By Emily Mitchell, Guest Blogger
5.19.2020
The energy around LA is certainly different these days. The traffic has nearly vanished, the sky is blue as ever, and the texture and pace of daily life is all but indistinguishable from just a few months ago.
While the predictability of our old routines gave us a sense of comfort that bordered on therapeutic, we’ve surprised ourselves with our ability to adapt. The challenges along the way have yielded an opportunity to reassess the familiar, take stock of what we love, and embrace the unexpected.
Here are the things that our ROW team and Collective of retailers still miss, the things we don’t miss at all, and the things about this moment that we won’t soon forget.
The rush of knowing I’ll be early to work when I jump into the car and Morning Becomes Eclectic hasn’t even started yet
Spontaneous encounters
Gesticulating to make my point by unconsciously touching someone’s arm -- probably too many times
"Opening a bottle of wine as dusk begins to settle in at the Hollywood Bowl"
The thrill of being shown to our table
The ambient sound of clinking glasses and snatches of conversation in my favorite restaurant
Going into a store just because I’m curious and running my fingers through the racks of clothing
The continuous ding of notifications on my group chat as weekend plans begins to materialize
Covertly Shazaming a song from the dance floor
Getting caught up in the inertia of doing the wave at a Dodgers game
The sometimes dramatic embrace of the LA Hug
Working on a laptop in a café and looking up from my keyboard to people watch
The unexpected joy of encountering Jake Gylenhall at the grocery store
The pristine array of condiments and salsas at the street taco stand
That electricity of making eye contact and smiling at a stranger across the room
The sound of live sports commentators and basketball buzzers on TV at the end of the day
The smell of the blooming jasmine on my street and the uninhibited deep inhale I take when walking by it
"The adrenaline of exhales and high-fives flooding the room at the end of a fitness class"
The subtle politics of persuasion that go into the decision about whether to make it an east side or a west side night
Which is to say, the full breadth of possibility anytime I step outside in LA
The absurdity of taking multiple, life-risking, left turns on certain Waze routes, only to have saved four and a half minutes
The fear that somehow, somewhere -- someone I know might be having more fun
Being surrounded by so much natural beauty, but never feeling like I could truly unplug and appreciate it
"Not appreciating so many conveniences of modern life, for that matter, and the intricate way in which we enable one another"
Getting so caught up in my own hustle that I don’t see the people right in front of me
Giving so much energy to the digital void but not getting the reciprocal energy of real, human interaction in return
"Wishing my loved ones happy birthday from six feet apart"
Working out with a sweaty face mask in the heat of summer
Not knowing what day or time it is...
...But that it’s always time to do the dishes
Puzzles. I’ve done literally 20 puzzles
How it felt to live through such extreme ambiguity and to grasp the fragility of thinking we’re in control
That writing “I hope this email finds you well” in an email actually isn’t an erroneous cliché after all
That music always helps
That having a sense of humor is a muscle, just like anything else
That actually, home may be all I need
To see my parents and give them both a gigantic hug
To Sicily, especially because I’m already halfway to becoming an Italian by eating pasta for lunch several times a week
"To LAX to get on a plane to go literally anywhere that is not my bedroom"
To the bar where I’ll be buying a round for everyone there, just like in the movies
Plunging right into the ocean -- and packing a cooler full of ice cold drinks and charcuterie to enjoy on the beach when I get out
Take me to the ROW DTLA any day of the week, but especially on a weekend for Smorgasburg LA because I will eat everything in sight
Thinking about the places I’ve travelled, I feel an even greater appreciation for how fortunate I was to visit them then when I did
I used to think that making art was an independent act, but now I realize how much my creative community sustains me, and how we inspire one another
"Saving money has made me more cognizant of how and why I spend. It’s been eye-opening to see how little I need to still be happy"
Access to healthcare has never been of greater significance
My family and friends truly feed my soul. It’s love and kindness, above all else
Finishing up my last emails of the day with a beer or a spritz on the couch has not been terrible
Nor has been giving up jeans in favor of basketball shorts
The certainty I have that my partner and I are going to be fine together, no matter what
"The precious moments with my kids"
Knowing what it really means to be proud of a city and to be part of it for the long haul
Remembering to have hope that this won’t last forever
And that when it does, we will look back and see that we are stronger and more connected now than we were ever before