modesto

well- its been almost 6 years since i’ve lived in modesto-
there are tons of things that i don’t miss:
allergies, the heat, gang members, hicks, the smell of slaughtered cows-

but there are tons of things that i do miss- here’s what first comes to mind:
:: first b
:: bonanza books and comics
:: o’brien’s market- especially when they BBQ with chaka’s
:: mills avenue
:: MJC stadium
:: davis vs. downey football game
:: yesterday’s books- still the best bookstore ever!
:: J street
:: roseburg square
:: sock hops on graffiti night
:: live music on the weekends at the “new downtown”
:: the library- it still beats any library we have in san jose
:: beckwith road
:: graceada park on earth day
:: stouffer park- but that’s in ripon
:: hischer nursery
:: putt-putt
:: firework stands! they aren’t in the bay area!

as far as places to eat:
:: smokey’s
:: velvet creamery
:: david wong’s china express
:: the yogurt mill
:: hof brau
:: shaved ice at california ice factory!
:: brighter side- best sandwich shop ever
:: garcia jo-jo’s!
:: la morentita!
:: the taco trucks- i’m getting hungry!

places i loved that are no longer there:
:: mondo java- it was a cool coffeehouse before coffeehouses were cool.
:: modesto mike’s
:: regency game palace
:: tilt- is it still there?
:: the cow playground in the mall
:: royal ice-cream- in roseburg square- one of my first jobs!
:: wherehouse records
:: the beat music

while i lived there, i thought that certain places were super-cool, until i moved to the bay area and discovered that they had those everywhere.
but here is a list of spots in that category:
:: barnes and noble- i met lars ulrich at the modesto barnes and noble!
:: borders
:: starbucks
:: the mall
:: chili’s

since i’ve left they’ve added tons of things that were never there while i lived there:
:: panda express-
:: galletto’s
:: and my mom’s shop: queen mab’s- right next door to state theater- go visit her!

it’s a charming town- and i’m glad that i got to live there for so long-
i don’t really see myself living there again- but when i am i town i’ve got a long list of things that i want to do while i’m there, people i want to see, and restaurants i want to eat at!

hey former modestans! what do you miss?