Laguna Love

If anyone in the world asked me where I'm from, I would say California before America or Orange County. California was named by the Spanish after a novel about a wild island ruled by half naked Amazonian women. It must have been the first thing that the horny sailors could think of when they first saw California's breath taking shoreline. I remember in California history class, that 80% of native California tribes were peaceful hunter gatherers. It made me wonder if people who live in paradise develop slower than people in cold societies who have to struggle over scarce resources. Regardless, I'm proud to be Californian and would support succession if anyone was courageous to spearhead such a revolution. I love California not only because our economy kicks ass (we are the 7th largest economy in the world that produces more products than any other state including many agriculture and dairy products). But the best part of California is our diverse environment and people. California supposedly has more Native Americans than any other state and prior to the Gold Rush we had more Native Americans than all other states combined (damn...we were even highly populated back then). We also have the highest Armenian population outside of Armenia, Los Angeles has the largest Mexican population outside of Mexico, and San Francisco has the largest Chinese population outside of Asia.

Anyways...the California coastline is still amazing and my favorite area is Laguna Beach. The rolling hills and deep canyon is a majestic green in spring with houses built in the sides of mountains that seem like works of art. If you've never been there, it kinda reminds me of the Cote d'Azul race on Gran Turismo 4. The charming downtown is filled with upscale galleries, boutique shops, and a Whole Foods market. Many people are beautiful and happy. People here are almost as friendly as Minnesota except in a hip surfer way. For example, I can't go to the grocery store without at least two people asking if I need help finding something. It seems like Laguna gets more sunny days than most places and countless beautiful sunsets that dip into the horizon. At times it is fogged in all day and before sunset the sky clears slightly and vibrant colors light up the clouds. There is lots of fun in the sun, such as, what seems like a continual car show with people zooming around town in their new Ferraris, Porches, Lotuses, and Bentleys. This place is also a biker magnet with the classic rock dive bar downtown town always placed with Harleys out front. I recently found out that there is live reggae music every night of the week in this small town at various bars and it was the capital of LSD in the 60's. Laguna Beach is a paradox in someways because the hippies are now rich and try to keep their ideals with their hybrid cars, but can not deny their decadence. The snobs are taking over, but thankfully artists and Europeans still bring culture to this seaside village. I cherish the moments when I walk down the cute board walk on main beach or the side walk along the cliffs north of main beach. Laguna has several peaceful and serene coves and look-outs where you can get away from the tourists. Although Laguna has its share of ignorant, annoying people, there are few places in the world as beautiful as Laguna. It is hard to experience Laguna without falling in love.