Procrastination Vacation

Last Friday I hit a wall in all areas of productivity. I couldn't even force myself to go to Whole Foods for my new favorite fixation, coconut water. It was that bad. I had to break free. And luckily for me, in LA breaking free can be done in a matter of hours with little more than a willingness to sit in Friday afternoon rush hour traffic.

Well worth it, people. California has the wonderful quality of transporting you to another biosphere within an hour's drive.

You don't even have to make it to Bakersfield to get this action.

I ended up in Ojai, centered in idyllic Santa Barbara wine country, a place I always have wanted to explore, but arrived too late and too unprepared to make much of it. Still, I felt like I'd traveled far far away from my stale surroundings and enjoyed filling my nostrils with unsmogged air. Nothing less than a new lease on life occured.

So, losing daylight and lacking knowledge of the area, I did what I do best in any foreign territory. I find the organic grocery store. No joke, I can do this is desolate areas of Michigan. It's like I have Non-GMO lojack. Now, I mainly do this to score kombucha, but also I have discovered from sea to shining sea, compost-loving, rainbow-gathering hippies are the same everywhere. From New York City to New Mexico, there truly is a national standard. Having a strong sense of personal space and a specific standard of hygiene, I find hippies trigger a bit of repulsion in me and yet, I find them warm and comforting at the same time, I always know what and who I'm going to find. Oh, you use Burt's Bees? No way.

Organic markets everywhere, you are my familiar corporate chain equivalent.

I didn't even ask these dolls to pose. Prolonged exposure to pachouli and raw cacao makes you friendlier.

I made it back to my smoggy eastside hood in time for a fancy Los Feliz dinner within an hour and fifteen minutes. And for this reason, as much as the outside world does not understand, I totally, completely love LA.

I still haven't finished my week's writing assignments and am using this blog post as another way to enjoy some high octane procrastination. Unfortunately, I can't run away this Friday, so it looks like I'll have to figure out a new way to avoid fulfilling my obligations. I could always see Step Up 2 The Streets for a third time. I really wouldn't put it past me.