in New York City anymore. Not only is the vegetation and climate different but the people seem different. Friendlier is the usual take on it, but I have never found New Yorkers to be particularly unfriendly. In a place like New York City where you are more likely to share space with strangers more often, it is a form of politeness, hence kindness. to give people space. Ignoring them is one way to do that. But drop your gloves on the subway or whip out a map on the street and you are certain to have someone engage you. In California, private car time is the norm. Too much of it, in fact. I am already sick of being in a car from the road trip, but here you just have to spend even more time in it to get from point a to point b. So I think Californians, having spent a good portion of their day trapped in a lonely speeding metal box, are a bit more hungry for human interaction when they arrive at, say, the laundromat. So direct looks and smiles are more common. Maybe they have to remind themselves they are social animals in a way that New Yorkers would sometimes like to forget.
Everywhere you go there are references to surfing culture. The laundromat I am in has little carved and painted surfboards on the wall. It's called Sparklean and the logo has a big wave about to crash down on the "S." Surfing, though certainly popular in New York, has far more of an outsider feel. Surf culture is a novelty there, here it is absolutely mainstream. And no wonder. It's hard to miss those beautiful waves pounding the coast here - Rockaway in New York is a little more out of the way.
There are also different stock characters out on this coast. The "bro" is one of the mainstays. It is sort of the West Coast take on the jock, but far more laid back. A dude or tough guy for sure. Probably stoned. I imagine most of them don't think they are a "bro" the same way most skinny-jean and kaffiyeh wearing guys on Bedford Avenue don't think they are hipsters. The old surfer dude is one of my favorites - long gray hair, grizzled, and in good shape. Been around forever and full of very useful information. Sick of the crowds but not hesitant to give you some great tips on spots if they like you. Cosmetically-enhanced and/or excessively fit women are everywhere. Most likely blonde. Actually far more people seem to be blond here in general, even naturally, than the East Coast. Then there is also a nice ethnic mix. Japanese, Mexican, South American....
There are more campers and RVs out here, which makes me happy to see. Unfortunately biking as a mode of transport doesn't seem to be as popular as it is in New York - I saw far more bicycling hobbyists than bicycle commuters. You often see little groups of middle-aged men on extremely fancy carbon fiber bikes, all geared up and decked out in spandex outfits cruising along the PCH. But I wouldn't be surprised if they had driven their cars, bikes strapped to the back, to a spot to ride. If I lived here, I would have to find a place where I could walk and bike for most of my tasks. But I wonder if that's possible. Neighborhoods and cities out here are built around the assumption of automobile use. That's just how it is.