It blows my mind that I’ve been in California for almost six months. This is the longest I’ve been in once place since I was in school. It’s also astonishing that I have yet to get sick of San Diego or brunch. So. Much. Brunch.

Since this is the longest I’ve also been in the US in a few years, I’m not sure if my habits have changed in regards to what I did in New York or while abroad. My life was significantly different from each place I lived. For example, I was eating the traditional five times a day in Spain whereas I eat five times a day in America, but it’s not traditional….unless obesity is that ingrained in our culture at this point…

ANYHOW, life is definitely different here. It’s more relaxed and honestly feels like an extension of college. I’m sure it doesn’t help that I live with two women my age (one who WAS my college roommate) in a city with multiple colleges and East Coast transplants, but I am not complaining.

It’s actually what I find so refreshing about being here. I’m never bored and there’s always something to do. While this holds true to New York City as well, I found it to be too city for my liking to the point of being overwhelming. I like the mixture of big city and beach neighborhoods.

Checking the weather

I’m thinking sunny with a chance of partly sun? Okay, so I do check the wear, but it doesn’t really impact what I’m wearing. I mostly look to see if it’ll be sunny enough to lay out and read or not, and usually it is.

I do find it strange that while I would normally expect a scorching May and June in New York, the weather here isn’t very consistent during that time, hence being introduced to “May Gray” and “June Gloom.” But honeslty, I’m fine with just a month or two of this weather since I experienced it every day in England.

Sarcasm

YOU THOUGHT. I will never lose this. I’m not sure if it’s an East Coast, or more specifically a New York thing, but everyone I know from home speaks heavily with sarcasm. It hasn’t been as well received out here and is considered borderline rude by most people, who I consider soft.

I definitely have toned it down in some scenarios, especially when the sarcasm isn’t detected and I feel bad for people who actually think I’m an incoming freshman here in California for orientation.

Side note: I started talking with coworkers about sarcasm, which led to slang, accents, and the like, so I made them take this quiz to see where their personal dialect places them on the map.

Breakfast

To me breakfast is like my coworkers, Monday through Friday we’re friends, but on the weekends, I don’t know you. Call me basic, but brunch is my bestie. While I do wake up early enough for breakast, it’s more acceptable to pop champagne bottles in the afternoon. Also, the food is delicious and no one else wakes up at 7 am on Saturday and Sunday like a complete psychopath (me).

Wearing pants

This might go along with the weather, but I never wear pants or closed toe shoes unless I’m running. Pants will always be my greatest enemy, especially jeans, so even if there is a slight breeze down by the Pacific, I will always opt for a dress or skirt.

Sunday Scaries

They’ve now extended to Monday. This city is big on day drinking, which I only really experienced during Spring time in college. Now, it’s more normal than hitting the town at night. You can also do both and it’s not frowned upon, but encouraged.

In Albany, I used to refer to it as ‘scumbag Sunday’ where you marinate in last night’s make up and house down McDonald’s fries with sweet and sour sauce to recover for practice the following day. Now, it hits on Monday in the first hour of work where I chow down on ramen and take intermittent naps on the bench in the bathroom, while trying to look presentable.

Transportation

Bottom-line: I’m an avid Birder.

Even though I own a car and fresh pair of blades, I Uber like I am Beyoncé….if Beyoncé ever Ubered, which I’m sure she doesn’t. Aside from being home in Ithaca, which you could still always take a bus, this is the first place I’ve lived where you can’t bike, walk, or easily take public transportation somewhere. Albany, Spain, England, and NYC were all pretty easy to get around. San Diego is so expansive that it’s a necessity.

Winter

BUHBYE!

Cooking

I ALWAYS used to cook in school and even after. While Ithaca and NYC are great places for take out, I still mantained some balance. That balance has gone out the window since I arrived. I don’t even think about cooking on the weekends unless it involves heating up the prior meal’s take out.

Also, my diet heavily relies on Mexican food. Tamales for breakfast, tacos for lunch, oh, and uh for dinner? Yeah, I’ll have the tacos please. I would say I have a problem, but I’ve never met a taco I didn’t like.