My time in California has been amazing and fun, and I've never regretted for a moment coming here for college. However, from growing up in the shadow of Manhattan to traveling across the country to a state where innovation, adventure, and mexican food go hand in hand, there was some inevitable culture shock. I feel I've grown and assimilated the past two years though, and I never really thought about how new and unknown a lot of things were to me back then. This year, however, I became a resident advisor and, seeing some of my out of state freshman, I'm relieved to see I wasn't alone.

1. Then...

“Is it weird to put guac on-”-Me

“NO”- Everyone else

Ah the beloved Avacado. It’s common knowledge here that Avocado can and should go on everything, but this is not common practice in other parts of the country. Although its application to any and all food items is an established and well-respected facet of California culture, most out-of-staters take a little while to get used to this concept. Whether this is because avocados in other states may or may not taste like dirt comparatively, or because of some other cultural influence, it simply does not occur to us mix it’s green creamy deliciousness with every bit we take, nor do a lot of us know that that’s an option here. For me, it took a whopping two, three hours max before I had jumped onto this bandwagon with full gusto.

Now: I actually have made chocolate pudding using avocado, and it was amazing.

2. Then...

“I’ll take that salsa that’s all chopped up.”-Me

“Pico De Gallo?”

“There’s a name for it??”-Me

A lot of us do not know innately what Pico de Gallo is, crazy, I know. I once heard a fellow Out of Stater point to it and say “I’ll take the club salsa”. I’m not sure what club salsa is either honestly, but he said he never knew what to call it. My first year here, I went home eagerly sharing my expansive new knowledge of the spanish language and culture with my family and friends. It turned out they didn’t really care because we simply don’t have it.

Now: Eats it by the bucketful.

3. Then...

“Yeah Burritos are ok...Mexican food isn’t really my thing.”

I honestly believed this at the time.

Now: “I have eaten burritos for every meal since Friday.”- Me on a Sunday.

4. Then...

“Could you tell me how to get there? I’m just worried about making a wrong turn or something. Walk me through the steps.” -Me

“Um… get on the freeway….and get off at the exit that you want…..”

For context, I should let you know that the road system looks like someone dropped spaghetti on the ground, and used that mess as a model. The easy-breezy freeways here are a beautiful thing. It’s easy to see why they’re borderline worshipped.

Now: *has more than two blocks to go:* *takes freeway for a single exit*

5. Then...

"Um....a hike? Yeah I could go on a hike I guess"

The outdoor culture is contagious, my friends.

Now: "I'm halfway done with the list of hikes I wanted to do, but I just added three more- this list in infinite!"

6. Then...

Wears a Jcrew Cardigan to a party.

Now: Has specific set of croptop/legging combinations solely dedicated to social gatherings.

7. Then:

"....Why did that stranger just say hello to me?

Now: "What the heck! We made eye contact, Why didn't they say hi back?"

“Yeah, California’s cool… no I’m probably not going to live here forever”

This stands the tests of time, and is usually met with blank stares or confused inqueries usually involving the following sentences:

“But the mountains and the ocean are right next to each other.”

“You could go skiing and go to the beach on the same day if you wanted to.”

“But WHY do people live other places?”

California has a lot of amazing and wonderful things to offer, and it truly is a place where the mix of ideas and culture and the ingenuity of innovation make it an exciting place to be. Californians as a whole have a wonderful sense of adventure, but that doesn’t mean we all want to stay here forever. No matter how much I love California, New York City will always be the best city in the world in my eyes, even though people knowingly nudge me and wink while saying “So you’re probably going to stay out here, huh?” California has only increased my wanderlust, and made me excited for what the rest of the world has to offer.