First week of life in South Bay
Things are distinctly different over here. I'm living in the burbs still but here are a few things that I've noticed:

1. Food
1A. Nobody really cooks. Everyone eats out all the time, there is such a large selection of food at all price ranges that people eat out all the time. I've budgeted $20 a day for food... hope thats enough lol.
1B. Noodle Soup everywhere. I love noodle soup, in NOVA I could never find it (other than Pho of course). Here it's EVERYWHERE and in all different kinds. Also had Zha Jiang Mian or Za Zang or whatever in Korean.

2. People
2A. Very liberal. You know how you often meet that type of person who you know you have to tip toe around and watch your words/be politically correct around? Well, I haven't met anyone like that. It's not just gay friendly, it's just friendly period.
2B. Helpful. I asked some dude with my window rolled down how to get somewhere (on the road) and he told me to follow him! Also the people I've met while house searching have all be super cool in terms of letting me know whats up and not trying to dagger me.
2C. Relaxed. Goddamn its chill out here. My company goes out for lunch everyday, and it's a two hour lunch break... after we drive to a restaurant, eat, and come back, we stand around a little for an "after lunch break." Everyone I've met could be considered "chill." Although many people work pretty hard, they are still laid back people.
2D. Hi-tech. It's Silicon Valley, just imagine if everyone around you worked in hi-tech industries. Everyone here has a certain amount of common ground when it comes to lifestyles, which is nice.

3. Expensive as fuck. Eating out all the time, plus spending $700-$1000 to share an apartment/house with someone takes a big chunk out of my paycheck.

4. Little nubs in the road. Instead of having just those dotted lane dividers, they have these little nub things that stick out of the road slightly. I have yet to examine one up close, it's on my list of things to do. It's great because when you switch lanes you can try to do it without hitting the little nubs and therefore changing lanes becomes much more fun.

So I just (finally) finalized my living arrangements. I'll be living with two black girls starting tomorrow. It's funny because the reason they decided to meet up with me on short notice is that I mentioned my paper about hip hop in the Yugoslavia, and they had actually visited the former communist nation before. They told me about how people kept calling them "nigger" without realizing it was a bad word haha.

I'll be living with them until the end of August, at which point I will move into a more permanent home with two roommates, one of which works for Apple as QA in their games division. Haven't met the other roommate, all I know is he plays guitar! The place is really really nice, and I definitely look forward to living in both places.

Now to watch an MMA event before turning in... you sleep so much better when you are out and about from 8AM to 8PM haha.

Cheers,
-Pin