(no subject)
I'm really enjoying Los Angeles. Things have been hectic and crazy and stressful, but it's all felt worth it. I'm always doing SOMETHING and feel like I'm working for something. Everybody here really IS a writer/musician/actor/artist of some sort, but it's not quite as intimidating as I thought it'd be. A lot of them are more talk than they are the title they claim.
That said, I met the one and only JACK BAUER (I don't know how you spell it) twice. The second time I talked to him about Lou having a crush on his character in The Lost Boys when she was a kid. I also saw that chick Amanda Bynes from Nickelodeon falling over drunk at a bar. We saw Jennifer Garner while we were at a farmer's market, too. None of it's really that exciting, but I thought some people may be interested.
LA itself is over-all a cool city. It's got a VERY laid back attitude, and most of the strangers I've met have been really nice and helpful. I've been approached by people I've never met asking if I want to blaze with them. Shit, bus drivers just wave me on without paying 1/2 the time.
Speaking of which, I've been somewhat enjoying the use of public transportation since I've been here. The subway system isn't as intense or well-laid as New York's, but it serves its purpose. I've yet to find a place that I needed to go that didn't have a bus stop within 2 blocks. It's also cheaper than Miami.
It really amazes me how much the city looks like south Florida, but with really big hills. Like New York, greater Los Angeles is split into a ton of different suburbs. I live really close to downtown LA, on the border of Koreatown. Downtown LA looks a lot like Manhattan, but the rest of the greater LA area mirror South Floridian areas. I've been to places that look just like Fort Lauderdale, Sunrise, Hollywood (guess where...), Dania, Boca, Palm Beach, Pompano. Seriously, there are times I forget I'm in California. It's kinda comforting and familiar, which makes being on the other coast a little less scary.
My first night here I walked through South Central with Nolan and his brother at like 2 am. Thank god I look so scrubby. There would be this big scary guys (who I'm pretty sure intended to mug us) that would go into their spiel asking if we had 50 cents or whatever, then they'd look at us and say "Oh, nevermind you guys homeless" and walk away. I kid you not.
South Central, by the way, is the scariest place I have EVER been, and I walked around the projects in Brooklyn and Queens at night several times. It was seriously just like the movies. The streets were literally lined with pushers and pimps trying to sell us drugs or hoes. We walked by the police station in time to see a homeless guy try to stab a cop and the cop (a tiny little asian guy) break his nose. Poor first impression, but once we got out of the area things were kosher. I actually haven't seen ANYTHING like that since. Not even in Compton (though I've only ridden the bus through)
There are some things on the West coast that everyone back East is DEFINITELY missing out on.
1. In-n-out burger. Holy crap guys. I'd heard a lot about it, but actually eating it was awesome!
2. Tommy's original burgers. If you've seen Grandma's Boy, you may remember one of these places. After they leave the vegan restaurant, they go to a Tommy's burger. Tommy's big thing is putting chili on everything. This would normally gross me out, but the chili is SO FUCKING GOOD.
3. Cannabis Collectives. There are the places where you go to buy your medical marijuana. You are granted access to these stores by obtaining a medical card from a doctor. These doctors are like the pill-mill doctors of SoFla. They have signs that say things like "420 DOCTOR." After a visit of about 50 dollars, you are asked why you want medical marijuana. These reasons range from insomnia, depression, pain relief, headaches, appetite stimulation, appetite depression (yeah, I don't get it either), anxiety, just about EVERY thing you could complain about is a legitimate reason. They give you a prescription that you take to another place to get your card. Bam. Instant access to MARIJUANA STORES! The prices are the same as street prices, but now you aren't getting busted. They also abolished the limit, so now you can grow/buy/possess as much as you need "for medical purposes." I guess some people were legitimately going through an ounce a week and running out, which was the previous limit. The best thing is when you buy "White Widow," for example, you're getting White Widow.
4. Things to do. Every weekend the debate, like everywhere else, is "what are we going to do?" The major difference being that we aren't trying to find something, but rather pick something from the tremendous list. I have been busy in some way every single day. It's been incredible and refreshing.
I don't know why I wrote so much, I just wanted you guys to know how things have been.
That said, I met the one and only JACK BAUER (I don't know how you spell it) twice. The second time I talked to him about Lou having a crush on his character in The Lost Boys when she was a kid. I also saw that chick Amanda Bynes from Nickelodeon falling over drunk at a bar. We saw Jennifer Garner while we were at a farmer's market, too. None of it's really that exciting, but I thought some people may be interested.
LA itself is over-all a cool city. It's got a VERY laid back attitude, and most of the strangers I've met have been really nice and helpful. I've been approached by people I've never met asking if I want to blaze with them. Shit, bus drivers just wave me on without paying 1/2 the time.
Speaking of which, I've been somewhat enjoying the use of public transportation since I've been here. The subway system isn't as intense or well-laid as New York's, but it serves its purpose. I've yet to find a place that I needed to go that didn't have a bus stop within 2 blocks. It's also cheaper than Miami.
It really amazes me how much the city looks like south Florida, but with really big hills. Like New York, greater Los Angeles is split into a ton of different suburbs. I live really close to downtown LA, on the border of Koreatown. Downtown LA looks a lot like Manhattan, but the rest of the greater LA area mirror South Floridian areas. I've been to places that look just like Fort Lauderdale, Sunrise, Hollywood (guess where...), Dania, Boca, Palm Beach, Pompano. Seriously, there are times I forget I'm in California. It's kinda comforting and familiar, which makes being on the other coast a little less scary.
My first night here I walked through South Central with Nolan and his brother at like 2 am. Thank god I look so scrubby. There would be this big scary guys (who I'm pretty sure intended to mug us) that would go into their spiel asking if we had 50 cents or whatever, then they'd look at us and say "Oh, nevermind you guys homeless" and walk away. I kid you not.
South Central, by the way, is the scariest place I have EVER been, and I walked around the projects in Brooklyn and Queens at night several times. It was seriously just like the movies. The streets were literally lined with pushers and pimps trying to sell us drugs or hoes. We walked by the police station in time to see a homeless guy try to stab a cop and the cop (a tiny little asian guy) break his nose. Poor first impression, but once we got out of the area things were kosher. I actually haven't seen ANYTHING like that since. Not even in Compton (though I've only ridden the bus through)
There are some things on the West coast that everyone back East is DEFINITELY missing out on.
1. In-n-out burger. Holy crap guys. I'd heard a lot about it, but actually eating it was awesome!
2. Tommy's original burgers. If you've seen Grandma's Boy, you may remember one of these places. After they leave the vegan restaurant, they go to a Tommy's burger. Tommy's big thing is putting chili on everything. This would normally gross me out, but the chili is SO FUCKING GOOD.
3. Cannabis Collectives. There are the places where you go to buy your medical marijuana. You are granted access to these stores by obtaining a medical card from a doctor. These doctors are like the pill-mill doctors of SoFla. They have signs that say things like "420 DOCTOR." After a visit of about 50 dollars, you are asked why you want medical marijuana. These reasons range from insomnia, depression, pain relief, headaches, appetite stimulation, appetite depression (yeah, I don't get it either), anxiety, just about EVERY thing you could complain about is a legitimate reason. They give you a prescription that you take to another place to get your card. Bam. Instant access to MARIJUANA STORES! The prices are the same as street prices, but now you aren't getting busted. They also abolished the limit, so now you can grow/buy/possess as much as you need "for medical purposes." I guess some people were legitimately going through an ounce a week and running out, which was the previous limit. The best thing is when you buy "White Widow," for example, you're getting White Widow.
4. Things to do. Every weekend the debate, like everywhere else, is "what are we going to do?" The major difference being that we aren't trying to find something, but rather pick something from the tremendous list. I have been busy in some way every single day. It's been incredible and refreshing.
I don't know why I wrote so much, I just wanted you guys to know how things have been.