It is about 3 AM my time and everyone here in LA is still going strong. I am fresh out of school and am happily entrenched in a 9am to midnight cycle. It won’t be long until I crash.

MTV decided to be generous and get us a room at The Ritz-Carlton. It is funny: this evening they came into the room and folded down the covers on my bed. There is not much you can do to a hotel room experience to top the competitors. Making the bed in the morning isn’t enough now, they’ve got to help you get in at night. They have heated towels, luxury bath stuff, fluffier bath robes, less fake wood, marble counter tops…but it is still just a bed looking at a TV with a desk pushed in the corner. I would gladly stay at Motel 6 and keep the difference.

I rode here from the airport with David (”I was the brotha that got kicked out of The Real World LA.) We drove near their loft on the way to the hotel and he spilled out some funny stories from way back when. I ran into David (RWNO) in the hotel lobby, then Lars, then… After two hours I felt like I had attended a family reunion/RW hall of fame, right there in the lobby. One after another dozens of Real World kids from over the years came in and joined the pow-wow.

John, Beth (both RWLA), and I had dinner at the Cheesecake Factory. It was so nice sitting outside by candlelight, looking out into the shimmering marina and the subtly bobbing boats tethered to the rows of docks. It is always so fascinating talking to other Real Worlders. It’s like we sit around talking about “it” all the time, but just seeing how/what they are doing and who they are becoming given that we all share a common experience.

It feels weird leaving my new place in NY for few days when it feels like I just moved there. My stuff is still in boxes and I don’t have a bed there yet. My new roomies have been supercool in making me feel at home. I hope that I can find a good group of friends in New York. This summer can be ok, good, or remarkable. I know it will take effort not to sink into ok or good, but to get out there and make it remarkable.