Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Let's do something about it
Over the next few weeks, I want to compile a list of California products, made in California by Californians. I want to do this for myself and I want to do this for all of us. I want to buy when I can California made products. So please help me put this list together by sending me your favorite California made products.
I Love California
It's big and diverse. The weather is mild and beautiful most days of the year. California is more than the big cities of Los Angeles and San Francisco where so many of us live and work. It's full of small towns and wonderful people. People flock here from all over the world for the weather, for the work and to enjoy themselves on vacation at our beaches, in our mountains and walking through our museums. It's more than our rich culture and endless opportunities for pleasure.
It's my home. It's truly a melting pot of culture and diversity. We learn to live together here. Not always perfectly, but we do. We work hard to stay in our jobs: from the high tech sectors in Northern California, to the Central Valley Agricultural Workers, the entertainment industries, the tourist trade and countless manufacturers through-out our vast state. What do we all have in common? Our jobs are leaving. We are losing our homes. We are struggling to make ends meet.
We've been hit hard with the economic downturn. I think it's time that each and every of us pull together to improve our condition. I think it's time we use the few dollars we have left to choose California made products.
I started this blog today after spending a week looking for a skateboard for my grandson's birthday. I went to several local skate shops. I went to Dick's. I went to Sport Chalet. I looked on the internet. I asked a lot of questions. I always ask a lot of questions. That's just who I am and I needed to understand what was cool and what was not cool so that I could uphold my reputation as a cool grandma.
What I found out shocked me. Skateboards, even the most expensive boards are no longer made in California. I remember when skateboards were invented in Venice Beach by kids on the boardwalk. I also learned which boards are for tricks and which ones are good for cruising and that "design is a personal thing with the boarder".
The least expensive good board that you can be purchased is $100. A good board is described to me as "not being purchased at Walmart and including Canadian maple wood and non plastic wheels and good trucks with good bearings". When I asked where a $300. board was made, I was told China. When I ask are there any US manufacturers of skateboards, I was told no at several stores by several clerks. One skate shop clerk told me that the trucks are still made in the US, but he didn't know where. I was also told by several that they really didn't know for sure, because they were not labeled. "But, I'm pretty sure they are made in China" the young skater/clerk told me. So I ask "So, Element, Birdhouse, all of these big brands send Canadian Maple to China and cut out a board, decorate it and ship it back to California for sale? The answer I received was unamious yes.
What did I buy? I opted for a good board and had it assembled at the shop. At least I employed a California guy for a few minutes for all my hard earned money. I can't wait to give it to my grandson Saturday at his party. But, I would be much happier about it if it was a California made skateboard and not a "good board made in China". Either way I'll be a hero to my grandson. But, these days, I want to be more. I want to buy things that are made right here by my neighbors so that they can turn around and buy things from me. I want California to get back on track. I want my grandson to have a good job when he graduates from college someday so that he can buy "good skateboards made in California"
It's my home. It's truly a melting pot of culture and diversity. We learn to live together here. Not always perfectly, but we do. We work hard to stay in our jobs: from the high tech sectors in Northern California, to the Central Valley Agricultural Workers, the entertainment industries, the tourist trade and countless manufacturers through-out our vast state. What do we all have in common? Our jobs are leaving. We are losing our homes. We are struggling to make ends meet.
We've been hit hard with the economic downturn. I think it's time that each and every of us pull together to improve our condition. I think it's time we use the few dollars we have left to choose California made products.
I started this blog today after spending a week looking for a skateboard for my grandson's birthday. I went to several local skate shops. I went to Dick's. I went to Sport Chalet. I looked on the internet. I asked a lot of questions. I always ask a lot of questions. That's just who I am and I needed to understand what was cool and what was not cool so that I could uphold my reputation as a cool grandma.
What I found out shocked me. Skateboards, even the most expensive boards are no longer made in California. I remember when skateboards were invented in Venice Beach by kids on the boardwalk. I also learned which boards are for tricks and which ones are good for cruising and that "design is a personal thing with the boarder".
The least expensive good board that you can be purchased is $100. A good board is described to me as "not being purchased at Walmart and including Canadian maple wood and non plastic wheels and good trucks with good bearings". When I asked where a $300. board was made, I was told China. When I ask are there any US manufacturers of skateboards, I was told no at several stores by several clerks. One skate shop clerk told me that the trucks are still made in the US, but he didn't know where. I was also told by several that they really didn't know for sure, because they were not labeled. "But, I'm pretty sure they are made in China" the young skater/clerk told me. So I ask "So, Element, Birdhouse, all of these big brands send Canadian Maple to China and cut out a board, decorate it and ship it back to California for sale? The answer I received was unamious yes.
What did I buy? I opted for a good board and had it assembled at the shop. At least I employed a California guy for a few minutes for all my hard earned money. I can't wait to give it to my grandson Saturday at his party. But, I would be much happier about it if it was a California made skateboard and not a "good board made in China". Either way I'll be a hero to my grandson. But, these days, I want to be more. I want to buy things that are made right here by my neighbors so that they can turn around and buy things from me. I want California to get back on track. I want my grandson to have a good job when he graduates from college someday so that he can buy "good skateboards made in California"
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