I think any property these days in California is rather high, unless you move way north in the mountains ect. But that is even going up compared to other states. You have to also compare the job market, and trends on salaries. They are usually conditional on the area and cost of living.

it all depends on if you want to buy a house in the bay area or just rent. rents have come down a lot since the dotbomb and i see vacancies all the time. also, if you're not set on San Francisco then there are cheaper cities in the area which are just as accessible to everything.

air quality in the south bay (San Jose, Santa Clara, Sunnyvale etc) isn't great, but better than LA i think.

Hey I just got accepted to USC's film scoring program so I am officaly moving out to LA in August. I am so excited! woo hooo :)

Ahah, so this is Californi.... whoa? whooohh....
This thread is unstable like my browser. :up:

http://www.lightmatrix.org/Humor/California.html

too funny

My CD rack didn't fall over like it did during the Northridge quake.

that was funny.... made me kinda dizzy

Anybody live in Bakersfield, CA?

I was born in hayward and moved to oregon, now i live back in the bay area.
~Glamboy

I'm going to be in Santa Monica next week. I have already located a Wild Oats in walking distance of our motel, and a nearby vegetarian restaurant or two. But can anyone tell me what the area is like? Is it all swanky? Am I going to feel out of place in my t-shirts and chipped black toenail polish? :)

We aren't going to have a rental car -- is the bus system decent?

Any information gratefully received. :)

I'm going to be in Santa Monica next week. I have already located a Wild Oats in walking distance of our motel, and a nearby vegetarian restaurant or two. But can anyone tell me what the area is like? Is it all swanky? Am I going to feel out of place in my t-shirts and chipped black toenail polish? :)

umm, no? assuming the wild oats that you'll be near is the one on wilshire.

We aren't going to have a rental car -- is the bus system decent?

well, i don't have much experience with bus sustems in other areas, but i'd guess that the santa monica big blue bus is pretty decent. at least, i think it has pretty good coverage.

umm, no? assuming the wild oats that you'll be near is the one on wilshire.



Hee... no, I meant, is Santa Monica all swanky. Not Wild Oats -- I figure they're in the "seen one you've seen them all" category of chain stores, and I wasn't worried about it anyway. :) Yeah, I think it's the one on Wilshire.

I've been to the L.A. area once before (Anaheim, actually) and there didn't seem to be much in the way of a bus system there. Though that time we had a rental car so it wasn't a problem.

I know epski likes the restaurant Real Foods Daily -- have you been there? What did you think, if so?

Thanks for your help. :)

Hee... no, I meant, is Santa Monica all swanky. Not Wild Oats
i meant the area of santa monica around that wild oats :). though of course you wouldn't be staying just in that area, it's just that the area around the other wild oats (on montana) is much more upscale.
I've been to the L.A. area once before (Anaheim, actually) and there didn't seem to be much in the way of a bus system there. Though that time we had a rental car so it wasn't a problem.
i'd guess that the big blue bus (http://www.bigbluebus.com/home/index.asp) is a better system than anything in orange county.
I know epski likes the restaurant Real Foods Daily -- have you been there? What did you think, if so?
the only things i've tried at rfd that haven't been good are the desserts (not very sweet) and the cornbread (it may be called something slightly different from cornbread on the menu). other than that, everything has been pretty tasty.

Hee... no, I meant, is Santa Monica all swanky. Not Wild Oats -- I figure they're in the "seen one you've seen them all" category of chain stores, and I wasn't worried about it anyway. :) Yeah, I think it's the one on Wilshire.

I've been to the L.A. area once before (Anaheim, actually) and there didn't seem to be much in the way of a bus system there. Though that time we had a rental car so it wasn't a problem.

I know epski likes the restaurant Real Foods Daily -- have you been there? What did you think, if so?

Thanks for your help. :)

I like it. It's relatively small, though, and often crowded. Not the best vegan food in L.A., IMO, but solid, if expensive.

P.F. Chang's (also on Wilshire) has a lot of veg*n items, too, and they prepare them all in a separate kitchen from the meat items. I love P.F. Chang's.

Santa Monica is what you want it to be. I see super casual people there all the time, and occasionally some very swanky types. Just be you, and you'll be fine.

Also, Swingers on Lincoln has a number of veg*n options. Hip, fun diner-type place, good for any meal.

Big Blue Bus is very cool, and the MTA runs through Santa Monica as well. Your transpo needs down there are well-covered. If you want any more info, or want to try to find a time to talk or hook up while you're here, e-mail me through my profile.

E

Thanks epski! We have the public transport issues worked out now, I think. We printed out bus schedules and stuff. It's good to get the thumbs-up on the Big Blue Bus.

Thank you for the food recommendations, too. P.F. Chang's sounds intriguing.

I'm afraid mostly we'll be doing boring conference stuff, but we'll have internet access so if we can work it out, maybe we can hook up for a meal or something. :)

Could be fun. I was in Santa Monica yesterday, at the World Cafe on main, and had a yummy vegetarian plate with marinated tofu, orso rice, veggies and stuff. Fun to find that there and it was a good lunch.

hey borealis! i live in santa monica.. like epski said, be you, and you'll fit in fine. its not swanky like that..

the RFD is pretty good, but it has really sucko service most of the time.

there is small place on wilshire and sixth called the newsroom, and they have many tasty vegan options, and quick friendly service. i'd recommend them, too.

and there is an awesome indian place called Pradeeps, on a street called Montana, which is right around the same area. they have many vegan options, and its very tasty. its somewhere around Montana and 15th.. its in walking distance (at least.. for me it is! but i walk /everywhere/.)

Newsroom rules. I forgot they had a Wilshire location. Must go!

i've only been to the newsroom on robertson, not the one in santa monica, but each of the few times i've been, it was awesome.

Checked out Real Foods last night. I think it was worth going to because I've never been to a real vegetarian resuraunt before (the manager heard this and thought I was omni :( ) and this really set the bar for the food I should be fixing for myself and borealis. I had the special of seitan enchiladas while laura had the salsbury seitan. Most resturaunts do their vegan items as "blah, without meat or cheese." This was wonderful stuff desgined working with the properties of the food. Even the seitan did not have that meat substitute pretention.

I did not try dessert. I have a strong prejudice against any vegan items that claim to be dairy-like and we were stuffed anyway.

Dinner for me tonight is at El Texate on Pico. I'm told this is not vegetarian friendly. Anybody know anything about it?

We should consider planning that L.A. area get-together we never made happen. Who's in? *raises hand*

I am in if you wait untill I get there some time in early August.

Probably will do it late summer or early fall, if I end up organizing it. I'm pretty busy with work during the summer tourist season, so that will be easier, and it will give us all time to coordinate better than if we just threw it on the calendar next week.

Heh, tales of the born and bred Hoosier in Santa Monica again.

Saw a stretch HUMVEE limo the other night, and here I thought it was just a joke.

Ended up having cheese with dinner last night and lunch today at events where I had minimal control over the menu. I've not gotten sick but it definitely is not having an effect. Chayote squash was yummy and new to me but the egg batter and queso blanco inside was annoying. I need to see if I can find the squash again somewhere back home.

Ate at The Newsroom for dinner. Borealis had the Oaxacan Tamale with the side salad and pico de gallo. I had the vegan special ("not chicken" with chillie soy mayo) figuring that I might as well give a fake meat a chance at a place that makes money selling it. The result was edible and worth trying once, saved primarily by the wonderful sauce on top. I might have to go back and try their veggie burger. The lentil soup that came with it was nice but I'm no great fan or judge of lentils. Excellent, excellent side salad with almonds and orange slices. Also picked up blackberry peach cobbler for later (perhaps breakfast).

Having a wild oats 15 minutes away is saving my taste buds, my pancreas, and my wallet.

Another positive about being out here. So far, I've been able to order iced americanos without needing to train the coffee maker (just like a cafe americano, but with cold water and ice rather than steamed water).

We should consider planning that L.A. area get-together we never made happen. Who's in? *raises hand*

There's a San Diego meetup on July 10th, it might be close enough for LA people if you're in the area. Here's the link:
http://vegan.meetup.com/402

I've never gone to these, but I might go to this one.