Blogging Social Difference in L.A.: Week 1

"It's the city I live in, the City of Angels..."

My name is Boo.  I was born in Los Angeles, and I was practically raised here as well.  To those who are unfamiliar with Los Angeles, there is a picture that is painted that completely misrepresents life here.   Most people see the side of Los Angeles Hollywood allows you to see; a depicted life where actors and actresses come to succeed.  In the six years that I've lived here, I've lived in 4 different neighborhoods, and I've seen what Los Angeles has to offer, from the good to the bad.  From Westwood to Downtown, there are good neighborhoods, and bad neighborhoods.  There is an active night life, and  places where the elderly can find their niche.  Los Angeles is home to some of the best food in the world, and houses some of the most creative minds.  More than that, however, is the incredible diversity that this city has to offer; cities within cities where communities thrive and cultures are maintained.  Korea Town, China Town, the Fairfax District, Little Jalisco, and Little Ethiopia represent only a small amount of the micro communities that are present here. Within each of these regions, everything changes. These changes aren't simply the people who inhabit the communities, but the physical characteristics that come together to structure these areas of culture. 

Over the next ten weeks, and possibly longer, I plan to venture Los Angeles and document, both through written word and photography, the difference between these neighborhoods, and the different means that the city's inhabitants use to make it from point A to point B.  I plan on documenting the differences between social status, the architecture of the building, and how it may correlate to the history of the area.  I will talk about the vegetation, the cars, and every aspect of the area that can distinguish itself from another part of the city. 

I will officially start next week, but I wanted to start with a story of a bus ride I once had.  I had locked myself out of my apartment while on my way to work, I was without my house keys and car keys.  When I finally realized what happened I knew I needed to find a new way to get where I needed to be.  I had never used the bus before, but I needed to get to work, so I rummaged through my pockets, and counted out the amount of change I would need to get where I was going.  After gathering my change, I walked the half-mile from my door to the bus stop.  I could see the bench in my view, and I saw people waiting for the same bus I was going to be taking. When I arrived at the station, I saw a man sitting on the bench, wearing a long black trench coat with tears and green corduroys that had been cut into shorts.  The gentleman had a Styrofoam cup, with "change" scribbled within the malleable surface.   I stood next to him, and as he looked up at me he SCREAMED "You're one of THEM!"  I had no clue what he was referring to, but I was sure that there was some instability there.  I tried to ignore it, but he continued to mutter things as we waited. When the bus finally arrived, I decided to separate myself from him, and sat a couple seats back from the front. To no surprise at all, the man sat across from me.  I started on my 1.9 mile bus ride through East Culver City into the world famous Grove and Farmers Market.  These are two completely different neighborhoods, with completely different people and socio-economic status. But I will touch on that at a later date.  As soon as we started the bus ride, the man grabs my tie, and slightly pulls me down to his eye level.  I had no idea what to do.  My heart was racing, and as he peered into me, he calmly told me that my tie was a representation of everything and everyone who had ever oppressed him.  By wearing it, I was giving into my corporate identity, ad I would become nothing more than a number when I died.  After that, he released the grip he had on my tie, and I fell back onto my seat.  I sat motionless for two, maybe three minutes before realizing that the bus isn't for me.  I pulled the 'next stop' cord and walked the rest of the way.  Even though I was late for work, for some reason, I didn't mind.

I want to try and make more than one post a week, to tell you about restaurants, restaurant life, school, and things that I do in this crazy city. 

"At least I have her love,

The city she loves me"