#LALife

As I sit at hipster Tom's Cafe on Abbott Kinney, Venice Beach - just minutes walk from my new flat - it is a great chance to reflect on my last 6 weeks experiencing and settling in to #LAlife.

LA is about small wins amongst the struggle of a sparse city. Its about chat around what visa you have and why you are here.  Its about traffic. Its about what you drive. Its about what part of town you live in. Its about the industry and your dream in it. Its about sunshine. Of fitness. Of burgers. Of micro-brewed beers. Of ambition. And lifestyle.

I arrived on the Californian coast for a double dose of Coachella and haven't been able to wipe the smile off my face since. Ok maybe the days following the festivals when reality of moving to this vast megalopolis set in. There is lots to think about. Car. Flat. Job. Girlfriend?

The hospitality of my great mate and school friend Bodie and his partner Colleen has been tremendous. Having a room to come and go from in Santa Monica on my arrival has been a godsend. Getting to know the feel of the posh Montana Ave area over the first few weeks was fun. A little quiet for my liking, with not much happening in the evenings as people retreat into their million dollar homes. Yoga mums walk their prams up and down the leafy streets.  Trendy script writers and film producers do their shopping at Whole Foods and the other organic boutiques.  I did see LA Clippers hometown hero Blake Griffin though, grabbing his coffee and salad before hopping in his shiny silver Mercedes.

Having a small bunch of solid kiwi mates has made the transition easier, and its been great able to share stories of unique city experiences. Bodie is the godfather has been here for over 4 years now, coming after winning a Green Card in the lottery.  He works downtown in legal recruitment and is always keen for a beer to pass on his war stories of his time on the SoCal coast. His partner Colleen was born and raised here and have been able to point in the right direction for life on the West side.  Another kiwi couple Shane and Nikki Bloor are also settling in, arriving a few weeks before me have been fantastic company and great for a laugh. Rees and Leon at the NZ Consulate are super hospitable passing on business contacts and invitations to events.  My new flat mate Alex who has been here for 6 years working in TV industry and recently launched her own event caravan 'Your Little Local'. She has introduced me her friends, found me a flat and my own Ford truck! I am very grateful for their help in settling in. And another kiwi Jordan over here pitching a movie has been a welcome distraction to chew the fat and plan big ambitious creative ideas to work towards.

You definitely need a car in LA.  On the Westside you can get away with a bike but still is challenging. Even getting from Santa Monica to Venice is still a good 20/30 mins bike and arriving hot and sweaty for meetings is not ideal. After borrowing my friend Natalia's for a couple of weeks on arrival I recently splashed out on a Ford Explorer truck. It was a steal at $1500 and I spent a bit more getting it road and smog test ready.  I look forward to cruising up to Malibu or even further a far this summer.

There have been some memorable events and nights out. Eight of us managed to secure some tickets to the NBA playoffs and saw Steven Adams come on against my new local team the Clippers. Clubbing in Hollywood amongst the celebs and scensters, witnessing the EDM boom taking over the city.  Memorial Day Weekend was spent up at actor Chris Pine's place in Los Feliz.  It was cool to meet some likeminded LA locals and see the kind of life success in this city can lead to. The views of the Griffith Observatory and the Hollywood sign were an inspiring site.

I got to go out on the water the other week with a bunch of kiwi actors and other creative business people living over here. Captain Phil has been over here for 20 odd years and takes regular charters out into the Bay. We sailed over to Malibu and anchored for a few hours about 200 yards off the beach. Some of the crew took boards and went surfing in the crowded break, while others went paddle boarding and swam.  It was a lazy afternoon sailing back in the salty California air. Given it was a Thursday you had to wonder if anyone works in this town?

The hustle remains top of agenda and trying to meet as many people as I can around town to see what work opportunities may be available in the entertainment space. I've met with music agents, tech entreprenuers, lawyers and promoters.  They say you never have a bad meeting in LA. It is easy to say yes to ideas and to keep you engaged, but no one ever wants to give you a no.  You never know who may come in handy down the track. People have the tendency to flake. Meetings get postponed, pushed out, rescheduled. Luckily I'm reasonable flexible. It's all about keeping the momentum. I've managed to get a good lay of the land and some opportunities are starting to appear. Watch this space!

My roaming office life has lead me to become a coffee connoisseur of LA's West side. After frequenting the Montana Ave haunts of Creation and Groundworks and I'm now firmly entrenched in the Abbot Kinney scene. Minottis, Zinque, Toms, GTA, Intelligencia all pack a decent punch. No one seems to have the coffee / brunch combo thing going on though.  I met up with a friend for brunch at the lively Brick and Mortar cafe on Main Street. The sour, brown liquid they poured out a drip dispenser would be laughed out of any decent cafe in NZ.

Fitness is a big focus here in LA.  With the great weather everyday there is no excuse to get outside and move around. I have spent most weekends biking between Santa Monica and Venice.  And a decent game of beach volley ball on a Saturday afternoon as well. I am looking forward to more beach culture as summer starts to wind up. Living on Montana Ave in Santa Monica meant I was close to the infamous stairs at the end of 4th Ave. Bounding up and down the 200 odd steps is a great work out and you arrive at the top with your heart jumping out of your chest.  Its not just a killer work out it is also great people watching. Fake boobs bouncing, wannabe entertainment moguls yapping on their phones or pumped-up actors keeping in shape for an upcoming role.  Or just low key kiwis who are settling in to the area. It can really be a snapshot of LA life.

   

It's not all palm trees and sunshine though. At times it can be a scary and unforgiving place. There are dark parts to town and you need to keep your wits about you. Getting pulled over by the Police for running a stop sign was not ideal and gave me a wake up. Especially when I didn't have any insurance or a Californian licence.  Luckily I was able to sweet talk the officer with my kiwi accent and bamboozle her with tales of waiting in line for the DMV to get my registrations in order, which was of course the truth. It does take a while to get things processed as one thing waits on the next - be it social security registration, drivers licence, or proof of mailing address.  I got let off with a slap on the hand but it encouraged me to get my admin in order to avoid further issues.

Overall I haven't been happier settling into this crazy creative city. I definitely have a new respect for anyone who has moved overseas to start a new life. The admin, the homesickness, missing friends and family, and the twists and turns can all be balanced out with the adventure, the new friends to meet and the freedom of a blank canvas on which to build a new chapter on. I'm looking forward to the coming summer and being more settled to continue to make the most of everything on offer.