Disculpe, Utah

So forever I have had this "I am never moving to Utah" mentality. I actually like it here, but the thought of raising my children here seemed, well, kinda crazy. Steve has always said "hey people can say what they want about Utah but I was never offered drugs, alcohol, or sex while in HS. Can any Californians say the same?" Well I threw in sex but I bet it is true.

Anyway I have to apologize to the beautiful, snowy state of Utah because there are some things here that as a native Californian I have to appreciate as a visitor and I am going to go on record saying that I could actually consider Utah now and here are my reasons:

1. True seasons. Granted I hate the cold and love living in a place with no real winter, but there is something rather glorious about the predictability of a white Christmas and winter extreme sports possibility. Not that we do any extreme sports.

2. Friends, friends, and more friends. We are here for about two weeks and we are already running out of days to spend with the people we love here. Every day we have seen a different set of friends and I can see how fun it would be to live here and periodically host a shindig with all these peeps. Word up to all our local friends!

3. Cheap food! I can seriously buy almost 2 times what I can buy at home!! AND they sell whole wheat in bulk here. What is the dealio Cali?

4. Local grass-fed cattle. The cows in California have never even seen grass as far as I can tell since most of them live off of some elixir of corn syrup, hormones, and antibiotics (shout out to Michael Pollan for this info). So if you buy meat raised in Utah, though you might get a shot of hormones here, you are getting overall healthier, environmentally sustainable beef. I know this is really important to a lot of you too.

5. Family friendly. It is totally normal for me to load up my 4 kids and take them to the store. NO ONE stares at you and in fact there are several other people floating around in your same situation. People actually like kids here and you don't get the eye from old rich people like I do back home at Trader Joes (to be fair lotsa Californians are nice to you when you have a couple of kids with you with just a few intolerants). Also any given day you can go to Thanksgiving Point, or half of a dozen museums that have some kid-friendly activities.

6. Shopping. Utah has got to be the most over-retailed place per capita on the planet. My favorite kids clothing store naartjie even has sales here that are better than where we live--how is that possible? Also there is a Targé on almost every street corner.

7. Distance to go to church. This is honestly one of my faves--you have church at 9? You leave your house at 9 and you can still catch the Sacrament--not just the meeting but actually partake of the bread and water. We only live 10 minutes from the chapel back home, but 2 minutes is even faster.

8. Media--this is going to sound SO weird, but the radio stations in Utah are FAR better than what we have back home. There are better Spanish-speaking radio stations (te lo juro!), and about six other stations that play music that I actually like so if I forget a CD, no worries, I can listen to the radio. I also will catch the best evah version of God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen (holla Jenny ESP) and the Hannukah song several times over if you are in the mood. Back home if I forget a good CD in my car I hear Tom Petty or Elton John ad infinitum. Not that I don't love Last Dance with Mary Jane I just would like some variety if you please. BTW even the hip hop station in Utah is more to my liking. Also cheaper movie theaters with more movies that I would be interested in watching.

9. Diet Coke. I will admit that I have been a beverage purist most of my life, only drinking things that were clear. I never have liked the taste of soda but in the last two years I have discovered that even though it tastes like poison, there is something extremely refreshing about Diet Coke. Every time I drink it I feel like I am drinking serious chemicals but it is like chocolate godiva cheesecake--I shouldn't, but I do. Anyway the great Beehive state offers entire aisles dedicated to the soda--pop--addictions. Which is ironic considering most people think Mormons don't drink caffeine. In the Costocs here, for example, you get literally a whole section specifically for diet coke. The Costco back home for sure has soda--on the same aisle as the natural juice alternatives, coffee, and energy drinks. Here the aisle is JUST diet soda. Crazy. And also the section dedicated to Tequila does not exist in Utah thanks to the liquor laws that turned away a possibility of my favorite store ever (Trader Joes).

10. Friends. I know I said this one, but it really does do something for the soul to have this many good friends in one location. I am going to start taking more pics of people so I can post their beautiful faces here in appreciation of their presence in my life for so many years now.

I realize that Utah is not for everyone. But it is a nice place to live and though it would break my heart to leave Cali, would I take living here over Nebraska? As K. Cook says, Provo yes.