Why do you love California? (Oxnard, Orange: homes, camping, living)

[happ]

Originally Posted by Widowmaker2k

Hey guys, us Californians receive a lot of flack on these forums, so I thought I'd pose a question...why do you love living in California?

Personally, I have a lot of history here. My great, great, great, great, great grandfather was a 49er and lived very near to where I live now. My father has lived here (in this county) all his life, and so have I. I feel a deep connection with the Sierra Nevada, and plan to spend my entire life here, because to me, it's paradise on Earth. I firmly believe that California is the most beautiful place on this planet.

What about you? What about California makes you want to live here? The mountains? The trees? The ocean? The coast? The desert? The wildlife? The diversity in peoples and landscapes?

There really isn't enough time to list all the reasons I love living in California & have some similarity with you. Also 5 generations Californio that started in remote Trinity county & the Sacramento valley\ Butte county. It's wild & tame history combined. It's also great having so many relatives that it takes a city park\ Bidwell to hold the family [just a little exaggeration

California represents so much pride & wonder

[getshorty]

As someone has already mentioned, it's hard to list everything but what does it for me is that there are so many options. I wish I could multiply and be everwhere at once. We have enough cities, street scenes, funky districts to donate to other states/cities/towns and still not miss a beat

[fergusonsix]

It's taken me this long to realize it, but I love California because it's home. I will never be "from" anywhere else. We are working on finding our way back "home" from the south right now. What I miss, and will love and appreciate more than ever when we get there:

Day trips to the beach
Day trips to the mountains
Cool summer nights
Awesome Mexican food
Time with the family
Diversity of people, opinions, etc., and tolerance (most of the time!)
In-n-out burgers.....yum...
A limitless number of family vacations that can be taken by car and without leaving the state
Having roots and knowing people in your hometown
San Francisco in the summer when it's cool and foggy

[sue522]

Eureka!!!!! what else?

[CA central coast]

Besides family, the absolute reason for keeping me here is weather. It's the same temp practically year round where I live. We're spoiled as hell when it comes to the weather.

[Happy Cells]

I love California for the misty days, hiking in the mountains watching the vixen move her brood.
I love California for the quite days, on the bay swinging gently about the hook, watching the murlets watching me.
I love California for the intense mad dash chases for wild pigs down on the central coast, the afternoon heat and the evening cools...
I love California for the memories, because that is all that is left now....the way the valley used to be, it's just a cute mural now, on the side of some building....the way it used to be....

[krudmonk]

variety/abundance of cultures, activities, scenery, etc.

[murlough23]

On the religion issue, I think there's a pretty noticeable evangelical presence here - probably more so in Orange County, but I've seen a lot of it (and in my past, been part of it) here in L.A. (Didn't the whole "Jesus music" movement start here in the 60's?) I can't speak to points north as much. Maybe the difference between that sort of a religious presence here versus the "Bible Belt" is that at least here, it's easier to be aware that there's a diversity of people and therefore a diversity of ideas that don't agree with yours. I wish I could say that leads to people being more tolerant - unfortunately it tends not to, but at least people here seem to be less shocked to find out that not everyone is like them.

But I've never been to the "Bible Belt", so feel free to clear me up on that stereotype.

Who do I love it here? I was born here and honestly don't have much to compare it to, but I think diversity plays a huge role. Being able to get any kind of food at any time of night is a huge plus. Being within a few hours' drive of nearly any kind of terrain I want to explore is also a big one - L.A. itself may be ugly, but there's a lot of good exploring to do in nearby mountains and deserts and coastlines. Being able to march to your own drummer and still know you fit in somewhere is good, too - this place is far from a tolerant utopia, but you generally don't have to look too hard to find a group of crazy kooks who understand you.

But then there are days when I honestly can't imagine why anyone who wasn't from here would want to move here. I have a love/hate relationship with the place, but my love for the general climate trumps all other misgivings. (The whole "having a good job" thing doesn't hurt in terms of helping me stay put, either.)

[sheri257]

One of the reasons I love California is it's still the land of opportunity if you're willing to work for it. I basically went through the community college system for free and I'm now making more money than I ever have.

With few exceptions, the quality of life is unparalleled. Spectacular scenery and recreation, food, arts, culture. I like the tolerance of other cultures and meeting people from all over the world.

The first time I drove down highway 1 from Monterey to Big Sur I was hooked. I just couldn't get it out of my head. It's home.

[Huckleberry3911948]

no winter.
its a great place for the emotionally unattached. my uncle in memphis says living in california is like living with a beautiful woman who has a headache all the time.