California Vacation Wasters

Another strange thing that Californians do is that they chose to vacation in places that are exactly like where they live already.

For example, a colleague, who I consider to be an extremely intelligent and well-rounded man, recently told me of his latest vacation.

Me: Oh, where did you go?

Respected Colleague: Oh we went down to Cabo (San Lucas, Mexico) for the week.

Me: Oh, that must have been fun.

RC: Yeah, my wife got a great deal on the Internet. $500 per person for 4-days at a resort down there.

Me: What did you guys do?

RC: We went surfing and hung out on the beach.

Me: Wow, that sounds like a blast (said while thinking, WTF? Can’t you do that in San Diego without even leaving home and spending any money let alone vacation time?)

RC: Then one day we went into town for a little bit to see all the touristy stuff but mostly we just hung out at the resort.

Me: Hmmm

I don’t get it. Cabo is a 1-hour flight and not even “real” Mexico. More like Spring Break Mexico.

Why bother spending the money to go to a place that looks and feels exactly like where you live?

However, it’s not confined solely to the West Coast. Back in Philly most families would spend their 1 or 2 week vacations, “down the shore”. AKA the Jersey Shore (and no, I’ve never seen that TV show nor plan to).

I didn’t understand that either. You wait all year for your vacation and then you spend it approximately 1 hour away down the NJ Turnpike.

Although truth be told, I guess I have to side with the Philly people here since that city doesn’t have water, so getting away to the sea side is kind of a big deal.

Why San Diegans would bother spending money to go down to Cabo is beyond me.

When I travel, I want to see places that aren’t like the place I live.

But that’s just me I guess.

Sometimes Southern California People Just Don't Get It

Having lived here for the past 3 years, I sometimes wonder if it's all the sunshine that's addled SoCal people's brains. Often they just seem so oblivious to the rest of world including history, culture and geography (I've met people here who can't point out all the 50 states, let alone name 1/4 of them. And this is someone who has graduated college).

A lot of people have never lived anywhere else and it really shows.

I've had people here act as if they are experts on race relations, despite the fact that in the whole city of San Diego there are like 2 black families. There are tons of Mexicans but the vast majority of white people don't have any Mexican friends and vice versa.

Having lived in Detroit, Philly, Virginia and Atlanta, which all have a sizeable black community, I think it's hilarious when people here talk about black and white race relations. Too funny.

Especially because they think they actually know what they are talking about.

However, the kicker today was when I was driving behind a BMW with a Che Guavera bumper sticker on it.

C'mon. Really?

You're driving one of the most expensive cars out there in one of the most expensive cities in the United States and you put a picture of a South American Marxist on your bumper.

Idiot.