“Country Music”byJenn Durfeyis licensed underCC BY 2.0
Sacramento happens to be right smack dab in the middle of plenty of farm towns. The city is filled with people who escaped from their little cow towns to move to the big(ger) city. Many Sacramentans are still country at heart and stay true to their country music loving, cowboy boot wearing and crop growing roots. Even those who aren’t country lovers still reap in the benefits of the farming culture, with Sacramento declaring itself the Farm to Fork capital of America a couple years back. While Sacramento is no longer a farm town itself, it’s still full of people who love anything and everything country.
“004_11-11-2014 Sacramento Kings Captain's Meeting”byDanny Bollingeris licensed underCC BY 2.0
Sacramentans just absolutely LOVE their sports teams. While there are many devoted fans to other popular Northern California teams (hello San Francisco 49ers), the locals here are particularly crazy about their Kings. While the basketball team can, admittedly, be a royal pain sometimes, Sacramentans stay true and loyal to their team. Fans proudly don their purple and silver year round, in support of their beloved Kings, come rain or come shine.
“Fro-Zen-Yo. Great froyo haunt in DC!”bym01229is licensed underCC BY 2.0
Sacramentans just go crazy for fro-yo. You can find a frozen yogurt shop on practically every corner, full of locals chowing down on the delicacy. Unsurprisingly, it’s not uncommon to hear Sacramentans arguing over which shop has the best frozen yogurt in town, but whether you prefer Yogurtagogo or Big Spoon, there’s no denying that Sacramentans just absolutely love this treat. And who can blame them? Given yogurt’s soo much healthier than ice cream, you can eat as much of the sweet as you want, guilt free, (even with the addition of cheesecake bits, candy pieces, chocolate syrup and a mountain of whip cream). Right? Right.
California is often seen as having plenty of shore line and oceans everywhere (again, thank you Southern California)--but this isn’t entirely true. Sacramento isn’t very close to the beach, but locals don’t mind. In fact, they’ve got plenty of river spots for everyone to enjoy. I mean, who needs the ocean when you can swim, boat, and tan right along the river? Most Sacramentans have their very own “secret” river spot that they frequent throughout the summer and use for all their drunken, boat hopping, red solo cup toting parties. Of course, it can sometimes come with a price--the dreaded Sacramento river rash. But don’t worry, most Sacramentans also tend to have a secret remedy for river rash. Hey, it’s all part of the river fun experience!
Sacramento residents tend to adore Sacramento one day, but despise it the next, establishing the very definition of a love-hate relationship with their home town. It’s pretty common to hear a local complaining about Sacramento, stating it’s boring or that there’s nothing to do. But, if you’re not from the city, make sure not to join in on the Sacramento bashing, because residents tend to be a proud bunch as well. That same person who complained about Sacramento will likely turn around and defend their city in a heartbeat, with more resiliency than a mother bear defending her cub. Despite what they might say amongst each other, Sacramentans think their city is awesome, and much better than yours.
Sacramentans side with their other fellow Northern Californians when it comes to the idea of those infamous Southern Californians. They turn their nose up any mention of having to share their state with their neighbors to the South, and just can’t stand the rap that SoCal has brought to the entire state. It’s often said that Northern and Southern California are practically two distinct states themselves but, for whatever reason, Southern California happens to lend its stereotypes to the entire state. When most outsiders think of Californians, they picture a bunch of faux tanned, bleach blonde, surf going, “duuuuude” saying people--which is not true of most of California, especially the upper part. Sacramentans have had enough of it and would prefer if you don’t associated them with that part of California.
Sacramento is home to a city of drivers that have some serious…well…character. Okay, let’s face it--Sacramentans, as a whole, are just downright terrible drivers. Red lights, stop signs and speed limits are just a mere suggestion to Sacramentan drivers. And don’t be surprised if another driver honks, yells, or makes a rude gesture towards you when you have the right of way. Don’t get me wrong, they’re nice people in general, just try to catch them on the sidewalk before they evolve into their monstrous road-raging selves.
It doesn’t matter how long you’ve lived in Sacramento or how many times you’ve traveled through the city streets; if you’re a Sacramentan, it’s likely that you still can’t find your way around downtown. Who cares that the city primarily uses letters and numbers on its street signs for efficiency? There’s just something about the downtown area that causes locals to lose all sense of their direction.
Sacramentans will just chuckle when any visitor states that they plan on getting to the airport hours in advance. Locals know there’s no point in arriving at the Sacramento airport any more than 30 minutes before their flight, and even then you’ll likely have to wait around. It’s usually easy to breeze through the lines and get to your concourse in no time.
When the weather starts to slip beneath 70 degrees, it’s a clear sign for Sacramentans to break out their winter gear and start brewing the hot cocoa. Sacramento may not get as cold as several other US cities, but weather is all relative, and the winters in Sacramento are a far (and much chillier) cry from their blazing hot summers. You can’t blame locals for wanting to bundle up in down jackets, winter boots and scarves when the temperature drops. Because, when those fall leaves begin to turn, you know the weather’s about to get COLD (or, to most other Americans, a bit nippy).
