“How about this sunny day?” I was asked by a friend while visiting the Bay Area.
This was followed by a friendly nudge as he opened his arms and shrugged his shoulders toward the sky. Then he told me how he could never live anywhere else, especially the East Coast.
“Why not?” I ask
“It’s the weather.”
I like good weather sure, but my life doesn’t depend on it. And I don’t like every day to be the same.
In California, life often feels like the movie “Groundhog Day.” Sure, the sky is pretty, but it’s diminished by the slowness and sense of repetition. Some see the constant nice weather as the answer to all life’s problems. I see numbness, denial and fake smiles in the sunshine.
In the major cities of the East Coast, there such a vast amount of activity and stimulation taking place at any given time, that it’s rare to fall into the lazy ‘funk’ one feels in the Bay Area. This is especially true in New York, where takes less time to get from point A to point B, stores and restaurants stay open late, public transportation is affordable and runs all night and bars and music clubs stay open most of the night. As result, it’s easier to get things done, it’s more fun and I feel inspired here, regardless of the weather.
A nice day in New York doesn’t happen as often, but it means something. Sure, we deal with blizzards, bone chilling cold, overcast skies, tropical humidity and all points in between. But out of nowhere, we’ll get a crisp blue sky, nice temperature, and a golden sun. Suddenly everyone is out in the parks, reading, tossing a ball, rollerblading and hanging out. And it feels like something special, not just a typical day. The rest of the time everyone is working hard and playing hard.
Whenever I’m back in the Bay Area, I’m stuck by how many folks I run into whose personalities haven’t changed one bit. Comedian Rob Schneider, who grew up the Bay Area, rose to fame on TV’s Saturday Night Live playing a character that reminds me of some of the people I grew up with, most of whom still talk like that.
I can hear them now: “What up Al? The Al-man. Big A. Playin’ the guitar. Ner ner ner ner” (Picture the last part accompanied by an impromptu ‘air guitar’ performance). Despite most of these guys now approaching middle age, they act like they’re still in high school. I’m convinced it’s partly because of the weather.
My theory is this: a clear changing of the seasons is a loud reminder that time is passing. On the East, we go through a cold, snowy Winter, a hot Summer, and the joyful balance of Spring and Fall in between. When it is all said and done, and before the cycle repeats, there is no question that another year has gone by. This is natures way of motivating you to grow up, set personal goals and move forward with your life.
Out West, every day feels roughly the same, you have less awareness that the months are turning into years and life is drifting by you like the San Francisco fog. I’m not saying there aren’t any underachievers on the East Coast or that there aren’t goal oriented folks out West. I’m just saying that, from my viewpoint, there are far too many in the Bay Area who’d better wake up and smell the Peet’s Coffee before it’s too late.
PS I should point out that Peets, a Berkeley institution since the 60’s, is still my favorite coffee.