Another LA visit

N and I were in the bay area last week, so we drove the ~5 hours down to LA afterward to hang out a bit. We also took the opportunity to drive down my sister's '97 Civic and we stored it in our generous friend's-grandma's-garage so it will be waiting there for us when we arrive on January 21st. Exciting!

It was *hot* in LA. I was sweating--it had to be in the mid 80s at least in the sun. I'm not used to California weather, and especially California buildings. I think of them more like huts. Or perhaps 5 pieces of drywall stacked against each other. They have very little insulation and don't need to withstand any harsh elements, so they're always drafty and feel very hollow. But I still think it's a small sacrifice for having that fantastic outdoor weather year-round!

We looked at a few other cottages/bungalows and downtown loft spaces while we were there. We looked at one luxury loft that used to be an old bank. It was really cool looking--old elegant elevators, original marble floors, very solidly built--not cookie-cutter luxury high rise at all. The building had a fitness center and a kickass swimming pool and jacuzzi on the roof. And each unit had one of those cool combo washer/dryers in it...the kind that somehow dries your laundry in the same machine that it washes in. And the 1-bed there was cheaper than the 1-bed we live in in Brooklyn right now! That was an eye opener.

So far, N and I have looked at about 10 apartments in LA off of craigslist, and we haven't come across anything that was gross or unlivable yet. I guess that's the biggest difference between NYC and LA real estate. The worst LA has to offer doesn't come anywhere near the worst NYC has to offer.

Turkey day is coming up--that means dinner at N's uncle's place an hour or so north of the city. Our relatively frequent trips upstate will soon come to an end, which means each of the holiday visits this year will be more important than the last. Now instead of me flying cross-country to see my family in Cali, we'll soon be flying the other way to see N's family. Back and forth, back and forth...