Driving in Los Angeles

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Are people who live in Los Angeles on time to meetings? Are you looked down upon in L.A. if you’re early to meetings? Is being late considered rude? All of these things I need to know, in addition to learning aboutL.A. traffic. I’m hoping to go on tons of interviews for internships (despite the fact that I’ll be the world’s oldest intern), and not only do I want to get to those interviews efficiently, I want to get there on time. For my birthday, my parents gave me a Garmin. I’m sure it’ll be effective in getting me to my destination efficiently, but I’m going to have to learn traffic patterns for myself. I have a feeling that I’m going to arrive to meetings very early for a while.

In St. Louis, I know my way around. I can’t recall the last time I had to look up directions to go anywhere. I know that if I want to go from my house to a meeting downtown, I need to give myself 20 minutes if there’s garage parking, and 25 if I’ll have to find something on the street. In St. Louis, I have to refill my gas tank every 10 days or so … now that I work from home rather than having to commute, I can often go 2 weeks without needing to refill. Oh, how these things will change in L.A., I’m sure.

My Shows

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My sublet doesn’t have television programming available (I suppose I could watch over-the-air, but I’d prefer to wait to have cable or satellite with a DVR at the long-term apartment I’ll need to find by mid-June – I’ll also be in class during primetime and will need shows DVR’d in order to watch them). Not having an available television with DVR service might not be a big deal to some, in fact some might say this would afford an opportunity to get out and discover new hobbies or spend less time in front of a TV. To them I would say that television is my hobby and I wish to turn it into my career, eventually working as a development and production executive. I want to keep up on the programs that are successful, learn what content is successful and understand production values. (From the shows I watch, you’ll notice that I favor character-driven dramas – and comedies to a lesser extent.)

In order to watch most of “my shows,” I will have to resort to a combination of hulu, the networks’ Web sites and iTunes. The programs that I watch weekly, followed by the method that I will be able to watch them without the use of a television are below.

  • Monday: Law and Order (iTunes), Gossip Girl (thecw.com), How I Met Your Mother (cbs.com), Big Bang Theory
  • Tuesday: 90210 (thecw.com), American Idol, Lost (hulu), 16 and Pregnant (mtv.com), 19 Kids and CountingLaw and Order: Criminal Intent
  • Wednesday: American IdolLaw and Order: SVU, Glee (hulu)
  • Thursday: Bones (hulu), Private Practice (hulu), Grey’s Anatomy (hulu), The Office (hulu)
  • Friday: Dateline NBC (msnbc.com)
  • Saturday: 48 Hours Mystery (cbs.com), Saturday Night Live (hulu)
  • Sunday: Desperate Housewives (hulu), Cold Case (iTunes), Family Guy (hulu), The Simpsons (hulu)
  • Not yet assigned: Weeds (iTunes), So You Think You Can Dance

What am I to do about Big Bang Theory, American Idol, 19 Kids and Counting, Law and Order: Criminal Intent, Law and Order: SVU,  So You Think You Can Dance? They’re not available via any (legit) online channel. I don’t know what I’ll do if I can’t check in on Penny, Sheldon, Simon, Randy, The Duggars, Eames, Goren, Stabler, Benson, Nigel and Cat each week.

The Reason Why I’ll Succeed in L.A.

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Nobody in life gets exactly what they thought they were going to get. But if you work really hard and you’re kind, amazing things will happen. Conan O’Brien (on 1/22/2010, his last night as host of the Tonight Show)

Sublease Signed

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I signed a 3 month sublease on half of a bedroom in a 2 bedroom apartment. I’ll be living with 3 UCLA undergrads, none of whom I’ve met in person (only through Facebook, where they come off as nice and very intelligent). I’ll live within walking distance of UCLA, but with that luxury comes a price. My rent will be twice what I paid in St. Louis for a 2 bedroom apartment and parking requires an additional monthly fee (plus the quarterly parking costs on the UCLA campus; I would just walk the mile to and from class, but with some classes ending late at night, I have to think about personal safety and time constraints).

I’m going to have to find a more permanent place to live in mid-June once my sublease is up. If anyone in Los Angeles has a somewhat-reasonably-priced extra bedroom or a pool house they’re looking to rent (preferably furnished and even more preferably near the beach … hey, growing up in Missouri, Michigan and Ohio, I think I’m allowed to dream of living near the beach at some point), please let me know!

Living Quarters

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“I’d rather sleep in my car. Those two options suck.” -My pal Robin

Almost daily, I search the Los Angeles Craigslist listings for a place to live beginning at the end of March that doesn’t cost me an arm and a leg (renting a one bedroom in Los Angeles will run me three to four times the rent of a similar unit in St. Louis). Really, I’m looking to secure a place for three months (during the first quarter of my program); which will give me time to look for something a bit more long-term (and something a bit closer to the beach – as someone who has lived only in Missouri, Ohio and Michigan, it’s about time I lived near the sand and salt water).

A few weeks ago, I located a listing from a young man renting out the living room of his (lovely looking) apartment about a mile from UCLA. You heard me a right … a living room. As in, no doors. As in I’d be sleeping on an air mattress (OK, I can’t complain about that one; even if I rent an actual bedroom, I’ll still be sleeping on an air mattress – I don’t plan to drive cross-country with furniture). The price is right, the location is convenient, the neighborhood is safe and the roommate seems nice over the phone and Facebook.

Around the same time, I also located a room that a UCLA grad was renting out a room right by campus in an apartment unit with 4 roommates. The only downside is that it’s a shared bedroom; evidently it’s pretty normal in high-rent areas for 2 people to split a bedroom (as one would a dorm room in college). The building has a pool and a gym and garage parking (for an extra $125 per month … ugh).

Since I’m somewhat hesitant sending a rental deposit to someone with who, I’ve only communicated over the web, one of my friends from my Michigan days, E, who lives in Los Angeles, was kind enough to check out the place with a living room for me on New Year’s Day. The only negative he found was that the front door of the apartment opens into the living room which will serve as my sleeping quarters. Unfortunately, I don’t have anyone to get feedback for me on the shared bedroom apartment but I did speak to the girl who’s subletting over the phone and we’ve connected on Facebook.

That’s what happens when one just “goes for it,” right? They must make some sacrifices (privacy and financial in this instance). I think I can handle the privacy concerns for three months, especially considering that I’d be living in a nicer area with a nice roommate and in a space that is (in Los Angeles standards, not Susan standards) affordable.

ID Photo

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Student ID photos are important; professors can look them up, often times they’re turned into face books for students. I made the mistake of sending in a horribly silly one when I was a student in France and all of my peers laughed at it at orientation when they received our student directory:
Paris Student ID
UCLA’s online system provides a spot to upload a photo. I decided to play it safe and upload one of my headshots from Holly McCaig Designs. I love the photo, but is it too formal? Will I come off as a bigger nerd than I am? Time will tell, I suppose…
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Words of Encouragement

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When I was 9, I asked my dad, “can I have your movie camera? That old, wind up 8 millimeter camera that was in your drawer?” And he goes, “sure, take it.” And I started making movies with it, and I started being as creative as I could. And never once in my life did my parents ever say, “what you’re doing is a waste of time.” Never. And I grew up; I had teachers, I had colleagues, I had people that I worked with all through my life who were always telling me, “what you’re doing is not a waste of time.” So that was normal to me, that it was OK to do that. I know there are kids out there who don’t have that support system. So if you’re out there and you’re listening, listen to me: if you want to be creative, get out there and do it; it’s not a waste of time. Do it. -Michael Giacchino in his Academy Award (Oscar) 2010 acceptance speech for the Best Original Score (Up)

Please Help Me Find Music to Last 1,837 Miles

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As a “moving across the country and making crazy-huge life changes” gift, I humbly request your playlist recommendations for the 1,837 mile trek my little hatchback and I will be taking on the move from St. Louis to Los Angeles, California.
route from St. Louis to California

Currently, I plan on listening to the following albums:

  • Phoenix: Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
  • Band of Horses: Cease to Begin
  • Dolly Parton: Backwoods Barbie
  • Donovan: Catch the Wind
  • Ray LaMontagne: Gossip in the Grain
  • Queen: Greatest Hits
  • Lyle Lovett: My Baby Don’t Tolerate
  • Bruce Springsteen: The Rising

Unfortunately, these albums will only last about 400 miles. That leaves me 1,437 miles worth (or from about Tulsa, Oklahoma to Los Angeles) of silence to fill. In the comments section of this post, can you please provide recommendations for songs or albums that can make the 28 hours feel like 2.8? My sanity thanks you in advance.