Life and Love

The Valley is quiet as I sit here tapping at my computer. Traffic’s humming in the background as the afternoon heat permeates through the house. One year on from my life changing jump into the great unknown, it feels strangely ironic to be back where I started from.

The endless grid streets, busy freeways and burning sun.

And really the only good thing about being back is the warmth of the friends I haven’t seen in so long.

The last 12 months have been ups, precipitous downs and dark moments of self doubt. Had I done the right thing? Had I thrown everything I had, which was so much away for a foolish dream?

To be honest I know not where I’m going in life, the stability of a corporate way of life is combating a crazy desire to become a divemaster and spend my time in boats and dragging tanks.

But the reality is that I’m trying not to care. I’ve landed on my feet many times all over the world. I have some of the most important elements in life right now. The dry-zone trips that I love.

The dives into the ethereal blue that has captured my heart and mind.

And most importantly, perfection in a pair of brown eyes and ethereal beauty.

I’m only here for three weeks but I already ache to go home, to life and love on that crazy, hazy island.

12 months on and life is as good as it gets.

A subway?!

Where the palm trees? Eh?

First things first, we have a subway here in LA?! Rather unsurprisingly it doesn’t go anywhere which kind of negates the point of a subway. I could go on and on about how much I miss public transport a la the Tube, but I did choose this hole for myself. So I shall continue to marinade in exhaust fumes, oil changes and high gas prices (or maybe not so high?) and deal with the fact that daydreaming while driving is a couple of magnitude times more dangerous than when sitting on a train or a bus.

Of course its hard to avoid when you’ve been driving the same route twice a day for the last 280 odd days not to lose focus on the road. And I’m quite convinced that is what is going to kill me, daydreaming on a familiar freeway when some idiot decides to take himself out of the gene pool. I’ve already had one close escape with an errant ladder, just hope the odds keep up with me.

Anyways I digress (old habits die hard). I’m not sure what’s annoying me more, the fact that we have a one route subway in LA or the fact that the BBC correspondent ends the article with:

“And, being stuck in traffic is, after all, that much easier when the roof is down, the palm trees are swaying gently and the sun is shining brightly in your face.”

Pray do tell David Willis, where the fuck are the palm trees on the 101/405 interchange?