Homesick for California

Sep 25, 2008

(Fingerspelling “SF” atop the hills of the Golden Gate Bridge)

Have you ever felt so homesick that you wanted to cry? I have.  I’m incredibly homesick.  More so than when I first moved here exactly two years ago. I miss my apartment, my intimate group of friends, my mom, my sister, my brother, the hills, the bay, the numerous coffee shops, the awesome wine bars, the Pacific Ocean, friendly people, good efficient drivers, California Highway Patrol, the bridges, In-N-Out, delicious cultural restaurants, higher speed limit, steep streets, and did I say my friends? The list could go on and on, but I don’t want you to zonk!

Not a day has passed without remembering the San Francisco Bay Area the last two years, but all of a sudden, the last few days, I’ve been incredibly, severely homesick. I don’t know what it is. Maybe it’s because I’m finally settled in a home. No more playing musical chairs with a place to live. Maybe it’s because I got a good job that I know I’ll settle in.  Maybe because I have so many changes going on.  Or maybe it’s just because my heart is stubbornly buried in the Bay Area. I’d love to hop on a plane right this second to be able to set foot in Walnut Creek, East of San Francisco.

Some of you would say, “But, Sazzy, you grew up here in Maryland as a kid!” Yeah, so? Surely, I admit for the first few months living in Walnut Creek, I missed Maryland tremendously, because it was all I knew. Quickly, however, I grew to love the SF bay area. Whenever I paid a visit to Maryland, it didn’t feel like home anymore. Walnut Creek was my new home.

Are you wondering by now why I am in Maryland again? After all, I was having the time of my life in California! But, something deep down kept knocking at me saying that maybe I should move back to Maryland for a while. To be honest, I don’t know why I’m here. Something brought me here, and it’s definitely for the best as I have an awesome job.  I’ve also reconnected with family/friends, which I’m grateful for.  Doesn’t mean I can’t be homesick, though.

Anyway, to help my sad sulking, prevent me from flipping my middle finger off to every rude driver, and twisting my head like a wheel frantically looking for the beautiful hills and bay, I’ve decided to just shut the hell up and make a list of the things I DO like here in the Washington DC area.

1. The Metro isn’t as comfortable as BART or piled with handsome, young businessmen heading into San Francisco who are experts at “eye-flirting.” I had a name for certain dudes who I saw often – Mr. German, Mr. Married, Mr. Ego, and so on. (CBGES, remember this?! Ha!) However, there are much more frequent trains here. You can actually party your ass off all night long and still stumble to catch the train at 3am.
2. The sun isn’t out with a guarantee everyday in the summer like California, but we get fascinating thunderstorms here! The lightning is cool – it jumps around from one place to another. Following lightning, thunder can be so loud sometimes that I can feel the vibrations throughout my body. Talk about a scare and a jolt to the adrenaline system! The power sometimes goes out and that prompts romantic candles. (Please don’t get me started on how no one obeys the 4-way stop rules when the stoplights are out of service at intersections.)
3. Way up on Mt. Diablo, I could see snow shining in the high elevations during rare days in January, but it was too far to reach. It was always such a beautiful, breathtaking sight – the snow was near the sky! Here, I can physically touch the snow, make a snow ball, and throw it at someone to start a snowball fight. Or even slide on ice, fall, and laugh hard. (Wouldn’t be funny if I broke a bone, though. Oh right, supposed to keep this positive!)
4. In the Bay Area, there are barely any trees. Out here, trees are everywhere, scrunched together having intimate parties, and oozing oxygen. It’s quite refreshing! Never mind the fact that in spring when trees are sprouting leaves, my nose runs like the New York marathon.
5. Thanks to the 1906 earthquake, San Francisco doesn’t really have many historical buildings or statues. Then again, it isn’t a big political or military city. Washington DC has tons of awesome sculptures, statues, monuments, and memorials. They’re fun to look at and admire!

The truth: I must move on. The San Francisco Bay Area is my past – a memorable one – and Maryland is *ahem* my present, again! Instead of being wistful, I should look back with laughter and pride.  I look forward to many, many good memories here in Maryland.

To my California family & friends, Walnut Creek, San Francisco, and the state itself, I miss you. Tremendously.  A whole lot. Never ever will I forget (unless I get Alzheimer’s!)

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