I’m down with ’No

A pepper tree serenely casts its thin and graceful branches out over the patio, its tasty, crunchy peppercorns in streaming bunches that cascade from delicate, light green leaves. Oh wait, a Fresno is an ASH TREE. Let me start over as soon as I find out how to describe the ash tree.

Fresnos
The ash tree's lush, feather soft foliage makes a hot Summer wind sound like a cool symphony. The leaves grow on dainty green twigs that extend from the harder ones. In autumn, its sweet green leaves turn bright cheerful gold. Quickly they fall, gathering deeply on the lawn, scattering in the wind, flavoring the air. Revealed are delicate white branches that progress from a thick trunks to multitudinous bare twigs. The trunk's stately appearance cast an elegant glow in winter sunsets. In rain, bark's color turns rich dark gold. A most eager tree come springtime, they turn green with new light green sprouts at the first hint of new warmth from a returning sun. In Spanish, such a handsome and friendly tree is indeed known as a Fresno.

I know Fresno ("Freszno") lives in the shadow of two world cities (SF and LA) that sparkle in the mild air of the California coast. Meanwhile Fresno bakes in the searing inland valley sun every summer and sits in cold, stagnant air in the doldrums of the typical Pacific Coast winter while the coastal cities bask in the sun. Even the nearby towns in the Sierra foothills bask in the sun every winter. In fall, dust-laden winds and in spring, pollen choked air cause allergy sufferers fits, while the coastal air is clean.

On Balance, however, the entire Eastern half of the United States, especially the Southeast, sufferers get far worse hay fever than in any place in California. I live and sneeze in Fresno, but my nose never knew true misery until it was taken to Missouri (pronounced Mizzura) in July!

But, the truth be told, Fresno is not a bad place at all. I've always caught a good vibe from the people here, as many visitors to Fresno events will tell you they've experienced, especially events in Fresno's spritely alternative lifestyle communities. If you haven't partied with Fresno's Queers, Faeries and Hippies, you don't know what you're missing. But even Fresno's Red State-ish activities are fun. I'm talkin' Bulldogs football games and the Big Fresno Fair. Then there's Fresno's oldest events in its turn-of-the-century immigrant communities, like the Greek and Armenian festivals, and of course the Mexican immigrant community has brought Fresno Guadalajarana restaurants and fish tacos. YUM!



Exhibit a: The Fresno Reel Pride Film Festival! (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trangender Film Festival)