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I am 19, single, and currently live in Jurupa Valley (a city north of Riverside) and do volunteer work at a Goodwill thrift store in Norco. I was born and raised in the Coachella Valley (Indio, to be exact), in the desert of Southern California, and have lived in the following areas:
Palm Desert, CA (twice)
Thousand Palms, CA (twice)
Desert Hot Springs, CA
Cathedral City, CA
Riverside, CA
Indio, CA (four times in my own life)
Ahsahka, ID
Couer d'Alene, ID
Sky Valley, CA
Perris, CA
So, anyway, someday, I would probably like to relocate to a small town out in the middle of the desert (preferably, in California). Insane, I know. And, here's why:
At about this point in my own life, I am about nearly finished and fed up with having to deal with my own overwhelmingly tragic and negative thoughts of my past running through my own head nearly every day of the week. I also probably would not want any of my friends and family to come out and visit me in the future if I actually do plan to make the move someday, and also have plans of isolating myself from pretty much everyone that I know (most of them are out in the Coachella Valley), as well. All of this above is the reason why I might just plan to do so.
So, are there any ideas or recommendations for a small town in the middle of the desert (again, preferably in CA) that you can possibly recommend to me? I LOVE the desert and heat, so, I don't care one bit. In fact, I love and prefer the desert more than the mountains, valleys, beaches, etc. Oh, I almost forgot. I have a few other bits of criteria, as well:
It can have any amount of isolation to it.
Has to be relatively cheap and/or affordable.
It has to have an amount of trees for a desert area. If not, then, that's okay.
I also personally desire a small desert town where there is a sizeable amount of tamarisk trees (AKA, salt cedars) because they actually do provide plenty of shade, especially in the very hot summer, and they are one of my most favorite species of trees.
At least one grocery store, restaurant, big box chain, etc. (it doesn't have to have all)
I also personally desire a desert area that has a railroad running through it. I myself love seeing trains. If there isn't a railroad, then, that's okay, too.
I have researched a bit of info on several desert areas such as Ridgecrest, Needles, Twentynine Palms, Barstow (and surrounding areas), Blythe, California City, Salton City, the Death Valley area, Red Mountain, and even Trona, and I am personally pretty interested in all of them so far.
So, to recap my question, are there any ideas or recommendations for a small town out in the middle of the desert (once again, preferably in CA) that I can research and look into?
Any answers would be appreciated, and, thank you!
Last edited by Brandon Graves; 09-29-2018 at 04:47 PM..
At about this point in my own life, I am about nearly finished and fed up with having to deal with my own overwhelmingly tragic and negative thoughts of my past running through my own head nearly every day of the week.
OP, you can't outrun your thoughts. May I suggest therapy? Was there abuse in your childhood? There are quick and effective treatments for PTSD (one of the symptoms of which is recurring tragic and negative thoughts). You'd be much more at peace, after resolving that. Then, with that out of the way, you could decide where you want to live. Your interests might shift. It's been known to happen. Good self-care should be the first priority.
OP, you can't outrun your thoughts. May I suggest therapy? Was there abuse in your childhood? There are quick and effective treatments for PTSD (one of the symptoms of which is recurring tragic and negative thoughts). You'd be much more at peace, after resolving that. Then, with that out of the way, you could decide where you want to live. Your interests might shift. It's been known to happen. Good self-care should be the first priority.
Well, I am supposed to meet my psychiatrist in less than two months from now. It wasn't that much abuse per se, it was more of my parents thinking about themselves before me and my younger brother (e.g., a long history of their drug and substance abuse for about two decades, domestic disputes, etc.).
BTW, Ruth4Truth, are there any other desolate areas out in the desert that you can suggest me to look into? I would be pretty happy to hear your suggestions.
Well, I am supposed to meet my psychiatrist in less than two months from now. It wasn't that much abuse per se, it was more of my parents thinking about themselves before me and my younger brother (e.g., a long history of their drug and substance abuse for about two decades, domestic disputes, etc.).
Abandonment is a form of abuse. And loud, angry disputes can be frightening and disturbing to a child.
What happened to your search in northeastern CA, north of Tahoe?
Williams, AZ? Not exactly desert, but it's not too far from Mojave County, AZ. Nice little town. Much cheaper than Flagstaff. AZ doesn't have the level of taxation as CA, btw.
Abandonment is a form of abuse. And loud, angry disputes can be frightening and disturbing to a child.
What happened to your search in northeastern CA, north of Tahoe?
Williams, AZ? Not exactly desert, but it's not too far from Mojave County, AZ. Nice little town. Much cheaper than Flagstaff. AZ doesn't have the level of taxation as CA, btw.
Indeed, they can.
Nah, northeastern CA is out (for now, at least).
Williams, AZ, huh? I personally have never heard of that area nor been to that part of Arizona before. I might look that up.
But, for now, I am mainly interested in looking into small and desolate desert areas in CA (desert areas of Riverside, San Bernardino, Los Angeles, San Diego, Imperial, Kern, and Inyo Counties).
I believe Elko and Ely have some trees. You can find isolation there and still have a town to drive to.
Otherwise I really enjoyed driving through Rachel (stayed the night) and Caliente. Tonopah is another small city along the same stretch of road, but I don't recall too many trees.
The problem might be finding work. You're 19 and don't want to get stuck somewhere menial and unable to get out of it.
You could branch farther out to places like Kanab in Utah or thereabouts. Utah is dry and mountainous and most areas have a few spreads of trees. Honestly you just have to take an extended road trip for these kinds of things. I have always talked to locals wherever I go, just ask about whatever's on your mind and they'll tell you what it's like in the area.
OP, I would suggest you do an internet search for psychologists in your area, who are trained to evaluate people for PTSD, and to treat it. You should at least get evaluated. Going off into the wilderness, whether desert or otherwise, isn't going to solve anything. If you have Medicaid, or whatever CA offers of that nature, it should pay for an evaluation.
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