California is Such a Tease!

Very recently, I was blessed with a four day weekend in Los Angeles.  I sat on the beach and enjoyed candy apples.  I woke up  to fresh eggs, ham steaks and coffee all set up for me in my mother-in-law's perfect, cantina-styled kitchen.  The sound of the waterfall in the back and the smell of the peppermint plants took me back to a time where I thought I would never leave California.  My husband, looking relaxed and happy came bouncing down the stairs all showered and shaven and ready to transform back into a child around his parents.  With our kids at my sister's, it was pure bliss and would only get better as my father-in-law's day-long marinated steaks would hit the grill at dusk for a candle-lit dinner next to the tiny pond in the backyard.

By day three, I dreaded going home.  I got up early and googled apartments and the job market in Los Angeles, quickly being reminded why I left in the first place.  Unless you are a self-made guru of some sort, a starving artist or a professional with an extremely competitive edge (or you know a big importatant someone), you ain't gettin' a job in Cali. 

By day three, the beaches, the Ramen, the sushi and the Boba (oh man! the Boba!) were clearly perks to a perfect vacation, and that's all.  Moving back to Cali is not an option. To make it work, I would have to quit my job, convince my husband to quit his job, enroll my children back into that horrible L.A. school district and I would have to live with my in-laws for a few months to save enough for a deposit for one of the over-priced apartments in the valley somewhere.  Laguna will have to wait until next year.   The only other suggestion I have is for someone to hurry up and give me a book deal, pay me an extravagant advance and sell me a house in Laguna.  Then, I can move back. 

All joking aside though, I would really like to see those commercials with Arnold and his wife enjoying a glass of wine on a sunset dressed mountain-top taken totally off the air.  "When can you stah-hot?", he asks in his pea-soup thick accent.  Really Arnold? Come on Maria. California is a tease!  It's become an untouchable paradise for anyone that moved away or doesn't already live there. For now, twice a year vacations will have to do.

Jot this down: If anyone knows where I can get a decent bowl of real Japanese ramen in Dallas (and if you suggest Pei Wei, I'll hunt you down!) let me know.