Weather

One of the gals who blogs wrote about how our environment is reflected in our temperament, and how she chose to escape the South and go to LA. So I thought about it. Most of my life I grew up in Michigan- it's the state I was born in, and the one that I spent most of my time in as a child. We moved away when I was 9, and back again when I was 16.

Michigan is cold, dreary and dangerous for half of the year. The other half? It's green and growing and beautiful, with tons of mosquitoes who make the outdoors miserable. I am always struck by the industriousness and hope of all the Michigan gardeners, who work so hard to have brief moments of beauty in the spring and summer. I can't be bothered to garden out here, where everything grows pretty much all year long.

California is temperate, cool mornings with warm afternoons and cool evenings. I haven't seen a mosquito in sixteen years. It's grand and breathtaking and wild, with occasional bobcats and coyotes. I so prefer California over Michigan on all levels- but especially the weather. We get excited when it rains, but we can also drive to the snow any time of the year- I think! I finally took my kid to the snow last year and he is begging to go again this year.