How to Win the Heart of an L.A. A$$hole
Ah, Los Angeles, the City of Assholes...er...Angels.
Los Angeles is an interesting city to live in, to say the least. I've lived here for about 6 years and I admittedly have mixed feelings about staying here much longer. However, I'm not going to talk about L.A. from a political standpoint because that's not my style of writing, so don't expect me to engage in any of that in the comments. The point of this post is totally NOT political.
Obviously, L.A. is an incredibly popular tourist destination and you might be able to spot a few celebrities if you hang out in the right areas.
Also quite obviously, L.A. has a reputation that precedes itself -- that its residents are less than friendly. People are always rushing about, doing the things that douchebags do. The stereotypical Los Angeleno looks like this guy, with their eyes glued to a smartphone screen, right?
Back when I first moved here, when I found myself having a bad day or "coincidentally" running into people who were super rude, I blamed it on "all the L.A. assholes." It really was that simple to me. It had to be why so many random strangers, cashiers, and the like all seemed impatient. Yup, they were just assholes. Case closed. Everyone was SO right about L.A., I thought.
However, as I've matured a bit more and grown as a person, I've come to realize what a complete line of B.S. I was selling myself. I learned that whatever you believe to be true turns into your perceived reality, regardless of whether it's true or not. If you convince yourself everyone is an asshole, what is going to manifest? Assholes. Lots of them.
After spending 6 years here and being forced to speed up the pace of my life for work purposes, I can finally understand the mindset of the average Los Angeleno. Rent costs way too much. Want to buy a house? Be prepared to spend at least $500,000 USD. Traffic is a nightmare. I get it; they're busy and stressed. Heck, I'm busy and stressed. Pretty much the whole world is busy and stressed, so why single out the residents of Los Angeles or New York?
Are Los Angelenos really so bad? Aren't we human, too? We're not all rude, entitled jerks. ;)
Sometimes we all need a subtle reminder to slow down, be happy, appreciate life and those who are in our life, and chill the heck out.
So if you're interested in winning the heart of your garden variety L.A. asshole, look them in the eyes and smile. It's quite possible they're not an actual asshole, although to be fair, assholes are known to exist in droves, too. A quick smile works 99% of the time and works outside of L.A. as well. It's worth a try, right?
:)
Try working in "Hollywood" thick skin is required.
Oh yes, I'm sure. I have no experience in that industry, but I can imagine it's rough!
I'd take LA apathy over phoney Bible-Belt "hospitality" any day of the week. Disingenuous people are the worst.
I did my internship in LA. Crazy ass city!
I think the variety of restaurants was my favorite thing about it. And I enjoyed going to Fatburger often for a meal. If I remember, I dug the chicken sandwich with bacon a lot. I understand not all Fatburger establishments are created equal though.
Anyway, I definitely saw some ludicrous things. Some weren't fun to experience at the time, and some were, but all make for good stories now.
Which part of LA?
I stayed at the El Nido hotel (holy smokes!) at the corner of Santa Monica and Wilcox, and worked at the Native Instruments US sales office in Hollywood. That's back when it was very small, so I think they have a new office now.
Where do you stay?
I also did a road trip a few years ago with a friend, and we went to the Knotts Berry Farm amusement park and had Korean BBQ afterwards, the Getty art museum the next day, then watched the sun set from the Griffith Park observatory. Watching the sunset there was probably my favorite part about our LA stop.
Hollywood is a very interesting place... I try to stay away from there actually. :)
I'm currently in the South Bay area near Redondo Beach, Torrance, etc. I used to live in OC -- Huntington Beach, and liked it fairly well.
I know exactly the area of Buena Park you're talking about. Lots of great Korean food around there, and Vietnamese places a few miles away in Westminster/Garden Grove.
Yeah, I don't remember being a real fan of Hollywood. I saw some little boy getting handcuffed by the cops like a block away from the office, and of course there was the obligatory unnecessary road rage that LA is known for.
I'm not all that familiar with those neighborhoods, and can't place a name to a locale off the top of my head, but I just remembered the times I went to Venice Beach.
That place is wacky and wild. I saw some crazy shit go down there, and bought some interesting things from the vendors.