The serious side to California

We've been traveling through California for three and a half days and I've seen that there is an extremely serious approach to life here.  In Healdsburg where we went to the farmers' market this morning they are seriously eco-aware.  At one booth they sell shopping bags made out of plastic garbage. They take the plastic sacks that birdseed or animal feed comes in and create these cute and practical shopping bags.

And they make others by weaving together the plastic bags from grocery stores.  This girl is showing the different colours made by various bags from big food stores.  What an excellent idea.

Then there is the gorgeous produce, which comes at all times of the year.  This young woman seems very serious about her squashes.

And just look at these seriously colourful gourds and persimmons.

Once south of San Francisco we encountered Southern California's serious approach to playing.   Here are some surfers (of all ages) on a sunny Saturday morning contemplating the surf....

And this woman was skateboarding in her bare feet.

The beaches are for fun but they have some very serious rules as well.

We came through Santa Cruz and had lunch at at a seriously vegetarian restaurant called Saturn.  Check out the pink leather banquette seating and the out-of-this world lighting.  Underneath the table was a serious collage of political slogans against proposition 8.

And in this store that sells seriously high end clothing there's a sign that supports PETA, explaining that they do not sell anything with animal fur.

I tell you.  You have to be serious about a lot of things to live well in California.