This is part of an ongoing series. If you haven't read them already, read :

How I became a Famous Pickup Artist Part 1
and
How I became a Famous Pickup Artist Part 2

I wrote out this entire post before, and then the computer crashed and I lost it all, so I haven't felt like working on it. Finally, I'm biting the bullet and starting over :

I got home from Chicago with a new sense of purpose. I started going out more, getting more numbers, and going on more dates. I was improving, but nowhere near where I wanted to be.

I spent a lot of time on the Lounge reading all the information I could. A very common mistake made by aspiring pickup artists (and aspiring talent in virtually every other field) is that they spend too much time gathering information and too little time acting. I was certainly guilty of that to some extent.

A couple weeks after returning, there was a post on the lounge that struck my eye.

"Project Hollywood is a GO! Room for ONE more..."

I read the post and it basically said that the lease had been signed, and everyone was ready to move in. At the last minute someone had backed out and left a room vacant. Immediately after reading that post, I replied :

Congrats on getting the place! I am incredible tempted. If I hadn't just bought a house I would definitely do it. Actually, I'm still going to see if I can do it... hopefully the room will still be available if I figure out a way.

It was an important moment in my life. I had a burning desire to move. I liked LA, although I hadn't spent much time there. Financially, it made no sense at all for me to go, since I didn't have enough time to rent out my house in Austin. My business was fairly mobile, but had some roots in Austin, and I didn't know anyone in LA, other than a few estranged friends from high school and, of course, Papa.

Other than my usual decision making flowchart, it boiled down to one factor. I realized that if I didn't go, I would probably wonder for the rest of my life what would have happened if I moved. If I went and it was a disaster... well, at least I gave it a shot.

I called Style and told him I wanted in.

He didn't know me, of course. There were a lot of people interested in that room. Then there was the issue that only one of my friends had any idea I was involved in this pickup thing, and none of my family knew. I figured I could get through any of the hurdles, though. I convinced him that I could come up with the money quickly and that I wasn't a weirdo. He later told me that he assumed I was a weirdo because only weirdos would pick up and move to Hollywood on a moment's notice.

The next day I was still excited, but had a few reservations. Were they looking for an equal, and an inductee into their social group, or were they looking for an outsider to keep to himself and subsidize their mansion? I've always been good at befriending people, but maybe they had an agenda. Also, I wasn't looking forward to telling my parents about the whole thing.

By the time I sent in my deposit check and finalized the details, I had three weeks to move. I decided that as much as I'd like to put it off, my parents should know as soon as possible so that they could spend some time with me.

My grandmother and I are very close. Despite being in her late 70s, she has an extremely youthful spirit and open mind. For example, when I played tupac for her, she actually liked it. When I told her that I dropped out of school and was planning on using the money she and my grandfather gave me to start a rather risky sounding business, she encouraged me. Often when I had big news I would tell her before telling my parents, because she was so accepting.

"Mum (that's what I call her), I have big news."
"Really? What?"
"I'm moving to Hollywood to become a pickup artist"