Why the hard time for Cali?

a reply to: SlapMonkey

All in opinion a difference of opinion I guess...

The inland empire is a vast wasteland of strip mall hell to me. Everything good about CA is not there.
Ditto to anywhere near Stockton or Bakersfield. Way too methy and an empty hot box of cow stink.

a reply to: okrian

Nope, I don't have "partisan blinders" on--every instance of fakery if accurate.

Living in California is where the blinders are put on, and it's something that isn't really that noticeable--it's not until you actually leave the state and live elsewhere and venture beyond the state that you realize this. It took me serving in the military, living in Germany, and then living in TN and KY (just south of Cincinnati) to understand this.

It's not at all about partisan blinders, and my parents are recognizing this, too, as are other members of my family and friends who have lived there all of their lives. Many are up and moving because of how bad things have become for those living there (on many facets) and others want to leave but are unwilling to separate from family ties.

But, you know what, to each their own--I had relative fun growing up there, and it certainly is where I fostered a good level of cultural and racial blindness (which is a good thing), but seeing it through the eyes of an adult with a family, as I do now, it's no place that I would ever want to live again.

I'll visit it, though, for sure, but damn, it's so god-awful expensive out there.

originally posted by: okrian
a reply to: SlapMonkey

All in opinion a difference of opinion I guess...

The inland empire is a vast wasteland of strip mall hell to me. Everything good about CA is not there.
Ditto to anywhere near Stockton or Bakersfield. Way too methy and an empty hot box of cow stink.

Ah, I agree (I grew up in Bakersfield...the collector of all of the central valley's smog). I'm not knocking the natural environment of places like L.A., or Santa Maria, or Santa Barbara, or any of the coastal places, but he did specifically ask for 'warm' as the descriptor.

But having grown up in Cali, I see the San Joaquin Valley as everything that IS California--immigrant workers, farmland, decent driving distances to many, many natural landscapes, relatively easy travel, and people who are more 'real' than what I have found to be true in coastal cities (my sister lived in Oceanside for a while, my brother in Pismo, and my extended family were all down in San Diego). The older I got, the less that I appreciated visiting those places, but they were definitely fun as a kid and teenager.

I just see the so-cal life that is broadcast around the world as being way too fake for me, and I know too many people that have moved there from Bakersfield who have a happy persona, but have confided more than once that they wish that they hadn't moved there.

But like you said, opinion is opinion, and I'm not saying that all people in so-cal are fake, there are just too many of them for me to enjoy being there for extended periods. The central valley definitely has many negatives going for it, too...why do you think that I'll never move back there, and you seem to understand why I call Bakersfield the crotch of the central valley.

a reply to: SlapMonkey

Fake is everywhere. It's just wearing a bit more of a noticeable costume here. And even then, it's just in certain parts of CA, and even further... just certain neighborhoods of those parts. Not the ones I would ever choose to live in. I've lived all over, traveled to 30+ countries as well. Fake is as fake does. People trying to impress other people is not location specific.

We are also just used to what we are used to. And as much as I love the west, and this feels like my place, the east coast are clearly my people as it's what I grew up with. And because of that I feel drawn to with people that appear to be beaten down by post-industrial society. They just 'feel' right.

a reply to: SlapMonkey

Agreed, so much within driving distance up there that is amazing (camped a lot in Sequoia, and have really liked camping in Death Valley before it gets too hot, during the desert flower bloom). I mean, I'm all for the CA mix of types of people (cities vs. farmland). But I'm never going to be judgmental against anyone wanting to live anywhere, discover something new, find new people, new experiences, etc. This life is short and we should get off our assess and get out there.

Brilliant replies folks, thanks for giving me the human perspective of places!

Mad different to the Cali adverts being pushed on UK television, it's like they are desperate for Brits to emigrate there.

originally posted by: CornishCeltGuy
a reply to: okrian
It does look gorgeous though so I can understand that.Are Georgian folk friendly, red or blue state? Would a twentywww.abovetopsecret.com... something Brit lad feel welcomed there if he's not being a prick?

I find Georgia very friendly, myself. I love the accents, which are mild compared to, say, Alabama or Mississippi. I think a British lad would be welcomed. Atlanta I would stay away from--it's like any big city, but the rest of the state seems more laid back and not quite as rushed. The ladies are a lot of fun, too. I look back at my time there very fondly. It was a time when I was dirt poor, but one of the greatest times of my life.

a reply to: okrian

yeah, I think that my point is just that, in Cali, there is a keeping-up-with-the-Joneses mentality that not only infects people at a higher rate out there, but it also seems to be passively supported by the influential voices out there.

Like you say, it's not everywhere, and it's not everyone, but it's increasingly difficult to avoid in So-Cal versus other places in California.

Regardless, I'd never tell someone not to live there, I'd just tell them that I wouldn't move back. To each their own--living in a town of 3,500 people isn't for everyone, either, but here I sit.

California has nice weather, not much else.
I travel there for business and the best day of the trip is always leaving the place.

a reply to: schuyler
Cheers bud
You are right about 'any big city' they are different to small town world for sure, same in the UK, massively so when you think of #hole London.

a reply to: CornishCeltGuy

California has kind of been desperate for tourism money as of late. Ever since the economic downturn, visitation has fallen and people have been moving out to more affordable parts of the country, both of which equal less dollars in the state's coffers.

It's probably on the increase again, but I'm willing to bet that it's not just the UK to whom they are pandering their best face. I see their commercials here in KY from time to time, too.

This one, to be exact:

originally posted by: UKTruth
California has nice weather, not much else.
I travel there for business and the best day of the trip is always leaving the place.

Help a UK brother out then, where do you feel most welcomed or think a young Brit could get on best?

a reply to: SlapMonkey
The bulk of the adverts here are about encouraging people to move there not just vacation.
I thought they had no shortage of immigrants, maybe they just want a few more Brits?

a reply to: UKTruth

Nah, you just haven't been going to the right places, then.

Maybe one day your travels will take you to Yosemite, or the Giant Sequoia Forest, or Lake Tahoe, or the central coast (get you some fresh strawberries outside of Santa Maria...wonderful), or San Diego, or the Redwood forest in Northern Cali...or many other places.

But if you've just been to big cities for short periods, yes, it will suck.

originally posted by: CornishCeltGuy
a reply to: SlapMonkey
The bulk of the adverts here are about encouraging people to move there not just vacation.
I thought they had no shortage of immigrants, maybe they just want a few more Brits?

A different discussion for another day/thread. Where I grew up, there were many immigrant farm workers, both there legally and illegally. The conditions that these poor (both in sympathy and in economic status) people were forced to live in was anger-inducing.

Not all immigrants are equal in the eyes of the state government's grabby little tax hands. They probably want people who they assume, on average, will be allowed legal work for legal wages and will pay their taxes. And I don't blame the immigrants, necessarily, because it's the employers who pay them under the table, at rates far lower than minimum wage, and treat them like indentured servants, probably because some of them are.

I'm sorry for not painting a pretty picture, but this was an issue near and dear to me when I was younger--still is.

a reply to: SlapMonkey

Don't be sorry, it is an issue from what I see, advertising massively on UK television for new British blood to move to Cali, and painting a picture of rainbows and unicorns on the golden sandy beaches.
Seems strange...but inviting.

EDIT
Does Cali even need the fresh blood of educated British people?
The TV advert campaign must be costing the state hundreds of thousands.

originally posted by: CornishCeltGuy
a reply to: SlapMonkey

Does Cali even need the fresh blood of educated British people?
The TV advert campaign must be costing the state hundreds of thousands.

I would argue that it certainly does, citing my previous comments about a large reduction in the state coffers from direct wage taxation and people leaving California.

And it's not just average families--there have been a lot of millionaires and wealthier leaving for more affordable areas, as well. I hate to say it, but they're probably just seeing you Brits as dollar signs with legs and an accent.

originally posted by: SlapMonkey
I hate to say it, but they're probably just seeing you Brits as dollar signs with legs and an accent.

LMAO! Fair one, and an accent which will steal your women in the blink of an eye!

a reply to: okrian

I never did get to camp out in Death Valley, but it's something that I would love to do, and at 39, I still have some good years left.

I did get to see the space shuttle land out at Edwards Air Force Base when I was about 12, though, so that was fun...and I did drive through the Mojave Desert in June in a '66 Mustang with no A/C, so there's that, too. The thermometer in Needles, CA, said about 115, IIRC.

a reply to: CornishCeltGuy

Yes, but the sunburns that will be experienced by the pasty CornishCelt folks will negate the attractiveness of the accent LOL

blisters and peeling, flaky skin...now that's sexy!