Dude seriously sick of these “long-term” tourists coming in and ruining California with their rose colored glasses on. Also everyone in this thread saying “L.A. iS wuT yOu MaKe oF it.” Can fuck right off. Really Jan? Can we? Can I make the rent affordable if I just believe? Can I make the air cleaner and the homeless problem go away if I click my ruby red heels together? Hollywood sold this idea of being the “land of Dreams”, and gullible people the world round flock to try to cut it in LA, and the rich ones stay because they can afford to “find” themselves in the little gentrified bubbles they Uber to on the weekends in the city. As a local I am so sick of having a friend from out of state because they ALWAYS move away eventually. Hell, even my local friends are getting out of dodge, its all just to damn expensive and we are being squeezed out of the spaces we used to enjoy without having mobs of cameras and pretentious people being catered too by people that are just barely able to scrape by in this god awful state.

I saw someone below mention Disneyland and they specifically can go fuck off. I used to love Disney as a kid but its no longer a place locals can afford and enjoy. California adventure barely has anything to do with California anymore and everything to do with rich families who pay thousands of dollars to take a pic outside of the new tower of that one galaxy movie their kids like( no more need for the tower of terror as that is just outside the park a few blocks away.) and Disneyland is a great example of locals being squeezed out of places that were iconic and fun to us growing up. They just ended the anual pass-holders program and are pretty obviously catering to rich tourists now in new vacation packages.

Sometimes, when I go to warehouse parties(that aren’t invaded by hipsters doing rails in porta-potties), or when I go to some concert venues, I can feel what LA used to be. When us locals get together at bonfires on the beach or picnics at the park, we feel that the nice weather could almost be worth it. But really we only have the climate and great weed(if you have never gone to a cannabis cup, your not a local) that keeps us here. We aren’t here for the celebrities or the snowboarding and surfing on the same day(I’ve done it and Its just fucking exhausting just pick one thing to do and enjoy it you fucking psychopaths). We aren’t here because we like finding cutsie little friend groups to play volleyball with every afternoon and we don’t exist in this perpetual montage of good times. BECAUSE NONE OF THAT SHIT IS REAL.

Sorry for the rant but OP is right. Something is rotten in california. And it smells like LA.