-In the past month, I have performed in Los Angeles, San Diego, and San Francisco, followed by New York City, Philadelphia, and Boston. It was a unique opportunity for me to compare the twentysomething cultures of the East and West Coasts. Are West Coasters really the laid-back, hippie surfers they are stereotyped to be? Are East Coasters really all bitter, stressed, and business casual? With both shorts and sweatshirts in my suitcase, I set out for the frontlines of the East vs. West battle to put an end to coastal feuding once and for all.
-People on the West Coast are never in a rush. If something’s gotta get done, it’ll get done, eventually…maybe. You can’t get anywhere quickly, cabs actually slow down at yellow lights, and pedestrians patiently wait on the corner for the “walk” signal. West Coasters who’ve moved East often tell me that New York is too loud and busy and crazy for them. I’m always like, that’s not busy and crazy – that’s the sound of humans operating at a normal pace. If you think it’s acceptable to have to wait so long for a sandwich that you actually could have become certified to operate a deli slicer in the time since you ordered, the West Coast is where you should stay.
-On the East Coast, you have to dress up to go out – everyone’s been negged at one time or another for trying to wear sneakers to a club. On the West Coast, you have to dress down to go out. Really down. When I’m standing in front of the mirror in my apartment in LA on a Saturday night, I’m thinking to myself, wow, I look way too nice right now. I match so well they might not even let me in. Hmm, let me muss up my hair, throw on some flip flops, ripped jeans, a mesh hat, and a weird thrift store tuxedo shirt. Yeah, now I fit in.
-West Coasters are also not used to wearing their resume on their sleeve. In New York, Boston, and Philly, it’s expected that if you meet someone at a bar, you’ll be asked where you work, where you’re from, where you went to college, what year you graduated, what fraternity/sorority you were in, where you went on Spring Break sophomore year, and what your blood type is. But people out West act like you’re being nosy. They do have a point, though. Someone in San Diego wanted to know why I was asking such questions. And I stammered, “Well, uh…I’m not sure. I guess I just wanted to know if you knew my cousin’s friend’s friend from camp.”
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