My California - Muscoy, CA
Here is my entry for the new "Show Us Your CA Contest" being put on by @socalsteemit!
My California is not what most people think when they think of California. It's not the beaches and the palm trees, it's not the cities and the freeways. My California is simple and quiet. Muscoy, California. If you've heard of it you are one of few! When I tell people where I from they usually look at me weird and say "where?... Moscow?". That's always funny.
My house
Of the people that do know Muscoy many of them view it as "ghetto". I view it as rural. An escape from the craziness of nearby San Bernardino city. The property lots are usually quite large (mine is 4 acres) giving everyone lots of space for things like livestock and agriculture. So horses and chickens walking the streets of Muscoy is not uncommon! And many people have turned their properties into gardens where they can grow lots of their own food. But many of the people in Muscoy also seem to keep to themselves and not be very social. So high fences and "No Trespassing" signs are common.
One of my neighbors
Another thing Muscoy has is railroad tracks, we're bordered on the north and the west by them. Thus the "wrong side of the tracks" saying gets used in reference to us quite frequently. Also just to the west of town is the Lytle creek wash which provides a recreation area for equestrians, dirt bikers, and people walking their dogs like me. From the wash there are nice views of the local mountains as well as overlooking San Bernardino.
Railroad tracks along Cajon blvd, the main street on the north side of town
Trains on Cajon blvd
Train tacks in the wash and the western San Bernardino mountains
The eastern San Gabriel mountains from the wash
I'm sure to most people this all sounds really boring. But Muscoy doesn't really have a lot going on, and I like it like that! No amusement parks, or nightclubs, or shopping centers, or restaurants (besides the weekend taco trucks and tamale ladies!), or anything like that. I mean, only a few years ago we finally got some street lights put in. I swear. Honestly the main attraction in Muscoy is your local corner store. We have a liquor store every few blocks here!
Add a couple guys riding down the street on horseback drinking tallboys of budlight and you'd have you're average Muscoy scene
Eddies market is one of the more popular
The same family runs Victoria market just one block away
The Shop N Go market, being the only one on Cajon blvd, is also very popular. I usually avoid it.
My favorite is probably Norms. It's right down my street.
As you can see here at Norms they still have the posts for the people on horseback to tie their horses to when they come
(I really wanted to get some pictures of the horses, but for some reason no one was out riding today. So... next time!)
Driving down Third Ave.(my street)
My driveway from the street
But really the best part about Muscoy is my home! The wonderful four acres on which I am lucky to get to live. My own little private paradise!
My wild yard
Blooming Birds of Paradise flower
Concrete sculpture and an Agave Attenuata
A chunk of Petrified Wood and a few other mineral specimens
Blooming Bougainvillea
Ripe Pomegranates! I love Pomegranates.
And that's gonna do it! I hope you all enjoyed this little glimpse into 'My California'!
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@derekrichardson,
Is that coiled barbed wire on the roof of Norm's Liquor? A hitching post and a bottle of whiskey ... if you had a six-gun, you could make a movie. :-)
Beautiful plants in your yard.
Quill
Thanks @quillfire. That's barbed wire alright. If only I had gotten a picture of some of the Vaqueros on their horses, you would think I was on a Hollywood set the way some of these guys dress. Sombrero, spurs, the whole nine yards!
@derekrichardson,
Ambiance ... you can't buy it. :-)
Quill
There's coiled barbed wire all over the place here too :) Funny enough, when you see what's behind it, often I'm left with the question of "why?". *One's man treasure..." :)
@lynncoyle1,
Truly. It's the same thing with all these Rottweilers. Were you afraid someone was going to steal those rusting car corpses littering your front lawn? Maybe that old flat tire? Or that cracked toilet for which you've yet to find a use (perhaps an avant-garde flower pot)? Maybe it's aspirational ... "Someday, I will have a treasure worthy of Fort Knox."
Quill
haha that's it! Avant-garde toilets are big around here, although I shite you not (pun intended), I've seen toilets in yards, simply sitting on what I can hopefully assume, is the sewer, with the odd participant sitting on it:)
Life is beautiful buddy :)
@lynnecoyle1,
Lynn ... we're they reading a newspaper?
This is one of those times, I suspect, when my daughter would say, "Daddy, Too Much Information," but did you know ... that I don't do that?
It's true.
I hear all these stories about so and so, spending a hour or more on the potty reading a magazine. In lots of houses you even see a magazine rack in the loo with the obligatory bowl of potpourri sitting on top. Quite posh I suppose.
But in fifty years, I've never been so predisposed, while so indisposed. I don't know why exactly ... I don't have a policy against it. Perhaps it's because I'm too results-oriented and can't multi-task. Maybe it's because I'm a thinker and would rather while away the hours contemplating the meaning of life. I've often wondered, though, if I'm missing out on something: One of life's simpler pleasures?
Anyway, maybe it's genetic. Here's a picture of one my ancestors (father's side) taking a dump while in deep deliberation. Later in life he invented toilet paper ... so, I guess it was time well spent.
If you don't mind, I'm considering turning this comment into an entry for one of those freewrite contests. It seems like those guys will upvote anything.
Quill
hahaha you should turn this entry into one for #comedyopenmic !
After all of that information, I'd almost feel comfortable passing wind in front of you ;)
Hemorrhoids and a weird , red, toilet shaped ring stamped into your behind. Your father's side of the family may feel otherwise though. I'm imagining all kinds of interesting and awkward family photos.
Speaking of ... if you've never had the pleasure of viewing Awkward Family Photos, have a look at this. When my boys were teenagers, this was our coffee table, reading before bed book. We all still kill ourselves laughing when we look at it. Now, it's online :)
@lynncoyle1,
It's funny you should mention that. It's something I seem to bring out it women. Flatulence. Apparently, being in my presence is like eating a can of beans. I don't know why. It's hard to imagine a scientific explanation. Anyway, it's nice to see I haven't lost my touch.
Quill
hahaha Beans. Hardy, filling, good for you, but just one of those things you need to be reminded of. But, when you have them, you think, Delicious! Why don't I eat this more often :)
You haven't lost your touch with me buddy!
Not sure what that says about me though haha
I did enjoy it
I really liked the picture of the train tracks with the mountainous backdrop
I always thought those who lived in the outskirts/rural were friendly so it comes as a surprise that most keep to themselves.
And your neighbours gates... woah haha
Thank you so much sharing with us :D
#steemitbloggers brought me here :)
Glad you enjoyed it @kaerpediem! The people here in Muscoy are pretty friendly for the most part, just not real social. Everyone is just busy doing their own thing. And when I do talk with my neighbors we always seem to get along pretty good.
aaaahhh
If all the homes are on big land like yours, there must be plenty to do :)
Niceeee :)
You can find the community announcement on Discord :) and it has also been shared on our Steemit Bloggers FB Page and Twitter feed.
Thank you so much @steemitbloggers!!
Looks like you have it all Derek. Small town life is really good, it used to be that way here where I live but the city has made it's way out to us now. What used to be farms and ranches are all now subdivisions and shopping centers.
We only have one reason left to stay in this area and once he passes away we will be pulling up and looking for a new place in a small town again. I can tell you that it will be a hundred miles or more from a big city if I can have it my way and the wife is becoming more agreeable to that everyday.
Yup. I'm with you on that @sultnpapper. I bet eventually San Bernardino city will encroach into Muscoy and ruin it here. But until then I'm gonna enjoy it while I still can.
I love you area! Very peaceful...
That place looks like time doesn’t affect it ! 😀😀 #steemitbloggers
Yep. Muscoy has stayed old school that's for sure!
Wow. So much effort just to show us this. I was about to ask you is it Moscow. And how do we pronounce Muscoy?
Thank you for sharing all those photos, I was like touring around the town. Hehe.
#steemitbloggers
Thanks @iamjadeline. I'm glad you enjoyed the tour of my little town! It really wasn't that much effort. A quick drive around the neighborhood and a short walk out to the wash and I had plenty of photos for the post! As for pronunciation, the first part 'Mus' sounds the same as if you were going to say must or muscle. The second part 'coy' sounds the same as Koi fish. Hope that helps!
You're right ! Definitely not the California that we've all been introduced to in the TV...
Ya. Television makes it seem like everywhere in California is like Hollywood or Los Angeles. But that's just a tiny part. California is really a huge diverse place filled with all kinds of different people and places!
Thank you for introducing us to Muscoy, @derekrichardson :) It represents another part of California and makes it nothing less Californian. It does look and sound like a great place to live in! With all the gardens and all....
#steemitbloggers
You are very welcome @happycrazycon. Thanks for taking the tour! lol.
This post is sponsored by @SteemitBloggers in collaboration with @appreciator. Just keep up the good work.
I will. Thank you @appreciator!