goin' back to cali

originally written, wed. apr. 14

on a plane on my way back to cali. listening to a little jane's addiction to get me in the mood.
i have mixed feelings about this trip. on one hand, i'm excited to see my friends and family, to hang out and spend time with them in warm weather. but on the other hand, i'm not at all excited to deal with the tasks at hand, which include an "intervention" with my grandma about my dad's house, setting up care arrangements for her, cleaning out my dad's house, more lawyer meetings and bank crap, dmv trip, etc, etc. blah! it's gotta get done though. i feel like i've sort of created a little wall in my NY world, where i don't really have to think of that stuff. sure, i've thought of my dad every single day and i wonder how my grandma and debbie are doing, but it's not a constant. i've got work and my new boyfriend and the city to keep me occupied and i quite like it that way. aren't we supposed to take care of ourselves a little too when bad things happen? well, now it's time to take care of the ones who've been suffering most. it's my duty as the only daughter to fly out and TCB (take care of business). i just hope it doesn't turn into the potential nightmare that it could.

i'm flying into LA first. gonna be there for a few days before heading down. staying with amy. gonna see all the kids too. that'll be fun. i wonder what i'll think of LA this time? the more i'm away from it, the more i gain varying perspectives on the place. i know i'm gonna love the nice weather. that's a given. i've just really grown to love NY. i never dreamed i'd like it as much as i do. example: last night. first off, i went back to my new favorite neighborhood to check out a place. then stopped into a restaurant/bar that looked really cool last time i was in the area. it was about happy hour time and a guy i saw on the subway was standing outside. he recognized me and said i should join him, so i did.
i was welcomed into the place by every person working there. OMIGOD, this place was the cooooolest. a south african joint, run by the grooviest set of people i've met in one place. the bartender was chatting me up, really interested in who i was and what i was into, etc. meanwhile the gorgeous dead-headed man to my left was spinning some of my favorite tracks (many in my own collection) on the turntables. i had a couple beers and some delicious s. african soup and then the cool bartender gave me a special concoction of his own. i was floored on my walk/ride back home at 8:30pm.
later on, i met up with alex and we went to the one year anniversary party for rude movements. ig culture made his US dj debut and played a wicked set. the place was just bumpin on a rainy tuesday night. that crowd is really great. so mixed and fun-loving. i just know that vibe doesn't exist in LA and if it does, i never witnessed it. everyone was shaking it on the steamy sweaty sorta-dance floor. ipod party upstairs where andrew andrew greeted me warmly, asking if i was going to grace their ipods that night. HA! "not tonight guys." followed by a heavy joint session wtih 5 other fellow stoners on the patio out back. back to the damp bar below for more fun. it was the perfect NY send-off.
now, let's see how LA compares.