The "Small" Feeling (buy, living in, eat)

[BarcelonaFan]

Again being out here in LA turned me off to ever wanting to pursue acting. Like I said, it's like working at Taco Bell and learning how the tacos are made. Makes you not want to eat fast food.

[Elle Oh Elle]

Originally Posted by Chicano3000X

I beg to differ. NYC is like LA's big brother showing it how it's done in an urban sense. LA is a city that learned to drive before it learned to walk, so there's some reverse engineering to be done.

As what I was saying, I think NYC has more realness to it in it's personality than L.A.'s plastic vibe(minus the east side).

Yeah, you could knock a smaller town down (which is most of the US, anyway). But NYC does happen to be the finance hub of the nation. A relative told me most citizens don't actually reside in one or the other unless you happen to land a stable job because LA is known for entertainment studios. NYC is known for financial things. Companies are sort of divided between both, although like I've said before there are people who just pack up forever and go to the other or vice versa.

They may not be plastic, but I've heard many times over that NYC people are cold and snobby. Then again, I heard that even about Texas, Washington, and Illinois, so IDK.

[moonsparkle]

Let's not turn this into an NYC vs LA...there's too many of those going around.

Even as financially important as NYC is - it is more like every other major city (especially Chicago, Boston, Philadelphia, DC) than LA is, if that makes sense.

I don't think anywhere in the world can be compared to LA.

[BarcelonaFan]

Look I agree with the OP, LA is the most unique city in the country.

[PDF]

Originally Posted by trancedout

This seems to be slightly more controversial than I expected. I think others have felt this way themselves, and have spent a lot of time rationalizing it, to make themselves feel better. I've also said before, I would not feel this at all in any other major city.

I like LA a lot. I don't like the feeling of being a "regular guy" in a sea of celebrities (whether they be actors, rockstars, rappers, or directors) any way you slice it. Your status can simply not be as high in LA as it can in another city. At the same time, it's arguably the most relevant and envied city in the world, and I find this very appealing. The majority if people in LA are not celebrities, but society has an obsession with celebrities.

Metaphorically, being in LA and not being a celebrity - you're just an unknown, behind-the-scenes extra.

More and more this sounds like this is a personal issue for you. Am I wrong? I get that some are susceptible to things like this and some are not, but it sounds like this is just something you can't handle and the deeper problem with it lies within yourself.

Originally Posted by trancedout

Let's not turn this into an NYC vs LA...there's too many of those going around.

Even as financially important as NYC is - it is more like every other major city (especially Chicago, Boston, Philadelphia, DC) than LA is, if that makes sense.

I don't think anywhere in the world can be compared to LA.

I disagree. I think L.A. is unique, but to me it has more in common with the rest of the big cities in America. To me, NYC is unlike anything else. Nowhere I've been can compare to it. Infact I'm going tomorrow, can't wait.

[moonsparkle]

I can handle it, and it's not really a problem. The point is, you're in a city with more starpower than anywhere else in the world, and you're a regular person. Other cities have wealthy people, but little, if any starpower (Vegas, Miami, NYC of course do - but nothing like LA). It is something I've thought about.

I'm sure most "regular" people in LA have at least given it some thought as well. Some care, some do not, but I think there's a reason for this overcorrection (that is very evident in this topic), "I don't care what celebrities do". Anyone visits you from elsewhere, I'm sure they ask about celebrities and whatnot.

[Chicano3000X]

Originally Posted by PDF

More and more this sounds like this is a personal issue for you. Am I wrong? I get that some are susceptible to things like this and some are not, but it sounds like this is just something you can't handle and the deeper problem with it lies within yourself.




I disagree. I think L.A. is unique, but to me it has more in common with the rest of the big cities in America. To me, NYC is unlike anything else. Nowhere I've been can compare to it. Infact I'm going tomorrow, can't wait.

Bring back some amazing pics.

[pch1013]

I lived in LA in the mid-90s, and I used to feel small whenever I'd pull up next to some guy in a Jag worth three times my yearly income.

Until I bought a $2500 motorcycle and became able to smoke those Jags at stoplights with ease.

[Elle Oh Elle]

Originally Posted by trancedout

I can handle it, and it's not really a problem. The point is, you're in a city with more starpower than anywhere else in the world, and you're a regular person. Other cities have wealthy people, but little, if any starpower (Vegas, Miami, NYC of course do - but nothing like LA). It is something I've thought about.

I'm sure most "regular" people in LA have at least given it some thought as well. Some care, some do not, but I think there's a reason for this overcorrection (that is very evident in this topic), "I don't care what celebrities do". Anyone visits you from elsewhere, I'm sure they ask about celebrities and whatnot.

The reason you're thinking of is probably not the same as mine. Yeah, some people may see it hyped up that way in terms of thinking. But is that really the truth? One guy I know said he and his family were so disappointed because they thought Hollywood was literally going to have stars every single square inch but in reality it's just old and has nothing special except malls and restaurants. Sure, the stars stop by once in awhile but it's rarely ever worth it. People living here know it's not really like that. I recall reading a book in middle school where the main character says she and her parents ate dinner at a restaurant and ran into actors and their families. They're basically timid and boring without the makeup. They were surprised, "not glamorous at all, smaller than we expected actually". My professor said the same thing about spotting a few actors in his life, since he lives close to that area. Basically, the image people have and the reality we actually experience aren't the same thing.

Well, LA has an advantage because they have movie stars and models. For some reason, LA is the only one to do that. The other stuff can be found elsewhere. For the US, that's special, but when you look outside of the country the same is true of some other big cities as well. Of course, natives will be biased. Me and a relative had a similar conversation some time back and they were saying that on an international level many things the US considers extraordinary would actually be average or even below average in other nations. I guess it depends on how you want to look at it. I pointed out, "Yeah, but we're not looking at the world. We're looking at the US."
They said, "They've always hyped up [certain transportation systems, fashion etc] to be the best but compared to places like East Asia and Europe we're way behind. It's pretty good for this country, though."

[moonsparkle]

I also think the whole "famous celebrities are just regular people" gets overplayed. They are not regular people, they will be known a 100 years later, and you will not.

For instance, everyone knows who Marilyn Monroe is...but, I'm sure people in the 50's said "Oh, she's just a regular girl". While, they are regular, by virtue of being part of mankind, they are simply in a different league of notoriety compared to everyone else.