I write about the social impact of entertainment and how media can be used for good. Views are my own. 

Sign up to discover more socially conscious content

© 2023 • All Rights Reserved
At Brighton Beach in Brighton, UK

Moving from London to Los Angeles (and Everything Else I’ve Done Since August)

I realize I haven’t written anything for 10 weeks, but trust me when I say it’s been an eventful couple of months. Let me give you a quick run-down.

I moved away from London

My assignment in London came to an end, so it was time for me to head home. It was an amazing eight months, despite having to shelter in place for most of it. Something about being in a situation where you’re forced to make your own fun has a strange, and perhaps ironic, way of bringing people together. I definitely feel like I’ve built a special connection with the friends I made during lock-down. Either way, it was a great assignment, and I’m glad I had a chance to do it.

I quarantined in Canada

As a Canadian citizen, I wasn’t able to return directly to the USA from the UK, so I was required to make a two-week pitstop in Toronto so I could observe a mandatory quarantine. And when I say “quarantine,” I mean a serious quarantine. Like locked-in-your-hotel-room-and-could-get-fined-if-found-in-public. The hotel I was staying at had no food or laundry; both services were suspended due to COVID-19 precautions. I had non-perishable groceries delivered to my room, hand-washed my laundry in the bathroom sink, and resorted to video workouts on YouTube for my daily exercise. It wasn’t as bad as it sounds. It was actually kind of nice to be forced to stay in one place for a while (again).

I moved into a new apartment

It took a couple of weeks of scouring Zillow, a few frantic days of back-to-back viewings, and more Ubers than I would have liked, lugging around not only all my belongings from London, but also all the things I had left in storage in Los Angeles. Needless to say, I’m now settled into a nice spot in Marina del Rey, and it’s just what I was looking for.

I started a new job

I’m still working with the video game company Activision Blizzard, where I was previously part of a rotational program. Now that my last rotation has come to an end, I’ve started a permanent role in the central marketing group. So far, it’s awesome.

I turned 30!

Okay, this is pretty belated. My birthday was actually back in August. In fact, it was the first day I quarantined in Toronto. No iconic milestone birthday bash for me this time around, but I suppose that’s okay because my 20s were a pretty wild decade. I’m looking forward to seeing what surprises come my way over the course of the next 10 years. Not that I’m in any rush, of course.

View this post on Instagram

Realizing I haven’t posted anything on IG for 2 months, and WOW what a 2 months it has been. 🎡 Had my final days in London. Can’t believe eight months passed just like that. Every so often I think about my London fam. The shenanigans we got ourselves into were pretty unbelievable, even in lock down. ✈️ I moved! 3 TIMES! Alright, maybe “moved” is a dramatic word to use. But I still traveled way more than anyone should during a global pandemic. First to Toronto (mandatory quarantine), then into temporary housing in LA, and then finally into my new place in Marina del Rey. Which brings me to… 🏡 Officially settled into a new apartment. And the plan is to be here longer than 8-12 months, so that’s exciting. And I almost forgot to mention: It’s perfect. Will post pics in my story once it’s all set up. 👨🏾‍💻Started a new job. Still with @activision @blizzard, but now in a permanent role working with their central marketing group. So far, it’s awesome. 🎂 Ah, yes. And I turned 30! My 20s had just the right amount of adventure. Something tells me the next decade will be no different. Now that things have settled a bit — politics and global catastrophes aside — you can expect me to revert to my usually scheduled programming. It’s good to be back. ☺️ 📸 pc: the one and only @fananasplit #london #losangeles #brighton #lifeupdate #birthdaypost #govote #stopreadingmyhashtags

A post shared by Alykhan Kaba (@alykhankaba) on

There you have it. Now you’re all caught up on what I’ve been doing over the past 10 weeks instead of writing these posts. I haven’t even started to talk about the Mulan movie, casting for Ms. Marvel, or the first presidential debate yet. That will all come in due time I’m sure, although who knows what people will still be talking about next week. In any case, I’m planning to get back into the rhythm of this, so expect to see more soon.

Until next time.

If you liked this post, sign up for my newsletter in the navigation bar! Every couple of months, I’ll send you a personalized summary of my latest writing.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

© 2023 • All Rights Reserved