California vs Iowa: Reflecting On The Past Month

I wanted to share more details about what we think of Long Beach and the California area in general. Some things we like and some things we aren’t too crazy about. Hopefully this can give you an idea of what it’s like here! (This is meant to be fun so if you’re from California or Iowa, please don’t be offended.) 🙂

1. Sunscreen is a necessity! This ginger is getting some amazing tan lines! It’s so easy for me to burn here so I’ve got to remember my SPF!
2. The drivers here are terrible. People run red lights constantly, we get cut off by people all the time and if you are trying to switch lanes people will speed up just so you can’t get over in front of them. To handle this, Pat and I are extremely careful when driving. Honestly, this could happen anywhere, not just California. In Iowa City we experienced some crazy drivers as well. Also, it takes time to get places. Imagine that! Traffic is crazy so we’ve got to plan ahead!
3. Pat and I go for walks and runs through the neighborhood and we feel like we’ve entered a time machine…back to the 80s. I don’t know if it’s the neighborhood we live in or if it’s a California thing, but all of the houses look like they’re from the 80s, which is fine but they’re kind of “stuck in the 80s”. I have no idea how to explain this and I probably sound crazy right now, but all I can say is that the homes here look very different from the homes in Iowa. Oh, and having a unique door is definitely the thing here. People have really cool front doors haha.
4. The grass here is not grass. If I walked barefoot on the lawn I would probably be in agony. I don’t know how to really describe it, but Pat says it reminds him of the rough part of a sponge.
5. It’s hot. I was under the impression that California was always supposed to have that “ideal” type of weather, ya know, 72° and sunny. I don’t think there’s been a day like this. There’s been some crazy heat here, which isn’t normal. Plus we’re in a drought. 😦 Iowa, could you spare some rain for the West Coast?
6. California has some really great things to see and experience. We’ve already done so many cool things we’d never be able to do in Iowa. We’ve gone to huge cities, beaches, national parks, a LA Galaxy game and we’ve got more planned. It’s completely different from Iowa when it comes to things to do in our free time so it’s been nice to try different things.
7. We eat dinner outside almost every night and I love it. If we did this in Iowa we’d probably have flies all over us and get eaten to death by the mosquitos. The evenings here are so nice and the woman we are staying with has a beautiful patio set we take full advantage of!
8. We’re going to go whale watching! Not sure if you are aware of this, but there are no whales in Iowa. We’re really excited for this! Pat’s birthday is coming up and I wanted to surprise him with tickets so I bought us some. I told him not to plan anything Sept 19 because I had something special planned. The little twerp guessed it! Oh well, at least now he’s excited for it and looking forward to it with me as well. 🙂
9. Groceries are pricey! I don’t know how we did it, but somehow in Iowa we only spent about $40 a week on groceries. We don’t eat out much unless we’re going out with others so that $40 included everything we’d need for all 3 meals for 7 days for 2 people. That sounds crazy doesn’t it? We don’t really buy junk food (obviously we have those moments of weakness where we throw some chocolate in the cart) and we try to eat as healthy as possible but how did we get away with only $40/week? Here in California we’ve been spending about $60 a week. Which when you think about it, isn’t bad either considering it’s for both of us.
10. We’ve had to consider the safety of an area before going somewhere. This isn’t something we’re used to at all. There’s not really a “bad part of town” from either Pat nor I’s hometowns. Pat’s clinical is close to Compton so he has to make sure he doesn’t miss a turn or he could end up in a bad place.
11. We’ve realized there’s nothing better than being close to the people you love most. Pat and I love traveling and enjoy experiencing new places, but we always think back to Iowa and how much we love it there. You can’t beat being close to family and friends. It’s hard missing big milestones like my best friend’s engagement, my college friend’s wedding, friends’ and family members’ birthdays and other events. These are all things we love celebrating and it’s sometimes hard to be away during those special times. This past month has definitely taught us that we have the best family and friends in the world. We were a bit spoiled with Pat’s last clinical in Ankeny because we were able to live with a couple of our friends and see family and friends on a regular basis. Going from that experience to now living in California where none of our close family and friends live is a complete 180. We are so appreciative of all the support and comments that you all have sent our way. We could not be more lucky to have all of you in our lives. We’re not sure where we’ll end up living in life but we know Iowa holds a very special place in our hearts.