February 10, 2005
Fresno?
To answer Mr. Green's question here, all I can say is that when you are in the Bay Area (and people in Shallow Alto do think they are in the Bay Area, even though they aren't), anything between the Berkeley Hills and Lake Tahoe is "Fresno." It is more a state of mind than a specific place.
Now, for those of us who know the Central Valley and can tell the difference between Merced and Modesto (Modesto has a sign that says "Water=Wealth=Prosperity=Health" or maybe it is Merced that has that sign), we know that it isn't all Fresno.
It certainly can be divided up into broad categories: North (Chico, Paradise, Williams, Willows, Marysville, Yuba City), Central (Sacramento, Davis, Dixon, Vacaville), San Joaquin (Stockton, Tracy, Turlock, Merced, Stevinson, Gustine, Los Banos), and South San Joaquin (Fresno, Tulare). Now, for those who really know the South San Joaquin Valley, they probably will identify a regional feel between Buttonwillow and Fresno, but it eludes those of us who just think of endless fields of cotton and alkali flats.
As for the border areas (Galt and Lodi come to mind), well, I leave that to the locals as to which way they identify.
Posted by erik at February 10, 2005 11:19 PM | TrackBackJohn,
That is another interesting border area. It certainly is not the Bay Area, but it is not the Delta, nor the Central Valley either. It used to be much more like the Central Valley than anything (and not too long ago, either. In fact vestiges of the time when Pleasanton was, well, pleasant, linger in the downtown district. Livermore, too).
I suppose there should be a category for those areas in the valleys between the coast and the Central Valley, like Paso Robles, Hollister, King City, Soledad, etc. Even in Salinas it is easy to forget how close the coast is.
In many ways, those little valleys are the most Californian of all our various landscapes and cultures. I especially like Paso Robles.
Posted by: Erik Keilholtz at February 13, 2005 10:48 AMWhat about Lafayette, Walnut Creek, Pleasant Hill, etc., etc., etc?
Posted by: john at February 13, 2005 8:36 AM