mr rogers was right!
my days here follow a kind of loose pattern.
every morning, i go longboarding. i wanted a way to see the neighborhood and had fond memories of longboarding when i was younger, so i figured i’d give it a go. my two best friends from childhood had been raised in a california beach town before moving to phoenix, and they were very intent on initiating me into the beachcomber way of life.
we borrowed an older brother’s board, and i’d never been so enraptured by anything in my entire life. different from a skateboard, a longboard is a smoother ride, designed to glide. with it comes a confidence that’s hard to describe, a kind of relaxed command that’s immensely fun and freeing. with a slight lean, you can carve your way down hills, tracing huge arcs and barely moving a muscle. none of the labor of biking, not a wobbly struggle like ice-skating. easy, joyful, cool— it epitomized california culture in my little desert rat mind.
where i go usually depends on what i want to do—lately, i’ve been going down to tenth street, grabbing a drink from this coffee place called go get ‘em tiger, then walking back home on montana. if i’m really motivated, i go down to the beach, but it’s hard to concentrate when that view is right in front of you. at a certain point, i just pick up my board and go sit on the shore.
in the evening, i do what i do best, which is watch movies. a fun fact about my apartment is that it’s a ten-minute walk from my favorite theater in la, which weighed heavily in my decision on where tolive. there’s no washer or dryer or dishwasher or wifi included, but the aero is right there.
i recently saw a screening of babylon in 70mm and they had a q&a with the director + key crew members, and i went bananas. the director, damien chazelle, is my favorite guy in the business and it was so impossibly exciting to me that i could just stroll down there after dinner, watch this phenomenal movie, and listen to a panel with the guy, not to mention his big league collaborators. needless to say, i walked home in a daze.
i’ve been trying to read more: just finished william finnegan’s barbarian days, which evocative but did not deserve the pulitzer prize. still working through saul bellow’s collected nonfiction, then next up is a history of california in the sixties. i snagged edward abbey’s hayduke lives! at the last bookstore downtown, but i’m saving that ‘cause i’m just gonna fall right in.
i’m slowly dipping my toe back into creative endeavors— painting, jazz guitar. my guitar teacher’s nicknamed me “screenplay” so i feel like i should follow through on that christening.
i’ve also been juggling other things— making friends, building a life. my house is starting to look like a home. all very exciting. i’m so grateful, man.
What's the name of the medical Americoprs?
Sounds wonderful.