Huh?

When Korn, Jim Scott, Lloyd Lindsay Young, Starbucks (didn't realize they were Bakersfield-based...oh, wait, they're not) and John's Burgers made the list, it was immediately suspect anyway.

The Airporter bus to LAX

 Pioneer Village

We got a fantastic river that can give you a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

all the Obese women

seeing it in your rear view mirror

Bakersfield High School's history

50 cent hot dogs with mold on the bread from Vest Drug's.

Pioneer Village, CALM, the people, the housing prices, the lack of snow, the lack of traffic.  The list goes on and on.

Oh yeah, my back yard.  It looks like a botanical garden.

A lot of chain restaurants (like Starbucks) were on that list.  That's Pointless Padding in my oPinion.  Haha.  Shorten the list to the 20 or so things about Bakersfield that are unique or special (CALM, Basque Restaurants, wearing t-shirts in December) and then it will mean something.

I read an article in that link explaining why Sam Lynn Ball Park faces the sun.  Thanks for that, it was really interesting.

When I saw this blog I though "Wow, someone is finally going to say something nice about the town."  Wrong.  As usual, only a smattering of people had positive things to say.  I doubt there's ever been a city so full of people who dislike it and yet continue to live here.  Nay, continue to move here knowing it's dismal reputation.  It's simply amazing to me.

For all you criticizers, complainers, whiners, nit pickers, and all around candy a****, why ARE you here?  Whatever reason you are here, that's a positive and you could at least give a little credit for that.

Piffle....what a sorry lot of people who never do anything but complain about their nest.  No loyalty, no appreciation, what a sad lot as well as a sorry lot.  Giant raspberries to the negative ninnies.

I had a neighbor who`s grandson had a friend who once lived in B Village and worked at Sam Lynn Ballpark for 20 yrs and his brother had a freind who`s sister said that B Village use to be nice back in the 50`s but was stuck in a timewarp of ignorance and denial and out of touch with the real world. 

I had a friend who's nephew's cousin had a great aunt who knew an idiot who had a name someithing like muggsy or maggie or something like that but anyway he was abducted by aliens and came back thinking he was smart and clever.  Turns out he was neither but was tolerated by people who ARE smart and clever just so he wouldn't feel left out.

Nancy, speaking for myself, I'm criticizing the LIST, not the city.

Nancy

My friend has a dog who told the corner policeman that this joke is getting old and stale.   The dog said  "when you have the cranial capacity of a demitasse cup you can only generate a couple of jokes a lifetime".     The dog sadly shook his head and continued, "he has the IQ of paste.  That's why he resorts to cutting and pasting other peoples work. " 

Noone..I understand.  But you are in the minority..others degrade the city on a regular basis and never talk about anything except it's flaws.

I did the survey but thought it was a little silly.  The groupings didn't make any sense for the most part.  Starbucks and local bands?  What kind of choice is that?  Did I miss something?  I don't know anything about the local bands and don't drink Starbucks....so that made sense how?

Since most people on the blog either live in Bakersfield or grew up there, it's safe to assume that they like the town on some level. It's my hometown and I will always have an affinity to Bakersfield. Pioneer village is really nice. I try to visit the place at least once a year (hopefully around christmas). One day I would like to write a book about all the characters in my neighborhood and all the funny stories I remember of my childhood.

If you're using the blog as a measuring tool I don't think it's safe at all to assume they like it on some level.  Or if they do, they keep it well hidden.

Nance...it's not perfect, no place is. The air quality stinks, literally and figuratively. The lack of education is appalling. The economic distribution is disgraceful. The lack of vision on the part of city leaders and planners is disappointing. The acceptance, regularly, of mediocrity is disturbing. I recently, for the first time, visited the park at Riverwalk. How disappointing that is. Okay, it's better than nothing, but...people got excited over that? Because we have so few parks? Dirty streets? Pothole-laden streets? A well-meaning graffiti removal program that is overwhelmed? A citizenry that thinks it's terrific to tag buildings and play car "stereos" and shoot off illegal fireworks?

On the plus side, the mountains and the coast are only two hours away, and L.A. is about the same distance. The weather in the spring and fall can be lovely, and the winters aren't really cold, and the summer ain't that hot, compared to, say, Phoenix, or even places like St. Louis. Most folks are friendly, but there's a terrible crime problem and a lot of lip service about respecting law and order while people break those very laws.

Bakersfield could be so much more, and for anybody to come up with a list like they did listing the top 64 things about Bakersfield...borders on satire, I think. At least I hope so.

I wonder if other cities have inferiority complexes like Bakersfield's.  I've been to a lot of the US's cities, and I have to say, if they don't have inferiority complexes, they should.  Portland's traffic problems are a joke.  Seattle is dark much of the year.  San Francisco gives me the creeps every time I go there, and it's not because of the gays--it's everybody else that lives there.  Everything south and west of Kansas feels like a steam room from May to September.  Salt Lake City has a law that no building in the city can be taller than the temple--which looks like something from Disneyland.  Los Angeles is the filthiest place I've ever been, and that's saying something. 

Bakersfield may not be much, but at least it doen't make your skin crawl.

The negativity on these blogs is akin to "in-house" fighting. Most people probably gravitated to Bakersfield.com because they are curious as to what is going on in the old town. Most of the negative comments on this blog are more tongue in cheek or satirical. I think Starbucks is a rather odd thing to like about Bakersfield since it's unique to...the entire world.

At last, a new city motto.

Speaking of mediocrity, I am proud of the overachievers that once lived in this city (Jack Johnson, Frank Gifford, Merle Haggard, to name a few) that overcame "mediocre" or less than stellar beginnings to do some amazing things.

NancyII...I just read your comments and find it pretty ironic that most of my comments, blog posts, etc., are about changing Bak town for the better, and you do nothing but complain about them.  Maybe that is why people complain here, but do nothing here to fix it. 

Btw, are you a negative ninny? ;o)-

If anyone can find me a Nirvana, a Paradise, a Utopia, I'd be tickled to visit it. 

As you said Noone, Bakersfield is not perfect but focusing on the negative tends to drag people down.  I don't want a self fulfilling prophecy mentality in my city of choice. 

The lack of education comment puzzles me...elaborate please.

Pup..you're comments tend to address the pet population and little else.  Are YOU never happy that people agree with you but don't always agree with your solutions?

NancyII...you are right, my comments tend to address the pet overpopulation because I want to live in a community that destroys less than 1,500 surplus pets every month.  I know Bak would be a better place if people knew what was going on here with the pet situation.   This could change if enough people would unite to convince our five county supervisors and seven Bak city councilmembers that we do need a pet protection ordinance here.  And no, I won't be happy about this situation until an effective solution is in place and this large volume of animals stops being destroyed for no better reason than that they comprise the unfortunate surplus.  In June, over 1,700 surplus pets were destroyed -- that is 50+ pets per day, everyday, while we are all living Life as it Should Be...

Prevention is the answer...all other preventative measures have been tried here and yet our euth numbers continue to rise...now it is time to require people to spay/neuter their pets -- and until that requirement is in place, pets will continue to be destroyed at this excessive rate -- this is a travesty.  The people here who speak out against this measure don't even understand the politics behind it.

Is it wrong to look at corruption in government here?  Your mantra is 'Bak is the best' -- so -- no corruption here, right?  If we are criticized for looking at local problems...how are we ever going to fix them?

My comments about the pet overpopulation here includes looking at a gross mismanagement of funds and taxpayer dollars; and local government officials that have turned a blind eye for far too long about this financial and ethical burden that has plagued this community for years.  We destroy more surplus pets here per month than all of Los Angeles -- and we are paying for this travesty in more ways than one.

You and others that stand in the way of progress here are the worst thing about Bakersfield...

My "lack of education" comment was incomplete. One of those cases where I thought I had typed it but didn't.

By lack of education I refer to the very low percentage of college graduates. I believe it's 10 percent or less? I know there are a great many people who go on to higher education opportunities but sadly don't return. Can't say I blame them. I'd be looking elsewhere, too, and will once I retire.

Our very large high school dropout rate is also staggering. I'm sure you've been as frustrated as I have at the rather low quality of customer service and other areas of business. And I don't see it improving anytime soon as our students get worse and worse. Less and less is expected of them and sadly, we tolerate it. Nay, we encourage it.

Our lack of education translates all the way down to cultural and artistic offerings. While there are some brave stabs at raising that, say, via the Bakersfield Museum of Art and the Broadway Bakersfield series and the Symphony, I can't help but recall Alan Tandy's comment before the Rabobank Arena was completed; he said something along the lines of "great cultural opportunities" such as "monster truck pulls and Neil Diamond." Hoo boy.

Snobbish? Perhaps. I don't care for country music though I know we've got some very famous practitioners. How many of you are aware of Lawrence Tibbett? Or for that matter, current day tenor Robert McNeil (though techincally he's from Shafter)?

Bakersfield due to its petroleum and agriculture industries and heritage has always been a blue collar town with a fundamentalist religious bent, a colony from which the masters extract the wealth from the ignorant and superstitious and ship it off. We really don't have the corporate sponsorship here I see in other, similar cities. Look at Tulsa. Or Des Moines. Midland, Texas, or Lubbock, even. We have a minor league Cal State school, one of the smaller ones in the stepchild Cal State system. And believe me, I have been involved in the community from an arts perspective and from a fundraising perspective, and trying to get anybody to contribute money for anything real and lasting is difficult if not impossible.

We're trying. Lord only knows there are some valiant efforts to be made. But the extremely conservative heritage of the city, and the notion that if it isn't commercial it doesn't deserve support, is frustrating for those of us who want so much more.

I know, perhaps I'm trying to sell martinis in a working man's bar. So be it. There are a handful of great things about Bakersfield, but the list of 64 was silly. Start with the six genuinely good things and whittle it down from there.

Nooneisabovethelaw...a very accurate commentary on Bak town. 

And this part was particularly salient:

"I'm sure you've been as frustrated as I have at the rather low quality of customer service and other areas of business. And I don't see it improving anytime soon as our students get worse and worse. Less and less is expected of them and sadly, we tolerate it. Nay, we encourage it.

And:

'...a colony from which the masters extract the wealth from the ignorant and superstitious and ship it off.'   Well said!

And I would add...a community that is destitute of quality leadership because the majority of local public officials here continue to be re-elected by default;  public officials who, along with the masters, extract support from the ignorant and superstitious and have driven our community into insurmountable debt.

Btw, the comment from Tandy was a hilarious classic. ;o)-

How about just starting a list that makes sense?  Why does it have to genereate from the goofy list we were offered?

True this is, or traditionally has been, a working class town and I don't see a problem with that.  Everybody has to be some place.  As for snobbery?  I dunno.  I don't consider myself low class but I don't care for opera nor do I enjoy ballet.  I've never been to a broadway type production more out of laziness than anything.  Or a moderate lack of interest.  I do enjoy art.  I enjoy reading.  Not all things are for all people no matter what city they're in or what social class they circulate in.  I'm not a big music person in any way so what does that make me?  A clod?

I guess the constant negativity about Bakersfield is what irritates me.  I'm retired and can move anywhere I like.  My family is here but I also have family in TN.  I have family in Phoenix.  I'll soon have family In Vegas.  I love mountains and the ocean and the climate in other places.  The cities where those things are found have thier problems too.  Corruption, greed, lack of planning, heavy traffic, overpriced real estate, high food costs.  They all have something to dislike.  I'm always amazed at the people who move here for the lower cost of living and then complain about everything else.  Did they not know the area before they bought or was it greed on their part?

The plus's for me are my kids, grandkids and great grandkids.  The wide open spaces, the proximity to any terrain anyone could want, the proximity to all kinds of amusement attractions without having to deal with the traffic and people, more restaurants than I could ever patronize, more shopping than I have money for, more movie theaters than I'll ever visit, a good museum with a recreated village, an animal museum, Hart Park on a weekday, parks in every neighborhood, a fantastic library system, volunteer organizations for every thing imaginable, Lake Ming to watch families boating, metropolitan areas an hour and a half away.  What else do I need?  What else could I want?

Not to worry, more will come to mind.  :-)

Oh my.  I forgot the lacking customer service part.  We were coming through Barstow on Saturday and stopped for drinks at a food court/train place.  The gal behind the counter asked for my order and her co worker walked by and started talking to her.  She answered her, looked at me and as I started to speak the co worker started talking again.  I waited, started to spesk and it happened again.  Between the two of them talking to each other the one was taking my order.  When I finally just stopped, she said oh it's ok, I was listening to you, I can multi task, I've been doing this a long time.  I told her that a customer couldn't be sure who was talking and who was listening.  I think it went over her head as to how very rude it was.

Now, we can blame Barstow for being a hole in the desert and blame their education system for the lack of customer service but I think it boiled down to bad manners, bad training, and a whole lot of I don't give a rats patootie.

I'm still waiting for the names of the utopias.

Here are the greatest things about Bakersfield:

Kit Foxes

Toads

Coyotes

Mocking Birds

Tortoises

Finches

Egrets

Meadow Larks

Robins

Sparrows

Hummingbirds

Roadrunners

Doves

Scrub Jays

Snakes

Scorpions

Skunks

Rabbits

Ground Squirrels

Red Wing Blackbirds

Owls

Bats

Bobcats

Lizards

Opossums

Mallards

Voles

Grackles

Kangaroo Rats

Field Mice

Canadian Geese

Frogs

Beaver!  (The one at Riverwalk, goes by the name of 'Target' -- if he isn't dead yet).

Nancy...I didn't know you were using Barstow as your template...that explains your perspective on Bak.

Nancy wrote: True this is, or traditionally has been, a working class town and I don't see a problem with that.  Everybody has to be some place.  As for snobbery?  I dunno.  I don't consider myself low class but I don't care for opera nor do I enjoy ballet.  I've never been to a broadway type production more out of laziness than anything.  Or a moderate lack of interest.  I do enjoy art.  I enjoy reading.  Not all things are for all people no matter what city they're in or what social class they circulate in.  I'm not a big music person in any way so what does that make me?  A clod?

No, it doesn't make you a clod. I agree everybody has their own likes and dislikes, but I suppose for me it's a question of balance. Take music: rock, country and gospel are easily found here. Quality classical music is nearly nonexistent, the best efforts of the BSO notwithstanding. I don't expect to have a world class orchestra, per se, and the Community Concert Association does the best it can with its budget (which is surprisingly good), but local theatre (live) offerings are for the most part terrible. Ballet? Forget it. The BMOA is very very small in scope and range. There aren't a whole lot in the way of offerings for the likes of me. Move somewhere else? Yes, that's an option. But I'd rather make this place better, first. Now, granted, that's going to be my idea of better, of course, and what I'd really like to see is more in the way of quality and variety in all offerings, from shopping to dining to the arts.

Nancy also wrote about the things she likes: The wide open spaces, the proximity to any terrain anyone could want, the proximity to all kinds of amusement attractions without having to deal with the traffic and people,

Such as?

more restaurants than I could ever patronize,

Boy, that's the truth, especially Mexican. Unfortunately most of the local ones aren't exceptional. Many of them aren't even very good.

more shopping than I have money for,

But, for example, compare the Macy's at Valley Plaza to a Macy's elsewhere. The merchandise here is lacking. It's as if we're the clearance rack for all the rest of the stores' junk.

more movie theaters than I'll ever visit,

Currently playing only a grand total of 12--an even dozen-- of first run movies. Add in the $1 theatre (which is actually a $2 theatre...not sure how they get away with that!) and it's up to 18, though of course the six have already played at the other three theatres.

a good museum with a recreated village, an animal museum,

And both quite good and commendable.

Hart Park on a weekday,

Ha. Skip it on a weekend, though.

a fantastic library system,

Number one, it ain't that grand, and number two, it's about to have its budget slashed so most of us can't visit unless we go during work hours. Not a viable option.

Nancy, I don't have any utopias. Every place as you and I both noted, have their advantages and disadvantages. I just see during my travels other smallish cities that have done and seem to do a lot more with their resources than we do. Or they have far more resources. And when we do something worthwhile with our resources -- say, the Aquatic Center -- ads appear on the radio criticizing council members for voting for it. Ridiculous.

The foot-dragging on fixing this city's transportation problems is also beyond ludicrous. I have at times wondered if the council members all live in the city and never get stuck in the traffic mess of trying to get on and off 99, or surface streets, during our rush hours. I guess not, or they'd have done something about it long ago. Instead, we get a free way that dead ends at a second-rate shopping mall.

Noone..you and I aren't so far apart, we just differ on wants and needs.

Pup, are you related to maggie?  You make the same nonsensical remarks and you really need to broaden your own perspective.  Where you got me using Barstow as a template is beyond me, other than your determination in your sweet kindly phony manner to insult me.  You can surely do better than that.

Wasn't it you just yesterday that referred to "ad hominem?"  Tsk tsk.

The B Village suits the mentality of it`s inhabitants, Everything Noone has stated is reality but if you have not experienced a city with a higher society other than a quick visit (tourist) then you do not have a basis to judge...therefor you are ignorant of the fact that B Village is a clearance rack of society, B Village didn`t earn the name " armpit of California" by being a village of culture and reasoning...it is what it is, and anyone who wants to move up and be amunst a real society does move away to live a full life.

Another great thing about Bakersfield: In only two hours or less driving time in any direction, you can get married.

maggie, we are indeed fortunate that you don't live here full time.  Bakersfield is beautified by your absence.

So therefor in less than 2 hours driving time you can have a conversation with a person from a real civilized world with intellegent up to date thoughts and opinions to stimulate a persons mind and restaurants also ? Probably shopping also and all this is outside of Korn County....in your dreams...My grandson`s sister`s neighbor said that you can find all that in the City of Barstow and she was in the shopping/ restaurant business for 20 yrs so that is a fact..

Maggiepoop, if you hate "B Village" so much, why are you on here everyday talking to B villagers?

Maggiepoop, you are too funny today. 

Ignorance...

Hate is not the right word, but you are excused... more like a slight pity for the ones who dominate the agenda and have the attitude that there are good things in B Village, and maybe there are for them, there was for me 40 yrs ago but by stopping time and living in a vacuum of 1950`s all that is happening is a slow creeping backwards and a decay of the mentality and vision needed to cope with and excel in todays world, hence the problem no one leaves because they can`t make it outside and the ones that do never want to return...why would they? 

From today's Californian:

Developers are facing stiff increases in fees they pay to help government build roads, parks and other amenities that serve their housing tracts, shopping centers and office buildings.

"This is going to complement things," Turnipseed said. "There are still going to be developer fees and they're still going to go up. The (transportation) needs are too great. We're 20 years behind."

Well, who knows? When one of the most Neanderthalian types finally gets it and might actually do something about it....

Just as I suspected, maggie and pup ARE related.  Or at least kindred spirits.

We have three strip clubs, now Barstow cant beat that!