I LOVE California. I lived in Santa Cruz for six years, and Willits (yep, north of Ukiah) for about a year. I’ve been in Colorado since '85, and would move back if I didn’t have a whole life here now. It’s the most wonderful, diverse state in the country; I’ve spent time in every state and can say that with confidence.
I visit frequently and feel homesick every time.
And yes, Californians are the best drivers. I’m glad I learned to drive there!
Everyone in all 50 states loves Cali.
Nother reason to love it, Death Valley. Which is bigger than RI btw. 
Pt. Reyes, Tahoe (bro, bra, bre, bro), Monterey, Big Sur, fucking artichokes, wine country, Humboldt, Mt. Lassen.
mmmmm. Will I ever leave? Sure, but I’ll always come back.
How can you tell? Rush hour starts at 4:30am and lasts until 7:00pm, during which time nobody moves. 
Unless, of course, you’re starring in the high speed chase du jour. California is the only place where this takes place, y’know. Other places, the criminals have learned that they can’t outrun cop cars and helicopters. But at least once a day, some nutbag in a stolen Mercedes tries to get away from the cops by driving 120 mph on side streets, driving on the wrong side of the road, sideswiping a car full of nuns…and eventually crashes into a bus.
Really, though, I love California, too. San Diego is just about perfect.
They’re all freaks. I should know, I live here. 
Man. we got everything here. Mountains, deserts, ocean, lakes, giant trees, snow skiing, water skiing, pro baseball, basketball, football, soccer (so I’m told), culture, thriving music scenes, and the most beautiful women on the planet!
What we don’t have a lot of are native Californians. I’m from Ohio and I’ve met more Ohioans here than when I was in Ohio, fer chrissakes.
That we are all on drugs, have sex all the time & are hippies. Well, at least they got two out of three right.
The other one is that California is the Granola State, what’s not fruit & nuts is flakes.
Keep up the RI jabs like that, my friend, and it’ll be T minus 9 till I kick your ass! 
Hey, I an’t change the facts.
Yes folks, Death Valley national PArk really is bigger than the state of Rhode Island.
so…
You’re lucky you’re cute, scratchie, cuz you sure can’t type worth a damn.
California is just an example of how they make states way too big out west. Here on the east coast, the states are more bite sized. I can drive from one end of my home state of Maryland to the other in just over three hours (east to west) or from top to bottom (south to north) in anywhere from ten minutes (at I-81) to about an hour and a half (along I-95). In California, that would take days! That’s just plain wrong! And don’t even get me started on Texas. Or Alaska! Is Alaska really a state? Or is that just another illuminati plot?
I visited L.A. as a teenager and totally fell in love with it. As soon as I go platinum and become a certified rock star I’m moving there immediately.
Wrongo Boidy, get yer butt onto Interstate 5, drop a brick onto the accelerator and lash the wheel to your gearshift. You’ll be in Oregon before the day is done.
[sup]Or a hospital ward if you actually try this[/sup]
And now I shall repeat myself;
THIS STATE KICKS SOME SERIOUS @SS!
PS: We have counties bigger than some of those puny excuses for what you call states back there.
Boidy? You sound like a New Yorker to me, Zenster.
all part of my rougish charm.
[Haley Joel Osment]
Ruffian sees dead people.
[/Haley Joel Osment]
What do I, a Floridian, think of California? Well, you ripped off “The Sunshine State” from us, as well as “Orange County” and the whole idea of growing oranges. Don’t get me started on your crappy, second-rate versions of DisneyWorld and Universal Studios. You also have a Seaworld much like some other states that ripped us off (coughTexascoughOhiocough). Now go back to your four story dream mansion sandwiched between Jack Nicholson and Harrison Ford, drink your $500 a bottle wine, play the back nine with Shaq, drive your cars that cost more than a college education and get it on with your supermodel wife.
Ever been on the Skunk Train? I went on it a while ago, it was great!
I have been dgoing on an obligatory Hwy 1/101 trip for the last few years. I am an L.A. girl, but I love N. CA. (But don’t you go trashing LA, now, I love L.A.!)
I sometimes take the 101 all the way through to SF, sometimes I jog over to the 1 and go through Monterey and Carmel. I always manage to get lost in SF going on the 101, no matter how hard I try. I remember as a kid on family trips, my dad getting lost on this same highway. I have this vivid memory of him veering around, doing U-Turns, driving up on curbs, and using copius amounts profanity because he got lost in SF, trying to follow the 101 North. WHAT IS IT ABOUT THE 101 THROUGH San Francisco?!?! I always get lost. Anyway, the last time I went (just last month) I went through SF by going on Hwy 1. It was much easier, got onto the Golden Gate Bridge without getting lost once! (wow)
I usually stay in Ukiah, (yes, good old Ukiah!) on my way North. It is a nice little town, has a good Motel 6. (This last time I ate at a great sushi bar in Ukiah.) And then I jog over to the 1, and go up through Albion, and then up towards Ft. Bragg. Getting back towards the 101, I go up almost as North as I can go, to Eureka and Arcata, and other little towns along the way. It is a lovely drive. I also love the redwoods in the Ave. of the Giants, which is along the 101, between Ukiah and Eureka. Sigh. I just love this drive!
Yes, I love Northern CA, almost as much as I love Yosemite! (By the way, Doobie, is this the view of Yosemite you were talking about - the one that you see when you come up Hwy 41, and go through that tunnel? It’s one of my favorite views too!)
[sub]Why, yes, I did love making all the links, and finding all the pictures for this! Some of the pictures are mine, by the way![/sub]
AETBOND417 wrote:
Uh, Florida “ripped off” Disney and Universal from CA. We had them first. So poo on you! Go back to counting your chads down in Florida!
Death Valley? Try living there for more than a few days.
Personally, as a native Californian who’s lived all over the state (and out of state), I think the Oakland area is ideal: Fairly large city, but without S.F. prices, diversity, and not nearly as much of the bourgeoise attitude you find across the bay. As we tend to brag here," we like to keep it real."
I don’t think of california. Except now.
Here in Seattle, WA, Californians are blamed for
-Traffic
-House prices
-Drugs
-Gangs
-Meyrven’s Department Stores
-Sunspots
-poor cable service
I understand Portland, OR residents say the same about migrating Seattlites.
While I am not one to go out of my way to defend the honor of Orange County, California (a place I refer to as “The Orange Curtain”), but Orange County, Florida wasn’t the original Orange County either.
The Florida version of Orange County began in 1845 when the county changed its name from Mosquito County to Orange County.
However, New York has had an Orange County since 1683.
Here in Colorado, Californians get blamed for worse traffic, more accidents, higher real estate prices, & increased crime.
Funny thing is, some friends of mine moved from here to Idaho, for much the same reasons people move here - lower real estate costs, less traffic & a slower life style. The Idahoans (?) gripe about Coloradans the same way Californians get griped about here. (Don’t Californicate Colorado. Welcome to Colorado, now go home.) :rolleyes:
February of '97 (or was it '98?) I drove from San Francisco to San Diego over the course of two weeks. This was for my job. This was during the El Nino disaster.
I couldn’t drive around the Monterey Peninsula as it was closed due to mudslides. I had to detour from the Coastal Highway at Carmel because it was closed to Big Sur.
I spent 2 days at Morro Bay (By far my favorite spot, the Elephant Seals were out and I saw several wild Otters). One of these days I drove to San Simeon to tour Hearst Castle. The tour was beautiful, but they had to limit the outside tour as there was sleet.
I spent 2 days in Los Angeles and it rained both days. Things did clear up enough that I could clearly see the mountains behind the city. A friend who was formerly in the Navy told me: “I lived in Los Angeles for 3 years and it didn’t rain once and I didn’t even know that you could see mountains from the city!”
I tried to visit Pinnacles National Monument but the road was washed out.
I drove into LA via Mulholland Drive and Malibu. The drive was beautiful (about 12 hours without rain) and I got to see many beach houses on their sides. I also visited the Observatory. Wonderful.
Last year I drove from Seattle to Crescent City, CA. I drove through the Redwood forest and it rained but was worth it.
For me, California will always be the Rainy State. Have to say I loved it, though.
Where else but LA can you find a “Scientology Celebrity Center.”
