Rent an apt as close to the beach as you can possibly get
Lose weight
Spend some money on a good haircut/color style
Get your teeth whitened
Get rid of all your clothes and buy new ones in Calif
Get rid of your car and get a new one in Calif - doesn't have to be fancy - Honda/Toyota are fine
Get a beach cruiser and bike rack for your car
Lose the accent
Don't hang out with other East coast transplants
Try as many beach activities as you can muster, including surfing, volleyball, jogging, running, bike riding, etc.
If you do all the above, you'll meet all sorts of cool people. Once you develop a circle of friends, you're in for good. And, by the way, it's coming up on the best 6 mos in Calif (Oct-Mar); spend a winter in SoCal and you'll never move anywhere else.