My attentive grandson
Here it seems the sun is always shining and everyone is beautiful. There are no poor neighborhoods and the homeless, who exist everywhere, have been shuffled out of sight. All the cars parked on all the little streets are new, clean and shiny. It seems inappropriate to talk about climate change here where every day has its soft breezes, its sunshine, its reassuring rhythm of waves folding and unfolding on the nearby beach.
And the toys! All the adults tote toys from small boogie boards to enormous surfboards or inflatable rafts as big as small islands for floating out beyond the surf or arm-long rubber flippers for body surfing. The attention to detail demanded of the scuba divers is astonishing now that we expect everyone to be distracted, bowed over a tangle of equipment and a bruised-looking oxygen tank where a moment of oblivion, a detail left undone could lead to someone’s death.
And what strong people we are! A raft of middle-aged swimmers plunges into the surf at eight AM and begins a slow steady crawl out to a buoy that must be at least a thousand feet off shore, regroups and begins again, swimming out of sight around the point.
And what bodies! It’s no longer just the perfectly proportioned who wear thongs on the beach; the size of some of the buttocks on display is awe-inspiring. Near nakedness seems completely unself-conscious; no one has heard of “the male gaze” or if they have, assume that it’s complimentary.
All couples here adhere to the old pattern: older man, younger woman. Same gender combinations or the endless variations we are all aware of now do not figure here.
It’s back to the 1950’s when we didn’t have to think about discrimination although it was all around us. These orthodox couplings remind me of how entrenched in capitalism heterosexuality is. It forms the basis of the economic system under which we labor: white men on top, women of whatever color on the bottom. The wheels turn smoothly and there is no need even to think about the future.
So many toys… And when the toys lose their allure, so many shops tempting us with their bright window displays, so many restaurants to choose between that choice becomes arduous assuming you have the money.
There are of course so many other sides to this life of ease and abundance, this lotus-eaters’ paradise. For me, it’s the system that supports and trains lifeguards for these long beaches; one of my grandsons is working as a lifeguard this summer, and seeing the gravity of his attention as he stands on his perch, studying the beach, then races to advise a swimmer to avoid the rocks or a mother to reclaim her toddler reminds me that there is a system of responsible behavior here although it’s mostly hidden by the distractions.
His trained attentiveness is what we need to lift our eyes from our devices, focusing instead on the always implacable ocean that does not notice us or our toys.
Interesting and enjoyable report for an East Coaster!
Your reflections on life in Laguna Beach seem well-balanced as to the effects of a good climate, one’s body staying healthy while the mind maybe does not share the same degree of benefit. With a childhood in Williston ND and a law career in Chicago, both quite cold, I was grateful to be able to retire to San Diego in 1990. My son had gone to “Oxy” in L.A. and encouraged my move, a relocation precipitated by divorce.
Will you forgive me if I paste below a response from Google’s Bard AI:?
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The quote “The climate in California is so benign that no one dies of natural causes” is often attributed to Mark Twain, but there is no evidence that he ever said it. The earliest known occurrence of the quote is in a 1972 article in the Los Angeles Times. The article quotes a real estate agent who said that the quote was “attributed to Mark Twain.” However, there is no record of Twain ever saying anything like this.
The quote is likely apocryphal, but it has become a popular way to poke fun at the mild climate in California. In reality, people do die of natural causes in California, just like in any other state. However, the state’s mild climate does mean that there are fewer deaths from extreme weather events, such as heat waves, blizzards, and hurricanes.
Sallie writes: “Here it seems the sun is always shining and everyone is beautiful.”
Yes, that is an atmosphere I remember of Laguna Beach from my visits there with my dear California friend. I was fortunate enough to see/hear June Jordan there on one of my visits and she did represent that invisible side of the world that you mention, Sallie. She was reading from Living Room–the poems are the antithesis of that “perfect world” you describe. My signed copy is dated 1986 and in her inscription, Jordan writes: “courage and joy to you, Jacquelyn.” We surely need courage in this world, while still embracing our joy.
Sallie, what a wonderful picture! Ezra has found his bliss. xxoo