Do you love your city?
Because mine is just eh. I live in a pleasant suburb called Torrance, California, which is like, I dunno, 15-20 miles south of L.A., but where I come from, we don’t talk in miles, we talk in minutes, which is rather misleading because you can get from Torrance to L.A. in about a millisecond if you’re a rocket plane or about an hour if you take the 405 freeway during the stretch of, oh, say, anytime it would seem like a good time to go somewhere. So when people who aren’t from the area ask me where I’m from, I say L.A. because I’m like thisclose but really, I’m like thiiiiiiiiiiiiis far, and that is one thing that’s eh about where I live. (P.S. Scary internet, now that you know exactly how to get to my house, please don’t stalk me unless you’re Hugh Grant or Michael Phelps or the Publishers Clearing House people toting balloons and a check.)
I’ve been thinking more about my surroundings partly because two good friends recently moved from my ‘hood to NYC and the way they gush about their new city — the skyline! the bridges! the whirlwind of faces on the subway! the picnic lunches in Central Park! — is poetic, borderline orgasmic. Which is great, I guess. I’m realizing that several fellow bloggers have similar love affairs with their own dwelling grounds, whether Chicago, Jersey, Cleveland, San Francisco or Boston, as these places provide vivid backdrops to their everyday existence, subtly shaping who they are.
I can’t say I’ve ever thought much about Torrance. It’s a nice place to live, really. We’re five minutes from the beach, the weather is more than satisfactory (today, October 1 mind you, is 82 degrees) and we have everything we could ever need (green grass, a two-story Forever 21 and a multitude of ramen joints — seriously, come here for the ramen). So am I being a total spoiled whiny pants when I say this city I call home just doesn’t excite me? Probably. But there’s nothing really thrilling about it. There are no leaves that turn to red and orange, no first flurries of snow, no cute winter mittens, no awe-inspiring landmarks (Okay, fine, the ocean is pretty), no die-hard athletic team pride and no walking — ever. My wardrobe today, a jersey dress and flip-flops, will likely be the same as my wardrobe three months from now, except I might add leggings and a light hoodie.
When I lived in Arizona for three years after college, I missed home, sure. I missed my family, my friends and Matt. And I missed the not stepping outside and turning into burnt toast part. But I didn’t really reflect upon Torrance/L.A. beyond that. Now that I’m home, I think about Arizona sometimes. The span of desert mountains, the dramatic sunsets stroked with pink and purple, the influx of young-ish people, who, like me, felt this was a good place to start their careers. As a writer, I think it’s important that your locale inspire you. Carrie Bradshaw wouldn’t be Carrie Bradshaw had she lived in Bakersfield.
But I guess home is where the heart is and my heart is with certain people and these certain people live here. So pretty much, I’m stuck. I guess I just need to get out more. Or vacay more. Sounds okay to me.
Where do you live and what do you love about it? Maybe I’ll come visit.
18 responses so far ↓
1 Joy @ Big Time Fancy // Oct 1, 2008 at 2:06 pm
Chicago and I are going to get MARRIED because I love it so much.
2 Jamie // Oct 1, 2008 at 2:11 pm
Chicago is cool but the weather kills me. There is no in between. I hope this weather sticks around because I LOVE fall but more than likely we will plummet to negative degrees :(
3 Ginger // Oct 1, 2008 at 3:01 pm
I’m totally delurking because location defined my misery for 3 long years and so this post speaks to me. I currently live in the north county designation of San Diego. While I don’t adore it, it’s so far and away better than my previous location (Jersey City, working in Manhattan) that I practically bow down to its gloriousness in comparison. I love New York to visit, but hated hated hated living there.
4 well-intentioned heartbreaker // Oct 1, 2008 at 3:35 pm
Mmm, Vancouver and I have a love-hate relationship going on.
I love the mountains that border the ocean, that border parks. I love that the ocean surrounds downtown and I can go to the beach on my lunch hours. I love the people.
But I hate the rain. If I filled up buckets of rain water this winter, Africa would be set for years. I’m also not a fan of the slushy snow we get in the winter.. Or the ridiculous cost of.. everything.
But it’s definitely the best Canadian city. And since that is the only place I can legally live, I guess I’ll try and work a little more on the love.
5 Maxie // Oct 1, 2008 at 3:47 pm
I live in WV and I love and hate it.
It’s REALLY pretty here and we have tons of hills and rivers and changing leaves, but there is seriously nothing to do.
I’m only about 2 hours from DC which is really nice, but it’s a pain to have to drive 45 minutes to get to a wal-mart.
6 Caroliney // Oct 1, 2008 at 4:31 pm
Come to Bellflower and we’ll sit on a dying lawn while watching a live drive-by. Hopefully we won’t get blood splattered on us… but would someone go to a Shamu show at Sea World and not expect to get wet? I THINK NOT!
7 courtney // Oct 1, 2008 at 9:22 pm
i live about a half an hour from minneapolis/st. paul right now (and work in the m twice a week) and i think if i took more advantage of that, i’d really like it.
except that i hate being cold and today i cannot find warmth ANYWHERE. so, i kind of hate it. can i come visit you?
:)
8 m@ // Oct 1, 2008 at 9:33 pm
It could be worse. For work I’ve been stuck in the following cities in the past two years.
Peru, IN
Tulare, CA
Lemoore, CA
Bakersfield ranks above ALL of them.
9 maggie // Oct 1, 2008 at 9:54 pm
i live in SD and it sounds a lot like Torrence!
10 mollie // Oct 1, 2008 at 10:01 pm
i LOVE colorado springs. winters aren’t too bad because all the snow dumps up north on the pass. its a nice balance of city, nature, and rural america. not to mention the world best dog park is in the springs. rivers and creeks in the springs actually have running water. you don’t get to see that in torrance… ever.
when i lived in colorado springs, a whole bunch of people would ask me where i am from. i would say LA. then a transplant (which was about 25% of the time, especially on post) would say… OH really? where in LA? and i would say torrance. then they would always say, OH i know torrance, torrance is not LA.
when someone who doesn’t know LA asks me where i am from i end up saying i’m from torrance. its a suburb of los angeles. .. and they think i see movie stars on the streets all the time.
11 [F]oxymoron // Oct 2, 2008 at 5:34 am
I live here in DC. More precisely I live on a metro stop inside the beltway, but since I can literally walk across the city line, I say DC. Despite its annoying tendency to be work-centric and a bit stuffy, if you look, there are always loads of things to do that inspire. Live music, loads of restaurants, tourist watching, great watering holes… the list goes on. If you haven’t been, you should visit
12 HBee // Oct 2, 2008 at 9:54 am
Ah southern california…when I lived there (which was 1 month ago) I also had a love/hate relationship with San Diego. Sure, sunshine galore is nice…but after 3 years it got, dare I say, boring. I missed Oklahoma. I appreciate the change of seasons - fall leaves, the new leaves of spring, and those long hot summer nights. What I really missed was the rain. It hardly ever rains in Southern California… and I enjoy me some rainy days - good book, movies, blankets and curling up on the couch, and a hot beverage. There’s nothing like the rain beating against your window and feelings safe, warm, and cozy inside. But I also agree that home is where the heart is. My heart was always here - I missed my family and my friends like no other. So…given my situation, that is the only and best thing about moving home to Oklahoma - the people I love.
13 michelle // Oct 2, 2008 at 4:48 pm
Joy & Jamie: Never been. Want to, though. Negative degrees - ew.
Ginger: That makes me feel a little better, actually. Can I really live a full and happy life without living in NY? SD is nice. Though I don’t adore it either.
well-intentioned heartbreaker: Visited Vancouver back in college. Would love to go again! It was beautiful!
maxie: Sounds pretty! I miss leaves.
Caroliney: Ummm, no thanks! Haha.
Courtney: I love Minneapolis. Everyone gets their own lake, it seems. Of course, I’ve only been during the summer. Yes, come visit =)
M@: Your work trips sound awesome.
Maggie: Yes, pretty much the same.
Mollie: Think I want to visit you.
[F]oxymoron: I interned in DC before I was old enough to drink. Must go again now.
HBee: Wow, lots of SD people. I agree. I want seasons! I love how your mood can change with them. Oklahoma, eh? I know nothing about Oklahoma… except for the song.
14 mollie // Oct 5, 2008 at 1:10 pm
i don’t live in the springs anymore. at least until paul comes home. then i’ll be going back there and you can definitely come visit.
15 mandy // Oct 5, 2008 at 7:05 pm
I just wrote a post about my small town in OH. I can honestly say I love it! I get to experience all four seasons, its two hours from Columbus and not an quite an hour to Pittsburgh so I can go visit the big city, but dont have to live there.
16 allthewine // Oct 8, 2008 at 8:18 am
I’m a detroiter and I love it. It’s not a pretty city, especially not to outsiders. There’s something so authentic about it, about the people, about how raw it is. It’s filled with flaws, but it’s my baby brother and I will beat up anyone who picks on it.
I’ve tried to come to terms with moving other places. I like San Fran but I could never live there. I adore Seattle but I would probably go into a deep depression from the rain. I keep thinking about North carolina cause the weather is moderate and the cost of living is low… but that’s not really a romantic reason to call some place home.
17 pauline // Oct 12, 2008 at 10:51 pm
i live in a place where there are:
“leaves that turn to red and orange” and then fall off and need to be raked
the “first flurries of snow” followed by giant mounds of dirty gray stuff that need to be moved out of the way by bulldozers
“cute winter mittens” which always seem to lose their other half and never seem to be warm enough
“awe-inspiring landmarks” that fade into the woodwork after a few months
but most importantly, i live in a place far away from family and good ramen.
so count your blessings and i’ll see you in about ten months.
18 Jo Ann // Oct 16, 2008 at 10:55 am
I know this is late… but this is my first time reading your post… and… so…
HEY (>=/!!!) I live in LEMOORE (m@!!).
(Okay, I didn’t mean for that read as overly-passionately-angry and offended. Just slightly.)
It’s not so bad of a place to live. Although, I suppose I am biased as I’ve lived here my whole life (except for the past two years –up until May 26, 2008.. not that it’s a date emblazoned in my memory or anything– when I lived in northern Orange County). We have cows (and thus, upon entering the city, the SMELL of cows) and other livestock. We grow corn and cotton (staples in American economy). We even process cheese! Sounding cool and exciting yet?
Get this: we have REAL Autumnal weather. As real as any Californian city can get. Truly! (It is preceded by a summer that can literally kill and proceeded –too quickly, in my opinion– by a “foggy season” that can also literally kill, but that is besides the point.)
In any case, my boyfriend was born&raised (and currently resides) in Torrance. I love visiting, not just for the company I keep, but because y’all are soclose to the beach & all the great things you’ve mentioned.
Trust me. The grass is not greener on the other side. They just use that Canadian kind.
Uh. What?
p.s.
Ever been to Shin Sen Gumi in Fountain Valley? Mmmmmmmm!
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