Los Angeles: the final frontier

The summer has only just begun, but it feels like it is going to fly by so quickly I won't know what hit me. And the closer we get to July and August, the closer we get to our next big move two hours north to the great city of smog, also known as LA. Now, being from Northern California I must have some elitest complex of never wanting to live in LA and hating it since the day I was born. I realize now that I'm moving there that I really don't know the city very well and have probably written it off to easily. But as we get ready to find our 4th apartment in ours less than two years of marriage and say goodbye to our newly developed connections in San Diego, I feel pangs of sadness already even though we've only lived in San Diego for about a year. I have to say that life is just so nice here, that SD is a place that we have grown to love in a very dear way even if we can't find decent dim sum in this town. Mostly it's a sentimental attachment- the first new place that we settled in together as a couple, the first place we learned how to live like married people working normal hours, the first place we found a church together and built our community through it, this new adventure of a place that made Paul walk around for months going, "I can't believe we get to LIVE here!" (He's from New Jersey.)

While doing my daily search on craigslist for LA apts, I suddenly got very discouraged by the higher prices, ugly streets, and thinking about the thick layer of smog over the horizon and the traffic that plagues the city at a time when I definitely want to be driving less, not more. My stomach churns at the new uncertainties that are going to come our way. New friends, new school, new church, new places, new neighborhood. Change is hard on me sometimes. I get all worked up over all the things that are out of my control. But everytime we sigh in resignation at the thought of moving to LA, I just read this fantastic list from LA Magazine that Paul found called "The 64 Greatest Things about LA." I guess they couldn't come up with 65?

Well, my favorite is this one:

Dim Sum in the S.G. Valley
Here it's not just cuisine; it's a competitive sport. The area's huge number of immigrants from the dumpling capitals of Hong Kong and Taiwan put the heat on chefs to devise the next new thing while producing fully realized versions of the classics. From hot spots like Elite Restaurant in Monterey Park to old-school favorites like Rosemead's 888 Seafood Restaurant, wherever you go, expect long waits, noisy rooms, and bliss delivered on a rolling cart.

Good dim sum covers a multitude of sins. I shudder in excitement and a sigh of relief comes over me.