September 25, 2008 | 2:05 pm

My VideoGuide to Los Angeles

Posted by Jay Firestone

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VideoJew’s VideoGuide to Los Angeles trailer

The Fall Season: VideoJew’s VideoGuide to Los Angeles

In the past year, under my online video persona, VideoJew, I’ve explored much of the Los Angeles Jewish community and shared it with the YouTube-viewing nation.

You’ve seen me eating at a kosher Subway, playing mah-jongg and conducting a blind matzah taste test. But after a successful year of VideoJudaism, I decided to devote my next season to my experience as a Los Angeles newcomer.

When I first moved here after graduating from the University of Wisconsin two years ago, I felt completely overwhelmed. Busy people, heavy traffic, distant neighborhoods all contributed to my troubled adjustment to post-academic life.

Burdened by difficulty finding a job, buying a car and meeting other young Jews, I soon realized that life in the real world was very real. And with my mother a full 2,500 miles away, for the first time in my life I had no one to tell me what to do or where to go.

Thankfully, after two years in Los Angeles, I’ve finally adjusted to the lifestyle and culture that West Coast living affords. I found a job, bought a car and even met several Jews who are happy to tolerate me (most of these without the help of my mother). Looking back, I now recognize that my transition to West Coast living would have been much smoother if I’d had a mentor—or even a manual.

So I’ve decided to offer help to others who feel as lost as I once did ... with my VideoGuide to Los Angeles, launching online today.

In this five-episode handbook, revealed over the next several weeks, I’ll walk you—the newcomer (or your memory of yourself as one)—through everything you need to know to make the most of your Los Angeles experience. Each episode is guaranteed to mentally and physically (though, not legally) naturalize the new West Coast immigrant.

It doesn’t really matter if you’re new to the city, just visiting or have lived here all your life, anyone can benefit from this guide.

Follow along each week for an all-new installment.

Introduction—Online Sept. 26
Like any manual, VideoJew’s VideoGuide to Los Angeles begins with a short but concise introduction, sure to prepare you for the upcoming schedule and give you a sneak peek at some of the exciting scenes to come.

Click here for a complete list of Volumes 1-5.

posted by VideoJew Jay Firestone