Like Water For Mountains

There's something to be said about feeling at home amidst your native geography. Having been born and raised in Salt Lake, I grew up nestled closely in the lap of the Wasatch Mountains. It was there that I went to play, to rest, to think things out. And they watched over me. I always said to myself that it would be impossible for me to feel at home at a place where my orientation and latitude couldn't be immediately determined by looking at the huge mountains just outside my window. I mean, i could never imagine myself in a place that was surrounded by open space and cities on ALL sides. How clostrophobic.
But now I'm here, in California, where the closest "mountains" are a good three hours away, and there's not much of anything physical on any side impeding the spread of the human disease that is urban development.



Well, there is one thing.

I've traded a vast range of peaks and canyons for a flat expanse of ocean, which I must say is beautiful. Not only that, but I can be assured that Marina will never be enclosed on its north western side, as the closest populace in that direction would be...Hawaii, I think.

It's the secret to the popularity behind California culture, I think. You know how people always prefer to sit in booths at a restaurant, due to the human instinct to protect their food from anyone who might consider a surprise attack from the rear. It's the same principle, only instead of a glass partition behind our head, we have a huge ocean on which we can lean back and watch the rest of the continent do its thing.
What's more, the local climate and geology creates a number of California substances that can't help but get into your veins. Sand, for example, as everybody knows, will invade every crevice of your soul if you come within a hundred yards of a beach, a dune, or an anthill, all of which surround our house. Water is another invader of personal space. When I last opened my mailbox, the fog had penetrated the steel panelling and soaked all my credit card offers.
So it's a proven fact. Don't move out here if you're afraid of falling in love with California. It will literally get under your skin. It's actually already in your genes.