One week down

It has been a while, so I will update everyone on my progress so far.

I left Chicago on Thursday, June 24 and after picking up my laptop from my friend D, who upgraded it for me, I hit the road. I had everything I could fit into my Mazda Protege including a rooftop pack that weighed a ton, so my car was running heavy and I couldn't go more than 70 miles per hour because of it.

The drive was very nice. A good calm that followed a hectic couple of weeks. I reflected on all of the experiences and people I know in Chicago and I decided that I had a pretty good life there. Made me a little sad to go, but hopefully this gamble will pay off.

I stopped in Devenr, CO for the weekend to see college friends. The first day I stayed with some female friends that haven't changed a bit since collge. Well, maybe a little bit. Then on to my former roommate and the boys I hung out with. The last time I saw everyone was on a ski trip about 3 years ago when we drank until dawn and went skiing hung over. Now everyone has at least one kid, except for one couple, and they liked to talk about Harry Potter and diapers. Needless to say it made me wonder if I was going in the right direction with my life.

So back on the road early Monday morning. I drove until I reached Baker, CA. If you go there, the Wells Fargo Motel has horrible rooms for $37, with the AAA discount. But there are only 3 motels in the town, so it was better than nothing.

Tuesday, June 29, my 30th birthday. I rolled into L.A. around 2pm. I dropped my stuff off at a Storage USA in El Segundo and headed to Hermosa Beach. I was staying with a friend of a friend. He was very cool to let me stay with him even though he has a studio and no couch. I met him, changed and drove to Beverly Hills to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for a special screening of Spider-man 2. I am a huge geek when it comes to Spider-man so my friend that works for Sony got me a pass to a screeing for his company. We caught up and then watched the movie. I am not going to give a review, but it was FANTASTIC.

Then I drove back to Hermosa Beach, smoked a cigar and had a drink of Cognac to end my birthday. Needless to say I was very proud that I made it out here no matter how hard it was to say good-bye to Chicago.

Wednesday, I did nothing but sleep and watch cable. A welcome break from all of the traveling.

I moved in with my friend T on Thursday and I am still there.

He is selling a house in Encino so I have been helping him paint to get it ready to show. The weekend of the 4th of July I just spent painting and getting to know my way around this LARGE city.

As far as acting is concerned, I registered with L.A. Casting and Actor Access. They are two online services that you can get auditions through and have agents look at your stuff to sign you.

I also have an audition at Improv Olympic West to get on an improv team. I performed at the Improv Olympic in Chicago for 1.5 years so I am hopefull that I can make a team and start performing again. I really miss performing in front of a crowd.

My thoughts on L.A. so far.

1. Really different vibe than Chicago. It seems like EVERYONE is tied to show business or wants to be.
2. EVERYONE is on cell phones. EVERYONE. But it seems like the cell phone etiquite is much better here. I don't hear people's phones go off, even in the two movies I have seen so far.
3. L.A. is really, really big. Hopefully I can find out where I need to be and stay in that area. I like to keep a good home base.
4. I was spoiled with having available parking in Chicago. There is parking here, but there are at least 3 signs that you have to decifer before it is safe to park.
5. I really miss my friends and Chicago more than I thought I would. I left a lot of special people back there.

I will be keeping this journal more up to date in the future. Just had a lot going on the last couple of weeks, or haven't you been reading.