What would my character miss about the Boston area/New England?
March 7, 2021 9:21 AM Subscribe
My fictional character has left the Boston area to live in California. What are some not-so-typical things she might miss? I.e., something other than the falls leaves?
Pedestrians living in mortal feel of automobiles. ("Honey, in California we don't speed up when we see a pedestrian trying to use the crosswalk in front of us" is a real quote from one member of a relocated couple I knew.)
The accents--IME you don't really "miss" it but hearing a familiar east coast accent out here in long-voweled California can trigger something akin to nostalgia as you remember how people talked.
posted by mark k at 9:31 AM on March 7, 2021 [6 favorites]
The accents--IME you don't really "miss" it but hearing a familiar east coast accent out here in long-voweled California can trigger something akin to nostalgia as you remember how people talked.
posted by mark k at 9:31 AM on March 7, 2021 [6 favorites]
What year? Dunkin Donuts didn't arrive in CA until 2014.
posted by cooker girl at 9:39 AM on March 7, 2021 [10 favorites]
posted by cooker girl at 9:39 AM on March 7, 2021 [10 favorites]
clam chowder.
posted by vrakatar at 9:42 AM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by vrakatar at 9:42 AM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
They may be annoyed at how slowly other pedestrians walk.
posted by aubilenon at 9:45 AM on March 7, 2021 [9 favorites]
posted by aubilenon at 9:45 AM on March 7, 2021 [9 favorites]
People I know who have moved from Boston to California (especially LA) have talked about about getting confused because the ocean is on the wrong side, and that because of that it is just generally hard for them to orient themselves.
posted by Winnie the Proust at 10:01 AM on March 7, 2021 [25 favorites]
posted by Winnie the Proust at 10:01 AM on March 7, 2021 [25 favorites]
I had to hunt around a little to find brown bread in a can. But I'm in Washington, not California -- maybe the streets of California are paved with brown bread.
posted by The corpse in the library at 10:10 AM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by The corpse in the library at 10:10 AM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
I think some answers would depend on NorCal vs SoCal (and coastal vs. inland), e.g. if you're in coastal NorCal and you miss clam chowder, you're doin' it wrong.
Convenient trains linking major cities is one thing that's missing in most of California, though. And relatedly, they might miss the relative closeness of major but very different cities.
posted by wintersweet at 10:11 AM on March 7, 2021 [9 favorites]
Convenient trains linking major cities is one thing that's missing in most of California, though. And relatedly, they might miss the relative closeness of major but very different cities.
posted by wintersweet at 10:11 AM on March 7, 2021 [9 favorites]
Where in California?
I'm a Connecticut person now in Seattle (and have friends who plan to return to the east to raise families after making some $$ in California because they want the to have a 'strong constitution'). Here are some things I think your character might miss:
1. Cars that will keep going through an intersection so you can cross as you had planned, BEHIND THEM. Instead they will 'yield' for you, then three cars will come in the other direction and also stop, and you feel like an ass and you sheepishly wave and try not to look too annoyed.
2. Your friends who wait for walk signs at intersections.
3. People who understand how to deal with weather -- you can't "go to the snow" in New England -- gray slush goes to you and you deal with it.
4. The expectation that most pizza and American Italian food, purchased unvetted, will be good or great.
5. The sheer density of private colleges (and their students' presence in bars).
6. Dunkin Donuts and Au Bon Pain.
7. Second-wave (Italian / Irish / Polish) last names, though I imagine California has Hispanic names in lieu.
posted by batter_my_heart at 10:13 AM on March 7, 2021 [12 favorites]
I'm a Connecticut person now in Seattle (and have friends who plan to return to the east to raise families after making some $$ in California because they want the to have a 'strong constitution'). Here are some things I think your character might miss:
1. Cars that will keep going through an intersection so you can cross as you had planned, BEHIND THEM. Instead they will 'yield' for you, then three cars will come in the other direction and also stop, and you feel like an ass and you sheepishly wave and try not to look too annoyed.
2. Your friends who wait for walk signs at intersections.
3. People who understand how to deal with weather -- you can't "go to the snow" in New England -- gray slush goes to you and you deal with it.
4. The expectation that most pizza and American Italian food, purchased unvetted, will be good or great.
5. The sheer density of private colleges (and their students' presence in bars).
6. Dunkin Donuts and Au Bon Pain.
7. Second-wave (Italian / Irish / Polish) last names, though I imagine California has Hispanic names in lieu.
posted by batter_my_heart at 10:13 AM on March 7, 2021 [12 favorites]
Candlepin bowling
Old-fashioned diners
posted by music for skeletons at 10:24 AM on March 7, 2021 [8 favorites]
Old-fashioned diners
posted by music for skeletons at 10:24 AM on March 7, 2021 [8 favorites]
Architectural differences -- no triple deckers, everything that is "old" is only a hundred or so years old vs. 400., stucco vs. shingles and clapboards on houses.
Bits of colonial history randomly in the city.
Weird street layouts.
An "excuse" to stay inside the entire day and read -- usually bad weather (snow storm, 3 days of rain, f'ing cold for a week and a half) -- since there is so little poor weather (depending on the part of California). And on the other side, a feeling of guilt when you have to stay inside all day when the weather is perfect, since it is so warm. (I have a hard time with this when I am in CA for a weeklong work trip...I can't imagine my psyche if I was living there...)
Particular works of art at the MFA (thinking of Paul Revere, in particular, who I say hi to each time I go to the MFA) or exhibits at the Museum of Science.
If they spent time outside of the city, mud season.
posted by chiefthe at 10:24 AM on March 7, 2021 [10 favorites]
Bits of colonial history randomly in the city.
Weird street layouts.
An "excuse" to stay inside the entire day and read -- usually bad weather (snow storm, 3 days of rain, f'ing cold for a week and a half) -- since there is so little poor weather (depending on the part of California). And on the other side, a feeling of guilt when you have to stay inside all day when the weather is perfect, since it is so warm. (I have a hard time with this when I am in CA for a weeklong work trip...I can't imagine my psyche if I was living there...)
Particular works of art at the MFA (thinking of Paul Revere, in particular, who I say hi to each time I go to the MFA) or exhibits at the Museum of Science.
If they spent time outside of the city, mud season.
posted by chiefthe at 10:24 AM on March 7, 2021 [10 favorites]
aloofness
posted by brujita at 10:27 AM on March 7, 2021 [7 favorites]
posted by brujita at 10:27 AM on March 7, 2021 [7 favorites]
Raspberry lime rickeys
The way the Atlantic is.
(definitely the street crossing stuff.)
Slightly less an issue in CA, but eating ice cream in the middle of the winter not being a remarkable thing
Less true these days, but being able to peg roughly where someone who grew up in the area grew up by the accent, and being familiar with a range of accents (particularly in people 50+: when I was a teenager in the Boston metro in the 90s, I could ID people to within half a town by accent if they were natives for about 10 towns near me.)
Navigating around events - do not go near Harvard Square the week Harvard starts, the Head of the Charles, the Marathon, etc.
Seeing people in Revolutionary War reenactment gear randomly in the grocery store and going "Oh, right, Patriots Day!" (as I did the first year I moved back.)
One that messed me up was moving from the west side of Boston (so for every interesting event/thing to go to, you went east) to the east side of St. Paul, MN (so every interesting event was west). It took me years to rewire that bit of my brain, and I took a lot of wrong exits on the highway because of it, and had to circle back.
posted by jenettsilver at 10:27 AM on March 7, 2021 [3 favorites]
The way the Atlantic is.
(definitely the street crossing stuff.)
Slightly less an issue in CA, but eating ice cream in the middle of the winter not being a remarkable thing
Less true these days, but being able to peg roughly where someone who grew up in the area grew up by the accent, and being familiar with a range of accents (particularly in people 50+: when I was a teenager in the Boston metro in the 90s, I could ID people to within half a town by accent if they were natives for about 10 towns near me.)
Navigating around events - do not go near Harvard Square the week Harvard starts, the Head of the Charles, the Marathon, etc.
Seeing people in Revolutionary War reenactment gear randomly in the grocery store and going "Oh, right, Patriots Day!" (as I did the first year I moved back.)
One that messed me up was moving from the west side of Boston (so for every interesting event/thing to go to, you went east) to the east side of St. Paul, MN (so every interesting event was west). It took me years to rewire that bit of my brain, and I took a lot of wrong exits on the highway because of it, and had to circle back.
posted by jenettsilver at 10:27 AM on March 7, 2021 [3 favorites]
Long showers. Water bills can be brutal.
posted by Sophont at 10:36 AM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by Sophont at 10:36 AM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
Decent pizza and bagels.
posted by metasarah at 10:44 AM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by metasarah at 10:44 AM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
Sunrise on the beach vs sunset on the beach.
posted by sciencegeek at 10:59 AM on March 7, 2021 [3 favorites]
posted by sciencegeek at 10:59 AM on March 7, 2021 [3 favorites]
"People I know who have moved from Boston to California (especially LA) have talked about about getting confused because the ocean is on the wrong side, and that because of that it is just generally hard for them to orient themselves."
This 100%. I moved from Chicago to the East side of the Hudson River valley in NY, and having the local large body of water that towns orient themself around on the opposite side of you is incredibly disconcerting. I literally just had to pull up a map just to double check that "East side" was correct, and I have lived here nearly 6 years.
posted by true at 11:01 AM on March 7, 2021 [6 favorites]
This 100%. I moved from Chicago to the East side of the Hudson River valley in NY, and having the local large body of water that towns orient themself around on the opposite side of you is incredibly disconcerting. I literally just had to pull up a map just to double check that "East side" was correct, and I have lived here nearly 6 years.
posted by true at 11:01 AM on March 7, 2021 [6 favorites]
Fancy, truly old history, including buildings and spooky graveyards/grave stone designs. Granite street curbs. Snowplows. Roundabouts.
posted by Secretariat at 11:03 AM on March 7, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by Secretariat at 11:03 AM on March 7, 2021 [1 favorite]
The thing I missed most was having actual weather instead of the entirely predictable California climate. In CA the TV weather person will tell you that Monday will be sunny and 79°, Tuesday will be sunny and 80°, Wednesday sunny and 78°, and they will be right within a degree. It is so boring.
posted by monotreme at 11:06 AM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by monotreme at 11:06 AM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
Yeah, small graveyards full of 18th-Century headstones scattered in the suburbs.
posted by wenestvedt at 11:07 AM on March 7, 2021 [4 favorites]
posted by wenestvedt at 11:07 AM on March 7, 2021 [4 favorites]
I can't say I'd "miss" the T, but I've always much preferred it to the bus.
The cycle of the seasons--there is a huge difference between the seasons here, including weather but also fresh produce and the kinds of activities you can do. It creates a structure to your year that you don't necessarily notice, but it's an ongoing sense of anticipation.
Depending what part of CA, I would definitely miss pond/lake swimming. By far my favorite places to swim are all ponds and lakes, including a bunch in the Boston suburbs.
posted by gideonfrog at 11:22 AM on March 7, 2021 [5 favorites]
The cycle of the seasons--there is a huge difference between the seasons here, including weather but also fresh produce and the kinds of activities you can do. It creates a structure to your year that you don't necessarily notice, but it's an ongoing sense of anticipation.
Depending what part of CA, I would definitely miss pond/lake swimming. By far my favorite places to swim are all ponds and lakes, including a bunch in the Boston suburbs.
posted by gideonfrog at 11:22 AM on March 7, 2021 [5 favorites]
Speaking as a New Englander living on the West Coast, here’s a few:
-Small quaint coastal towns (especially in summer, there’s often festivals going on to ramp up the quaint) /shops/museums/seafood shacks
- summer food: again seafood is big, but also ice cream, Del’s Lemonade, Italian ice shops, etc.
-Old buildings, period. Drive around and you will see a variety of old buildings, stone walls, older cemeteries etc. lots of historical markers, references to Native tribes too.
-the mix of urban and rural in pretty close distance. New England cities are small and it doesn’t take long to get to water, woods or fields/farmland. It’s pretty hilly territory too, which is partially why the foliage looks so impressive.
- the mix of rocky and sandy coastline
- not only the different accents, but the speed and cadence of New England speakers: I feel more comfortable around fast talkers bc of where I grew up
-rotaries/roundabouts maybe? Regardless our cities/towns were not built with cars in mind so there are small windy roads, sometimes not well lit, highways are smaller than west coast freeways.
- also, some say New England speakers are more reserved, but I think there’s also a bluntness and sometimes harshness to us; we’re characterized as plainspoken and I think there’s a darker streak of humor. I remember my sister visiting the west coast and feeling suspicious of how friendly/passive people were until she found a bar run by someone from Boston and felt at ease!
- more aggressive driving maybe?
posted by actionpact at 11:35 AM on March 7, 2021 [4 favorites]
-Small quaint coastal towns (especially in summer, there’s often festivals going on to ramp up the quaint) /shops/museums/seafood shacks
- summer food: again seafood is big, but also ice cream, Del’s Lemonade, Italian ice shops, etc.
-Old buildings, period. Drive around and you will see a variety of old buildings, stone walls, older cemeteries etc. lots of historical markers, references to Native tribes too.
-the mix of urban and rural in pretty close distance. New England cities are small and it doesn’t take long to get to water, woods or fields/farmland. It’s pretty hilly territory too, which is partially why the foliage looks so impressive.
- the mix of rocky and sandy coastline
- not only the different accents, but the speed and cadence of New England speakers: I feel more comfortable around fast talkers bc of where I grew up
-rotaries/roundabouts maybe? Regardless our cities/towns were not built with cars in mind so there are small windy roads, sometimes not well lit, highways are smaller than west coast freeways.
- also, some say New England speakers are more reserved, but I think there’s also a bluntness and sometimes harshness to us; we’re characterized as plainspoken and I think there’s a darker streak of humor. I remember my sister visiting the west coast and feeling suspicious of how friendly/passive people were until she found a bar run by someone from Boston and felt at ease!
- more aggressive driving maybe?
posted by actionpact at 11:35 AM on March 7, 2021 [4 favorites]
Not just a different cycle to the seasons, but having entirely different wardrobes over the course of the year. In the Bay Area I wear the same clothes nearly year-round, except in the very coldest or hottest few weeks, and only my outer layer and shoes gets changed out. It was nice to have different clothes to wear periodically, without having to buy them.
As a New Englander who's been in California for 20 years now, I still miss New England seafood -- steamer clams with butter and beer in particular. Can't get them here. Butter-and-sugar corn. Local apple orchards, and apples you can't get in the west, like Macouns, and local unpasteurized cider. I also miss greasy "House of Pizza" pizzas and grinders, although if I still lived there I probably wouldn't get one very often.
I miss the history, and while California has been colonized for almost as long as New England, there's more of it visible in the built environment in New England. (The flipside being that native peoples have less visible presence in New England than in the west in general, or so I recall; things may have changed.) Colonial history is everywhere in New England, even if it is whitewashed to an appalling extent.
I miss having snow at the holidays, and the smell of autumn. And spotting crocuses coming up through the snow in the spring, and the sequence of spring flowers: crocuses, forsythia, daffodils, lilacs. Oh, and dogwood trees: hard to find a flowering dogwood in the Bay Area.
I miss driving the Kancamangus Highway on a hot summer day and stopping to play in the river, skiing at a tiny little ski area ten minutes away with a 500-foot vertical lift and a 40-year-old T-bar, and driving down to the Cape after Labor Day to see my oldest friend (only after Labor Day, by god).
[Things I don't miss include the way cars rust out so early, and the mosquitoes and humidity in the summer, and the way the snow in March is so brown and slushy, and having to worry about moving your car for snow-plowing.]
posted by suelac at 11:42 AM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
As a New Englander who's been in California for 20 years now, I still miss New England seafood -- steamer clams with butter and beer in particular. Can't get them here. Butter-and-sugar corn. Local apple orchards, and apples you can't get in the west, like Macouns, and local unpasteurized cider. I also miss greasy "House of Pizza" pizzas and grinders, although if I still lived there I probably wouldn't get one very often.
I miss the history, and while California has been colonized for almost as long as New England, there's more of it visible in the built environment in New England. (The flipside being that native peoples have less visible presence in New England than in the west in general, or so I recall; things may have changed.) Colonial history is everywhere in New England, even if it is whitewashed to an appalling extent.
I miss having snow at the holidays, and the smell of autumn. And spotting crocuses coming up through the snow in the spring, and the sequence of spring flowers: crocuses, forsythia, daffodils, lilacs. Oh, and dogwood trees: hard to find a flowering dogwood in the Bay Area.
I miss driving the Kancamangus Highway on a hot summer day and stopping to play in the river, skiing at a tiny little ski area ten minutes away with a 500-foot vertical lift and a 40-year-old T-bar, and driving down to the Cape after Labor Day to see my oldest friend (only after Labor Day, by god).
[Things I don't miss include the way cars rust out so early, and the mosquitoes and humidity in the summer, and the way the snow in March is so brown and slushy, and having to worry about moving your car for snow-plowing.]
posted by suelac at 11:42 AM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
I'm a Massachusetts person who lived in Seattle for a long time and visited CA. I would also ask "When?"
The big deal for me was
- seasons
- wintertime and all the things that go along with that, having that weird dry inside air and the feeling of a woodstove or a fireplace.
- the ocean and the sun rising (not setting!) over it, all the coastal industry like fishermen, lobstering, the constant fish places by the short
- candlepin bowling! depending where in New England but YES
- good bagels, good pizza
- in Vermont we also have mud season and stick season
- old houses, normal butter, people who have barns
And this may be my experience specifically but I worked in tech and was always kind of surprised that people didn't have houses with walls of books in them. I have since definitely met people from CA with walls of books but it's rare to meet a New Englander, in my circles, without them. I found the West Coast a lot more outdoorsy than New England, like people would "go hiking" or "go camping" as an event whereas in New England you'd just kind of walk around your neighborhood. This may be a rural vs urban thing though and it's worth maybe nailing down which you are talking about since obviously there are barns in California as well.
posted by jessamyn at 11:49 AM on March 7, 2021 [1 favorite]
The big deal for me was
- seasons
- wintertime and all the things that go along with that, having that weird dry inside air and the feeling of a woodstove or a fireplace.
- the ocean and the sun rising (not setting!) over it, all the coastal industry like fishermen, lobstering, the constant fish places by the short
- candlepin bowling! depending where in New England but YES
- good bagels, good pizza
- in Vermont we also have mud season and stick season
- old houses, normal butter, people who have barns
And this may be my experience specifically but I worked in tech and was always kind of surprised that people didn't have houses with walls of books in them. I have since definitely met people from CA with walls of books but it's rare to meet a New Englander, in my circles, without them. I found the West Coast a lot more outdoorsy than New England, like people would "go hiking" or "go camping" as an event whereas in New England you'd just kind of walk around your neighborhood. This may be a rural vs urban thing though and it's worth maybe nailing down which you are talking about since obviously there are barns in California as well.
posted by jessamyn at 11:49 AM on March 7, 2021 [1 favorite]
When I moved to Boston, it took me a while to realize, "Howahyah" is a greeting, not a question. I got lots of strange looks when I would answer, "Fine, thanks. How are you?" I could imagine a person moving away from Boston and having the inverse experience.
posted by theotherdurassister at 12:07 PM on March 7, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by theotherdurassister at 12:07 PM on March 7, 2021 [1 favorite]
(If your character misses Dunkin' Donuts, which are still relatively rare out here, then they likely haven't tried any of the local donut shops that are far more prevalent and much better. :P )
posted by Aleyn at 12:07 PM on March 7, 2021
posted by Aleyn at 12:07 PM on March 7, 2021
California has a lot of fantastic affordable wine.
Wearing Bean boots for function (mud) not style.
This isn't as strong a difference now, bur when I 1st visited Los Angeles, most people drive cars that are intact, often washed. Not so true in New England where we use road salt, which generates rust.
Distances. The East Coast is more compact.
Landscape. East Coast is wet, trees are tall; many are deciduous. Mountains have lots of tall trees, greenery. West Coast is drier, most trees are shorter, changes vistas. Mountainsides are often brown and have fewer, shorter trees. Once you get into certain mountain areas, this changes, redwoods, for instance, but I always notice how different the landscape is, and the horizon.
The East coast, literally the shoreline, is accessible most everywhere(albeit owned by the wealthy). The West coast is largely blocked by a big mountain range. Took me ages and a trip up Hwy 1 to understand that.
Weather on the West Coast is largely predictable and has seasonal weather phenomena of Santa Ana winds, monsoons, etc., plus wildfires Weather on the East Coast has many more ways to change and is just batshit with nor'easters, hurricanes, massive snows.
People in Boston might keep the house cooler in winter, don't always have AC everywhere (this is becoming less accurate). In Calif. there is little tolerance of slightly cool temps, and AC is blasted.
Boston is a sports town like few I have ever experienced.
posted by theora55 at 12:09 PM on March 7, 2021 [4 favorites]
Wearing Bean boots for function (mud) not style.
This isn't as strong a difference now, bur when I 1st visited Los Angeles, most people drive cars that are intact, often washed. Not so true in New England where we use road salt, which generates rust.
Distances. The East Coast is more compact.
Landscape. East Coast is wet, trees are tall; many are deciduous. Mountains have lots of tall trees, greenery. West Coast is drier, most trees are shorter, changes vistas. Mountainsides are often brown and have fewer, shorter trees. Once you get into certain mountain areas, this changes, redwoods, for instance, but I always notice how different the landscape is, and the horizon.
The East coast, literally the shoreline, is accessible most everywhere(albeit owned by the wealthy). The West coast is largely blocked by a big mountain range. Took me ages and a trip up Hwy 1 to understand that.
Weather on the West Coast is largely predictable and has seasonal weather phenomena of Santa Ana winds, monsoons, etc., plus wildfires Weather on the East Coast has many more ways to change and is just batshit with nor'easters, hurricanes, massive snows.
People in Boston might keep the house cooler in winter, don't always have AC everywhere (this is becoming less accurate). In Calif. there is little tolerance of slightly cool temps, and AC is blasted.
Boston is a sports town like few I have ever experienced.
posted by theora55 at 12:09 PM on March 7, 2021 [4 favorites]
Green. Mountains.
posted by TWinbrook8 at 12:10 PM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by TWinbrook8 at 12:10 PM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
Oh, yes, one of the things I learned when I moved west was that you didn't need to climb to the top of a hill or mountain to see the scenery! New England is so completely overgrown with vegetation that "hiking" means "walking in trees" unless you're on the coast.
I'm not sure that's something I actually miss, though: I love being able to see the surrounding hills without having to climb a 3,000-foot peak.
posted by suelac at 12:17 PM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
I'm not sure that's something I actually miss, though: I love being able to see the surrounding hills without having to climb a 3,000-foot peak.
posted by suelac at 12:17 PM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
Top-split hotdog buns. (Ideally used for lobster roll.)
posted by The corpse in the library at 12:27 PM on March 7, 2021 [8 favorites]
posted by The corpse in the library at 12:27 PM on March 7, 2021 [8 favorites]
The plants in California - especially southern California - are apt to feel all wrong, even if your character isn't someone who pays particular attention to plants. It's not just the lack of fall foliage or seasonality, but the very different defaults in terms of the random trees and bushes one commonly sees in yards. In this particular way, living in Germany felt less foreign to me (having also lived in Boston & some Great Lakes-area cities, all within a similar climate range) than visiting LA and its palm trees.
It's not missing things, quite, but when visiting LA, I always notice that the architecture and city layout have very different built-in climate assumptions to the environment I'm used to. I find that I end up with a running line of mental chatter where I note to myself that something (an uncovered raised walkway between buildings or open areas in the airport) must be unpleasant in the winter/during a thunderstorm/etc., and then I remind myself that no, that's not really a big issue here.
posted by ASF Tod und Schwerkraft at 12:28 PM on March 7, 2021 [9 favorites]
It's not missing things, quite, but when visiting LA, I always notice that the architecture and city layout have very different built-in climate assumptions to the environment I'm used to. I find that I end up with a running line of mental chatter where I note to myself that something (an uncovered raised walkway between buildings or open areas in the airport) must be unpleasant in the winter/during a thunderstorm/etc., and then I remind myself that no, that's not really a big issue here.
Slightly less an issue in CA, but eating ice cream in the middle of the winter not being a remarkable thing.The sheer density of excellent, creative ice cream stores in the Boston area is also something I find myself missing everywhere else.
posted by ASF Tod und Schwerkraft at 12:28 PM on March 7, 2021 [9 favorites]
Basements
Cardinals (the bird)
posted by needs more cowbell at 1:14 PM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
Cardinals (the bird)
posted by needs more cowbell at 1:14 PM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
It depends on where in California, but I found the low density of bookstores compared to Boston in my part of LA disconcerting when I lived there.
You say Boston area, so I don't know if you're including suburbs, but if not, the walkability and public transit. Bart is probably the best that CA has to offer, and I think the T, despite all its complainers, is far superior.
posted by redlines at 1:16 PM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
You say Boston area, so I don't know if you're including suburbs, but if not, the walkability and public transit. Bart is probably the best that CA has to offer, and I think the T, despite all its complainers, is far superior.
posted by redlines at 1:16 PM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
Came here to say basements.
posted by Melismata at 1:30 PM on March 7, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by Melismata at 1:30 PM on March 7, 2021 [1 favorite]
For me it was the sense of time during the year. In CA I literally found myself getting confused on a beautiful warm day - it was a J month, maybe June or July? Nope, it was January. Memories in coastal CA didn't get timestamped with the season, and so they blurred together. I don't know if that's a problem for people raised with CA weather, but it really threw this transplant for a loop. I've been back to the east coast for half a year now and having the seasons to anchor my sense of time has been such an unanticipated relief.
posted by omnie at 1:31 PM on March 7, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by omnie at 1:31 PM on March 7, 2021 [1 favorite]
Bell’s Seasoning
posted by edmcbride at 1:47 PM on March 7, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by edmcbride at 1:47 PM on March 7, 2021 [1 favorite]
New Englander who moved to California and eventually back to New England. I missed:
Warm ocean water
Certain shades of green foliage
Humidity (really!)
Good bad pizza
Weather, especially cold weather
A sense of being integrated into the social history of a place.
posted by mr. remy at 2:07 PM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
Warm ocean water
Certain shades of green foliage
Humidity (really!)
Good bad pizza
Weather, especially cold weather
A sense of being integrated into the social history of a place.
posted by mr. remy at 2:07 PM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
Depending on specifics, but i always miss the walkability when I'm on the west coast. Too damn many parking lots. (Obviously not applicable if your character is going from MA suburbs to San Francisco proper.)
posted by february at 2:15 PM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by february at 2:15 PM on March 7, 2021 [2 favorites]
Something that hasn't been mentioned: Jewish people/humor/references. Present but not neeeeearly as ubiquitous and mainstream, at least in Northern California.
posted by lapis at 2:30 PM on March 7, 2021 [4 favorites]
posted by lapis at 2:30 PM on March 7, 2021 [4 favorites]
As a former New Englander/Boston-er now in California last decade, this is what I miss:
1) Autumn, not just the pretty leaves, but also how it marks time in a year, the crispness of the air, wearing your first somewhat heavy jackets, but not yet coats
2) Cannolis -- everyone has an opinion about this in Boston: Mike's or Modern's
3) Maybe it's because I am out of habit with driving, but it felt like New England "bad drivers" were just "aggressive" drivers (but ultimately aware of how to drive with facility, because ya-know, snow and little cowpaths now turned into one way streets). It feels like California's (Bay Area) bad drivers are just absent-minded, so dangerous in a different way that's ultimately more disturbing to me -- e.g., absentmindedly running a red light vs. knowingly/willingly running a red light. (Obviously both are bad.)
4) How close I actually was to another continent. It really didn't occur to me that New England is soooo much closer to Europe vs. West coast is to Asia.
5) It's been a while, but I felt like there were more Chinese restaurants that served all around amazing food in Boston regardless of what you ordered, whereas in the Bay it seems like each Chinese restaurant is specialized in a thing they're great at, but all the rest of their food is meh.
6) Driving to New Hampshire for tax free shopping :)
7) Brick buildings -- they have a certain look about them
posted by ellerhodes at 2:41 PM on March 7, 2021 [4 favorites]
1) Autumn, not just the pretty leaves, but also how it marks time in a year, the crispness of the air, wearing your first somewhat heavy jackets, but not yet coats
2) Cannolis -- everyone has an opinion about this in Boston: Mike's or Modern's
3) Maybe it's because I am out of habit with driving, but it felt like New England "bad drivers" were just "aggressive" drivers (but ultimately aware of how to drive with facility, because ya-know, snow and little cowpaths now turned into one way streets). It feels like California's (Bay Area) bad drivers are just absent-minded, so dangerous in a different way that's ultimately more disturbing to me -- e.g., absentmindedly running a red light vs. knowingly/willingly running a red light. (Obviously both are bad.)
4) How close I actually was to another continent. It really didn't occur to me that New England is soooo much closer to Europe vs. West coast is to Asia.
5) It's been a while, but I felt like there were more Chinese restaurants that served all around amazing food in Boston regardless of what you ordered, whereas in the Bay it seems like each Chinese restaurant is specialized in a thing they're great at, but all the rest of their food is meh.
6) Driving to New Hampshire for tax free shopping :)
7) Brick buildings -- they have a certain look about them
posted by ellerhodes at 2:41 PM on March 7, 2021 [4 favorites]
Response by poster: Thanks, everyone! Some great, particular stuff here! I grew up in CA but have lived in NY for about 20 years. I have occasionally wondered if my terrible sense of direction has to do with the fact that ocean switched sides! Maybe so.
posted by swheatie at 3:07 PM on March 7, 2021
posted by swheatie at 3:07 PM on March 7, 2021
Marathon Monday, aka Patriot's Day. If they lived anywhere along the marathon route they probably went to cheer runners on at least as a kid (it's definitely not just kids/families out there cheering, though). Anyone east of the starting point (Hopkinton) knows that there's no crossing the route north/south for a big chunk of that day. Local stations carry it live and lots of people watch it.
They probably don't miss move-in week when many of the college students come back to town, but there's always the fun of "who's going to get Storrowed this year" - it kinda goes along with what other people have said about the changing seasons providing structure.
posted by current resident at 3:46 PM on March 7, 2021 [5 favorites]
They probably don't miss move-in week when many of the college students come back to town, but there's always the fun of "who's going to get Storrowed this year" - it kinda goes along with what other people have said about the changing seasons providing structure.
posted by current resident at 3:46 PM on March 7, 2021 [5 favorites]
The hush at night after a snowfall, when all nature is a church.
posted by dum spiro spero at 4:00 PM on March 7, 2021 [5 favorites]
posted by dum spiro spero at 4:00 PM on March 7, 2021 [5 favorites]
One thing that I remember when moving out west is that football and other sporting events start much earlier in the day.
posted by unreasonable at 4:11 PM on March 7, 2021
posted by unreasonable at 4:11 PM on March 7, 2021
Allston Christmas!
posted by whuppy at 4:11 PM on March 7, 2021 [6 favorites]
posted by whuppy at 4:11 PM on March 7, 2021 [6 favorites]
"An Englishman thinks a hundred miles is a long way; an American thinks a hundred years is a long time."
posted by SPrintF at 4:29 PM on March 7, 2021 [5 favorites]
posted by SPrintF at 4:29 PM on March 7, 2021 [5 favorites]
And on the other side, a feeling of guilt when you have to stay inside all day when the weather is perfect, since it is so warm.This comment by chiefthe above really nails it. Summers are so brief, especially north of Boston and the Gulf Stream. When I lived in Hawaii, at one point I had three jobs which was not unusual. On Sundays, my only day off, I just wanted to sleeeep. But the relentless good weather—and Oahu has the most idyllic weather—forced me outside to take advantage of it. To the point that I would grab a blanket, go to a park, and sleep under a tree.
posted by TWinbrook8 at 4:31 PM on March 7, 2021 [3 favorites]
Lots of good answers up above, come from an old New Englander in exile who will probably never go back. I'll just add a minor one, which is the Eastern Time Zone. So much of media and the world in general operates on eastern time, and being three hours behind is very weird, at least in the beginning. I'm sure people get used to it, but it's still weird to know that your favorite TV show aired three hours ago while you're waiting for it to come on, or that three hours of world events happened before you woke up. And if you have friends back home, navigating the time difference is a Chore.
posted by General Malaise at 4:48 PM on March 7, 2021 [5 favorites]
posted by General Malaise at 4:48 PM on March 7, 2021 [5 favorites]
Fluffernutter sandwiches. Going to Brimfield antique fair. Burgers at Charlies Kitchen. Being able to walk around in public and have no one burst your privacy bubble.
posted by beccaj at 5:05 PM on March 7, 2021 [4 favorites]
posted by beccaj at 5:05 PM on March 7, 2021 [4 favorites]
New Englander for two plus decades. I've lived in very different places since spring 2019... and here's what I miss:
posted by Sheydem-tants at 5:53 PM on March 7, 2021 [1 favorite]
- Parker River Wildlife Refuge on Plum Island: snowy owls, harriers, all kinds of migrating birds, and the occasional sproingy mink
- Folk music shows at Unitarian Universalist coffeehouses
- The AA meetings at which I was a regular for years
- Easy access to great kayaking spots
posted by Sheydem-tants at 5:53 PM on March 7, 2021 [1 favorite]
I can confirm the east/west swap, I've moved Boston -> SoCal -> Boston -> SF and while I have a very strong sense of direction and place-memory, I *still* have to force-think which way to go sometimes when I need to get on the highway, say.
Will miss: public transporation, if SoCal.
Diversity, in SoCal -- there are no.Black.people in San Diego, and I really think it's more segregated even with other ethnicities.
Fried clams. Lobster in SoCal do not have claws. Good local ice cream.
Seasons in CA are there, but take a while to truly sense, especially SoCal. However, I never missed the winter days AND the summer days of New England that just keep you inside; SoCal you can always get outside and enjoy it.
There's not a lot of Italian food in SoCal.
The pad thai in SoCal has tomato paste in it.
Being a quick flight and "only" 5 or 6 hours jetlag to Europe; that trip is much, much harder from the left coast.
Beaches in SoCal tend to be easy to get to, to say catch a wave after work, while in Boston it's always an entire day's venture (drive, parking etc) to get all the way there.
Doing errands on foot in Boston -- corner stores!
Basements: people in SoCal use their garage or have a storage locker.
posted by Dashy at 7:20 PM on March 7, 2021 [1 favorite]
Will miss: public transporation, if SoCal.
Diversity, in SoCal -- there are no.Black.people in San Diego, and I really think it's more segregated even with other ethnicities.
Fried clams. Lobster in SoCal do not have claws. Good local ice cream.
Seasons in CA are there, but take a while to truly sense, especially SoCal. However, I never missed the winter days AND the summer days of New England that just keep you inside; SoCal you can always get outside and enjoy it.
There's not a lot of Italian food in SoCal.
The pad thai in SoCal has tomato paste in it.
Being a quick flight and "only" 5 or 6 hours jetlag to Europe; that trip is much, much harder from the left coast.
Beaches in SoCal tend to be easy to get to, to say catch a wave after work, while in Boston it's always an entire day's venture (drive, parking etc) to get all the way there.
Doing errands on foot in Boston -- corner stores!
Basements: people in SoCal use their garage or have a storage locker.
posted by Dashy at 7:20 PM on March 7, 2021 [1 favorite]
I'm a Bostonian transplanted to the Bay Area. A lot of the specific things I miss have already been covered--good Italian food, good baseball, decent public transportation, bookstores.
But the thing I miss the very most is the sociocultural understanding among New Englanders that being forthright and telling someone how you really feel, even if they're not going to like it, is an act of respect. You tell someone the truth, even a hard truth, because you respect them enough not to bullshit them.
There's this weird, tepid blandness that characterizes interpersonal interactions here in the Bay Area that I find profoundly unsetting and off-putting. No one seems to have a strong opinion about anything. I feel like I'm constantly being made to guess how people really feel or what they're actually trying to say. It's exhausting and time-consuming and so unnecessary and it drives me up the fucking wall.
posted by jesourie at 7:43 PM on March 7, 2021 [11 favorites]
But the thing I miss the very most is the sociocultural understanding among New Englanders that being forthright and telling someone how you really feel, even if they're not going to like it, is an act of respect. You tell someone the truth, even a hard truth, because you respect them enough not to bullshit them.
There's this weird, tepid blandness that characterizes interpersonal interactions here in the Bay Area that I find profoundly unsetting and off-putting. No one seems to have a strong opinion about anything. I feel like I'm constantly being made to guess how people really feel or what they're actually trying to say. It's exhausting and time-consuming and so unnecessary and it drives me up the fucking wall.
posted by jesourie at 7:43 PM on March 7, 2021 [11 favorites]
A lot of this will vary based on where in California, but speaking for SF:
Thunderstorms
Really good apples, I haven’t had a decent apple since I moved here
Being able to drive or take the train to other major cities
Also up here the leaves absolutely do change color, roundabouts are a thing, and so is planning transit around festivals and events.
posted by phoenixy at 8:36 PM on March 7, 2021 [3 favorites]
Thunderstorms
Really good apples, I haven’t had a decent apple since I moved here
Being able to drive or take the train to other major cities
Also up here the leaves absolutely do change color, roundabouts are a thing, and so is planning transit around festivals and events.
posted by phoenixy at 8:36 PM on March 7, 2021 [3 favorites]
Dunno about their prevalence up in Boston but this long-time California resident misses the fireflies. We don't seem to have lighting bugs in California.
posted by Rash at 8:53 PM on March 7, 2021 [3 favorites]
posted by Rash at 8:53 PM on March 7, 2021 [3 favorites]
East Coast you have to wait for national businesses to open to call them but you can call them after 5pm which can be great. In CA you can call at 6am but you have to remember to call by 5pm or you’re screwed.
This was a big change to me, a science person, when I switched coasts from MD to CA and then back to PA. (I’m from MA).
Waking up and watching NFL football in CA.
Traveling to another state within a short drive in MA.
Generally: moving from one urban area to another the ethnicities in your city are always different. State paperwork comes in English plus other languages and this changes. Accessibility of kinds of food - an Iranian-American moving from Boston might be overwhelmed by being able to find good Persian food (restaurants and groceries) and cultural experiences in SoCal. And I’m sure there are groups for which the opposite is true. I’m not from Boston so I don’t know the specifics of this.
Some one who speaks Spanish would notice the difference between the accents/idioms prevalent in MA vs CA. They might miss being able to speak and use slang without having to think about it.
posted by sciencegeek at 4:59 AM on March 8, 2021 [3 favorites]
This was a big change to me, a science person, when I switched coasts from MD to CA and then back to PA. (I’m from MA).
Waking up and watching NFL football in CA.
Traveling to another state within a short drive in MA.
Generally: moving from one urban area to another the ethnicities in your city are always different. State paperwork comes in English plus other languages and this changes. Accessibility of kinds of food - an Iranian-American moving from Boston might be overwhelmed by being able to find good Persian food (restaurants and groceries) and cultural experiences in SoCal. And I’m sure there are groups for which the opposite is true. I’m not from Boston so I don’t know the specifics of this.
Some one who speaks Spanish would notice the difference between the accents/idioms prevalent in MA vs CA. They might miss being able to speak and use slang without having to think about it.
posted by sciencegeek at 4:59 AM on March 8, 2021 [3 favorites]
Potato chips served on the plate alongside sandwiches. Hot Dogs steamed in beer. Portuguese sweet bread. Traffic "rotaries". Johnathon Richman's "Roadrunner" on the radio.
posted by zaelic at 7:47 AM on March 8, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by zaelic at 7:47 AM on March 8, 2021 [1 favorite]
If your character is near the coast mid-California or farther north: the canonical beach experience. Summer beaches on the east coast are where US stereotypes of the beach experience comes from (i.e. umbrellas, laying out to get a tan, maybe a boardwalk/amusement park.) The water in the Pacific is colder and the shore tends to be rockier. I think the SoCal beach experience is reasonably close but it's definitely not the case in the Bay Area or points north. It's even possible to get to the beach via transit from Boston proper--I think this is much more rare in CA.
Going to different states. Several states are accessible within an hour's drive (or train ride) from downtown Boston.
There are a lot of powerfully affecting landmarks in the greater Boston area. The Boston Public Library, Harvard Square, the North End, the burying ground in downtown Boston, old Ironsides.
The whole crazy business of The Big Dig, and the transformation it wrought was/is a widely affecting, super local experience.
posted by Sublimity at 8:28 AM on March 8, 2021 [1 favorite]
Going to different states. Several states are accessible within an hour's drive (or train ride) from downtown Boston.
There are a lot of powerfully affecting landmarks in the greater Boston area. The Boston Public Library, Harvard Square, the North End, the burying ground in downtown Boston, old Ironsides.
The whole crazy business of The Big Dig, and the transformation it wrought was/is a widely affecting, super local experience.
posted by Sublimity at 8:28 AM on March 8, 2021 [1 favorite]
Just did a Control-F for "Charles" and "River". People!
The Charles. Polluted water, historic bridges, the Esplanade, the bandshell.
The epic collective freakout that is the Fourth of July.
posted by Sublimity at 8:35 AM on March 8, 2021 [3 favorites]
The Charles. Polluted water, historic bridges, the Esplanade, the bandshell.
The epic collective freakout that is the Fourth of July.
posted by Sublimity at 8:35 AM on March 8, 2021 [3 favorites]
Fireflies and thunderstorms? (When I was a kid in Maryland, we said "lightning bugs".)
But the big thing I missed when I lived in southern California was summer green. Living in a desert made me low-level guilty.
posted by yarntheory at 9:04 AM on March 8, 2021 [2 favorites]
But the big thing I missed when I lived in southern California was summer green. Living in a desert made me low-level guilty.
posted by yarntheory at 9:04 AM on March 8, 2021 [2 favorites]
wise and drake brand snacks
I'm from Los Angeles and the midwest was more of a culture shock to me than new england
posted by brujita at 10:46 AM on March 8, 2021
I'm from Los Angeles and the midwest was more of a culture shock to me than new england
posted by brujita at 10:46 AM on March 8, 2021
Adding to the person who said cardinals, blue jays.
posted by Seeking Direction at 11:37 AM on March 8, 2021
posted by Seeking Direction at 11:37 AM on March 8, 2021
Turkeys strutting across pedestrian crosswalks
posted by gemutlichkeit at 2:02 PM on March 8, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by gemutlichkeit at 2:02 PM on March 8, 2021 [1 favorite]
My New York daughter in California brings up apples. Produce generally is better in CA, but the apples are bad and wrong.
posted by LizardBreath at 5:26 PM on March 8, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by LizardBreath at 5:26 PM on March 8, 2021 [1 favorite]
The epic collective freakout that is the Fourth of July.
Other epic collective freakouts include Truck Day, when the Sox win at home (and Fenway Park is definitely its own thing), that ONE DAY in August when everyone's lease is up and everyone moves, the day when peepers come out, when fireflies come out, the first real snowfall, the first really warm day in springrtime.
posted by jessamyn at 5:50 PM on March 8, 2021 [2 favorites]
Other epic collective freakouts include Truck Day, when the Sox win at home (and Fenway Park is definitely its own thing), that ONE DAY in August when everyone's lease is up and everyone moves, the day when peepers come out, when fireflies come out, the first real snowfall, the first really warm day in springrtime.
posted by jessamyn at 5:50 PM on March 8, 2021 [2 favorites]
People walking with purpose and driving with purpose, as noted above. (Walkability and transit reliability more generally, depending on which part of California.)
Sure they might have “roundabouts,” but nobody calls them rotaries.
Buildings more than X decades old or Y storeys tall (again, depending on time and place).
Different standards of business dress and formal dress.
And I hesitate to mention this, but (some! Particularly ill-behaved! #notall But too many!) people in the West regularly bitch and moan a lot about East Coasters being “soooo rude.” Which is in itself rude as hell.
posted by armeowda at 9:10 PM on March 8, 2021
Sure they might have “roundabouts,” but nobody calls them rotaries.
Buildings more than X decades old or Y storeys tall (again, depending on time and place).
Different standards of business dress and formal dress.
And I hesitate to mention this, but (some! Particularly ill-behaved! #notall But too many!) people in the West regularly bitch and moan a lot about East Coasters being “soooo rude.” Which is in itself rude as hell.
posted by armeowda at 9:10 PM on March 8, 2021
Transplanted from New England to SoCal 20 years ago and this thread is making me homesick! So much yes to everything above. I'll add two more.
I miss the trees terribly and the sheer amount of green, especially driving down the highways. In SoCal the highways are huge and wide and open and start with the - the 405, the 5, etc. In New England, once you get out of the city on Route 128 or 495 (no the!), even the widest highways have a sense of closeness around them because of the density and height of the trees. You see so much less of the sky, just a wall of green on both sides.
The other thing I miss is the smell of the seasons. From spring lilacs to summer fresh cut grass, fall leaves and of course the bitter winter chill, the smell of the air is a constantly changing thing. Every once in a while I'll catch a scent of rain or cool breeze here in SoCal and am instantly transported.
posted by platinum at 11:26 PM on March 8, 2021 [1 favorite]
I miss the trees terribly and the sheer amount of green, especially driving down the highways. In SoCal the highways are huge and wide and open and start with the - the 405, the 5, etc. In New England, once you get out of the city on Route 128 or 495 (no the!), even the widest highways have a sense of closeness around them because of the density and height of the trees. You see so much less of the sky, just a wall of green on both sides.
The other thing I miss is the smell of the seasons. From spring lilacs to summer fresh cut grass, fall leaves and of course the bitter winter chill, the smell of the air is a constantly changing thing. Every once in a while I'll catch a scent of rain or cool breeze here in SoCal and am instantly transported.
posted by platinum at 11:26 PM on March 8, 2021 [1 favorite]
Definitely fall. I'm a New Yorker, now living in Phoenix and I turn into a gremlin every year when it's still 100 degrees in October. It's inhumane.
posted by simonelikenina at 10:29 AM on March 9, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by simonelikenina at 10:29 AM on March 9, 2021 [1 favorite]
This thread is closed to new comments.
Ice skating on ponds
Apple picking
posted by sciencegeek at 9:28 AM on March 7, 2021 [3 favorites]