The view
Post #1068 • October 8, 2007, 12:49 PM • 13 Comments
View of the Pacific from hiking trail in Dana Point, October 7, 2007
2.
October 8, 2007, 1:06 PM
OK, so you live in a beautiful place and we live in a flat, hot, over-built, traffic-jammed, hurricane-prone reclaimed tropical desert next to a swamp. You don't have to rub it in. Geez!
3.
October 8, 2007, 1:46 PM
Make the trip, Jeremy - that's a beautiful coast. Bring a sweater.
Opie, we're also in an overbuilt, traffic-jammed tropical desert. Somehow hills make a big difference. Also it's much cooler. And no hurricanes. And no swamp. Okay, now I'm rubbing it in.
4.
October 8, 2007, 4:24 PM
Heck, I'll grab a sweater, but sure would be nice to cuddle up to that ocean. Oh you got me feeling blue now.
5.
October 8, 2007, 7:04 PM
Funny. What I finally realized fully this past summer is that I deeply dislike the ocean. I used to think I liked the ocean and going to the beach. I spent a summer in college living with my girlfriend (now wife) in Wildwood, New Jersey, which is a summer resort type place replete with boardwalk. It's also one of the most beachy beaches around because, unlike most beaches on the east coast, it's not eroding, it's growing to the tune of a foot a year. At this point the boardwalk is almost a quarter mile from the ocean. I almost never got close to the ocean that summer and only swam in it once.
Over the years I've looked forward to getting near the ocean less and less, and last year I actually dreaded going there. This year I finally accepted it: I hate the ocean and I hate the beach. It's sandy and itchy and the water is violent and tastes bad and makes my eyes swell up. The ocean is full of critters who poop indiscriminately and bite and pinch and cause rashes. And when I finally escape the beach, I feel like all of my skin has been, yes, sandpapered.
A few years back we discovered this lovely man-made lake a few miles away. There's no traffic getting there (everyone's on the Parkway heading to the beach), the water is slightly chlorinated to keep the critters at bay, it's calm and balmy, the sand is minimal, and there are shade trees nearby. Also, everything in the area has sensible names instead of the irritating nautical-themed names near beaches, like the Sea Shack, the Lobster Trap, and the Salty Booger.
6.
October 9, 2007, 1:42 AM
As a loving man, I'm pretty tired of the Jewish/Lebanese conflicts. I just like painting.
7.
October 9, 2007, 6:41 AM
Thanks for the picture I needed it . I am sitting at work and my office doesn't even have a window and the small plant on my desk is just not enough nature for me to look right now.
I was born in Fort Lauderdale and raised around the ocean but as an adult I don't even think about it or the fact that things are pooping in it and now only go the the beach a couple of times a year. I guess I don't fully enjoy the place I live because I just don't have the time to do so.
Opie you are right it is flat, hot, over-built, traffic-jammed, hurricane-prone reclaimed tropical desert next to a swamp.
Don't worry it is only going to get worse. I know I am ready to (run away screaming) move to a calmer place like SC or NC.
But it is sunny here.
8.
October 9, 2007, 7:23 AM
Yeah, it is sunny. Like a laser beam. I look forward to cloudy days.
I know lots of people who are escaping to NC & SC, Like New Yorkers escape to New England.
When I lived in NJ an occasional excursion to the beach was fun. Here it is basically dangerous and uncomfortable. But then I am just an old fart who only wants to paint & write.
9.
October 9, 2007, 7:51 AM
People complain of depression during the low-light months of winter. In my last years in Miami I felt irritable and lethargic when it was too hot and bright out, and I would long for a thunderstorm. When the time came to hire a mover, the man on the phone asked, "So, are you going to North Carolina?"
"No, Boston. Why?"
"Because everybody's moving to North Carolina."
I know a couple of people who decamped there from Miami and they love it, although one of them finds that her dating options are rather limited. The other is Kate, who comments here occasionally.
10.
October 9, 2007, 8:20 AM
I heard a rumor that N.C. is something like the third most populated state in the country.
My advice to all who are interested in moving there is not to, because when I go to visit my parents I like my privacy.
11.
October 9, 2007, 10:46 AM
No need for rumors where facts are concerned, Darren.
NC is #10
12.
October 9, 2007, 4:08 PM
From 1982 to 1997 I lived in Los Angeles. Occasionally, I would hop into my 1969 Karminghia and zoom out to Santa Barbara. The ocean there was magnificent and I would lollagag my day away.
I would bring a huge fringed parasol and stab it deep into the sand very low like a flying saucer about to settle. I would sit underneath this cloud of mine and play my 78 records on my portable Victrola, and indulge in a cold and wet Carona beer or two.
On the drive home I would listen to Joni Mitchell and feel blue all over again.
13.
October 13, 2007, 5:33 AM
Being a native of Charlotte, North Carolina, I can attest to the incredible growth. Unfortunately we are not attracting those who are interested or make their living in art related fields. We are attracting the mommy patrol almost exclusively. Most are New Yorkers hell bent on cheaper housing and a new plasma screen, Lexus, etc that their equity will buy them. You know, mass consumerism at it's worst. I don't recommend a move here unless you're considering Chapel Hill or Asheville.
1.
Jeremy
October 8, 2007, 12:59 PM
I miss the ocean. Portland is only an hour from the coast and I still haven't made it out there yet.