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Please don’t call it “The” OC

July 1st, 2008, 7:30 am · 10 Comments · posted by Suzanne Broughton, Contributing Writer

…and now something totally un-mom related.

I’ve never heard anyone from Orange County ever refer to it as “The” OC. It’s not like this is the biggest deal in the world, but as a native, it bugs.

It feels a little like media carpetbagging when you hear it called “The” OC on the news or see it on a t-shirt.

I think it’s a lot like when I lived in San Francisco and I’d be at a party and someone would say “Oh, I just love Frisco.” That person would be instantly marked as a poser from Mountain View and avoided for the rest of the night for fear he would start talking about “Kerouac.”

Don’t get me started on my hometown Huntington Beach, oops…oh, I mean “Surf City.”

Surf City Frozen Yogurt? Yes. Surf City Marathon? Okay. I’ll meet you at Sugar Shack in Surf City? Never.

I know it’s just supposed to be a tagline, but I don’t want my memories, my hometown, my life, taglined.

Guy who called me “dude”Okay, maybe I should just get over this–it’s a little petty and adolescent. It just rings untrue in my ear. Like when someone says “Supposably” or “for all intensive purposes.”

It just ain’t right.

(Click on the picture to read story about what this guy said to me.)

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 10 Comments

  • Roxanne Hack says:
    July 1, 2008 at 9:07 am

    If it’s childish, then color me 12, because I HATE when people call it “The OC.” It doesn’t even make grammatical sense — no one would ever say “The Orange County.” It makes me feel so lame that I live here (even though I actually love living in Orange County). And I recently went to Seattle, where everyone is super hip, right? Everytime I said I’m from Orange County, they snickered and said, “Oh, ‘The OC’? How cute!” Grrr. Stupid TV show.

    p.s. I call EVERYONE “dude.” hahaha :)

  • Heather says:
    July 1, 2008 at 11:07 am

    I call it “The OC” sometimes just because I think it’s funny. Stupid - but funny. It’s almost part of our culture now. It may pass though now that some of those tv shows are no longer on the air. Don’t sweat it too much - at least we’re cool ;)

    p.s. Not a fan of “Welcome to _____. Now go home.” The travel & tourism industry brings lots of $$$ to our region. We should be thankful, not telling people to leave.

  • Heather says:
    July 1, 2008 at 11:08 am

    For all intents and purposes, I did not mean to have a gramatical error in that last post. :o

  • Martha says:
    July 1, 2008 at 12:25 pm

    I was stunned in college to learn that there was another Orange County in Florida, and even one in New York! They don’t even grow oranges in NY, do they? LOL Anyway, I recall as a small child thinking there was an orange curtain hung along the LA/OC border because so many people referred to being “behind the Orange Curtain.” I think it will pass honestly, just like the Orange Curtain did. I also dislike “The 909.” It seems derogatory somehow.

  • Roxanne Hack says:
    July 1, 2008 at 12:31 pm

    They probably don’t grow oranges in NY — but we here in Orange County, California, don’t exactly grow oranges anymore either. Remember all those beautiful groves we used to have? Joni said it best: “They paved paradise and put up a parking lot.”

  • Suzanne Broughton says:
    July 1, 2008 at 1:08 pm

    Roxanne-I have an orange grove down the street–going to be new houses soon. I used to be able to pick them as I walked home from school, dude.
    Heather, I don’t like the “Welcome to…” attitude a whole lot either. I was just surprised to see that kind of localism is still around in HB. I think it’s just a way for people to show they’re proud of where they are from, and supposably, HB is a cool place to be from.
    Martha, hadn’t heard “The 909,” sounds silly enough.
    Thanks for the comments.

  • Marcy-myglamorouslife says:
    July 1, 2008 at 2:46 pm

    Oh Orange County- always seraching for some kind of idenity and importantance in the shadow of LA…I think when the TV show came along we were all so flattered that we started saying THE OC all the time. Then we watched…saw that um, most of our lives are NOTHING like that (I said most people- I know some of you live that way!)….then the darn OC Wives came only furthering our reputation as a shallow, flashy, ridiculous people. So now…I do not say THE OC. I say proudly- a 3rd generation Orange County native. And I watch as people react…..they get a look of confusion since I am neither blond, nor tan and I still have my real boobs. I still have my original husband too. Imagine that. I am breaking the cliche I hope!

  • Jenny Angelici says:
    July 2, 2008 at 1:56 pm

    Try growing up in what some people call the armpit of California. Talk about getting no respect – Fresno is always the butt of the joke.

    I don’t care what they call Orange County as long as I’m living in it – especially Huntington Beach – my Mecca!

  • jana says:
    July 2, 2008 at 9:06 pm

    There are worse things than the initials OC. I married one of those unfortunate folks who had the misfortune of growing up in Garbage Grove (Garden Grove). Imagine my humiliation. Have a bitchin summer!

  • Christine Stossel says:
    July 4, 2008 at 9:48 am

    Garden Grove is a pretty little town! Wasn’t it always? They have the best cement decals on the highway, they drink Pepsi, and they have that fun strawberry festival every year. What’s not to like?

    Sometimes I can see a button at the top of the blog that says “Recommend,” and sometimes I can’t. Why is that?? Drives me crazy.

    I moved from DC to Fresno…people said I’d hate it. The “armpit” of California was 100 times more beautiful than the country’s capitol. If you’re anywhere in California, you’re luckier than most of the people in the entire world. I’m never leaving!