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Resigned to my fate
Sep. 4th, 2003 08:03 amIt’s partially a fate of geography that I love San Francisco so much. I grew up 15 miles away and really never wanted to live anywhere else. I certainly didn’t want to live where I grew up, not that I could afford it anyway.
Everyone I grew up with who is still in California (a dwindling number) either moved into the city or moved further north. As commute distances enlarged, Novato became San Rafael and Petaluma became Novato. I can remember a Marin with a lot more wetlands and only a couple malls. But I guess it’s like that most places in this state.
But yeah, if it wasn’t for the proximity to San Francisco, I don’t think I would have fallen in love with it so much. Not that there aren’t lots of things to love. It’s just that I usually find myself attracted to underdog cities: Brooklyn, Baltimore, Philadelphia, Seattle… It should follow that I would like Oakland too. And I really want to. But it just doesn’t do it for me.
I realize that it’s a subjective thing. I wanna make that clear because East Bay people, like underdog city denizens everywhere, are very defensive about their city. And it makes sense because San Francisco people tend to have annoying attitudes. Using "The City" when one speaks of SF for example, really can wind up your average Oaklander. But, SF people are also kind of defensive, realizing that their city is not the undisputed central point for the area anymore, that 700.000 people makes a small, small, city, and constantly having that nagging thought in the back of their heads that life might be easier somewhere else.
I have two friends who’ve bought houses in the same neighborhood in the East Bay. I really do think they’ll be there for the next 30-40 years. The idea of moving there and being settled is amazingly attractive. It’s even in the part of the East Bay that I like the best. Sigh.
But my biggest problem with my San Francisco angst is that I just have no desire to move. I love it here. I don’t pay much rent relatively. I walk to work. I’ve lived within the same 10 block radius for almost 15 years. I run into people on the street all the time. I don’t have to drive anywhere unless I want to. I love the fog and the weather. I love my job. My life is here and I’ve spent years making it that way.
The idea of moving is all about hedging my bets. Will I get evicted at age 64 and have to start a new life somewhere else? That’s a scary fucking question. Will anyone I know stick it out in SF long enough to get old? I don’t really want to be the last one left to turn out the lights. But I think it’s a really bad idea to move somewhere when you don’t really want to move. I think I’d just end up resenting the new place for not being San Francisco.
No. I’m staying put. San Francisco is my home. Maybe it’s time for a new SF attitude. I nominate "Fuck you, we’re not moving!" as the slogan. Or maybe, "I’m not going to discus housing prices with you again."
But I’m open to other slogans so please feel free to make suggestions. We can make buttons or something.
Everyone I grew up with who is still in California (a dwindling number) either moved into the city or moved further north. As commute distances enlarged, Novato became San Rafael and Petaluma became Novato. I can remember a Marin with a lot more wetlands and only a couple malls. But I guess it’s like that most places in this state.
But yeah, if it wasn’t for the proximity to San Francisco, I don’t think I would have fallen in love with it so much. Not that there aren’t lots of things to love. It’s just that I usually find myself attracted to underdog cities: Brooklyn, Baltimore, Philadelphia, Seattle… It should follow that I would like Oakland too. And I really want to. But it just doesn’t do it for me.
I realize that it’s a subjective thing. I wanna make that clear because East Bay people, like underdog city denizens everywhere, are very defensive about their city. And it makes sense because San Francisco people tend to have annoying attitudes. Using "The City" when one speaks of SF for example, really can wind up your average Oaklander. But, SF people are also kind of defensive, realizing that their city is not the undisputed central point for the area anymore, that 700.000 people makes a small, small, city, and constantly having that nagging thought in the back of their heads that life might be easier somewhere else.
I have two friends who’ve bought houses in the same neighborhood in the East Bay. I really do think they’ll be there for the next 30-40 years. The idea of moving there and being settled is amazingly attractive. It’s even in the part of the East Bay that I like the best. Sigh.
But my biggest problem with my San Francisco angst is that I just have no desire to move. I love it here. I don’t pay much rent relatively. I walk to work. I’ve lived within the same 10 block radius for almost 15 years. I run into people on the street all the time. I don’t have to drive anywhere unless I want to. I love the fog and the weather. I love my job. My life is here and I’ve spent years making it that way.
The idea of moving is all about hedging my bets. Will I get evicted at age 64 and have to start a new life somewhere else? That’s a scary fucking question. Will anyone I know stick it out in SF long enough to get old? I don’t really want to be the last one left to turn out the lights. But I think it’s a really bad idea to move somewhere when you don’t really want to move. I think I’d just end up resenting the new place for not being San Francisco.
No. I’m staying put. San Francisco is my home. Maybe it’s time for a new SF attitude. I nominate "Fuck you, we’re not moving!" as the slogan. Or maybe, "I’m not going to discus housing prices with you again."
But I’m open to other slogans so please feel free to make suggestions. We can make buttons or something.
