the awesome/terrifying freedom

some LA observations:

people are friendlier. not that i really thought people were unfriendly in nyc (really, they're not), but here the energy is different. people make eye contact and hold it. it's still kind of disorienting that many strangers will make eye contact and tip up their head in the 'what's up' abercrombie way. because that's what this is.. the land of abercrombie.

people do not walk, and when they do, it's at 1/3 pace. i think people thought i was taping 'supermarket spree' during a recent shopping trip. i was offered a ride to my car from the office the other day. i said 'no, i'm just 2 blocks away.' he said 'oh man, i can totally give you a ride over there, it's no problem.'

i'm extremely fortunate that my daily commute is favored by the flow of traffic. were the directions reversed, it would likely take twice the time. i'm still not used to the driving, though. mostly i'm not used to being so -alone- for so much of the day. where's the smelly deli subway guy falling asleep on my shoulder??

my skills at parallel parking have increased by 200%

you can't jaywalk here the way you're used to in new york. everyone is quick to warn you that you will get ticketed for jaywalking. the streets are wider, so it takes a lot longer to get across, and it's just not part of the mentality - for other pedestrians and, importantly, for drivers, who are not conditioned to expect people to jump in front of them. however, i've become much more attuned to other cars darting in front of me.

i've not seen a single bagel. i thought for a second that i spotted a carb, but it was a trick of the mind.

everyone, upon hearing that you moved from new york, will inform you that everyone here is more 'laid back.'

'yeah, it's just a little more laid back here.'

at my first interview, the big boss had a bluetooth earpiece in and was clearly about to explode from stress as she told me 'this job is not like some hoity toity rockefeller thing that you might be used to. we are NOT like that. we are much more LAID BACK here. MUCH' she said it in a way that indicated relaxed ambiance was enforced by whips and binding legal contract.

i'm starting think that most of the city suffers from a delusion that they -should- be more laid back because the weather is nice and they are by the beach, but that obligation actually creates its own stress. however much stress it causes, they can't imagine it's any more stressful than the average new yorker might feel, so in order to make themselves feel better about it they'll tell every new yorker who comes to town to expect a more 'chill' atmosphere.

my day job has proven to be quite entertaining. i may even start drawing some cartoons about it..

meanwhile, here is the view from my desk:



i do recommend clicking for the full size view.



i'm doing more art department work on the cooking show tomorrow, which should be a lot of work, and a lot of fun.

can i blow your mind for a minute? cooking shows do not just 'happen,' and very little cooking actuallly occurs on screen. often what you're seeing is the work of a 'food stylist' being presented by a photogenic (and/or celebrity) host. denise is the food stylist for both of the cooking shows i've been working on, and she is fucking awesome.