[PhiKapMom]

Having just spent two weeks in Southern California driving around and visiting, I couldn't agree more. When we were transferred to MA in 1985 from Norton AFB in San Bernardino, I was devasted. When my daughter and I left CA a little over a week ago, I was very happy.

Took me three hours to drive from Universal Studios to the LA County border with San Bernardino County as I was dumb enough to use I-10 at 3:45 in the afternoon. That doesn't even include trying to get back to San Diego from a visit to Hollywood and another day from Disney to San Diego!

Don't know how the folks out there do it with all the people, traffic, and people that do not speak English. Felt in the minority since English is the only language I really know in so many instances.

[EggsAckley]

RE: people who do not speak English.

Last week I was in the mood for a dinner of Cheese fondue. Off to Safeway for supplies. The first woman I asked spoke a little English, but had never heard of Fondue. The next person, with slightly better English, hadn't heard of Fondue either. A clerk (native born) knew what it was, but didn't know where to look.

I finally found it on my own, and then began the search for the Sterno. It was like deja vu all over again; nobody knew what Sterno was. One finally did know, but couldn't find it.

We finally found it, placed oh-so-logically next to the shoe polish.
Arrgh.

The moral of this saga is that even WHEN they can speak English, they STILL don't know anything.

[muggs]

You are a braver woman than I am. We have vacationed in san Diego for the last 6 years. My husband does all the driving. If I had to drive out there in CA, we wouldn't get out of the airport.

[Southflanknorthpawsis]

Don't know how the folks out there do it

I guess it all depends on one's perspective. As a native Californian, I can tell you that I really wouldn't live anywhere else. There are a mulititude of negatives, but the positives (for me personally) far outweigh them.

I live in Carlsbad, in north San Diego County, and it is about as nice a place as I could ever want to be. And then there's our weather.............

But seriously.......people love to put down California, but most of us that live here really do love it.