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March 24, 2006
times are a'changing
it's been quiet again. i think that my almost daily updates have slowed way down to once in a blue moon in part to my dear friends and family members using the site to "stay in touch" instead of reaching out. but also, what has historically felt like a place that was just under the wire, has felt less so recently, particulary after reading this. [via ariel]
but i miss the exercise of writing on a regular basis, so as usual ,this is more for my own benefit and amusement than anyone else's. so i may tone some of the revelations down, but keep the frequency up.
so for all the news that's fit to print...
migration. i've emigrated from my lovely abode on abbot kinney in venice to a peach condo in a gated community in calabasas, a little town in the valley stuffed with suvs, soccer moms, starbucks and the toughest smoking laws in the country.
the first time i announced my plans to a group there was a collective gasp as though the world had slightly shifted on it's axis for a moment at the news. i moved to los angeles reluctantly four years ago from san francisco, and settled into my neighborhood which was as close as i could get to the city in la. this little strip of heaven was a little gritty, a little dangerous, but full of character, great food, funky boutiques, most within walking distance. the culture was a fabulous mix of political activitsts with "impeach bush" spray painted on their houses, artists, writers, yuppies and smokers outside of abbot's habit jacked up on caffeine, conversation and indignance. there were playhouses, poetry centers, boardwalks and turnabouts all within walking distance. the shopkeepers served wine while you browsed, and started pulling your favorite items out when they saw you trekking up the walk. and then there was always sweet david at the corner market who delivered wine to your door if you couldn't make it down to the corner and inquired frequently about your post-breakup dating life--and in my case with great concern at it's apparent non-existence.
i loved the foggy mornings and cool evenings. the sunday farmers market and brunch at lilly's. the daily stop to grab a large cup of the strongest coffee from the paul/paul baristas at abbot's habit en route to work. the baguettes and croque monsieur at the french market where all the europeans smoked on the patio reading the paper while patrons of an upscale spinning class suffered through the second-hand smoke wafting in the doorway--i always felt a wicked, politically incorrect sense of satisfaction at this little arrangement.
now in calabasas the whole lot of us would be fined and possibly jailed for such an offense.
however, the two hour round-trip daily commute was killing me. i will be working too many hours at work and travelling so much over the next couple of years, that i came to the realization that i was paying a premium to live in a neighborhood that i only enjoyed two days a week (if that), it had been eight months since i'd stood on the beach that was just five blocks away and my yellow beach cruiser had a layer of dust and two flat tires from sheer lack of use.
so when my dear friend daniela bought her first lovely condo fifteen minutes away from the office and offered up a room along with a standing invitation to stay in the spare room of her boyfriend's fabulous pad in santa monica i jumped at the chance.
so now i'm well-rested in a lovely loft condo in a gated community with a pool and a clubhouse where the frogs in the creek keep me awake at night instead of the traffic and emergency response vehicles.
however, i have made a solemn promise to myself to resist the urge to bleach out my hair, spray tan, french manicure my toenails and turn in the mini cooper for an suv that will haul all those great finds from home depot with a starbucks in one hand and a hand weight in the other to replace my sherman mcd while en route to meet friends for a drink and a sampler platter at the local tgi fridays.
in other news...
i visted nyc. and barcelona. and vienna.
it's been a busy month.
Posted by heidijanet at 02:01 PM | Comments (3)