Los Gatos

Cali and I went to Los Gatos on Sunday. I had been warned that there was a cat statue. Well, I've got news for you. There isn't just one cat statue. There are plentitudes of cats immortalized in stone. I saw mountain lions, regular lions, and house cats in gardens, front porches, and in the city park. From 8-1:00 Sundays a tent city pops up in the park. Not a Hooverville type tent city (I realized the negative connotation with tent city after I wrote it). I mean a tent city inhabited with artisan vendors and local farmers, called a Farmers Market. Just kidding. We have those in Ohio too. I wasn't sure if Cali was welcomed in the farmers market, and I didn't really need to walk through as I had hit the Sunnyvale market the morning before. Instead, we walked the mean streets of Los Gatos.

Everyone seemed really nice in Los Gatos, so Mean Streets might not be accurate. But, it does reflect the sentiment I harbor for California in general. I'm extremely nervous here. I'm afraid I'm doing something wrong. I realize I'm in a new country, as far from this little Clevelander's home as possible without needing my long lost passport. When I leave the apartment, I put on my invisible armor and do my best to do what everyone else is doing. When I drive, everyone probably thinks I'm a grandma. I brake early and drive a good 5 miles under the speed limit in town. I expect something to go wrong, for me to encounter a new traffic signal or sign that confuses the heck out of me. It's true; I have encountered goofy turn lanes where I think "what the heck am I supposed to do here?" more than once. Specifically, pulling out of the Michael's parking lot. To turn left, I had to navigate through a break in a median, but the break was not directly in front of me. I was filled with trepidation as I made my way through the break in the median thinking "I'm sure I'm breaking some sort of law" but apparently, I did it right because I entered into a merge lane built just for Michael's Arts and Crafts customers leaving the parking lot. I also plan any outings a lot like a grandma, around rush hour. 3:00, too late to leave! Hoards of computer nerds are about to be unleashed into traffic! God forbid I'm in my car at the same time. This from a girl who has no trouble driving through Manhattan at rush hour (although I'd rather avoid that too). California is scary to me.

Cali, the dog, on the other hand, is not scary and is very cute. Just ask the old couple who stopped to say how much they liked her while we strolled through Los Gatos. They must have really liked her because they walked by a dozen or so dogs before they got to her. There were so many dogs for a walk in downtown Los Gatos, I heard one people watcher proclaim "it's like a dog parade!" No doubt, Cali would be crowned queen of the parade.

As I walked and passed gorgeous garden after the next I saw homeowners actually outside tending to their roses (so many rose bushes), I realized I wanted to live there. Not just because of the beautiful homes, but also because it's called "the cats." How cute is that? Then I realized other cat crazy people were probably attracted to the town for the same reasons. It got me thinking that Los Gatos is probably filled with the world's largest concentration of cat ladies.