California cool

YOU know… for as long as I care to remember, I’ve considered myself ‘cool’.

I really have.

When I was younger I had long hair, and I actually thought I was Kurt Cobain.

And as I’ve grown older I’ve felt I’ve maintained that hip stance.

I’ve played guitar since my early teens, I’ve always liked good music and movies, I’ve hung out with other ‘cool’ people, and I like to think I still dress well, um, ‘cool’.

I even think my parents – my dad being a huge blues fan – are pretty up there too.

But any belief I had in all that has faded like old fat kipper ties in the wardrobe during the last few weeks as Jacks and I have explored San Diego, and indeed California.

In the last few weeks we’ve met ‘cool’.

And his/her name is Chad… Arthur… Roxy… or something even cool-sounding.

These guys… they’re ‘hipsters’.

They’re the epitome of cool and hip, or whatever you call it in this age.

They have at least a couple of tattoos, androgynous hair styles and they boast the finest groomed moustaches or beards a man could cultivate.

They wear colourful Ray Ban sunglasses with thrift store purchased skinny jeans and faded t-shirts or lumberjack-style shirts. And they all seem so thin and pale even their fatigued figures seem fashionable.

Everyone, and I mean EVERYONE also seems to naturally be in a band.

The girl who served us a slice of pizza in Golden Hills, SD, was in a band; the kid with the skateboard was in a band, and of course the girl smoking on the sidewalk (pavement) walking the dog in North Park was in a band.

It’s much like how everyone in London seems to work in PR.

“Who are these people?!” I asked a friend during the recent Golden Hills Street Fest we attended.

“Hipsters…” she replied.

“… Californian, hipsters.”

The one and only thing which seems to make me cool and interesting to others is my English accent – but even then people seem to think I’m Australian.

Sadly, I can’t compete - no matter how hard I try...

Fail

Oh well.

When did everyone become so bloody cool? Was I asleep? Was I not paying attention? Was I in TIJUANA?!

I’ve seen a few of what I’d call ‘hipsters’ before in England– or at least people who thought they were hipsters – but here is where they seem to live and breed.

Even their pets are cool, and they could quite believably also be in a band.

So yes, Jacks and I have been out exploring San Diego, and meeting people.

It takes time to get to grips with new surroundings. And of course to meet people you’d call ‘friends’.

Where’ve I been? Where did the blog updates go…?

Well, we got married.

Ay caramba

And then we went on our honeymoon.

Life's a beach

There, that’s a good excuse right?

Without boring you all too much, our wedding was pretty much perfect.

There was no fear of it ever raining on our wedding day here in San Diego because, well, it just doesn’t really rain here.

It was a short and simple affair carried out under bluebird skies among the company of new friends and family.

The ceremony completed the amazing fairy-tale story which we’ve been living for the past 18 months.

And then we buggered off to Fiji to spend time on a near-deserted island for a couple of weeks.

Note: Isn’t it funny that within 30 seconds of being married people begin to ask you about babies?!

Sheesh… yes everything’s happened in a very short space of time but hey, give us a break!

Aside from all that I’ve come back to work on the most exciting and amazing project of my career.

The hugely talented Alejandra Cerball and I now co-anchor U-T TV’s U-T San Diego News from Monday to Friday.

News team assemble

It’s a new hour-long prime-time show which airs from 5pm (1am GMT) and then re-airs at 7pm (3am GMT) on U.S. cable and online.

If you want to see it, tune into Cox 114 or AT&T 17/1017 on U.S. cable, or watch it live online at www.utsandiego.com/tv/.

On air

So there you go.

I’m an anchorman in San Diego… and no, my apartment doesn’t smell like rich mahogany.

@tristan_nichols