East Coast goes West Coast

I grew up in the Metro Boston area. We're known for our liberalism. I distinctly recall, for example, listening to a newscaster on the radio in San Diego decry Massachusetts' legalization of gay marriage as the first step on the "slippery slope" that would drag our country into the abyss. We're also, in what may seem a paradox, known for our general snootiness. I'd contest this in part, but I admit we're not the most laid-back state in the nation.

Following Boston's are-we-edgy-or-are-we-LL Bean ambiguities, I've lived in several largely conservative places, most recently Chile. So when I showed up at the San Francisco airport and two of my coworkers put me in kitty ears and a see-through shirt before taking me off to a Burner party (click here if you're looking baffled), it was a bit of a culture shock. However, while culture shock can often be really and truly unpleasant, this one was rather welcome.

Feeling a bit incapable of adjusting straight from Chile's ethos (where a knee-length skirt can still get you leers the size of the Cheshire Cat's) to San Francisco's (where a street-wear mini-skirt is still not quite flashy enough for certain parties), I opted to keep my tank top on under the top. Inside the club, I met a handful of new coworkers, all of whom would also be my housemates. Meanwhile, a girl in fairy wings, a wig and a bra danced on a table with a man in leather pants while I ate free sushi and circled my way through the open bar line. After a year of struggling to communicate in newly acquired Spanish, it was a relief to chat with people without my brain working itself into a fever, and to make jokes that had at least a chance of not flopping.

Coming back to a culture you recognize is sometimes more rewarding than expected. I didn't want to leave Chile when a new job first came on my radar. I missed it when I left, and I miss it still. But the feeling of release that came from being back in a world that I could understand without effort was stronger than I expected. It hadn't come while visiting my parents in Boston, where I spent most of my time visiting friends. But being there, in a bar with new people, it hit for the first time. More than anything else, being treated as normal felt like a hot tub after a long hike. I knew I was tired of being treated as different, of being harassed by strange men, of being treated like a child at times. But I didn't know how tired I was until I milled around a club without attracting any attention whatsoever.

At 11, the bar went back to normal pricing and we made our way back to Berkeley on BART. After riding micros with their destinations screaming out from colorful signs in the windows, I found myself baffled by the type of transit system I grew up with. It's surprising how difficult it is to predict which things will catch you off guard when you country hop. When I arrived in Valparaiso, the micros confused the hell out of me. 12 months later, I can't understand the concept of looking at a subway map.

Back at the house, I began what is now heading into two weeks of trying to establish connections with the people who now make up the key players in my daily life. Luckily, we all seemed to agree on sitting on the kitchen floor and drinking whiskey as a favorable Saturday night activity, so things got off to a good start.

For those who've followed me from my Chile blog and may be interested in such things, I'm happy to report that I then went on to an excellent first week of work. After a year of teaching students who had no interest in learning English, teaching business people who were never satisfied by the speed of their progress, and writing copy to sell a product I felt indifferent towards, I'm finally back to feeling useful. I am writing full-time for an organization that I believe in, and one in which a writer is most definitely needed. Things are good, and this is sparing you details of my wonderful coworkers and alternative work space (pajamas and beer at the same time? no worries, if you get the writing done).

Since then, I've done some things slightly more interesting (to you, I presume) than just living and breathing and meeting people (all of which are of high interest to me, but I recognize that I'm slightly biased). Stay tuned; hopefully New Blog will soon be updated as frequently as Old Blog.