From breathtaking golden hour beauty to an ocean that's always ready for your morning plunge, summer in LA offers endless opportunities to reset and recharge. The team at Smith & Berg continues to perfect the art of the midsummer recalibration — think Marie Kondo for your nervous system, but with more Pacific Ocean and less folding. These five simple, easily adaptable rituals can help you tap into LA's natural rhythm and make it your own.
1. The Dawn Patrol Plunge (Before the Meters Start Ticking)
When was the last time you saw the Pacific Ocean before sunrise? This is quiet LA at its best, where the only traffic is seagulls, and your only deadline is the incoming tide. The cold Pacific does something to your system that even the most expensive cryotherapy session can't match.
The ritual: Pick two mornings a week. Set that alarm for 6:30 AM. Drive to your nearest stretch of coastline. Walk straight into the water until you're waist-deep, then take the plunge. Stay for just five minutes—long enough for your brain to stop calculating and start remembering you're alive.
F. Ron enjoying his early morning walk on the beach.
2. Sunset Device Detox (AKA The Great Drawer Ceremony)
In a city where your phone doubles as a GPS, going device-free feels almost rebellious. But there's something profound about placing your phone in a drawer right as the sun disappears behind the mountains. Whether you're watching the sunset from your patio or catching the last light from the Santa Monica boardwalk, these moments deserve your full attention.
The ritual: One hour before sunset, place all devices in a designated drawer. Use this time for analog activities: sketching the view, writing in your journal, or simply sitting with a glass of red wine or a cup of mint tea and watching your neighborhood settle into the evening. Instagram photos can wait, but the sunset happening right now deserves your full attention.
Sunset photo by Tracy Smith.
3. The Brentwood Coffee Shop Meditation (Or Wherever You Find Your Rhythm)
Forget the fancy meditation studios charging $40 a session. Sometimes the most grounding practice happens in the corner booth of your neighborhood coffee shop, watching the theater of LA life unfold around you. Need a new favorite spot to try? Malou on Barrington, near SBP’s flagship in Brentwood (tell them we sent you).
The ritual: Choose one coffee shop that feels like your regular spot; somewhere you can simply exist between the hustle of home and work. Visit weekly at the same time. Order something you genuinely enjoy. Sit for at least 30 minutes with no agenda beyond being present. Think of it as anthropological fieldwork, but for your soul.
Photo credit: @luiswinters
4. The Scenic Route Ritual (Because You're Stuck in Traffic Anyway)
Instead of always defaulting to the fastest route, occasionally take the scenic option. Drive down San Vicente instead of the freeway. Take Sunset through different neighborhoods instead of jumping on the 405. Use these extra minutes to notice how afternoon light hits certain buildings, how different neighborhoods smell, the rhythm of different communities.
The ritual: Once a week, choose the beautiful route over the fastest one. Turn off the podcast and music. Drive in relative quiet, paying attention to your surroundings with meditation-app focus. Notice your breathing, notice the city, notice how different LA looks when you're not rushing through it.
5. The Sunday Neighborhood Walk (No Destination Required)
In a city designed for cars, walking can feel like a radical act. But there's something about exploring your own neighborhood on foot that reveals layers of LA most people never notice — like the gardens spilling over Brentwood fences or the way light moves differently at street level versus from behind a windshield.
The ritual: Every Sunday, step outside and walk in a direction you don't usually go. No fitness tracker, no specific destination, no time pressure. Walk until something interesting catches your attention, then walk until something else does. The goal isn't exercise; it's rediscovering your neighborhood through fresh eyes.
Your Midsummer Reset Starts Now
The beautiful thing about these rituals is their simplicity. They don't require special equipment, expensive memberships, or perfect timing. They just require showing up to your own life with a little more intention. At Smith & Berg Property Group, we believe your home should be your sanctuary, but sometimes the best way to appreciate that sanctuary is to step outside it with purpose. These small but meaningful practices can help you stay grounded in a city that's always moving.