*Marin County. A puzzle wrapped in an enigma? Who knows. Marin County and it's people have many…read morefaces (or should I say facets). What I do know is that I developed a large part of my world view in Marin County. I moved there from Southern California (just in time to start High School), from a small hardcore redneck high desert agricultural town. What I encountered was something very different than what I had known.
The first obvious observation is Marin County's beauty. Rolling hills, emerald green in winter and spring, golden brown in summer and fall; an old growth redwood forest; pine and oak groves; breathtaking views of the Pacific Ocean, the Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco Bay, and San Francisco all from a designated recreation area, the Marin Headlands; Pt. Reyes National Seashore. Listing the beauty of Marin easily exceeds my attention span and writing ability.
Another aspect of Marin is it's many and varied outdoor opportunities. Pt. Reyes Natl Seashore has hiking, biking, horseback riding, and camping possibilities. I still remember an overnight camping trip when a bunch of us Junior's and Senior's hiked to the coast and spent the night camped on the cliffs above the ocean. On the way out the next morning,moving more quietly on the way out than we did on the way in, we crossed paths with Elk, not too mention the many bird species that we startled or simply watched us pass by. Mount Tamalpais, barely a mountain by comparison to the Sierra Nevada, but Marin's mountain. An incredible view of crescent-shaped Stinson Beach; hiking; mountain biking; hang gliding; picnics, and wildlife watching. The trails down to the ocean are a treat that not many other locations can offer.
It is a paradise of natural beauty and wonderful opportunites and the people are something unique in their own right. Of course, people are just people, but this is where I learned many non-classroom things. The people can be as discerning of their marijuana and cocaine as they are of their French and California wines. Hot tubs are meant to shared au naturel with friends,old and new, young and old. Sexual orientation other than heterosexual is not a crime; it's just what it is and although The City openly wages political and social battles to show our country that being gay is normal, in my Marin world, it was just accepted.
The music and the musician's! Legend's of music living in and casually passing through Marin as if they are just regular folk. True story: I'm hanging out at a San Rafael music store playing around with amplifiers and guitars. This guy walks in and chats with the owners then picks up a Strat and starts playing around. He turns to me and says let's do some 12 bar blues and I say ok. I play the bass lines to his guitar licks and he puts the guitar away, says thanks, and walks out of the store. On my way out (I'm 16 at the time) I innocently say to the owner's, "Hey, that guy was pretty good." They start laughing and tell me I was just jamming with Sammy Hagar. Incredible? Naw, just Marin.
Anyway, the beauty of Marin is undeniable. The outdoor opportunities are endless. The wealth in some places is ostentatious. The poverty is minimal. The open space lands are plentiful. The people are generally open and accepting and enlightened. I haven't even begun to address what Marin is, but I've listed some of it's positives. Nowhere is perfect and Marin is no exception to that rule, but it is an excellent place to take a deep breath and take a look around and think about things that float across your mind while you're floating on your surfboard at Stinson Beach, floating in your kayak between Angel Island and Richardson Bay or floating in a hot tub with friends.
*Props go to Rachel's Live With Me In Marin thread for reminding me of my Marin days. And of course everyone's experiences and mileage will vary on this one.