I stumbled upon Stockton, CA (my hometown) on wikipedia, and found some interesting stats:
-Central Connecticut State University surveys from 2005 and 2006 ranked the city as the most illiterate of all U.S. cities with a population of more than 250,000.
-In 2005, Forbes magazine listed it as having 6,570 crimes per 100,000 residents[8] — the highest listed;[9] and 0.8% of engineers within total employment[10] — the lowest listed.[9]
As I posted before, I know it's one of the miserable cities in the nation. Sigh. Despite the fact that my hometown sucks the living creativity out of me and I only spend about 7 days out of the year there even though I'm only about 90 miles away, I still spent 18 years of my life there and I have to credit it with helping to shape me into who I am today.
If anything, it certainly makes me appreciate what I have. I've been able to get an amazing education at Cal, find 2 rewarding jobs in the arts, live in San Francisco, and go for another go at higher education in order to follow my dreams. I'm nowhere near where I want to eventually be, but even getting this far would have been super difficult without the support of friends and family back in Stockton.
Additionally, I don't think I'd be who I am if it wasn't for the high crime rate, the poverty, the conservative thinking, the racial tension, and all the other things in Stockton i complain about. When you grow up in that environment and manage to escape it (although is San Francisco all that different?) it makes you appreciate what you have a little bit more.
Hmmm, not sure what else there is to say. Stockton exists as a very complex place in my heart and mind. Hmm, back to work for now I guess.
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Hey Rick, Thanks for the drop by. Hope you're doing good so far. Congrats on the engagement man! I actually have figure painting class with Eve. Pierre, Angeline and I were wondering during the first class if she was your girlfriend. Haha. Anyway, all the best for the semester man!
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