Friday, June 06, 2008

#39 la nature est belle

I know this is a lame topic to blog over, but the realization of the biggest difference between SoCal and the Midwest just hit me!
When I first moved to SoCal about 11 years ago, I used to get up early in the mornings because it was cool and I could play outside before starting school. (Also there was this really cool palm tree that had hundreds of those little round seed pods that were so much fun to play with! - haha, they make great ammunition! lol)

 But whenever I got up in the morning, especially my first few weeks of living in SoCal, there was a particular smell that I had never noticed before in any of the other places I had lived before, and that was always the air. Anymore I take it for granted, but after having gone to the east coast for auditions just recently, I found that I really missed the SoCal smell. The smell isn't just the air, it's really the smell of plants and flowers- mostly because there is so much plant life here in comparison to similar suburban settings in the midwest or east coast.
I think I'm going to turn my dorm room into a hothouse and bring a few lizards. jk 
Yes the difference is not only the weather, but the plants. Especially the plants. 
I am totally into plants and nature, I can see a spider 1 mm in size from 5 feet away and can usually identify them as toxic vs. nontoxic, 
our hibiscus is so awesome,
 I love our lizards (wild), 
our bird nests with their chicks (wild), 
our apricot tree which has the best apricots, 
our cute rabid rat (wild), 
our snails (wild, which we paint neon colors with nail polish), 
our fuzzy caterpillars, 
our bumble bees, 
dragon flies, 
heavily scented jasmine bush, 
butterflies, 
not so keen on the ravens but whatever. 

The smell of plants and flowers is definitely opium of sorts as far as I am concerned. I am an addict. 


This is the view from my house, just this afternoon. Actually, though the palm trees give an incredibly tropical feel, they are not indigenous to SoCal, or so I've heard. People have said that SoCal is more of a dessert than anything else, tropical plants just do really well here.

What about the bassoon? Hmm, well since we're on the topic of air, the air is usually just perfect here for reeds. I love to practice with the window open- and it keeps the neighbors' dog from yapping too much- for whatever reason. :D

Catch ya next time!
kt