Exploring (Possibility of) Moving to L.A.

[Cloudwalker]

Lol, made me snort coffee out my nose - "You're pissed off I'm getting 2 more bedrooms than I need." - as if we either know that or care?! Hysterical. And way to keep making it all about you.


I started to write a point-by-point reply, but realized there's no need, your posts speak for themselves.


Not one person on this thread is advocating the OP simply just turn up and have a go. He is 29 (hardly a kid), he's single, and he has a university education in a field that is an integral part of a number of the dominant industries in this city. He seems willing and able to turn his hand to multiple forms of employment in order to pay his own way until he can find the job he really wants. For a musician with audio engineering skills, considering a move to LA is not completely irrational or pie-in-the-sky thinking.


Yes, there are many that leave here with sorry tales of hardship and broken dreams. There are many that stick it out, but are miserable. But there are also many who come here who may not be what are conventionally considered to be "high achievers" or have family money, but they still manage to find work and carve out a happy life for themselves. He could be one of them - or not. It's all going to come down to how much drive he has to figure out how to get what he's looking for.

[PastTheSky]

Thanks so much to everyone who has replied to my post - What a wealth of information and perspectives! Honestly very glad I posted here and I didn't anticipate such a robust response. Pretty awesome. I definitely am not in what I would call the "culture club" of money/opulence and everything that comes with it - nor do I aspire to be. It just isn't really in the cards for me to mix much with that crowd at this point in my life. My question is basically about the kind of lives that people involved in the more "nuts and bolts" aspects of entertainment industry find their way in the city. I'm certainly not afraid of blue collar and relatively unskilled labor, multiple jobs and 100 hour workweeks. It's been a part of my life for many years. It's not about wealth or fame. Long term I want a house, a family, and to make a comfortable living doing music/sound. The ultimate goal is to be involved in "creative" industry and I have to start making moves to get me there. So that's where LA becomes a possibility. Will it be where I settle down? I don't know. But my gut says I may need to establish myself in a relevant industry city like LA during the formative years of my career at the very least.

Again, thank you all for the replies/discussion amongst LA residents. It's an invaluable resource for me to be able to absorb some of this conversation so keep it coming!

-T

[EclecticEars]

I'm something of an L.A./Orange County "ricocheter."

Moved from the Bay Area to OC. Missed the Bay Area (though never its arrogant, hyper-feminist women) for the first few months, but quickly took a liking to this area.

Moved from OC to The Netherlands. Enjoyed NL, but missed OC/LA almost every day. Finished my coursework in NL, which was conjunctive with the University of California system. Came back.

Moved from NL to Santa Clarita (LA County). Loved it, but I got a job offer in San Diego that I didn't think I could turn down.

Moved from Santa Clarita to San Diego. Hated San Diego, aka Bland Diego, didn't find it to be as wonderful as people made it out to be. Boss was terrible, head project manager was pompous, and head job coach at company was just particularly nasty toward me from the time of the interview. San Diegans also have bad road rage. Visited L.A. almost every weekend. Moved back.

Moved from San Diego to Anaheim (OC). Got a temp job quickly, then an offer for a full-time job in Irvine. But, I got an even better full-time job offer in Modesto. So, I moved again.

Moved from Anaheim to Modesto. I actually didn't mind Modesto. Central location to all that NorCal has to offer and I made some friends. But, the boss was a nightmare to work for (typical NorCal hyper-leftist/feminist type who all but hates non-feminine men). So, I quickly took another job back near L.A.

Moved from Modesto to north OC, work in Cerritos. I don't like my current job, as one of the bosses is a total piece of work, but I am still oh so glad to be back in L.A.! I find no shortage of things to do every weekend.

This has all happened in the past 4 years. It's quite possible that I'll be moving to Australia or New Zealand later this year. If I do, I'm sure I'll do a 1-year commitment for work and come back to...L.A.! You see, I'm not a native of SoCal, or California for that matter, but L.A. has an incredible draw, energy, and personality that is difficult to describe and articulate, but that I can "feel" everyday. It's unlike anything else I've experienced around the world, and I obviously find myself continually drawn to it.

Just know that L.A. always takes adjustment and readjustment to get used to. Once you master that, this place can be a real blast.

And, I really grew up in small town U.S.A.