In 1962 my folks made the move from Pasadena up through the Grapevine to Central California. Ever since then, it has been my home. Not that I wouldn't like to have a flat somewhere in North Beach or a sprawling home in Beverly Hills, but that's the breaks. The truth is, to live in style in LA or SF it takes a lot of dinero. But here, along the main artery of California, Highway 99, the land of the Grapes of Wrath, you can live in style on an average wage. True it's been the butt of the jokes from the city folks, but consider a few things:
1) Economy:
For a fraction of the price of our neighbors to the north and south or along the coast, we live in style in the San Joaquin Valley. Nice large houses with swimming pools, or how about some acreage where you have room for a couple of horses?
2) Proximity:
Where is it you wish to go? the central part of the SJV, you are a little less than a three hour drive to San Francisco OR Los Angeles, two hours to the coast, and less than that to Yosemite or Sequoia National Park!
3) Diversity:
This is no joke: on one rather warm day in February a few years ago (which is rare, but not unheard of as I can attest to), one of my kids went skiing at Sierra Summit Ski Resort (exactly 100 miles from our house), one stayed home and went swimming in our pool, and the third little piggy went to the beach (about 120 miles)! Now I consider that hard to beat!
4) The Chef's Table:
The San Joaquin Valley is the #1 agricultural capitol of the world. Incredible farmer's markets sell fresh produce grown locally! Peaches, nectarines, olives, almonds, walnuts, pistachios, oranges, watermelon, cantaloupe, plums, grapes, and so much more, are all are grown locally!
5) Cuisine
Now I have traveled extensively in the US and abroad, and have eaten at Mexican restaurants in Calgary Alberta, Seattle Washington, Greensboro North Carolina, New York City, Paris and Lyon France, and let me tell you, they just cannot get it right. But throughout this wonderful valley of Central California, they know what MEXICAN food is. From the taco wagons, the taquerias, to the finer restaurants, take your pick. And of course the signature dish of Central California is barbequed TRI-TIP. It's almost impossible to travel through any city in Central California and not find some gas station - deli barbequing tri-tip! And for any other type of food, Thai, Vietnamese, Chinese, Italian, Armenian, Middle Eastern, you name it, many of the immigrants that have settled in our lush valley have brought their culinary skills with them!
And you don't have to look too hard to find those places where real farmers eat: good old Country Cookin' where the OKIEs meet: with biscuits and gravy, a waitress who will listen to your troubles. You can order fish and chips just as good as on the coast for less than $10.00! Go to the coast, and the same thing will cost you twice as much!
6) Seasons
We have four distinct seasons here. Yes, it does get hot as you know where. But here's how we reconcile it: the hotter it is, the more we love our swimming pools and cold drinks! It gets foggy in the winter time, as a kid, I loved it, we'd get foggy day schedule, and would get to sleep in! Ah, the lovely fog. All the better to have a fire in the fireplace and cup of Joe! Who's complaining? And the Fall and Spring... hard to beat. Ever been down the Blossom Trail in the spring? If you have, you'll know why they call California the Golden State! In the Fall, corn mazes, pumpkin patches, and again, colors ablaze!
7) Flora-Fauna
Into bird watching? The California foothills are filled with them. Not uncommon to see eagles, hawks, sparrows, mockingbirds, red wing blackbirds, Kildee, egrets, vultures, quail, doves, pheasant, road runners, and the list goes on! The rolling hills that border the Sierra Nevada mountain range are covered with mountain oak trees, Manzanita, and literally thousands of plants that make up the natural pastures that carpet the foothills. Personally, I dearly love the seclusion and the beauty of my foothill property where I raise grass fed steers. On my property, not only do I see the birds I have mentioned, but also wild pigs, bob-cat, mountain lions, deer, coyotes, possums, skunks, and, yes, I admit, rattlesnakes! One good thing about those critters though, they at least have the decency to warn you when you get too close for their comfort, so they're not any real worry. Check the statistics; it's very rare to have a serious brush with a rattler.
8) Quality of Life
We don't fight gridlock like they do in LA or SF (most of the time!) Commutes are normally less, because people can live closer to where they work.
So the city folks of Gridlock can laugh all they want at the jokes of living in farm country. I can visit those metro places anytime I want, ride the cable car or go to Disneyland, and then retreat to my abode in the beautiful San Joaquin Valley. Although I dearly love to travel and visit distant lands, many times, sitting in next to the pool in our back yard, under the shade of the sago palms and redwood trees, I sometimes wonder why I want to go anywhere? I have it all, right here.