LA ❤️
I moved to Los Angeles as a reluctant transplant in 2010. I had lived in New York City for so long that I had forgotten how to drive and my chosen industry, book publishing, really didn’t exist in LA at that time. I was adrift, often alone, and kind of miserable.
Slowly, the city brought me back to life. It’s hard to be miserable in a place where the sun shines almost every single day. I made great friends that got me outside and taught me how to hike, something I never did as a suburban kid. The grocery store produce sections all looked like beautiful gardens and even I, a kid who grew up mostly eating bagels and pizza, couldn’t resist. I fell head over heels in love with avocados. And in a land of dreamers, it felt easy to step out of the 9-5 grind I’d embraced in New York. In LA, almost everyone was following their own often untraditional plan. I started my freelance editing business after just a couple of months of embracing the LA lifestyle and I never looked back.
I moved back to New York in 2022, fleeing Covid and seeking family. But LA is a city that gets into your blood. And now, the heartbreaking devastation has broken my heart.
It doesn’t feel real, especially when you see all of the destruction on social media intermingled with pictures of people still living fabulous lives. I guess that’s the draw of social media. Even when the world is literally burning down around you, you can always find something to distract you. I prefer books. But it didn’t feel right sending out this newsletter without acknowledging what is happening in my adopted city. And if you’re feeling as sad and as lost as I am, here are some other things that are helping me right now and have helped me through other hard times.
A happiness list. I keep a list on my phone of everything that truly makes me happy and I refer to it whenever I need a quick pick me up. My list includes: watching an episode of the Golden Girls, a good book (duh!), ice cream, a long walk. Sure this can often feel like you’re plugging a dam with one finger, but eventually small moments of happiness add up to more. Plus, sometimes you need to do everything you can to keep your own head above water so you can help everyone else. What’s on your happiness list?
As Mr. Rogers once said, “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’” I first heard this quote right after 9/11 and it still brings me comfort to this day. I also try to be a helper whenever I can which, right now, means donating to any of these organizations. If you find yourself able, maybe that will bring you comfort as well.
Keep writing. I had a rough childhood and the one thing that got me through was reading. I knew there were better things out in the world for me, even if I couldn’t see them at that very moment. You never know who will need your words one day. So just keep writing. Keep replenishing your creative well in any way that you can so you can get all of your important words down. One day, your words may be the only light someone can see.
Until next time,
Thank you, Kristen. I lived in LA for 20 years and sometimes miss it terribly. I especially miss it now. I'm grateful friends are okay, but through my own tears, from 1,100 miles away in Seattle, I feel like a part of me vaporized along with swaths of LA. I came of age there, came out there, got sober there, discovered who I wasn't there, have suffered financial highs and lows there, experienced death there, had the best times of my life alongside many friends there. I relished the sunshine, the ocean, the palm trees, the drives through the city on a lazy afternoon. Los Angeles really is the City of Angels...now more than ever, those angels are on call.
Thank you Kristen. Lots of love for this post. I threw on some Randy Newman for the second read. That’s a great donation/help site linked in item #2 - I hadn’t seen that one. I’ll def repurpose that.
As someone from the Northeast, it always makes me smile to read appreciation / tribute pieces like this about LA. The city is far from perfect, but it’s not a coincidence 18 million people live here.