Bedroom for One

One of the biggest decisions I made when moving out to LA was about my living situation.  Aside from deciding where I was going to live, I was also deciding between living alone and living with roommates.  After weighing the pros and cons and realizing that no matter what choice I made, there were going to be days that I would regret it, as you all probably know, I decided to take the plunge and live alone.

After three months in my current living situation I feel like I have had enough time to settle in and that I can now assess the situation with clear eyes and officially say that I LOVE LIVING ALONE!!!  Seriously, I can watch whatever I want on the TV, I don't have to share the bathroom and there is soooooo much room in the fridge!  Seriously- look at all the Lean Cuisines I can have!

And there is still sooooo much more room!  I have seriously never regretted my choice for even a second though there are a few tiny things that make me miss having another person around the house...

Urban Jungle

Moving from the 3rd largest city in the US to the 2nd largest, I expected that I would be getting more of a lot of things.  More traffic, more smog, more people, more money (earned and spent), more sunshine, more professional basketball teams, more celebrities, more homeless people, and well, you get the picture.  One thing I was not expecting more of was nature.  I was actually expecting to move to a larger city and get less nature to account for the more of everything else.  LA has pleasantly surprised me by being a place that is FULL of natural beauty and outdoorsy activities.  Who knew?

Why Resolutions Suck.

Don't get me wrong, I'm all for being a better person but let's get real.  Who really sticks to their New Year's Resolution??  Not even half of those people that make the gym unbearably crowded for most of January, that's for sure.  It's not that I don't like goals, I love them-spent two years setting "big goals" for the children of St. Louis and "relentlessly pursuing" them even.  The thing with resolutions is:

• You have to be sincere with it.  Don't say you're gonna work out every day if you don't want to be a person who works out everyday.  Mean it and make it something that is doable and realistic for your life.

• You have to be specific and concrete.  Don't say you're gonna stay in better touch with old friends, it's a vague statement and easy to keep pushing off until next December when you say "I really mean it this year!"  Say you are gonna pick...I dunno, a friend a week or a friend a month to send a card to or give a phone call.  Goals are easier to meet when they are measurable.

• You have to make it personal. Don't set goals that fit other people's definitions of a "better person," strive to be the best you that you can be.  If your resolutions are meaningful and truly things that you want to achieve for yourself, you have a much better chance of being successful and ultimately, happy.

Cheers to 2011, a year that brought me a lot of unexpected change and challenge in my life.  Here's to 2012, a year that I hope continues to challenge and push me in both my career and personal life.  I intend to continue to be open to new experiences and to fearlessly be myself in all of them.  I hope everyone has a happy and healthy New Year and thanks for following my crazy life.  Especially those of you that don't even know me (I'm talking to you Russia!  Woo!).  It's great to feel the love and support from friends, family, and strangers as I continue to settle into this next chapter.

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!

Soybeans to Oranges

Welp, it's been about two week since my last post.  It's not that I haven't thought about blogging, it's just that... well, life has gotten in the way.  Which is good I guess- it means that I have things to do and that my experiences here are becoming less novel and more routine.

Guys, I live in LA.  Crazy.

This also means that it's finally time to write this post that I have been sitting on for quite some time...

One of my favorite learning techniques is to use metaphors or comparisons of things I'm familiar with to get a grasp on something new.  This worked great for my students (I think...) and was also successful in helping me master the rules of rugby when I was in Australia.  Using football as as staring point, I was able to make connections and understand a new game... and meet cute Aussie boys ;)

Anyways, as you may have gleaned, this post is going to make a comparison.  In order to orientate and get my lay of the land out here, I'm going to equate the areas of LA to their Chicago neighborhood equivalents.  I'm also gonna go ahead and say which area I prefer though the total is not generalize-able to an overall LA v Chicago throwdown, they are just entirely too different.

***Disclaimer*** The comparisons are based purely on my impressions and biases after living here for approximately three months.  What I have to say about Chicago is most likely true, but I may have some misconceptions or over-generalizations about LA.  Also, being that I am a fairly open minded person, these impressions are subject to change as I continue to assimilate in the area.  For now, I present you with... (Drum roll please)....

Plastic Santas and Santa Anas

So... it's December and I don't think I have ever felt less in the holiday spirit.  It's not that I'm a Grinch or anything, it just doesn't feel like the holidays when it's 65 degrees and there are palm trees everywhere.  Oh, and it's super windy.  Earlier this week, someone commented that the winds must make me feel like I'm back in Chicago.  No.  No, the Santa Ana Winds DO NOT remind me of Chicago.  ALSO, Chicago is not significantly winder than any other city (see table below from www.currentresults.com) and earned the nick-name "The Windy City" for the "windbag" politicians not the weather .  In addition, I have never had large amounts of sand blown into my face in Chicago.  Snow, sure.  Sand, dust, palm leaves, not so much.

Average annual wind speed of the windiest US cities

(in miles per hour and kilometres per hour)

City	MPH	KPH
Boston, Massachusetts	12.3	19.8
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma	12.2	19.6
Buffalo, New York	11.8	19.0
Milwaukee, Wisconsin	11.5	18.5
Dallas, Texas	10.7	17.2
Kansas City, Missouri	10.6	17.1
San Francisco, California	10.6	17.1
Cleveland, Ohio	10.5	16.9
Minneapolis, Minnesota	10.5	16.9
Virginia Beach, Virginia	10.5	16.9
Providence, Rhode Island	10.4	16.7
Chicago, Illinois	10.3	16.6
Detroit, Michigan	10.2	16.4