Los Angeles is where you confront the objective fact that you mean nothing; the desert, the ocean, the tectonic plates, the clear skies, the sun itself, the Hollywood Walk of Fame – even the parking lots: everything there somehow precedes you, even new construction sites, and it's bigger than you and more abstract than you and indifferent to you. You don't matter. You're free.LA residents given to talking about life in the city talk about freedom a lot. Without a cohesive citywide identity or community structure, without a city center in any sense of the word, you don't situate your life in relation to some imagined ur-community or parental figures. You're just there. But I'd add one thing: it's true that the city as a whole cares about nothing. But there are a thousand communities, more, within the city.
This is Lukas Bergstrom's weblog. You can also find me on Twitter and LinkedIn.
Tech
Storage, Social, Android, Medical, RSS, Collaboration, Web, Visual, Business, Open, Javascript, AI, Crowdsourcing, Development, Energy, Hardware, barcamp, Wearables, Product Management, MacOS, Audio, s60, Security, Data, a11y, OS, Automobile, PIM, WRX, Web analytics, Mobile, Shopping, Net
Other
Geography, Bicycling, Life hacks, Boston, Podcasts, Statistics, Clothes, L.A., Activism, Sports, Feminism, California, Games, CrowdFlower, History, Toys, San Francisco, Quizzes, Friday, Berlin, Agriculture, Transportation, Personal care, Minnesota, Travel, Politik, Food & Drink, Housing, NYC, Law, Video, Surfing
Music
Reviews, Making, Streams, Videos, Good tracks, Shopping, Business, Hip-hop, Labels, Events, Musicians, Mixes, Boston, House, Mp3s, Booking, History, L.A., Lyrics, Mailing lists
People
Life hacks, Working with, Exercise, Family, Health, Stories, Heroes, Enemies, Meditation, ADD, Languages, MOTAS, Friends, Me, Gossip, Vocations, Weblogs, Subcultures, Buddhism
Arts
Sculpture, Literature, Humor, Animation, Movies, Events, Desktop wallpaper bait, Spoken Word, Outlets, Burning Man, Poetry, Visual, Rhetoric, Comix, iPad bait
Commerce
Macroeconomics, Microfinance, Taxes, Insurance, Real Estate, Personal finance, Shopping, IP Law, Marketing and CRM, Web, International Development, Non-profit, Investing, Management consulting, Personal services
Design
IA, User experience, Cool, Presentations, Process, Architecture, Web, Tools, Algorithmic, Type, Data visualization, Furniture
Science
Statistics and Data, Networks, Psychology, Cognition, Zoology, Environment, Physics
Travel
Kenya, Vagabond '08, Uganda, Kingdom of Siam