PARADISE LOST…….NOPE, STOLEN!

I FELL IN LOVE WITH THIS SCENE IN 1962

My two favorite uncles, Owen and Richard, moved to California in the mid 1940’s. These guys were my idols, they drove cool looking cars, rode Harleys, raced dirt track jalopies. These are the guys I wanted to pattern my life after… life in the fast lane. By my Junior year in high school in 1958, I couldn’t wait until I made the westward trek from Tulsa to the Golden State. My plans were put on hold for about four years, when I got married at twenty years old. I was working as an apprentice Boiler Maker when I married, so the wheels started turning in the planning portion of my young brain. I would finish my apprenticeship in 1963 and I could move to Southern Cal as a journeyman union Boilermaker. Even in those days, the journeyman wages were very good. I envisioned taking my place in Paradise and living in the “big time”.

All of my plans fell into place quite nicely. I bought my first house at twenty-one years old, and it became the major financial tool to make the move. Sold the house in the summer of 1963, loaded all of our possessions in 6′ x 13′ trailer, hooked it up to our 1959 Plymouth Fury and away we went. No job, not a lot of money, but one heck of a lot of hope and confidence that I could make it work. I have to confess, I had an ace in the hole. My late wife’s parents lived there, so I had a little bit of a safety net. As it turns out, didn’t need it. We rented a house first day there, moved in, got a job at Kaiser Steel the following day. We were off and running.

California was everything I dreamed of. Beaches, mountains, deserts, everything was spectacular. Beautiful flowers everywhere, one sunny day after another, wide fast roads, and an endless array of things to see and do. The economy was staggering, there were jobs on top of jobs. The whole place was on fire with activity. We raised two of the cutest “beach bunnies” in the world. It was absolute excitement every day 24/7/365. I fell in love with the fast paced lifestyle.

IT WAS PRETTY COOL HAVING THESE GUYS FOR NEIGHBORS TOO.

We lived in California for thirty years. During last five years of our time there, it was apparent that the leftist agenda was taking the state in a very bad direction. We headed to Seattle where we resided for the next fifteen years. The pacific northwest was the perfect place to detoxify from what was happening in California. We went back to California numerous times during those fifteen years, and every time it was more depressing watching our once beautiful home being ruined by leftist politics.

When I see what the left has done over the past thirty years, my heart is broken. The last time I was there, homeless people were everywhere, on the beaches, in the parks. The streets were filthy, the roads were in disrepair, I couldn’t wait to get the hell out. I have no desire to return to the place I once called home, and was proud to do so.

The last time I was there was about three years ago. When I see the pictures of San Diego, LA and Frisco today, it is just unbelievable. What is really sad about this, is that it will never be the paradise it once was. California has digressed to the point that it is no longer fixable. It will only get worse. The Democrats have ruined almost every major city in the USA, but ruining an entire state as beautiful as California once was, is unforgivable. It has been said that California is not just a state, it is a state of mind. That state of mind has been obliterated by selfish politicians that care more about their ideology than reality. May they all rot in hell.

VERITAS VINCIT   ~   LIVE FREE OR DIE