Mr. & Mrs. Smoochy in California

My hubby is on the fast track to greatness! 80% of all His interviewers this weekend wanted to pursue him further! Not to mention, he looks SO dapper in his suite and tie! Dashing! So, all and all our trip to California was a complete success. He had two companies essentially offer him positions. However, let me start from the beginning.

We landed in Irvine, CA (in Orange County...south of LA) last Wednesday. As we are older now and move at a more steady tempo our first thought wasn't "Where's the party?" But rather, "Where is our bed?" After an early meal and a hot shower, we were tucked in our surprisingly comfy hotel bed.

Thursday was an early start for us. Thankfully we were still on East Coast time, so 6:00 am actually felt like 9:00 am. We had slept in! We never quite adjusted, so early to bed, early to rise was the theme of the week. Jacob's day was spent in a series of briefs on all the different companies he would be interviewing with. 11 total! I was itching to explore southern California, but due to some transportation issues, I never made it further than a mall! I was severely disappointed in myself for coming across the country and spending the day window-shopping at the Gap and Banana Republic. LAME. So, I arranged to rent a car the following day.

Friday was much more exciting for both of us. My Darling Jacob and I started the day with complimentary breakfast at the Embassy Suites (which turned out to be my FAVORITE part of our days in CA!) he started interviewing at 8:00 am... and I hit the road! Imagine, Rebecca W!*&$%@(#, LOOSE IN CALIFORNIA! I very quickly discovered a few things about driving in California. #1: Every one drives as fast as they possibly can...ALL THE TIME. This is no exaggeration. It was crazy. We maybe saw two cops on the road all week. It is as though people get so tired of traffic jams, that when they have the chance to they FLY. Which brings me to #2: Nasty Nasty traffic build ups and back ups. We were smart (or scared) enough to avoid the roads at peaks times, but even at 4:oo am on a weekday and 2:oo pm on a Saturday highway traffic was much thicker than either of us were used to. Lastly, #3: THE PRICE OF GAS! Let's just say over all, I don't envy Southern California drivers.

What they do have going for them is a gorgeous view. Friday I drove from Irvine to Laguna Beach then up to Huntington Beach. The whole car ride (from what I could see racing to stay just slower than the flow of traffic) was picturesque. To the East where rising, undulating hills and to the West was a drop and then the swell of the Pacific Ocean. Being a Floridian I naturally wanted to compare CA with FL. Sadly for my great swampy home, there is no contest. Southern California has these incredible hills and beautiful foliage that Florida just can't touch. Not to mention the Californians claim that though the summers are HOT they are not at all humid.

I enjoyed a fantastic walk along the Pacific. Instantly I was struck by the might of that ocean. OK , I grew up on the Gulf of Mexico; when I moved to the Atlantic Coast as a college student I was struck by the might of that ocean as well. But this was different. The waves of the Pacific were HUGE. And the locals claimed it was a flat day. The waves came crashing ashore with more noise than I ever heard in my life. Each time one hit it thundered with a tremendous BOOM. It was very impressive. I parked my butt of the top of a huge rock on the beach (see below) and watched the waves come in for quite some time.

Notice in the picture there isn't a cloud in the sky. I don't remember seeing clouds all week. It was amazing. This HUGE flawless blue expanse of sky. It left a certain impression in my mind, a clarity, a crispness, I will always associate with the state. At least until I have other experiences in CA.

Following the walk on the beach I spent the day in the little shops along the beach. Laguna Beach was more like a younger 5th Ave Naples, FL with art galleries, cafes, ritzy boutiques, and of course a Starbucks. I enjoyed it, and probably fit in best there...though I CERTAINLY could not afford to live in a 30 mile radius of the place.
Huntington Beach was a different vibe all together. A MUCH younger scene. Here is where all the surfers hang out. They have a fantastic pier; a huge shopping area; and coolest of all, a little tented flea market where you can purchase all sorts of locally grown goods, as well as crafts and art. It's like a tiny strip of a local fair. Here is where I ended my day after eating lunch at a local spot, the Longboard Restaurant and Pub (good service and a yummy Rubin sandwich!) I meandered through the over priced and very youthful surf shops, and decided to head back to my hubby, who I was missing terribly by now.

I returned to our hotel about 6 o'clock in the evening to find Jacob through with his barrage of interviews and completely spent. No surprise he was pooped! We walked across the street to McCormick & Schmidt (a delightful seafood restaurant) for a hot meal and a chance to catch up on each other's adventures. Jacob's 11 interviews had mostly all been excellent. He was disappointed that most of them were for engineering positions, where as he is most interested in pursuing sales, but the experience was a very positive one for him. There were a couple companies he liked, and we both had our fingers crossed that come Monday he would get a second interview some place, thereby justifying our stay through the week.

Saturday morning we checked out of the fantastic Embassy Suites, hopped into the rental, and headed south on THE 405 to San Diego (Californians seem to refer to their highways as THE 405 or THE 101). It was 2:00 pm on a Saturday with bumper to bumper traffic. Jacob has a good buddy who he went to the Academy with (as well as power school and prototype) who is also a submarine officer, and recently stationed in San Diego for his two-year shore tour. Josh was kind enough to open his apartment to us to come for a visit.

What can I say. This was defiantly the highlight of our trip to California. I immediately took a liking to Josh. He is a very warm, relaxing, humorous, and a very hospitable friend. From the start conversation was easy, and Jacob and I were made to feel right at home. Not to mention, the man fed us! That night he made us chicken skewers on his new grill. Delicious! All day the guys had been talking about going out for a night on the town. When Jacob and I had talked about it earlier, I said really didn't want to go. Pregnant, I can sometimes be a wet blanket. I get tired quick, and then get irritated that I can't enjoy a party like I did pre-pregnancy. But, when Jacob told me he was glad I felt that way because he wasn't going to let me go...suddenly my attitude changed and I didn't want to be left out! ;-) Surprise, surprise! So, after dinner It was time to decide. We had all been laughing and having a good time, the music was playing at Josh's apartment, and I just couldn't stand the thought of seeing the action in down town San Diego! I was in the mood to play!

I am so glad I tagged along. It was a blast! Down town San Diego is a very cool spot. It has a great feel to it, with tons of fun little bars, clubs, shops, and restaurants. We went to a place called Aubergine which is both a sushi restaurant and a night club. When we arrived at about 8:00ish Joshes group of friends was just sitting down to order some sushi (lucky bastards, yet another thing off the list for the pregnant lady!) The club was filled with the sound of this soulful and sultry lounge singer. She was absolutely beautiful (HOT, is what the guys claimed) and it added so much ambiance to the already swanky little club. After sushi, there was dancing and shots of sake for the crew. I stuck to water of course, but I stayed upbeat all night. I wasn't even TOO jealous of all the sushi and sake. It was just fun. Except for a little incident in which of the owner of the club tried to pick a fight with and kick Jacob out. It was an insane misunderstanding. My hubby, brushed it off like the level headed rational guy he is and didn't let it ruin his time...too much. ;-) You know Jacob, he vowed not to spend another cent in the place, but eventually sucked it up for his friend and soon found himself at the bar buying a round of Dirty Apples for everyone. I was really proud of him for being so cool.

The truth of the matter is by the end of the night, though we had had a really great time, Jacob and I were BOTH showing our age. By midnight, the lazy lounge atmosphere had turned into a full blown PACKED OUT club scene, complete with a hour line for the ladies room, a single mass of bodies pressed into one another on the dance floor for lack of space to dance, and no chance of getting to the bar. In fact, there was a line down the street of people waiting to get into the club. It was a young crowd and the music was all dance anthems. The body-to-body atmosphere just didn't suite us. And my hubby was so sweet and protective of where I stood to keep Little Jacob and I safe!

It was about that time he and I decided to take a walk. The San Diego air was cold and wonderful compared to the club. We walked down the street and stopped at a cigar bar where he enjoyed a local DARK San Diego beer called Arrogant Bastard. He really enjoyed it, and I couldn't help commenting that I thought the beer was perfectly suited to my Hubby! That was pretty much the end of the night. By the time we walked back to Aubergine Josh was ready to head for home, as were we! All and all and awesome night!

The next day, Josh our kick-ass-host, cooked us bacon and eggs on the grill. We drank coffee and recapped the night's events. Sunday was a lazy day. We watched some movies and goofed off. Josh had organized for a night of poker playing with a group of his friends. So about four pm we started gearing up for that. I made a trip to the supper marked for some supplies, and Josh planned a feast of grilled wings and chicken, as well as chips and dips. Poker night was a hoot. Josh has very nice friends (mostly Navy medical interns so they are a pretty smart bunch) and it was just generally a swell time.

However, Jacob ended up turning in early. He had discovered in an email that evening, that he was expected in L.A. at 8:00 am the next morning for a follow up interview with FM Global. Some how there had been a break down in communication between the company and the head-hunter, leaving Jacob out of the loop. Well, in the end, after a few phone calls, he decided that we would just have to get to L.A. the next morning and make it happen. That after all, is why we had made the trip.

We found ourselves up at 3:00 am and on the road an hour later heading towards L.A. The distence between the two cities is not that far, but we had been warned that there might be no appeasing the traffic gods, and had been urged to get an early start. In fact, with a couple wrong turns we found ourselves in L.A. with plenty of time for McDonalds for breakfast (I was thrilled Jacob was grossed out as usual). As we drove into Jacob's interview we could see the big Hollywood sign up in the hills to our right. It was very cool to see. We didn't have the strength to check out the other touristy sights.

After dropping Jacob off at the interview I was EXHAUSTED. I had only got about three hours sleep and my tummy was very upset. I found my way to a Starbucks, parked my butt on a big comfy chair and read a book until about 11:00am. Finally I got a call from Jacob, FM Global was putting us up in a hotel and I could go check in! Hallelujah! No sooner did I draw the curtains, get undressed, and into bed... I was OUT like a light. The next thing I knew, it was 3:00pm and Jacob was walking in the door! (He had been dropped off by someone at FM Global.)

He interview had gone very well, in fact they offered him a job on the spot. Smoochy though, had declined. He was glad he went yet, it was not what he wanted to do. Once back to the hotel, his day was not over. He spent an hour or two on the phone with different companies and his head- hunter. The one job from the conference he WAS interested in was BOC Gasses. He arranged to go out to dinner with one of their representatives that night. I was so pooped, I opted out. BIG MISTAKE! They went to Ruth's Chris! Man, I should have rallied! Oh well, everything went great for Jacob at that meeting and everything was set. The next day Jacob had an meeting with BOC's district sales manager in L.A. for an interview and a tour of their plant. Good stuff, he was on a roll.

Tuesday dawned, our last day in California. I decided to tag along with Jacob to his meeting at BOC. Really there wasn't much else for me to do. Everything went great. Jacob is a very good interviewer. He speaks clearly, precisely, with tons of energy and confidence. No surprise to those who know him I am sure. BOC is hiring for an industrial sales job in San Francisco. Despite my hesitation about living in CA, I think it would be a great opportunity for Jacob. BOC manufactures and transports raw materials like hydrogen, helium, and other elements for a variety of uses in a variety of industries. It would be easy for Jacob because he's got the chemistry stuff down pat, and there is a proven and solid demand for their products. We'll see. The interview he had Tuesday was a success, and now they are flying him out to San Francisco on February 1st for another interview.

There isn't much else to say about our Californian adventure. After lunch with the BOC guy on Tuesday at the Elephant Grill (great food yet again!) we drove back to Irvine, CA. Jacob and I had a little down time to spend together. We finally saw Underworld Evolutions (Disappointing to both of us after much expectation) and caught a bite to eat. We checked back into the Embassy Suites for our last night in California. We could have stayed at the holiday in for $20 cheaper, but we both were looking forward to breakfast at the Embassy Suits so decided to splurge! :-)

The next day found us at the air port by 10:30 am and soon on a airplane! Goodbye California! We traded back in our borrowed three hours of time change and found ourselves returned to South Georgia and in our own bed by midnight. The trip turned out to be worth it from every perspective. Jacob got solid experience interviewing, another prospect, and we both got a little taste of California. After seeing it, I know I would enjoy living there if we could find a financially healthy way to make it happen. It was not the "other country" I had expected, but there were some cultural differences and attitudes that stood apart from what I've know in the South. For one, there was a greater openness and an energy level about the people. Not to mention there was a yoga studio on every corner! We'll see. Jacob and I have a lot to think about. There are so many pros and cons to each Colorado and California...and sadly, neither of them are close to family. Mostly, I just want my husband to be happy in his new job. In the end, I think that will be the number one factor in our happiness as a family.