California Diary Day 1: Some of us are more totally stoked than others

Come along with the Suburban Kamikaze and her adorable teenage son as they begin the journey of a lifetime, or roughly four hours by air:

We are traveling west to begin the boy's transition into self-sufficiency and "the real world" where he will be expected to make his own toast, do his own laundry and handle his own expenses.

Eventually.

First there will be four years at the University of All Our Money, where the all-you-can-eat meal service runs 24-hours a day and we will be paying all of the bills. Still, laundry is a big step.

It's my job to make the transition as seamless as possible. Toward this end, his sister and I have begun an immersion program in which we try to speak to him only in Californian.

I won't lie to you; it's been a little rocky. Sometimes I feel like he's not even trying.

We'll be taking the 105 to the 110 to the downtown exit, where we can hopefully score some frozen yogurt and free parking. It's going to be, like, totally awesome.