all things californian

Taking Care of California

    Isn't California a beautiful state? Well, I think so too, but, apparently, many people don't take care of California's environment nearly as much as they should. I am referring to forms of pollution such as littering and smog. Almost everywhere you look, in parks, at beaches, etc., you see trash scattered on the ground. In different parts of California, seeing the sky brimming with smog is not unusual. Don't people want California's virtuous reputation to stay as it has for years?

     If laws were passed so buildings would be forced to emit less smoke and other pollutants, the environment would be a great deal healthier for all of its residents. The government should require Californians to drive hybrid cars so the harmful effects of gas won't be mixed into the air bringing damaging effects with it. The government should also enforce the laws for littering. If officials came at these rules with a different approach, such as being more strict with fines and such, maybe residents in California would stop and think twice about littering. Just think, if every individual would just try a bit harder to keep California a cleaner place, the state would look even more beautiful than it does now. Imagine that! We could continue to attract the myriad of tourists that we lure into the state today for years to come, and California would stand out as the role model it has always been to other states and countries.

     So, listen up, Californians, let's all pay more attention to pollution and keeping the environment cleaner so the Golden State can shine even brighter than it already does.

Ghetto or not Ghetto is the Question.

        Some people think L.A. towns and S.D. towns as "Ghetto". What do they really mean by saying that they are Ghetto? Maybe the crime or the way neighbor hood treats their homes, or just the way that people act is why people call them "Ghettos". The people that live in these are not the ones that are living in the community's but the one's who live outside of the so called "Ghettos". Those homes have some kind of plan that they were built on so they can receive mail and have access from the streets. I never personally thought of these places as Ghettos but as un-kept/low income homes, because I have lived in a town with "Ghetto" homes. Recently I made a trip down to a little town about 3 miles from Tijuana, Mexico to visit an orphanage. Once the class and I drove across the border the atmosphere totally change and you obviously see that we were in a low-income community but worse! Driving through Tijuana heading a little inland I could see all these homes stacked on the hills to the top, many built in awkward places. Many of these houses had no doors only holes that would symbol one, the windows were covered with not glass but with cloth acting as a source of protection. I could tell that the homes were not equipped with washer and dryers because on the side of the house were clothes lines were they would dry their clothes, which probably meant that there was no running water into the home. The roads that they did have were dirt and did not lead to many of the houses. The houses that I saw were works of art they looked as if they were only built with an assortment of scrap pieces of any kind of materials the families could find. The yards were filled with trash, they looked like dump yards. Since I had already seen homes that were "Ghetto" I could say for a fact that the houses in Mexico were Ghettos and not just a stereotype like the ones in California. After spending all day in Mexico we drove up the hill and headed towards the boarder. At the top of the hill I could look over to the United States (California) and admire the beautiful landscape that we appreciate a lot. After crossing the boarder I was very gratetful that I have a semi nice home, or even a home at the least.

Where Are California's Morals???

My mother tells me of times back when it was unappropriate to show a womens breasts. Now a days more and more women find it okay to walk around in pastys. So many girls are willing to strip down to nothing no matter who's around. Who wants to see their daughters dancing around half naked in a music video? Its true people have the right to choose their own life style, but why are so many people choosing the easier route. Has anybody noticed how many porn stars there are these days? Where did they all come from?  I find myself wondering, were did their shame go? I wonder if children are getting the proper education. Has anybody been to the Krikorean lately? There are so many little girls walking around wearing the smallest shirts. How could parents let this happen? They stay out there until 1 in the morning. These kids are around 13 or 14 years old. Why does nobody have a curfew anymore? In my opinion, California is getting too liberal. I think this is the cause for the high abortion rates. Kids start thinking that they're grown and start having sex at really young ages. Next thing you know they're having a baby or getting an abortion. Most of them dont even finish high school or go to college. Were are all the smart people? Who is going to step up and run this state besides Arnold. I think its time parents start doing they're job and educate their children with some good old fashion values before California gets worse.

Camp Pendleton Syndrome

Why are all of my friends getting married so young?! Intuitively, I think of California as a place where people have more fun and stay single or just a couple for a little while longer before marriage, but lately my world has told me otherwise.

I have noticed one common factor. All of these lucky husbands seem to be marines. There must be something in the water at Camp Pendleton. Or maybe these husbands were brainwashed in boot camp to go out and get married. I can imagine the impact of some man with garlic breath yelling, "You are a marine! You are an adult! This is your life now!" I'm happy with my boyfriend, but one of my best friends has a (marine) husband whom she met 2 months AFTER my boyfriend was with me. Why can't they just be happy as a couple for a little while longer? Because if this guy has to go to war, then he likes to know that the impact of marriage will keep her from straying. Quit stealing all of my friends and turning them into wives! I guess that I am venting a little bit, but this is a valid trend for the North County area in California.

California has it's Moments!

"Mistakes are temporally, Moments are forever"!

I was once told that life is what you make out of it, that there would be times that you would do anything just to take it all back and give one more shot at starting over. Im only eighteen years old and seems I have been there and done it all, but really i haven't even started my life. I have seen alot of friends  go, friends that i though would be there with me til the end as we grow up. People change though, they go on to other schools, move away, or  start a family. And theres nothing you can do about it because it's just part of life and life is always changing. Fortunately I have had alot of great friends and been though alot of great moments with them wheather it's; going down to Mexico on a friday night when you were supposed to work, jammin out with buddies in their truck outside your house, or taking that walk to remember on the pier with that girl you've always loved but never understood. Its all those moment that are made up of us and get us through the day when it's been a hard one. They will be the things we remember for the rest of our lifes and tell our children about, things that will carry us on forever. It seems I have been making alot of wrong decisions lately, being stuborn about my friends moving on and going on to bigger and better things. I come to realize that trying to hold on to your friends that need to move on is not the right thing to do, that's why you choose them as a friend, to trust that they would always hold on to the same momoents that you shared with them and use that as a representation of your friendship. And that, would live inside them where ever they may be. No matter what, you just have to trust them because they are your friend, and they will always be your friend!

Two Thumbs down for "The Black Dahlia"

Mystery, Blood, and Hollywood...The Black Dahlia in my mind was sure to be a hit. We all know that Hollywood thrives on unsolved murder cases and this was one wasn't anything short of interesting. Last weekend my sister and I made our way to Krikorian's, and as we were waiting in line surrounded by all the 12 year olds, I was very very excited about seeing this movie. The movie is based on a real unsolved murder that took place in Hollywood during the late 1940's. Nick named "the black Dahlia", Elizabeth Short was an aspiring actress who at the age of 22 was found hacked in two, in vacant lot according to and Editorial review from Publishers weekly.

Sounds interesting?  I thought so too, but the movies focus was primarily on the detectives and their own personal lives. I thought that the movie was going to focus more on Elizabeth Short's life, and elaborate a little more about her as a living person. Don't get me wrong, they did throw in some flashy facts but it didn't really satisfy my expectations of a real Hollywood mystery movie. Something I don't want to forget the mention is the third person conversation everyone in the movie is having among themselves. I n other words I didn't know what they actors were talking about throughout half of the movie because they didn't let me in on the conversation. I watch a lot of movies and maybe for that reason I think I am an expert movie critic so take my advice when I say that The Black Dahlia is sure to let a movie goer down.

California: Land of Hair-Pulling

It's amazing, how we all live in this state -- and even comment on the acts of horrible stress in casual conversation -- and yet, we're oblivious to it all. California is known for it's picturesque beaches and sunny, relaxed atmosphere. But it's only known that way to the adventurers and vacationers, not the actual residents. Anyone who works and lives here knows that California has a very demanding lifestyle adjustment in order to live here. Coupled with the transportation demand and high cost of living (made even higher due to recent minimum wage changes) make for a rigorous work environment. Add a very active night life and tons of scenery and attractions to the mix, and people don't have a lot of free time between working and partying (and studying if they're a student), sleep patterns take a hit, and caffeine intake increases, resulting in increased stress levels. Some cities in California, like San Diego and Old Town, are viewed as cities that never sleep. Perhaps there's some mentality to natives of California that partying is not optional, it's a requirement of residency? I'd tend to agree -- so often have I wanted to just break away from it all!

Video Games in Californa

About a month ago I read an article in the North County Times about video games. The article said that video games give children  the capacity to be more intelligent or in a way it will help them. They said it would help them because they are working their minds in different things as they try to win the game. I really don't believe that the games really help them because here in California there are a lot more things to do than just have the kids sitting in front of the television playing games when they could actually be at the park or even at a library reading a book. My little brother used to go out and play soccer with his friends, but when we gave him the PSP he started playing it and now he doesn't really go out and play with his friends. He sometimes doesn't even want to do his homework. In California we have a lot of places and things to do that will help adults and even children's to develop their skills in different ways, but sometimes we always go the easy way. Children don't get a lot of physical emotion sitting in front of the television. Let's get those kids to do something fun. Living here in California the beach its not too far we could actually take them and have them run, play or even get on the water and do something fun.

SoCal's Time Warp

                Imagine if you will a beautiful girl clad in the following items: hot pink leggings paired with a miniskirt, big abnoxious bangels on her wrist, and giant “bug-eyed” sunglasses hiding eyes painted with only the bluest of blue hues. Where would you think you are judging by such an image? Standing at a Billy Idol rock-fest watching a day-glow clad groupie bleed unrequieted feelings of love all over the alcohol spattered floor? Wrong. The image you’re seeing is that of a young girl (who could range in age anywhere from 15-25) who has in fact been sucked into the dreaded SoCal timewarp.

                The fluorescent style that once illuminated the 1980’s has begun to make a serious comeback in the past two or three months. Everything from giant glasses, to big hair, and stone-washed denim skinny legged jeans has been popping up in mall stores all over the

Southern California

area. Ever since I can remember my mom has always told me that fashion is like history, it’s always bound to repeat itself, some of it good and some of it bad all depending on your own individual viewpoints. Whatever your stance on the new/old 80’s trends are I think that it’s important to consider the pattern of fashion repetition which to me says a lot about

California

’s character. We all know that many great people and many great things have come out of

California

but it seems to me that

California

’s creativity may leave a little to be desired. Based on my own observations of the typical Southern Californian we seem like a pretty lazy group that’s more interested in lifestyle maintenance and keeping up appearances than actually taking initiative and acting on bigger issues about which we pretend to care so much. I say this mainly because I’m the first to admit guilt on this matter! So it turns out that my mom was right. She should’ve saved that trunk of clothes that she’d worn prior to being pregnant with me! One things for sure I could’ve saved about two hundred dollars on back to school shopping.

A Little Humor (but true) Facts for Bakersfield

How many of you have ever been up to Bakersfield and have been excited not about what you are doing up there, but actually being in Bakersfield? If you have been I am secure enough to say that you have problems. First of all you must either be a very patient person or one of the people who will pull out a gun and shoot you on the freeway on the way there. I would go over a certain experience I know about but I am sure that they have not found the bodies yet. So after dealing with the lovely people on the way home from their 3x5 cubicle where all they have is a gun and a pen, you get to sit in traffic. When it slows down enough that you can see the kind of people you do not want to give the finger to you get very annoyed that you are going 5mph for 4 hours. You would ask, why is it so slow for so long? There are three logical explanations for this, first someone got shot on the freeway and their body is in the middle of the road blocking my way (that goes along with the fact that people do not know how to merge). Second reason could be that there was a very nice high speed pursuit that had just ended with the man flipping his car and spilling 8 kilos of cocaine all over the highway, (it is stopped because all the people on the way home from their 3x5 cubicle are on their hands and knees taking advantage of the free drug before they get in their car and go home to their families, they can all die together for all i care ).Or the third and most seen reason a little word called "rubbernecking." Oh yes a woman 83 corolla stalled so everyone needs to see. If it is a man traffic goes a little faster but if we have a nice little girl on her way to see Larry Flint and star in her next feature film the traffic slows down. I have to admit though, in that kind of situation I feel obligated as a good citizen to get out and get a phone number and name. After that I usually think about helping or not. Once you get out of the traffic to a good speed you get over the hill. It really depends on what time of day it is in Bakersfield, but the sky will be a nice mix of brown, green, and yellow. Your first step is to turn on the recycle air button in your car so you get clean air. If you don’t have that little feature, be prepared to have the equivalent of 20 years of smoking in your lungs. And once you get into the beautiful view of planes full of illegal pesticides being dumped all over the fruits and vegetables your mom bought for you, you will find....nothing. I am from Houston TX, right close to there is Katy TX, and just like Bakersfield there is NOTHING. I may go to a little rodeo with my wife I mean ahem my cousin than go shoot someone but besides that there is nothing up there. I went to see a concert in an open air theatre up there.. Ah yes I am still coughing up a mixture of merijuana smoke, pesticides, and car exhaust I had all gotten from a very innocent act called, breathing in. I felt like I needed an oxygen tank. I don’t smoke but I know why I don’t know. If there is something I could say to you it would have to DON’T GO TO BAKERSFIELD THERE IS NOTHING YOU WILL DIE!!! There should be a sign posted that says DON’T COME IN HERE YOU WILL DIE ONE WAY OR ANOTHER! And in fine print in the spirit of still being in California it will say, "not responsible for any injuries or illnesses that may occur." That way they will avoid the beautiful art of suing for absolutely anything. Don’t go there people, there is nothing you will die on either the way up or while you are there.