So I live in California now.

It's only really been a week, so I shouldn't be so quick to say that I love it here. But so far, I do. The new job is interesting, and it seems like it's going to be crazy challenging. Everything else is kind of shaking out, and it's all working out pretty well for me.

Except one thing.

Quite a few of the people here seem to think that they know what is best for everyone. Which is normal human nature, people have a hard time stepping outside of themselves to see things the way another person would.

The problem here?

The people here have no problem telling you that they know what is best for you. The amount of people here who have had the testicular fortitude to tell me things about myself that they think I should know after meeting me once, for at most a few hours, is nothing short of staggering.

It's driving me crazy.

I've had people who don't know me from anyone else tell me things I should be doing, that they know what I'm thinking, or even more obnoxious, their opinion on what I think, despite my never having told them what I think.

The next person who tells me, after seeing me pick up something with gluten in it, that I should absolutely go gluten free because it would be so good for me, is going to spend the rest of their night removing my foot from their ass.

I'm sure that it's just a weird culture difference between here and Chicago, but holy fuck me is it annoying. The truth is, if quite a few of these people knew what I was thinking or how I actually felt, very few of them would be brave enough to continue to stand within my reach while telling me what I think.

I caught lunch with a good friend who I met in Chicago who now lives in San Francisco and it was amazingly refreshing to spend some time with someone who isn't judging me, or presuming to know what I'm thinking. The thing is? She knows me well enough that she could tell me what I was thinking, and probably be spot on. And the reason she's my friend? Is because she wouldn't.

That being said, if this is the only thing I hate, I will either learn to live with it, or simply stop associating with people who do it. But it's so prevalent that it shocked me.

But, so far so good. Most of the people I've met are freaking amazing.

Minus the ones that keep picking me up. I don't know how that's a thing now but that's a different post for a different time.

And thanks everyone for all the support during the move!