~ It's Been HOW Long?

It's been just over a year since we made the move out west. God, that sounds so Little House On The Prairie...lol.

It's been a year and I'm still getting used to living here. To me, California is an entity in itself. It should be its own country. As of July, 2008, the population in the state of California was 36,756,666. Where do all these people live??

After a year, I still can't figure out what the big draw is. The economy sucks. The people aren't all that friendly. Everything costs more. There are earthquakes. The temps hit triple digits in the summer. Sure, it’s a dry heat but hot is hot. To drive on the Interstate, in order to keep up you have to drive at least 90. Some might say that’s not a problem for me but to be honest, out here, that scares me to death. During the months of October thru April, we have what they call ‘the season.’ Old people from all over the United States gather here to escape the cold from where they normally live. By December, I want to stand on the street corner and tell them all to go home. Going to the DMV is like visiting Hell. Not that I’ve ever visited hell....lol. I think that whenever a mean person dies in California, the DMV is their purgatory. No one is nice there. It took me 3 days just to get plates for my car and on the 3rd day, I went home in tears and told Kenny I was packing my stuff and going home. I now never have to go to the DMV again.

On the upside, the beach is only a few hours away. The weather is easy to get used to, especially during the winter; the temps rarely dip below 60. I despise the cold and I can easily suffer through a few months of extreme heat in order to never have to feel the cold clear to my bones again. I can wear flip-flops year round. I have a pool in my backyard. This makes suffering through the extreme heat more bearable. I’m always tan. I have the Santa Rosa mountains behind my house. Standing in my family room and looking out at this breathtaking view almost makes it worth while. If I miss the snow, I can drive up to the mountains and get my fill. It rarely rains. We don’t have tornados but I’m not sure which I’d rather have....earthquakes or tornados. KJ and I take day trips on the weekend to explore . . . San Diego, Huntington Beach, Venice Beach, Laguna....the good places are just a few hours away.

Like any big move, the lists of pros and cons can go on and on. The biggest negatives? I miss my kids. I miss my nieces. I miss my friends. I miss my family. The good thing is that everyone that I miss is only a phone call or text message away. I text message with Lynsay, Kristin and Erin all the time. I talk to Lyns at least once a day and Ryan at least once a week. I hear from my friends via email. I know that if I get lonely, all I have to do is pick up the phone and my friends will be there. Without that, I’d be going street rat crazy.

I don’t love it but I don’t hate it, either. I think that with anything, it takes time to get used to change. I’m wondering.....how much time do I get?