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nct By MIKE PETRIE

Sure, it's a nice place, but the weather is brutally hot. This is how I so often hear the weather in Temecula described. At the Independence Day parade in Old Town this year a woman standing near me said, "Oh Lord! It's so hot. I hate summertime." I felt like telling her, Lady, get a grip: It's mid-afternoon on July 4th and only 79 degrees!

Seems like everywhere I go in Temecula I hear people complaining about the weather. These sorts of comments always befuddle me, since I think Temecula has a wonderful climate. Actually, I, too, sometimes succumb to complaining about the weather ... not to describe Temecula, but Laguna Beach! Surprising? Well, I'm here to defend the weather of Temecula - which I think is close to perfect ... and I think the local grapes in our Wine Country will agree.

My wife and I are lucky enough to have two homes: one in Laguna Beach and one in Temecula. Fact is, we have far more unbearably gloomy, awful days at the beach than there are unbearably hot days in Temecula. Countless times over the years we have woken up in Laguna to May Gray, June Gloom, etc. and abandoned our beachside home in search of sunshine in good old Temecula. Take this year alone: in the 122 days from March through June, the beach (by my count) has had only about 12 full days of warmth and sun. Many of those Springtime days so bone chillingly damp and cold that we turned on the heat at our house. Yet, nobody ever complains about beach weather. We try to escape to wonderful Temecula as often as possible, where the morning gloom usually burns off before noon to reveal blue sky and temps in the 70s and 80s.

Then, abruptly, in mid-July, the beach fog disappeared and the weather turned downright HOT! Think it's hot right now in Temecula? Try living at the beach with no air conditioning! Inside our Temecula home we turn on the A/C and spend the day in comfort, as opposed to sweltering at our Laguna Beach house that heats up on days like this to become downright oven like.

On July 14, as I drove into Temecula, I stopped for lunch at Ye Old Public House (they have a killer Reuben sandwich!) and was the ONLY person sitting outside on the patio. My waiter made it pretty clear that he would prefer I come inside so he would not have to come outside to serve me, and made comments about me being "brave to sit outside in 103 degree weather." Fact is, my car registered the outside temp at a toasty 90 degrees - far from 103 - and a nice breeze actually made sitting outside under the shade quite comfortable. When I mentioned to the waiter the actual temperature, it was clear he did not believe it could be less than 100.

So, Temeculans, listen up: Sure it gets hot some days in Temecula. That's why they call it SUMMER! But when it's hot in Temecula, it's usually hot most everywhere else in Southern California as well. I watched the evening TV news last night as they listed the hottest places around the Southland: Temecula was NOT on the list. I don't think I've ever seen Temecula make that list. And, unlike many other inland spots, Temecula has the relative luxury of breezes flowing in through the passes.

So quit complaining and enjoy your summer!

Michael Petrie is an attorney/author who writes for several local and national publications

Comments:

M. Shee said on: July 26, 2010, 10:42 am: Went to a neighborhood barbeque over the weekend and this weather story was discussed. Most still saying it is way too hot here even though the heat was only 85 that day. Come on people! It's almost august and there have only been 3 days of hotness 90 degrees or more. Where do you find better than that! Of course, they also complained about traffic, lack of good restarants, lack of things to do, etcetera. Sometimes you just cannot win.

Here's Johnny said on: July 23, 2010, 9:06 pm: I actually found the writing refreshing, and it only took me one and a half minutes to read. Nunayurbeeswax makes me look like Evelyn Wood. Thanks buddy.

Clarity said on: July 23, 2010, 2:21 pm: What a great article putting things in perspective! You are so right people act like Temecula is Death Valley when it is just over the hill from Orange County. Laguna ain't too shabby, but in an earthquake, I'd rather be on Temecula terra firma than in liquefaction Laguna!

megs vino said on: July 23, 2010, 12:55 pm: After living in Northern Cal for many years, my husband's job relocated to Southern Cal. We were none too happy about it. Then we discovered Temecula's wineries and green rolling hills - the perfect place for transplanted northerners. We could have relocated closer to his office for a much shorter commute, but living in Temecula seemed well worth the extra drive time. We describe Temecula to friends up north as "Napa, but with better weather! Less rain, more sun."

Oddly enough, so many of the people we've met in Temecula do not share our enthusiasm. Many say they'd prefer living in SD or OC. Personally, i much prefer Temecula. My only complaint with Temecula is the negativity of so many locals. People here could use a real attitudinal adjustment. Look around you ... this is a fabulous place! So it was indeed refreshing at last to read this writer's positive reflections about a place called Temecula. Thank you!

M. Shee said on: July 23, 2010, 9:25 am Temecula is one of the most wonderful, yet under-appreciated places to live in all of Southern California. I don't get why more folks don't get it! I loved this story. What we need are more of theses sorts of stories, pointing out the little things that often go unnoticed about our community. Maybe it will jolt Temeculans into being more appreciative to what a great place in which we all get to reside. Wine Country, lots of open space, good schools, clean air, a great farmers market, historic old town, low crime rate ... and - I completely agree -- GREAT WEATHER!

Moi2 said on: July 23, 2010, 9:14 am hey nunayur - read this post, and lose a couple more minutes... I agree with Mike. Our family gets it's fill of the beach several times a year, and of San Diego Bay (sailing a few times a year). And, we induge in a bit of Carmel from time to time. Wouldn't want any less of it, or any more. We know people who live in those areas, and although familiarity may not always breed contempt, it can certainly numb a person to the quality of any environment. It's all far more enjoyable if taken sparingly. And... whenever we return to our homes in Temecula, Murrieta, and Canyon Lake; our family has a whole new appreciation for what this area has to offer. With the exception, perhaps, of medical care. For that, the middle of the Belgian Congo would probably be preferable to Southwest Riverside County.

nunayurbeeswax said on: July 23, 2010, 8:41 am After reading this, I'm only left thinking..."Well there is five minutes of my life I will never get back again!"

nct By: Mike Petrie

A sunny but brisk Temecula morning. My wife, Laura, and I are lying in bed watching TV, sipping from steaming mugs of coffee, trying to revive ourselves back to life and rejoin the world at large when we see a story on "The Early Show" on CBS that captures our attention: A woman ---- from Ohio, I believe ---- wrote a letter to CBS about her dream of ballooning over Wine Country in California.

The television story is all about her lifelong wish being granted. The opening scene shows the Ohio woman sipping vino at a winery Laura and I instantly recognize as South Coast Winery ---- not more than a few miles from our humble home.

Then the woman is shown getting a massage at one of the local spas, dining at a fine outdoor restaurant overlooking rolling grapevine-covered hills ---- which we also instantly recognize as one of our own frequented eateries ---- and finally, soaring in a hot-air balloon high above some of the most lush scenery anyone could hope for.

The woman, in a subsequent interview, said her lifelong dream has come true: she has been wined, dined, and pampered beyond her wildest expectations ... and finally got to ride in a hot-air balloon over the beautiful Wine Country landscape.

The television story moved me toward a renewed appreciation of our Southern California home. Indeed, the Temecula Valley truly is a beautiful place in which to live. With historic Old Town, lush avocado-studded coastal mountains, colorful hot-air balloons hovering overhead, countless acres of grapevines, and beautiful chateau-like wineries in which to sample the local vino, Temecula is far more than just your run-of-the-mill, newly created communities that proliferate the Southern California landscape.

Temecula has a long and rich history, a burgeoning wine industry and a personality all its own. Indeed, many of our friends from Orange County and L.A. have told us they consider Temecula to be more resort town than suburban bedroom community. Visiting us in Temecula seems like a vacation to these out-of-towners.

Appreciative thoughts of our lovely valley had pushed the sleep cobwebs from my brain. I turned to my half-awake wife to comment on the TV story we had just watched and said, "See, Honey? We live in such a wonderful place, it is the dream of other folks to merely visit here!"

Laura cast a sleepy eye my way, apparently not yet having reached the physical nor appreciative awakening that I had. Responding mundanely while sipping her java, she replied, "Maybe, but I think that Ohio woman needs to dream a lot bigger."

Mike Petrie is an attorney, writer and part timeTemecula resident.

San Diego North County Times