Chapter 9 Expanding Markets And Moving West Test: Fill & Download for Free

China doesn’t have bad geography. On the contrary, it has quite a few geostrategic strengths: the floodplain of the Yellow River, and more broadly, the entirety of Eastern China, is incredibly suited to agriculture; China in its current geographic form is largely secure against overland invasion, thanks to its control over buffer regions in the northeast, north, west, and northwest; it has a wealth of natural resources; it has a 9000-mile long coastline conducive to maritime trade and the development of sea power etc. I would go as far as to say it has one of the best geographies in the world. But since you asked specifically about its geographic weaknesses:1.The IsohyetChina’s geography can be understood as consisting of a Han Core (“China Proper”) and a shell of buffer regions that encloses it from the north and west. The 15-inch Isohyet encompasses the area of China that receives 15 or more inches of rainfall per year, and is thus capable of supporting substantial agricultural activity and hence people.As illustrated, much of the population is concentrated in the regions south of the Isohyet — the orange and brown areas — because the climate is so conducive to growing crops. The Isohyet therefore delimits (as it has for centuries) China’s demographic core, and by extension, its political core. Historically, geographical barriers, inhospitable terrain, and most importantly the Isohyet have impeded the expansion of the Han core. No rain means no crops. No crops means an inability to sustain large populations. Hence the demographic and political reach of the core remains constrained to south of the Isohyet. This perhaps explains the preservation of the non-Han cultural and ethnic identities existing in the buffer regions beyond the core. It is not a coincidence that the Great Wall parallels the Isohyet: it was only fortifying what nature had created. The core can definitely project power and influence beyond the Isohyet, but for Chinese civilization to take root, to settle in the form of people and cities beyond this line — that is a real challenge.2. Buffer regionsAn array strategic buffers shield the core, consisting of Tibet in the west, Xinjiang in the northwest, Inner Mongolia in the north and Manchuria in the northeast.Retaining control of the buffer regions has been an eternal geostrategic imperative for China. The Han core was extremely vulnerable to nomadic raids and incursions from the plains and steppes of the north and northeast. Case in point, the Mongols and the Manchu conquered and ruled China. Flat terrain is practically an invitation for conquest by nomadic horsemen. In the west the Himalayas presented a formidable barrier, but northwestern China, the interface for the ancient Silk Road, was where the fringes of the empire met the kingdoms of Central Asia and the influence of the Islamic world. Tibet was still particularly irritating because it was easier for the Tibetans to ride down and raid the Chinese than for the Chinese to climb the mountains and conquer them. In modern times, if control of Tibet was lost, India could move across the Himalayas and establish a base of operations on the plateau.Chinese history was therefore expressed as cycles where a strong core, with its various instruments of national power (military, economic, cultural) systematically asserts and maintains control over the borderlands and thus secures the empire……or where a weak core is simply unable (yet) to impose its will on the buffers and so remains constrained to its own territory of “China Proper”.In any case, control over or influence of the buffers was a security imperative. It provided defensible borders and anchored the empire. Without the buffers, the core would be exposed, soft, vulnerable: dense, massed stationary populations of farmers ripe for plunder. Historically, Chinese dynasties sought to accommodate, influence, and assimilate (if they were unwilling on incapable of incorporating them) the buffer regions with complex diplomacy and tributary systems rather than forcibly control them (though they sometimes did so). They were considered semi-integrated and semi-autonomous. The objective was to ensure that these regions, their populations and polities did not threaten the security of the core, or foreign adversaries/invaders did not do so through them. The disposition of the borderland polities and peoples had a direct effect on national security. Now the PRC is strong and it formally controls the buffer regions, so this is not so much a weakness per se (on the contrary, it is a strength) as a potential weakness.3. Ethnic/cultural fault linesNotably, three of the four buffer regions mentioned above are categorized as Autonomous Regions. This is primarily due to their distinct ethnic, cultural and religious non-Han identity, which has been a source of tension for much of Chinese history.As illustrated above, the populations that inhabit (and have historically inhabited) the buffer regions are distinct from the Han population of the core, in their ethnicity, culture and the languages that they speak. In this sense they pose a challenge in terms of national cohesion and inter-ethnic/cultural relations. In more recent times, Beijing has encouraged the settlement of Han Chinese into the buffer regions to dilute their demographic/ethnic composition; this has become a source of friction between the central government in the core and the peoples of the Autonomous Regions. Demographic tensions between the core and periphery are exacerbated by the economic and developmental disparities and what might be perceived as economic exploitation of the regions’ natural resources.Xinjiang is a particularly uneasy borderland, unsurprising given that it has much in common in its cultural and religious makeup with Turkic Muslim Central Asia than with Han Chinese civilization. A volatile mix of radical Islamist ideology and localized ethnic separatism has manifested in localized terrorist acts and insurgencies that threaten the central government’s grip over the region, and also threatens national unity. Tibet has experienced its share of convulsions and unrest from time to time, albeit not at the level of Xinjiang. Beijing fears Pan-Turkic sentiments in Central Asia spreading into Xinjiang and Tibetan resistance movements overseas and specifically in India generating unrest at home.4. Tibet and water securityAside from its geostrategic value as a buffer, there is another, perhaps more important reason why China must control Tibet. This has to do with water security. The Tibetan plateau is the source of China’s major rivers. The whole agricultural productivity of the Han core stems from all the water that comes down from the highlands. Therefore, China’s food security is also dependent on its control of Tibet. Foreign control of the sources of the Yellow and Yangtze Rivers would be unacceptable — the occupying power would have its hand on the throat of the Chinese nation.5. The Korean PeninsulaThere was a German military adviser to Imperial Japan who described Korea as a “dagger pointed at the heart of Japan”. I think the same expression could be reliably applied with regard to Chinese security.The Peninsula served as an invasion route for Japanese forces as early as the 1590s (see: the Imjin War — the Ming emperor sent troops to beat back the samurai advancing up the Peninsula), and again later by Imperial Japan during the First Sino-Japanese War. The 1950–1953 Korean War served as another reminder of Korea’s crucial position as a potential springboard for foreign incursions: when US-led forces advanced toward the Yalu River, the PRC found them too close for comfort and intervened.In a sense, the Korean Peninsula is a mini-buffer of sorts, an extension of Manchuria jutting out into the East China Sea invitingly toward the southern tip of Japan — a bridgehead for the invasion of Machuria and the Chinese heartland by foreign forces. But while the Chinese were able to consolidate control over Manchuria, the Peninsula’s mountainous terrain (the Kaema Plateau and Hamkyong Mountains provide a strong barrier on the northern border) allowed Korean kingdoms to retain their nominal independence. Right now, this is made even messier by a nuclear North Korea and the legacy of postwar partition. There is also the issue of ethnic Koreans within China and their identity in relation to a unified Korean state, if it ever comes about.6. North vs SouthHistorically, Chinese civilizations developed along two axes: the Yellow and Yangtze River systems. As a result of distinct geographical and climate differences, there has tended to be a noticeable divergence in the cultural and political nature of the polities/states orbiting the two rivers.Northern Chinese civilizations arose within the North China Plain, the fertile alluvial plain formed by the yellow sediment deposited along the banks of the Yellow River. The Wei Valley in particular was the power base of many northern Chinese dynasties: the Zhou, Qin, Han, and Tang all entrenched their capitals here.In terms of climate, the plain is cold and arid; too harsh for rice cultivation. Instead, crops such as millet and wheat were grown. Geographically, the North China Plain, as the name suggests, is relatively flat: the terrain comprises grasslands and plains largely unobstructed by mountain ranges. Upon this land transport and communication by horse was rapid, and the dominance of the mounted cavalry warrior undisputed. By implication, these conditions made it extremely conducive to political centralization and efficient administration. In the north, the plain transitioned gradually to steppes and desert, from which nomadic conquerors often invaded. This meant that northern Chinese civilizations frequently had to test their mettle against these invaders, and were often reinvigorated from time to time by the influxes of culture, technology, skills, and blood from these militant nomadic tribes, giving rise to a more martial disposition overall. Throughout history, there are many instances of northern Chinese dynasties expanding south (I believe the Qin and Han did this first) or forcibly incorporating southern dynasties. Mao himself followed this paradigm, consolidating his power first in Manchuria and the north, then pushing south. In conclusion, Northern China is a political-military entity.In contrast, southern Chinese dynasties emerged along the Yangtze River Valley and especially the Yangtze River Delta (this became a major hub later, after maritime commerce became a thing). As early as the Spring and Autumn period states such as Wu and Yue coalesced around the Delta, and Chu took up residence along the river basin.The climate of the south was considerably rainier, warmer and wetter than the north. This enabled the cultivation of rice, which has an extremely high calorie per acre output compared to wheat (11 million compared to 4 million). Growing rice demanded different methods and modes of organizations than growing wheat or millet (as Kaiser Kuo explains in this fantastic post: What are the historical and cultural differences between north and south China?) and so a more cooperative socio-cultural mindset arose. The landscape of southern China is considerably more hilly and uneven than the north, encompassing river valleys and mountains. Cavalry, so mobile on the North China Plain, therefore had a much more difficult time navigating the terrain further south. With the advent of seaborne trade (as opposed to overland trade) the south became more and more economically prosperous. After the Jurchen conquered the north, the Song Dynasty shifted south and brought with it the center of cultural, economic, and commercial activity. While northern Chinese states tended to be traditional land powers, Southern dynasties like the Song experimented more with navies and sea power. Southern China was therefore identified with trade, commerce, economics, and agriculture, instead of the militarism that defined the north.Throughout Chinese history, this North-South division has made itself apparent again and again, through the territorial configuration of dynasties along a North-South axis, as shown below during the Three Kingdoms period, the Sixteen Kingdoms period, the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period (note that the north remained united under one dynasty at a time, whereas the south was fragmented into numerous polities)Also note that the south is much more linguistically diverse than the Mandarin-speaking north, given that it continues to be home to a variety of Chinese dialectsThis ancient polarization of North and South is much less applicable today, given the existence of military, agricultural, communication and transportation technology capable of overcoming the tyranny of distance, geography and climate. Stereotypes of Northern and Southern people and culture remain but have largely been subsumed under a greater, all-encompassing modern Chinese nationalist identity.7. Interior vs CoastalThe more pertinent division right now pertains to economic disparities between inland and coastal provinces. The coast has historically been associated with great wealth and commerce due to maritime trade, beginning with the Southern Song Dynasty as mentioned. But from the dawn of the 20th century onwards and in particular the late 1970s after Deng’s reforms and globalization, this trend became ever more pronounced. As China began to trade more and more with the world, the coastal provinces became increasingly wealthy while the economies of the inland provinces remained poor and continued to rely on subsistence farming.In the early 20th century the divergent interests and sociopolitical orientations of the coastal and interior provinces began to make themselves apparent. The cosmopolitan coastal elite that profited from trade were affiliated with foreign European powers, and in time the influence of this alliance eclipsed the power of the central government in the coastal provinces. The Communists derided Shanghai, for instance, as the “whore of imperialism”. Eventually the country collapsed into chaos and civil war. Foreign imperialism and intrusion forced open China’s markets and led to prosperity, and this prosperity had destabilized the nation. No wonder the appeal of communist ideology was as strong as it was, especially inland: revolution arose from the interior. Mao’s solution was to raise a massive peasant army from the interior, liquidate the collaborators, expel the foreigners, and close China to the world. China lapsed into impoverished equality.When Deng reopened the economy to the world, he began with the coast, and in particular the south. The old problem re-emerged: massive economic tensions between the provinces and a disruptive impact on national unity. The coast is integrated into the global economy and prosperous; the interior is isolated and poor. The coast has the weight of international trade and commerce behind it; the interior has the mass of the Chinese population (900 million vs 400 million on the coast) . The interior wants the revenue generated by the coast transferred inland; the coast intends to continue enjoying its profits. The central government therefore has to balance the interests of the inland and coastal provinces, distributing the fruits of economic growth in an equitable way.The paradox is that China relies on its coast as an interface with global commerce. But in doing so the coastal provinces inevitably become incredibly wealthy, and this economic gap leads to political schisms within the country.8. Regionalism (Provinces vs Central government; Province vs Province)This brings us to another greater, enduring theme: that of regionalism within the Han core. The opening chapter of The Romance of the Three Kingdoms has a line that goes something like this: “It is a general truism of this world that anything long divided will surely unite, and anything long united will surely divide” (分久必合，合久必分 ). As mentioned, the geopolitical importance of a strong core cannot be understated. It is up to the central government to bridge the numerous aforementioned divisions (north-south, coastal-interior) and maintain the unity of the core. This struggle appears to be eternal.Throughout Chinese history there have been repeated instances where the Han core loses coherence, the central authority collapses in upon itself, and China fragments into a multiplicity of small local polities until after a while a strong central authority re-emerges and imposes its will on the core, uniting it once again. Rural revolts and peasant rebellions, regionalism and warlords are a recurring theme (e.g. Taiping Rebellion, An Lushan Rebellion, the Rebellion of the Seven States), as attempts to break away from the central authority or resist efforts at consolidation.This was most recently the case with the early 20th-century warlord era:But it happened as early as the late Zhou Dynasty, when the power of the Zhou court waned, and eventually China disintegrated into numerous independent fiefdoms. The Zhou kings wielded only nominal authority over these entities.Even in times where a strong central authority exists, the regions strain and chafe against the control of the central government, and often a firm hand is needed to bring them to heel and quell rebellious sentiments. Modern China is no exception. The Chinese saying “the mountains are high and the emperor is far away” (山高 皇帝远 ) applies even today. The dictates and edicts of the central authority are sometimes distorted, resisted or even ignored by the local bureaucracy, which tends to be preoccupied with managing local interests and issues. The center is distant and sometimes detached from the realities on the ground, and struggles to enforce its authority. Beijing is familiar with this challenge when it comes to implementing national economic policies across the provinces today.Furthermore, provincial identities are still extremely strong — identification with and by province is a pervasive phenomenon in Chinese society. There is fierce rivalry between and among provinces especially when it comes to economic growth and performance. They compete ferociously for resources and incentives/privileges dispensed by the central government and lobby for and against policies. Regional cliques are prevalent even among the highest echelons of Chinese politics, as the incumbent leader’s own province/region is often disproportionately represented in the top leadership. Under Mao, a large number of CCP leaders were peasants from central China, namely Hubei and Hunan provinces. Deng promoted his own fellow Sichuan officials to high positions. Jiang had his Shanghai Gang, and in both his and Hu’s administration, the eastern provinces and Jiangsu were strongly represented. In continuing with this trend, a new “Shaanxi clique” has begun to coalesce around President Xi.Beneath its visage of order and stability, modern China therefore still struggles with regionalist impulses, manifesting on two levels: one, tensions between the will of the central authority and the regional provinces; two, tensions among the provinces themselves. These latent centrifugal forces have the potential to destabilize the Han core with disastrous results.9. Dependence on maritime tradeWealth has always been the defining characteristic of Chinese civilizations, but historically this has been due to the vast profusion of natural resources the country has been blessed with. Emperor Qianlong of the last dynasty, the Qing, professed to a British envoy: “Our Celestial Empire possesses all things in prolific abundance and lacks no product within its borders. There is therefore no need to import the manufactures of outside barbarians in exchange for our own produce.” China was for most of its existence an incredibly self-sufficient economic entity and this accounted for much of its insular foreign policy. Trade was conducted to acquire luxury goods rather than necessities. Its interactions with the rest of East Asia mostly had to do with imperial tribute.Now, however, the modern Chinese nation-state is deeply integrated into the global economy and reliant on global commerce particularly for food and energy. Since the 1990s China has been a net importer of grain and oil and became a net importer of coal in 2008. It is set to become the world’s largest oil and gas importer, according to the International Energy Agency. By 2040 China will account for almost 30% of the oil being traded internationally and almost 25% of LNG traded over long distances. Never before has the prosperity of China been so inextricably bound up with international trade and so dependent on the fortunes and goodwill of other nations. China’s economic success has come at the cost of its self-sufficiency. As the 2008 crisis showed, the Chinese economy is vulnerable to contagion, and all the problems that being part of the global economy entails (note the dip in both imports and exports in the third graphic below).What’s more, much of this trade is conducted not overland, as has traditionally been the case, but across the oceans. As shown below, much of this trade transits the South China Sea and specifically the Strait of Malacca, through which about 25% of world trade passes.This is problematic for a country that has for much of its history been a land power that has displayed only periodic, cursory interest in the maritime realm. It does not have much enduring, established seafaring or naval traditions and expertise, and these take time to cultivate. Beijing understands that its supply chains and maritime lines of commerce and communication remain vulnerable. Expanded vital commercial interests overseas demand a commensurate naval capability to defend those interests, which China is still developing. Presently, as much as they deny it, the Chinese (and the rest of East Asia) have been relying on the US military presence in the Asia-Pacific to provide security for their maritime trade. China’s trade routes and access to international markets and resources could potentially be intercepted or disrupted by the US. This is the imperative that is therefore driving the PRC to develop a formidable navy, and to seek out alternative trade routes through its Belt and Road Initiative to diversify away from this single point of vulnerability — maritime trade.10. The Coastline and East/South China SeasBut modern China’s preoccupation with the sea goes beyond economic security; it is concerned also with the physical security of the core. The coastline and the adjacent seas themselves have proven to be dangerous geographical weaknesses in the past 200 years.Until now, China has always been a continental land power by nature. The state’s attention was largely focused inland, on maintaining control of the buffers, fighting off barbarian incursions, and holding the Han core together. Trade was conducted mostly overland (Silk Road trade routes leading into Central Asia and beyond to Persia and the West, the north-south Grand Canal). China had no need for navies. True, piracy in the East China Sea was an annoyance, and the Song Dynasty did develop an impressive navy for use against the Jin, but for the most part naval power was a curiosity, an indulgence. There was no major impulse to use its maritime power to engage with the rest of the world like the Europeans did. Navies were built in times of prosperity and then burned when they could no longer be maintained in times of strife. To the European powers, the maritime domain meant connectivity, possibility. To the Chinese, for much of their history, the East and South China Seas were for the most part just buffers rather than a medium for interaction; the coastline was a wall.The last two centuries showed the error of this assumption: European gunboats blasted their way into Chinese markets, seizing control of Qing ports; later, Imperial Japan destroyed the fledgling Chinese navy at sea and invaded across the East China Sea, seizing large swathes of the coastal provinces. China had learned through bitter experience that its coastline and the adjacent seas were no longer safe spaces.This physical, military threat to the security of the core has receded somewhat in recent decades. Invasion of the PRC, even by sea, is nearly unthinkable. But the memory of the Opium Wars and the Sino-Japanese Wars — where an enemy sea power wrested control of the adjacent East and South China Seas, attained a grip on its coastline, carved away huge chunks of coastal territory along with its precious ports, and proceeded inland to dismember the core and massacre the populace — still persists. Seen in this context, Chinese sensitivity to incursions and encroachment on its surrounding seas and coastline by foreign powers is therefore understandable from a national security viewpoint.11. BONUS: The Island ChainsIn Beijing’s quest to develop a naval capability it has run up against a natural barrier in the form of the First and Second Island Chains. The coast of China is encircled by a series of archipelagic bodies which serve to circumscribe the growth of Chinese sea power. From a purely geostrategic standpoint, these “island chains” could sustain a network of military bases from which an unfriendly foreign power (or powers) could project military force into the South and East China Seas — a maritime Great Wall around China’s periphery. To expand into the Indian and Pacific Oceans, Chinese sea power would have to first contend with these geographical barriers. For foreign powers seeking to contain Chinese naval power, the Island Chains are pre-built, permanent geostrategic outposts/fortifications enclosing the South and East China Seas, and the Western Pacific.Between the archipelagos there exist multiple narrow passages, or crucial maritime chokepoints, that in a time of confrontation could be blockaded by a foreign power, severing the vital arteries of Chinese maritime trade. These chokepoints include most notably the Strait of Malacca, but also the Korea Strait, the Sunda Strait, the Lombok Strait, the Karimata Strait, the Balabac Strait, and the Mindoro Strait. This geographical noose around the neck of the Chinese economy (see point 9 on dependence on maritime trade) has become a fixation of Chinese strategists.Currently, most of these states are allied to (Japan, South Korea, the Philippines, and Thailand are US allies) or on friendly terms with the US (America has strategic/security partnerships with Singapore and Taiwan, among others, and Vietnam is pivoting toward Washington), and fairly nervous about Chinese assertiveness in international waters. A few of them already host US military bases, though the US presence is more heavily concentrated permanently in Northeast Asia; in Southeast Asia its military presence is lighter and mostly on a rotational basis.Interestingly, this notion of “island chains” is a very recent one; it originated as a construct of the Cold War: the Acheson Line that delineated the US containment policy in Asia, as shown below.Acheson himself described it as such: “This defensive perimeter runs along the Aleutians to Japan and then goes to the Ryukyus. We hold important defense positions in the Ryukyu Islands, and those we will continue to hold…The defensive perimeter runs from Ryukyus to the Philippine Islands…So far as the military security of other areas in the Pacific is concerned, it must be clear that no person can guarantee these areas against military attack. But it must also be clear that such a guarantee is hardly sensible or necessary within the realm of practical relationship.”For most of the Cold War, China was preoccupied with its internal turmoil and the traditional land-power mentality held sway, with the central government’s attention focused on the interior. With the end of the Cold War and the resurgence of China as a modern Great Power and potential superpower, with its maritime commerce and increasingly forceful behavior at sea, this idea gained new credence and attention.Now Beijing seeks to disrupt the coherence of the US’ Asian alliances and so degrade the Island Chains, breaking out into the Indo-Pacific. Washington may seek to proceed with its policy of “congagement” (containment+engagement), while rebalancing its military, economic, and diplomatic resources and assets to the Asia-Pacific. The states that comprise the Island Chains will be central to this strategic interplay.Thanks for reading! I really enjoyed writing this piece. But why did the question have to be “top ten” though…

It's going to take me a while to flesh this answer out, because like the proverbial blindmen trying to describe an elephant, it can be answered in multiple ways (like Rashomon in a way). I'll try to give you a couple ways of seeing various answers to the question.So I'm a 3rd generation Californian, born in the same hospital in Los Angeles that my mom was (my Dad was born in Montana and raised with my uncles in Utah and further grew up in Chicago). I've also worked with 7-8 generation Californians. So during WW2 mom was allowed to finish high school (Los Angeles High, later used as the backdrop for the series Room 222) and started internment in a horse stable in Santa Anita Race Track.One way to answer this question is to give observations I had in life about life elsewhere like: one of my first plane trips when I was young was to Salt Lake City, UT. This trip and later numerous business trip to Washington DC surprised me by the number of brick (dirty brick from when coal was burned more) buildings and structures. Europe had similar coal stained buildings with other older materials as well.Many people elsewhere value the old, tried and tired, and staid. California is one of the places where a 20 year old can become a billionaire with good reason.California homes and buildings are code covered from a 1925 and a 1933 earthquake standard. We use more stucco, glass, steel, and brick (where it appears) are mostly found in few remaining chimneys. At least 3 friends own and live in geodesic dome homes (or have an attached dome). One friend lives out of 2 tee pees (no, she is not a native American, and she used to own an Alaskan wolf, oh that's another issue). Several friends own and raise what might be termed wild animals (one professionally for use in the TV and movie industry (another acquaintance owned 200 armored vehicles (tanks and more) used in various movies)).Until recently, ranch style homes had more yard space. I grew up with a front yard and a back yard where we kept 3 desert tortoises (you can't take them as pets anymore) and variously dogs, cats, a chicken (got small eggs), etc. Now you can only find homes like that in the Central Valley.The main population centers in California are the Los Angeles corrador which depending how you count extends South to San Diego and NW to Ventura, or Santa Barbara ...Santa Maria, SLO ... or ... and the San Francisco Bay Area. The population centers have a democratic (note small 'd') emphasis which make them think everything is for them (this is the story of the country mouse versus the city mouse). I'll say a little more about that in the next section. Of course there is all kinds of weird music about all these California locations.One difference: odor, if and when you travel South into Mexico, south past Ensenada (but you can experience this South of TJ if you go in land into the mountains (which go up to 9-10K ft), you don't smell the trash burns in the country side. The odors are different in a number of ways, and you can experience them when you get here. The LA Basin was where Arnie H-Smit did his first studies on smog, and I can recall seeing the San Gab (Mtns) when we switched to un-Pb gasoline for cars. LA Basin smog is bad for the topography (the highest point of LA County is over 10K ft, and the highest point in So Cal is over 11.5K ft, and the lowest pass is just over 2K ft (from sea level). People have proposed tunnels with fans.Life has a considerable Spanish/Mexican motif. The differences are slight and subtle. In LA they tell you to go visit Olivera Street in old LA. SF only has the Mission District (you need to find out about Fr. Serra's Missions), and Redwood City for instance. You will pick up Spanish/Mexican phrases by osmosis. Cities like Santa Barbara (1925 earthquake) architectural Review Board force building review for a Spanish motif. You will also get a little of the Catholic religion forced upon you, since that came with the Spanish/Mexicans. Anglo students in elementary schools get some Spanish language exposure. However, this is changing since there are now other ethnic groups having a hard enough time with English. Hola! See separate lower paragraph on the 2 Baja states.Annoying: non-locals and newbies who mispronounce Js without using an H: like La Jolla or Jesus or Juanipero or Jorge. Try these city names: Eureka, Ukiah, Yreka, Yucaipa.Earthquakes are a great topic to scare prospective residents off. That and fall fire season (you know what Phos-check and aluma-gel are), and winter flash foods and mud slides. And spring hay fever season.What's unique about the State of California's geography is like Chile: a long narrow skinny state (not as extreme as Chile). We span 10 degrees of latitude as opposed to original states further East which chose -East-West expansion. It's also where the 10 degrees at a transition belt in a temperate area: the South part of the State is desert, and the North is forest. This is why we have water problems. CA is comparatively narrow in a N-S sense.Our state requires extensive water movement for a population to live in its pseudo-Mediterrean climate (I've been to Cadiz and Tarifa, Andaluccia, Spain as well as Gibraltar: you almost can't tell the difference in veg.). The critical clever idea was to tap the annual snow pack for water. This is because it requires the use of fewer smaller dams. The phase change of 80 Cal/cc (almost 2 orders of magnitude) from ice to water is what makes our water system useful. This is accomplished by 2 (3) major N-S mountain ranges: the coastal ranges and the Sierra Nevada/Cascade ranges. The total relief in CA from sea-level to almost 14.5K ft. squeezes water out of the air and forms snow. Snow is far more important than water because of that 80 Cal. difference. California is a 3-D major state.The Central Valley (Sacramento River Valley in the N, and San Joaquin River Valley in the S), and the lesser Salinas and Imperial Valleys are major ag centers. These are slowly being converted into urban areas. These Valleys as well as San Diego and Orange Counties for the major part of the conservative political base in California. You will even find the hints of both the California Nationalist Socialist (Nazi) Party (the documentary California Reich), KKK, and JBS (John Birch Society with "Get us out of the UN" signs).The State Government is composed of 58 counties in a State Senate and an Assembly. By now, I may have visited all of them (not intentionally). This is mostly about agriculture (land). They have very little concept about technology (GPS and chemicals are used extensively in agriculture but before that it was map, compass and surveying equipment). I've had discussions (representing the Feds.) in Sacramento, and they were good ones (I was challenged to visit 4 counties to see Internet connectivity: 2 good ones, and 2 poor ones (this was a geographic knowledge test (Siskiyou and Shasta (I had no problems), and then Inyo and Plumas (I've friends in the first and may retire fully there), and at the time I was stumped briefly (have been to Quincy a number of times now (including small plane flying)))))). A book about all county high points exists.I should note that if you want a survey of the whole State, visit the Cal Expo in Sacramento from the end of August to the beginning of Sept. This is the State Fair. Some city folk will poo-poo Fairs, but this is a survey of activity, not all agricultural in every CA county. I took a 2nd place for technical drawing (I drew an incomplete drawing for a Sikorsky S-64 Sky crane) while in Jr. High School and I started getting college offers while still in 9th grade. This is the kind of thing which distinguishes you in college and life.A neighbor and I have landed at over 100 public airports in CA (mostly Northern Calif. including OR, WA, NV, AZ, and UT, over 260) in a small plane.The urban Democrats learned the lessons of their defeat in the 2004 Presidential elections (too much time in the cities), and went into Nevada, AZ, and OR (the first two were difference) in 2008. Various Republicans are irked. Interior counties are more red but not like the East coast, ditto Orange and San Diego counties.So I know where Republicans live; in the Central Valley from Redding to Bakerfield (Demo studying rural health care economics). My HS mentor moved to Visalia. Friends grew up in Fresno. The other major areas at Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino Counties and San Diego as well as the North Coast and Central Coast. Dad rose to the level of Dept. official in the American Legion.The motion picture industry (it's not called Show BUSINESS for nothing) is a major force in So. Cal. So much media is recorded here, that when the video is placed, residents can identify when and when something was recorded/filmed. The house I grew up in (just a middle class house) was used in a film. Because of the aforementioned latitude location, you can just about find any natural environment for filming, and they have location scouts for this. Yeah, you can tour studios, get jobs, grow up into the industry. Friends from high school and college work in the industry: I see their names roll by on credits occasionally. I briefly considered, when younger, working for WED Enterprises (Walt E. Disney) in Burbank as an Imagineer. Friends from my ACM/SIGGRAPH chapter (in the Bay Area) did (Jim has since died from Covid-19).Lucas made effective use of his time in Modesto and Petaluma.Because of WWII, a lot of aerospace industry is in So. Cal. and a little in Northern California. This has shrunk substantially, as has the oil industry (on and off shore). There is a gun culture; it's the Democrats who own cannons (really; I’ve attended cannon shoots). Some places do Renaissance Faire and Civil War reenactments. But the car culture reigns big (hot rods, motorcycles, etc.). The Conservatives count gays and Lesbians among them. What you will occasionally see are the Libertarians (people citing Ayn Rand are common (Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead)) around the coastlines and the Green Party in the far NW.Proposals to splint the state go from 2 (5 degree dividing line in CA 145 thru Madera near the geographic center of the state), three, and most recently 6 States. If you travel to the North you hear about how they almost combined with Southern OR (don't forget that part, they have their problem with OR government) to form the State of Jefferson (prospective State insignia of 2 Xs for Double Cross).Education is a big deal. It's not as snooty as the Eastern Ivy League. If you examine the very first ARPAnet map, 3 of the first four universities were in California. The 4th (Utah) was still in the West. They were thinking about the future of technology back then. They didn't have excess baggage. Unfortunately the education system is stressed. The first think tanks were here (e.g., RAND Corporation).Smokers in CA are basically very accommodating of non-smokers. It was tough dating one, but she was the finest woman I ever dated (her dad was a Caltech physics prof who recently passed away, she was not your average smoker).When you went to elementary school, you learned we are the Golden State for the brief Au rush. Other important California topics were citrus (can you name the types?), what was the California fishing, in particular tuna, industry (they were the cause of Chile and Peru to adopt 200 mile limits from the earlier 12 mile and 3 mile). The cultures which moved here, got clobbered here, would all be studied.The weather helps an outdoor health craze to this day (not that every one partakes). Public transit is poor and attempting to catch up. Distances are long and people feel forced to buy cars (Teslas are coming on but also other electrics). The Eastern US talks about the Atlantic and Ellis Island and Columbus (Italian, much less Leif Erickson). California has the Pacific and Angel Island. Some of our parents got rounded up and interned, this was overruled, and some people still to this day complain about that action (the over turning).Slavery didn't have a big hold during the Civil War. CA was part of the "North". This is lost on many on the East Coast, South. The Mason-Dixon Line took a turn South at Texas. The natives enslaved by the Missions weren’t counted.You can be in a snow storm (winter is optional; we go have quite a number of real glaciers) one moment and in a desert dust storm in a couple hours. The best place to experience this is the Palm Springs aerial tramway during a serious winter storm, but not so bad as to shut the tram down. Doesn't require car chains.Surfing is another story. Said enough.And Woody Allen noted the cultural advantage is the ability to make a right turn at a red light (not all, make certain to read all traffic signs). Many in CA like it that simple.You do need to be mindful on freeways and highways of road rage. This includes your pets.You have remaining tall Redwoods of various species (most were cut down). You have some of the oldest Bristlecone pines. Agriculture is still a big industry which many city dwellers tend to discount. Prisons are the new industry in part due to the three-strikes law. They are most visible at night in areas away from population centers. Some counties have rejected prison jobs.Many foreign countries have consulates in California. The Russians have major signal collection facilities from the Soviet era. We have the People's Republics of Berkeley, Oakland, and Santa Cruz.Tourists are always wondering what to see. We have more ghettos than people realize; some have corporate HQs like Nissan, Toyota, and Honda. Californians tend to drive more Priuses, than Honda Insights: a friend from Houston once commented.I know 3 German markets, a Scandinavian market, 3 Japanese markets, numerous Chinese, Mexican, Indian/Pakistani/Afghan markets. Mexican food isn't just tacos and burritos: it's mariscos, too. Abalone is a complex eating issue now (caught by self North of SF Bay or farm raised (hope this works)).Some of us residents have to put up with the meat and potatoes crowd making fun of our eating rice and raw fish. And tofu. The lactose intolerant have to put up with the assumptions of the lactose tolerant.Upper and middle class people pay to play harvesting wine grapes. Meanwhile, Mexicans are doing it in the Central Valley as professionals. Friends and I are caught in the middle doing it as a neighborly thing. I'm accused to taking high value PhDs and turning them into slave labor (they are just glad to get away for the day). Does this increase the value of the grapes (and then the wine) if people knew who picked them?The status car is a Tesla (one friend at google owns 2: one West coast, one at their East coast home) or various other electrics like RAV4s or EV-1s when they were out. Volts are coming along. Gas powered cars for an older generation or live in the Central Valley (Camaros, Chargers, Mustangs and many other foreign gas powered cars). I just had my car broken into (3x in my 2 vehicles now).....Many of us bike. And someone tried to steal my bike (couple of different times, it's a cheap bike, now stolen, got a donated bike from a friend). I live in a neighborhood of multi-colored bicycles most of which are single gear. We also have weird self driving cars, street view cars, etc. And they aren't all from google. They include bing (.com) and other panoramic mapping cameras, and other self driving cars from Michigan and the major automakers.Growing up as a kid, many white kids thought that the Asian kids knew Tae Kwondo, or Judo, or Karate. So I picked it up. (Actually, my parents said we descended from archers, so I've tried archery (actually recently got a gift bow (a compound model not a simple recurve bow) for a friend's son who joined the Scouts). I have to wrestle with the lethal force problem (to stay current), and may be purchasing a shot gun for trips to Alaska. I've expended $200 in 2 seconds (ammo for an M-134). Jumped out of perfectly good planes. Did the sail plane thing with my high school chemistry teacher. In turn, I taught him the basics of night sky astronomy.Many of the new rich don't feel the need to wear suits. Zuck legitimized the hoodie. The old rich (I know a few: I had Thanksgiving dinner at the SF Yacht Club: you will know if you know the rules of dress there) are disgusted by this. Women are caught in the middle of this but pull to the old, conservative. Ditto other non-whites.I see less ROTC, and church going, compared to other parts of the country.Let's see: I finished hiking the Muir Trail at the end of the 1980s. Climbed the 14Kers a number of times by various routes by that time, too before heading out of state for other objectives. We have the university which developed the atomic bomb (in another state no less, but they brought it back here later).I, at least, had a nice time in all my schools (public). Had fantastic educational experiences. Got to know a few Nobel laureate families. Met a few veterans in their time. Traveled the roads extensively (from Alturas (I edited a Knuth paper mentioning it) and Likely in the NE (Cedarville is also very nice) to Algondones near Yuma, National City to Crescent City. Our state has islands and a lot of interesting ocean. Nuclear reactors and accelerators, National labs and space and aero facilities. All Mach 3 planes were developed here.We have Death Valley. We have to share Lake Tahoe and the Colorado River with neighboring states. We have a 3rd world country to our South (rapidly changing toward 1st world). We have a fence which is porous with tunnels with a cross section for trucks which are found underneath it.We have a lot of privately owned wide open space. We have a few playas, but Nevada has more easily accessible day lake beds (CA's are used for bombing ranges, etc.; well El Mirage is open (flew in a sail plane (an S-33-2 with my HS chem teacher here)).One stands in a crowd. And some annoying person notes that everyone here is an immigrant to California, not even acknowledging that some of us grew up here.California is the home of both Sunset magazine and Scotts Lawn care products (Scotts Valley). If you are a keeping up with the Jones type, this is our version of Martha Stewart.If you are a real geek or nerd, you will know how to pronounce "halted .com". If you are a software person, your pronunciation can be forgiven. You know what district of Tokyo to visit.The most irksome thing about new California drivers is that they fail to pay attention to the road or freeway they are driving. When they miss a turn or ramp, they will attempt to cut across 2 or more lanes of traffic to make the ramp or turn, instead of realizing they blew it, get off at the next ramp and backtrack. You try to be too smart/clever and be overly quick to make up for your failure of attention. This is how you might cause a traffic accident here.Cars I have owned. This is a common computer security verification question. Largely economy cars. I've owned a car which got over 50 MPG, 4 decades ago (got over 300K miles on it). I've owned 2 SUVs (1 got over 400K miles on it), and I use 4WD low with some frequency (like yesterday in Silicon Valley). 2 of my new vehicles I didn't even bother to buy an AM/FM radio (this should give you an idea how dull I am). I care almost nothing about their color except urban camo (see my answer about Do men care about the color of their computing devices?), and thermal issues.I have met some amazing people growing up in California. Part of that was via correspondence (paper letters: introduced me to a now long time friend named Marvin Minsky, had nothing to do with computers). Then in college, I had the ARPAnet (no email at the time) and with email I was able to email people in computing like Marvin. Work allowed me to meet Nobel laureates. And Usenet was a great way to expand Internet horizons. While I didn't grow up in Silicon Valley and didn't get into microprocessors until later, I had contact. And most of these guys I run into grocery shopping. Or sometimes we carpool together (John McCarthy of Stanford was one such friend). You'd get bored with this if you didn't understand the place.California also refers to 2 States in the United States of Mexico: Baja California and Baja California Sur. Not nearly as populated, and most news concentrates on immigration (legal and illegal), but some very nice small towns like Loretto, Tecate (yes that's where they make the beer), the wine growing region. La Paz, Guerrero Negro, Todos Santos. Yes, there is crime, but there's also snowy 10K ft. peaks (possible to X-C ski). The largest Chinese population in Mexico is in Mexicali (they speak Spanish; do you expect them to speak English along with Chinese?). The Baja California States are not quite treated like the mainland Mexican states.Silicon Valley: if you have or hear of a problem (tech), you hear or get the weirdest reactions. An early noted OCR software, had an early version problem. So I called Tech Support (which just happened to be in Los Gatos). And the person on the phone said that Yes, that was an early bug and we fixed that and can mail you the update. And I gave my work address. "Do you know Frank ...?" Yes he's one of our Branch Chiefs. "He's my dad. I'll see him at dinner this evening and give him the disk then." And I got it in an interoffice mail envelope (this was back in the 1990s).East coast positives: Seasons: summer time fireflies are quite amazing. East coasters cite fall colors (New England). I've now visited Maine. California has nothing like that, but in certain higher elevations in the various mountain ranges where snow falls, you can get select fall color, like places where there are Aspens and cottonwoods. You just have to work on it. The duration and areal extent are shorter and smaller than the East coast. We have many more evergreens and scrub oaks. We are a little like coastal Spain. Better beaches (gradual slope).If you don't "Like" California, you can leave. This is why Oregon came up with the word Californication. We now have to deal with Oregon tourism ads (“It’s the economy, stupid”).For college summer jobs, I worked and climbed in Yosemite Valley. Ask me my zip code. So I have answers to tourist questions there. Friends still live there, but it’s best for me to visit them in winter or at least the off tourist season. Following that I drew masks for thin film circuits for 2 summers, so I’ve also have VLSI development.My body shop mechanic, Hispanic, once said, “You have to know 5 languages to do business in this place (Redwood City).”The furtherest South Russian colony/settlement was Fort Ross, CA, just North of SF.CA isn’t for everybody, but some of us were born here. And 1 friend’s relatives were here before statehood and were among the Donner Party rescuers.The Chinese-Americans can spot the Chinese spies (intelligence operatives trying to recruit Chinese-Americans) in Chinese restaurants. You can even read about them here on Quora (company).Quora (company) is here. It’s why you are reading this. It’s also the home of Facebook (See the movie Social Network? ever wonder why?), google, Yahoo!, even Microsoft, IBM, Wal-Mart know to have labs and offices here. The bio-tech Silicon Valley is South San Francisco where Genentech and it’s associated companies. Amgen has an office on the other side of the Bay.If you have a life variable you want addressed, let me know.Reference links:What was Mountain View, CA like before Google? Did Google have a huge impact on the development of the surrounding area, or was it just another piece of the growing puzzle?What facts about the United States do foreigners not believe until they come to America?

Answered 12 April, 2021It’s not for everyone. Between climate extremes, isolation, lack of social/entertainment amenities, comparatively primitive infrastructure and a mostly traditional/conservative worldview, people from fairly developed parts of the world will not be happy here.Then again, if you want to live directly and authentically, if you find the world becoming too sophisticated in that all the technology promised to simplify your life is adding layers of incomprehensible yet required technique, jargon and hardware, Wyoming may appeal to you.Mecheweamiing: Upon the Big Plains part 7A Personal Voyage (this isn’t for everyone either, it’s very long)Part one is:An eye-opening experience.October, 1979, north of GlenrockThomas Jefferson thought most US residents of the west would be largely self-sustaining. He little imagined how quickly the last wild places would be settled and how unproductive much of the land was and is. It’s an historic trend that many third generation members of farming and ranching families have left agriculture for other livelihoods. Though corporate acquisitions happen here in Wyoming, most people I know feel they work directly for their living. Notwithstanding I’m on a salary, mostly I know I’ve done a good job by how my clients reward me; it keeps me humble yet also inspires me to excellence. In addition, I’m recharged by looking at remarkable landscapes through their eyes.October, 1979, above Glenrock Southern Baptist ChurchHow did I get here? This will take some time. Dale Palmer was a welder who’d worked oilfield in Alaska and Wyoming. I knew him from Michigan earlier. His family welcomed Angelo and I into their home in Glenrock, and, for rent, his wife Delores packed us lunches and fed us. Oldest child Lisa whose room we were in since she moved in with her boyfriend took us to Alcova Reservoir behind Casper Mountain and around in his company car that had its own phone! Our ambitions were high; if we could land the right job we had it made! However, an AS degree/two years of college didn’t mean anything to hiring agents. At Haliburton, long before I’d hear of Dick Cheney, I recognized equipment and told the interviewer I could use it for titration and other analytic work but it soon appeared we were unqualified. A trip to a uranium mine in Shirley Basin was unproductive. An interviewer in a room at the Hilton in Casper criticized Angelo for not wearing a tie. The test they gave us was full of psychological traps meant to reveal unfavorable mindsets, I learned years later in a course in testing and assessment at teacher college. Finally, after he’d resigned himself to work at Burger King, we took a job inspecting pipe. The Scanalog was a semi-trailer sized x-ray machine for detecting flaws in oil pipe. Our 12-hour days were full of mindlessly carrying bulky machines and sorting pipe or erecting framework for feeding the heavy pipe into the scanner. When the rig was to move to a derrick site was when money in the form of per diem was to increase. As a stepping stone to eventually working on a well site, the job was educational. A missing finger here, a twisted limb or limp there among coworkers told unintended stories. Maybe I was just a pampered, Midwestern greenhorn with no appetite for real work, but it seemed to me that if we ever became real roughnecks, our lives would be literally in the hands of unseen heavy equipment operators on who knows what drugs or booze out on the plains where the wind never stops. Perhaps I was mistaken, but none of this felt overseen by OSHA. So, we choked. Thankfully we got a job in road construction! Education continued.I didn’t know this was called a patrol.The History of Motor GradersThe history of motor graders, from horse-drawn machines in the 1800s to the first motorised graders, the dawn of the Caterpillar era and today's modern graders.https://www.khplant.co.za/blog/article/history-motor-gradersIt’s true, I was a 20 year-old, unskilled and ignorant newcomer; this was my introduction to the real Wyoming. At predawn with a pale glow on the horizon, the wizened grader driver who would take us to the site didn’t say much as he appraised the new recruits. “Hold this,” he said, of a breaker bar set against a tooth on a front end loader before whanging on it with a sledge hammer. He drove us to the end of the road where we were given a work truck and we sharpened stakes, measured the distance across the grade and hammered them in the ground.At lunch time we listened to Paul Harvey. Somehow, I lost my keys and had to remove a pane from the camper half shell window to get in back to where I had a spare; remember I’d talked about consequences of mistakes? It could have been worse but one thing led to another; I had to take the locking gas cap off with a wrench and, before I could get it replaced, the tennis ball substitute still let contaminant of some sort in so that I had to replace my fuel filter, in the cold wind. That reminds me, in an earlier installment I described the linguistic root of the name “Wyoming.” In my sub-conscience, I was already formulating that it must mean “land of air-born grit.”We moved up. He drove an asphalt roller and I took weight slips from the gravel truck drivers to eyeball and give a thumbs up where they should dump first one load then the other after crossing over the line of prior dumps. Then, they all went away, to get more loads, and I was alone, working on memorizing lines for the play I’d be in, “Everyman,” from the 15th century. When the gravel was all down, I moved to cleaning grates on and scooping piles from under the belts of the crusher.October, 1979I wrote about this time:While waiting 30 minutes at a time for the gravel trucks to return, I was utterly alone in what appeared an ochre Martian landscape; I fully expected to see Tharks astride thoats ‘neath the hurtling moons of Barsoom. Later, working around and on a gravel crusher, I imagined Wyoming as Arrakis and my workplace a spice refining crawler. That was me as a twenty-year old; Go back 140 years (180 from now) to imagine what Oregon Trail emigrants must have thought of the inhospitable landscape they had to cross south of here if possible.Now, we weren’t city kids. But we weren’t Wyomingites either. We should have washed out and gone home. However, in that my purpose is to describe the real Wyoming, I have a pretty authentic perspective. There was a time when nobody was from here. Yes, the ancestors of the First Americans made it home but seniority didn’t do them much good in the face of encroaching newcomers. Settlers came from points east or from Idaho after having come from the Midwest or farther east and they figured out how to make it work or they didn’t. Robert Miller came over Teton Pass in a covered wagon in 1888 to be a forestry officer. I imagine that didn’t pay so great. He became a banker, eventually getting called “12% Miller.” It must have worked. 19 year old Charles Wort came from Kearney Nebraska in 1893 but he’d been born in Evanston Illinois. He was a hunting and fishing guide and his sons built the Wort Hotel in 1941, predicting the rise of tourism. I know his great grandchildren. Their father sells American Indian jewelry, much of it from the Southwest. I’m currently writing about the Real West/Real Wyoming for a future chapter. What I’m saying is we all start somewhere and my tenderfoot tales are meant to shed light on how an outsider could plug in to become a local, invested in my community, though never a native. My kids are natives; the best I can say is I got here as quickly as I could, when just a year older than Mr. Wort was. It was a gutsy leap into the unknown. But I’ve known natives who didn’t appreciate where they were born, who couldn’t wait to leave. Some worked with me at the state visitor center who didn’t know how to tell directions or much about their history. An old timer said he never went up on the mountains because he “never lost anything up there.” I get it; meat and potato pragmatism. Recreation was for the wealthy. But, as an ambitious formerly penniless 20 year old in Casper, I could say that native also never found anything up there either. It is by challenging our comfort zones to confront the unknown that our boundaries are expanded, as did Miller, Wort and John Colter of the Lewis and Clark expedition to become the first European American to see the Tetons.It’s in this that I feel qualified to tell the moving-to-Wyoming story. It really happened; like Han Solo said to Rey, Finn and BB-8: “It’s true, all of it,” all the romantic bunkum, but not without a lot of hard work; Angelo left after six months.Dale warned us to get Wyoming plates right away. While Michigan plates weren’t quite the cop magnet as were Colorado’s (“them ‘greenies’ come up here, steal all our firewood and kill all our antelope”) it was good local advice to us. So, at the Natrona County Courthouse in Casper I screwed on a white plate with a fence, broncbuster and number 1 on it. The 23 counties in Wyoming were numbered in 1930 for the strength of their economy or mineral resources, back then. Fictitious county 24 is Absaroka County, home of Sheriff Walt Longmire; bottom of the heap. 23 is Sublette County, southeast of me. With the Pinedale Anticline and Jonah Field of natural gas, it may be currently the biggest extractive money maker in the state.€uroplates License Plates | North America | United States of America | WyomingRegular license plates Special license plates Specialty license plates Military license plates More information on current Wyoming license plates can be found on the web site of the Wyoming Department of Transportation .https://www.europlates.eu/license-plates/north-america/united-states-of-america/wyoming.htmNext, he took his sons and me on a pronghorn hunt near Jeffrey City. Yes, everybody knows they’re antelope, except, genetically, biologically, they’re not. However, colloquially, socially, they are, with big Dr. Evil air quotes — it’s the same as bison and buffalo. This is why born and raised Wyoming Quorans will tell you I’m very much still an outsider here, especially living in Jackson Hole. Well, there’s two sides to that, why I wrote above about authenticity. It’s not about political correctness; the fastest land animal in North America and the heaviest (bison) don’t care what you call them, but it has to with precision. I’m the son of a librarian. There’s a species difference between the 91 true antelope mostly in Africa and the animal that reminded settlers of them in the same way wolves are not jackals, though both are canids; it’s why London Ontario isn’t London England. Anyway, genuine Wyoming settlers brought with them knowledge and experience from their earlier lives; the same is true today.I didn’t have a hunting license but was glad for the experience. After hearing a series of distant pops, a herd ran in front of my location as fast as the wind. Books say they can run 40-50 mph/64–80 kph but I’ve clocked one alongside my vehicle years later at 60/97; some rangers say they can go faster. It was majestic. Dale, Troy and Tim showed up with the kill and we drove to a creek to dress it. Dale explained you need to get the skin off and the guts out quickly to cut down on the gaminess. I made a stew from meat from that hunt that was undeniably gamey leading me to assume it’s just the nature of the beast until my daughter bagged two that were grass fed and stalked on her belly so they didn’t run, didn’t get adrenaline through their veins, which turned out to be not gamey at all.Capturing SpeedShot of the Month – December 2014 The Pronghorn is a one-of-a-kind, American original.  Though we sometimes call it the “Pronghorn Antelope” or “American Antelope,” an…https://www.despines.com/2014/12/31/capturing-speed/Angelo was feeling culture starvation, something many newcomers to Wyoming suffer, even near what was being called the biggest town in the state (I don’t think Casper ever topped Cheyenne but that’s what they were saying in 1979.) He drove to Denver to catch Hertzog’s “Nosferatu the Vampyre,” which would never come to Casper, and “Apocalypse Now” which would. On the return trip a sudden snowstorm closed I-25 necessitating him to hole up for a night. This is normal in Wyoming.I went camping in the Laramie Peak area with a church group. It was good exposure to Wyoming outdoor recreation not related to the Tetons or the Wind Rivers. Another time, with the Palmers at Ayre’s Natural Bridge, we were on top when a rattler gave its warning only to be smashed by a rock by Tim; this was all part of my introduction to the real Wyoming, whereas, I’ve always a been a live and let live person and still am.Ayres Natural BridgeOpen: Seasonally April 15 - October 15 Phone: 307-358-2244 Crafted by the hands of Mother Nature, Ayres Natural Bridge, located just south of the Oregon Trail, is one of only three natural bridges in the United States with water beneath. Tentatively Opening APRIL 15, 2021 Ayers Natural Bridge and Park is a beautiful public park nestled in the bottom of a stunning red-rock canyon just 15 minutes from Douglas. It's only five minutes off I-25 and totally free. This location is a favorite site for group events like outdoor weddings, family reunions & company picnics. Rafting, hiking, mountain and road biking and fishing are all popular activities. Considered one of Wyoming’s first tourist attractions, scenery seekers enjoy this breathtaking wonder that includes a picnic area, playground, hiking paths, a sand volleyball court, fishing areas and horseshoe pits. The Natural Bridge is a great location to enjoy photography and a picnic lunch. It is considered one of Wyoming’s first tourist attractions, drawing trail weary pioneers seeking reprieve from rigors endured along the Oregon Trail. LaPrele Creek flows beneath the rock formation, creating one of only three rock archways in the nation that span water. The angles associated with the natural rock archway will challenge even the most experienced photographer, but the rewards are breathtaking. Camping Camping is available onsite including a limited number of spaces for recreational vehicles under 30 feet in length. No dogs are allowed in the park. Getting There Take I-25 to Exit 151, about 10 miles west of Douglas. Then turn south and follow the signs!https://conversecountytourism.com/do/natural-bridge/Angelo and I saw classical guitarist Angel Romero perform at Natrona County High School and the Kelly Walsh High School perform “Anything Goes.” Before long I’d be substitute teaching at both locations and assistant track coach at NCHS. He and I were young people from an unincorporated town of fewer than 1,500 people. This was our biggest city dwelling experience and still is for me; he now lives in Hollywood. Casper was a 30 minute drive from Glenrock but before long we’d relocate there by way of Evansville. But first, we’d had shirts made up like Tim had with “Deadrock, Wyo” on their fronts. We were stretching our wings being mostly out on our own for the first time. Frank Langella was playing a sexy Dracula on the silver screen, we caught a theatre version at the Casper College who’s director loaned me Middle Ages attire for “Everyman.” Somehow inspired to enter a Halloween costume contest, I created a werewolf outfit that won an award (a t-shirt: “most unusual,” pretty lame) in which I terrified poor Tim right out of his bed onto the floor later that night; thankfully he didn’t remember it. On Saturday mornings “Star Blazers” was on the tube while we did housecleaning. Radar’s last episode on “Mash” came and went.Sometimes I’d drive to Casper on Highway 26 along the North Platte River. Cottonwood trees turning colour along that autumn was magical. K2 radio regularly played “Longer” by Dan Fogelberg, “Bright Eyes” by Art Garfunkel from the “Watership Down” movie, “Ilia’s Theme” by Gerry Goldsmith from “Star Trek: The Motion Picture,” “September Morn” by Neil Diamond,” “Two Ships that Pass in the Night,” by Barry Manilow and “Cool Change” by the Little River Band.We saw “Animal House” and discussed mindless, creature comfort vs having a conscience in a very serious world. The news of unrest in Afghanistan was frightening. The next year the US would boycott the Moscow Olympics; we feared we were going to be drafted. We watched K2 television for updates and we felt certain the dippy weather personality must have been intimate with a producer to get her job as she didn’t seem to have any professionalism in her delivery. In the dark before going to work we caught the morning show on TV. I remember Christy Brinkley dancing to Herb Alpert’s “Rise” where time lapse photography only showed every half second or so of her movements.Deadrock had been fun but Angelo and I aimed at working and living in Casper in conditions perhaps less noisy and less frigid. I auditioned to be a singing waiter which, while it was a blast practicing Christmas arrangements I’d known for years with their staff, was educational as I didn’t prepare an upbeat piece, only “You’ll Never Walk Alone,” and didn’t get it; I was clueless about marketing myself. Earlier, I’d played and sang “Four Strong Winds” at open mike night at a bar west of Glenrock and made the mistake of accidentally dressing exactly the same as the regular band, red shirt, black vest and pants, and performed to an empty house. Dale said I should have done some Jerry Jeff Walker. I got hired at Benham’s Supper Club and Angelo at the Ramada where he got creative wearing a short wig over his wet-down longer hair. We found a basement apartment in Evansville where I got a small fish tank, read HP Lovecraft and we put posters on our rooms’ walls. On nights off we’d go cruising on CY Avenue to the sound of The Cars on his stereo. Downtown, on Center Street, was a building with a neon BPOE sign. We had no idea who or what the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks was but we’d yell out the window going by “Bi-Poe-ee!” often while wearing Groucho Marx glasses with mustache and brows; we were twenty and the world was our oyster.In the restaurant it was imprinted on me to Never Ever leave a coffee pot with less than a cups worth in it, no matter what. Good lesson, thank you Jaimia. I practiced my Spanish with the dishwashers who called me “Cabron” which I assumed was in camaraderie but it was actually a putdown. Bette Midler was starring in “The Rose” and we also saw “Star Trek The Motion Picture” and “The Black Hole.” Off the street, we were mystified by stock market ticker display scrolls. Wait, people make a living gambling on upticks vs downturns? In Wyoming? It all seemed unbelievable.There was this rough watering hole north of town where the National Historic Trails Interpretive Center is now called the BT club which made great burritos but where occasional stabbings were said to happen. We equally didn’t fit into the downtown Wonderbar which seemed almost as disreputable. But to illustrate how woefully podunk Casper was is the story of the Studio 9 Discotheque in the “Sky Room” on top of the 1954 addition to the old Gladstone hotel of 1923, on the ninth floor. This was a big deal in rural but “big city” Wyoming. You could see the flash of the disco lights up there from blocks away as entrepreneurs were trying to ride a national craze on its way out, where we heard, “Rappers Delight,” start of another trend that strangely won’t die, yet. We hung out there, tried to be hip, but the whole thing was a joke. It’s the Yellow structure, called the First and Center Building in photo below.Casper Police: No Evidence of Outside Protesters Coming to CasperSeparately, a peaceful vigil is set for 6 p.m. Friday at David Street Station.https://k2radio.com/casper-police-no-evidence-of-outside-protesters-coming-to-casper/“Big Wonderful Wyoming” is what we read on truck mudflaps. But to us it seemed Casper attempted to be cosmopolitan where it was very rough around the edges. Still, as I said, it’s the biggest town I’ve ever lived in. At the time, locals claimed it had 80,000 residents but I expect they included small adjacent communities like Barr Nunn, Evansville and others. Currently, Wyoming’s largest city is the capital, Cheyenne, with 65,035, its greatest number ever.Angelo got a job as a DJ in the Library Lounge at the Hilton, where real books has been glued together to make atmosphere on the walls.A teenaged girl in the Sunday school class I taught was going to Europe the coming summer. I had gone with a chorale in ‘77 and showed her my photos. She said Angelo and I should go along as chaperones; what an amazing idea! I got in touch with the trip organizer who told us to drum up some paying customers and we were in! We made posters to put up at the Glenrock High School, imagining Casper’s two had probably already been tapped, and we set up a night to meet and greet prospective members and their parents but not a single person showed up! Maybe we could have paid our way selling nativity calendars door to door that he supplied to us but with working nights and dancing till closing time, our priorities weren’t in line. Another valid lesson — you don’t get something for nothing.Approaching my first Christmas away from home, we faced an emotional challenge all must pass. We were living hand to mouth though it felt borderline slow-burn frantic. Back in mid October Sweetest Day came and went and I was feeling at the ripe age of twenty that I’d been going downhill, the coming Europe adventure reminding me how happily “in love” I’d been from Florence to Paris, how that “lost love” had been the sweetest person I’d ever known and it had all been “failure” since — this is what the mind does when you’re feeling vulnerable. And now, we were in the real world. I got a ticket for speeding up in my truck too early, before the limit changed. I got another one in Evansville for curbside parking where there was a dip in the curb for a future but not present driveway with only grass behind it. It was ludicrous, I went to court to contest but had no case. The landlord upstairs was no longer friendly, I can only surmise she disapproved of her 8-year old granddaughter coming down to visit with us grown men. Nothing was said but the atmosphere had grown toxic. Finally, New Year’s Eve, yet another ticket from entering an intersection while the traffic light was still yellow assuming it was legal but not in Wyoming! I had read specifically about that in The Ticket Book coincidentally, proving a little “knowledge” can be a dangerous thing.I realize these are tedious even maudlin concerns. I’d like to jump past it to the adventure of really getting into Wyoming, but this was the entry level emotional crisis of being on my own, especially after Angelo left; I’ve said Wyoming can be seen as a place of isolation, even in the big city. I’m setting up the story’s conflict for eventual “success,” or, at least making Wyoming my viable home.Adulting. It’s not all it’s cracked up to be but you can’t hide from it. I wasn’t making money as fast as we spent it upon moving to a new apartment in the city. I went to the bank under the giant white “eggbeater” where they gave out plush “Andy Antelope” dolls to new clients to ask about a loan. “We’re sorry sir but you need to have collateral.” Friends at church went the other way when they learned I had my hand out, “just till I get better situated.” It felt like a crisis to me but it was one I had to surmount.https://trib.com/news/local/history/photos-caspers-iconic-wells-fargo-tower-then-and-now/collection_e8458bbc-b1d4-547d-b763-52635edcdf7c.amp.htmlWe all face personal challenges; I visited Lisa in the hospital after she’d had a procedure performed, another cautionary tale of consequences requiring safeguards. Life stretched ahead of us as a seeming minefield of possibilities. I’ve presented myself to you as a pointed-head geek who should have failed at settling in Wyoming but am still here 42 years later. This is on my mind because my children, Wyoming natives, aged 22 and 18, are figuring out much of this as well but with the advantage of having begun here. There was another child who wasn’t so fortunate. But, the threshold of adjustment will be passed.This introduction is so long because the real Wyoming was settled by all kinds of people. I was and am one of those kinds, for better or for worse. Where my siblings played it safe remaining a few miles from their birthplace, mine is well over the horizon as was the case when people first came here.In 1979 Angelo had turned me on to Elton John’s “Funeral for a Friend” and Roxy Music’s “Love is the Drug” and “A Song for Europe” but in our early Wyoming days he’d request me to play “All For the Best” from Godspell and “Four Strong Winds.”If I get there before the snow fliesAnd if things are looking goodYou could meet me if I send you down the fareBut by then it would be winterNot too much for you to doAnd those winds sure can blow cold way out there…Four strong winds that blow lonelySeven seas that run highAll those things that don't change, come what mayIf the good times are all goneThen I'm bound for moving onI'll look for you if I'm ever back this wayI'll look for you if I'm ever back this wayNeil Young – Four Strong WindsThink I'll go out to Alberta / Weather's good there in the fall / I got some friends that I could go to working for / Still, I wish you'd change your mind / If I ask you one morehttps://www.google.com/amp/s/genius.com/amp/Neil-young-four-strong-winds-lyricsWe were looking for our places to be in the world. I’ll let you know how it turned out.To be continued in part 8, 1980 in Casper, Wyoming: