I like history, so when I find an interesting name for a street, park, school, or building, I'll often do some research to find out who that something was named after.

Recently I was showing a property to a Client because it was surrounded by a Boys/Girls Club, Elementary School, and Middle School. Since they had two young children, age 4 and 6, they were planning to move in and stay for a few years. The name of one of the schools was Oak Valley Middle School:

Oak Valley Middle School

Not only was there not a single oak on the property, but there wasn't a single oak anywhere in the valley, and even calling it a valley might be arguable. I couldn't even find any historical evidence that it was ever covered with oaks.

California has an indigenous oak tree, the California live oak, which could have been planted on and around the school. Instead, there were non-native pine trees and non-native sycamores, both of which require a significant amount of water to remain healthy in our desert environment.

What were they thinking? We don't have enough water as it is. In fact, we're regularly threatened with water rationing. The powers-that-be are encouraging us to save 20 gallons a day, so I've quit flushing the toilet after #1, take a shower only every other day, and don't drink water anymore; I've switched to Coke. Only kidding, only kidding!

I do wonder, though, who does this stuff because it's just too hard to make it up.

 

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4 Comments on What's in a name?

SEP
12
2008
460,957 Points 29 Featured Posts Outside Blog Called Shot Master

That's hilarious.  I recently showed a home on "Quiet Plain".  The home was on the main street of the neighborhood, a very busy street with a major highway one street over & a bus stop on the island in the middle.  I thought to myself, are you serious?  There ain't nothing quiet about this plain.  What an oxy-moron. 
3:16pm • #1

Too Funny!  You want to see goofy community (subdivision) names?  Come to Wisconsin, my friend!  Crystal Ponds has no ponds- it has a water retention pit.  Riverwoods- no river, no woods.  You get the idea!

As far as planting trees that aren't indigenous to a specific area and need excessive water...  that's just plain dumb.  By the way, Jim, I like your blog and will subscribe to it shortly!
3:18pm • #2
169,429 Points 4 Featured Posts

What is in a name?  It seems too many names are copied from projects that are successful.  I am not sure why people can not be  more original.  We see these all over.  In Wisconsin we have Lone Oak, with more than one oak and a lot of pines.  Deer Crossing where they leveled all the woods and chased the wildlfie away.  They should maybe call it deer have crossed.  I live on Wild Rose Court.  I have been here for 7 years and I have yet to see a wild rose.  I do think it is easy to spell. I think that is inportant when buying a home.  It does sound better than, the block the farmer still grows corn.  I used to live on Sea Farer Pass.  Most people thought that was a place sailors went to pick up women.  No one could spell that one.
3:41pm • #3

Sea Farer Pass!  You gotta love it!  We build in a community called Fall's Crossing (in Grafton) and Hunter's Crossing (Grafton, too) was a place we built in a few years back.  I didn't see any hunters out there.
3:49pm • #4


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