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Not entirely sure what the connection is but over the years I have met a disproportionate amount of people from Bakersfield who call Baja their full/part time home. I tell everybody that if you haven't eaten at Luigi's at least once in your life you are missing out.

If you are from B-Town, spent time there, passed through there, know somebody from there or even just heard of the place you will probably understand some of this and appreciate the humor...

A tribute to the quaint town of Bakersfield, California... loved by some and despised by most...

You will park a mile away from the entrance just to have your car parked under a tree.

Instead of people thinking you're "rich" for having leather seats, they think you're stupid.

You laugh when people complain about 95 degree weather.

You're bored one day, and decide to go to Six Flags Magic Mountain.

You're not worried about the big "California fires" cause by the time it gets any closer, they close the Grapevine.

You've seen the "Stairway to Heaven of lights" while coming back to Bako at night on the Grapevine. You know to call it "Bako" and why we call it that.

You know what "White, Ming, Rosedale, Calloway, and Panama" mean. When you go out of town & you see a sign saying "Union Ave" you expect to see a hooker.

Rosedale is a world all its own.

Rosedale ALSO needs to be turned into a sitcom. And if you live in Stockdale? yeahhh OC aint got NOTHIN on us baby. Okay except an ocean.

You remember the TWO times in the last 25 years that it snowed in Bakersfield, and you remember everything you did that snow day.

Everyone always says they're going to leave, but you know that if you try, you get sucked right back in.

You take the "California Roll" at a stop sign to a whole new level.

You know where all the "haunted houses" are when Halloween comes around

You know what an "08er is", where "the Dale" is, and what a "Dalion" is.

You know Trouts, and were not talking about the fish.

And then people who actually MADE it out of this city sit here & laugh at these because they know they're TRUE

One of your friends owns a house on a spot where you had field parties in high school.

You know the ingredients in a George's Special, or have ever had a "Black and White" for lunch.

You get mad every time you see "Best of Times" when Taft wins at the end. ...or... you get mad every time you see "Best of Times" because who the heck are the Bakersfield Tigers?

You comment on how expensive Mexican food is in any other city in the country and how terrible it tastes.

You have even offered someone a Dewar's Chew from a bowl on your coffee table.

You know if you're not a Luigi's at exactly 10:30 Saturday morning you're not getting a steak sandwich.

You claim to hate LA but go there at least every other month.

You have even debated the merits of water skiing at Lake Ming versus Buena Vista.

You have to explain to friends from out of town what animal a tri-tip comes from.

You think beans and salsa go with everything.

You think a restaurant is chintzy if it doesn't come with soup, salad, spaghetti, and fries.

You think a red light is just a suggestion.

The best restaurants in town serve pickled tongue! .

You think $600 a month for rent is way too high.

You know a swamp cooler is not a happy hour drink.

You know the pool can be warmer than you are.

You realize that Valley Fever isn't a disco dance.

Anywhere that takes longer than a 10 minute drive is way too far.

You think you're better than people from Fresno.

Someone mentions "the fair" and your thoughts turn to Cinnamon Buns, First Christian Church caramel corn, and Boy Scout potatoes.

You have to "explain" to someone about Beach Park.

You complain about how boring Bakersfield is, but still make fun of people from Delano, Taft and Tehachapi.

Someone from out of town talks about how foggy it is and you tell them, "Just wait."

You swear that just last week there was an orchard where there is now a whole development of houses.

You drive just as fast on a foggy day in December as you do on a sunny day in June.

You no longer associate bridges or rivers with water.

You actually get these jokes and pass them on to other friends from Bakersfield

You have way to much knowledge about Kern County and in particular "The Streets of Bakersfield".. funny you did not mention Wasco and how could you leave out Weed Patch

Spent sometime on the "Streets of Bakersfield"... good folks, always like working around farmers

Lots more could be added...

Woolgrowers


The Blackboard


Jack Smith


Fox Theater


Baker Street


KC Steakhouse


Alley Cat


Frank Gifford


Oilfields



And much, much more...

Buck Ownes and Merle Hagger... a place one could get down in a County bar with a bunch of "goat roping Okies" and have a good time... like you said either one liked it or hated it... used to have a darn good time in Bakersfield a long time ago

Can't image what it is like today... but, thanks for the memories.. just did a flash back to when I was in my early 30's...

Never met Merle but had the opportunity to see his place out on the Kern River after he sold it and moved to Oregon. He had a pool shaped as a guitar.



Buck I did get to know. We were both members at Seven Oaks CC and his locker near mine. Played golf with him several times - he rarely played more than 5 or 6 holes and would give (and take) mulligans with generosity. I remember seeing him out on the old hole number 12 before the course redesign/expansion - a short par three - just hitting ball after ball at the pin when the course wasn't busy.

He was a true gentlemen and kind soul.

Buck's Crystal Palace was a great spot for dinner and entertainment as I remember.




Did you ever go tubing down the Kern River in the summer time from the Kern River Golf course down to Hart Park? We would make as many as four runs on a good day with an ice chest in a tube pulled in tow.

Great times and memories...

About as close to Buck and Merle was the jukebox...

Used to drive by Bucks place on the way up to fish on the Kern River.. at least that was what I was told.. never saw where Merle lived

Never got into the Kern other than to fish.. was a bit of a "killer" had a healthy respect for it's slow looking, but powerful currents

Thanks for all the pictures.. really nice

All I can remember of Bakersfield is getting stuck there many moons ago on the way to Ensenada, with both the Grapevine and the Tehachapi pass closed for several days, due to one of those freak late winter storms. Spend the days roaming downtown and visiting the local saloons. Must have sold us some local rotgut, because, even as seasoned imbibers, had trouble surviving the following mornings. But, I'm still here. Can't say that about my, then, partner in crime however. Don't think it was the Bakersfield whisky that did him in though.

While Bakersfield was the vibrant hub, much of the San Joaquin Valley had the same vibe. It was the influx of Okies (a misnomer in that it included many from Arkansas and Texas) of the dust bowl era that gave the area its flavor. And while thinking about Merle and Buck, let's not forget that "Bakersfield Sound" and the artists wearing outlandish costumes. Maddox Brothers and Rose, anyone?

Originally Posted by Bajahowodd

While Bakersfield was the vibrant hub, much of the San Joaquin Valley had the same vibe. It was the influx of Okies (a misnomer in that it included many from Arkansas and Texas) of the dust bowl era that gave the area its flavor. And while thinking about Merle and Buck, let's not forget that "Bakersfield Sound" and the artists wearing outlandish costumes. Maddox Brothers and Rose, anyone?

Absolutley correct, was a jumping place .... outlandish, yeah I guess your right.. but fun

Originally Posted by edinnopolo

All I can remember of Bakersfield is getting stuck there many moons ago on the way to Ensenada, with both the Grapevine and the Tehachapi pass closed for several days, due to one of those freak late winter storms. Spend the days roaming downtown and visiting the local saloons. Must have sold us some local rotgut, because, even as seasoned imbibers, had trouble surviving the following mornings. But, I'm still here. Can't say that about my, then, partner in crime however. Don't think it was the Bakersfield whisky that did him in though.

If you made it a few days drinking in Bakersfield, you got the stomach of a billy goat

Sorry about your partner in crime.. but, looks like to might be carrying on for him a bit... and good for you

Originally Posted by Bajahowodd

And while thinking about Merle and Buck, let's not forget that "Bakersfield Sound" and the artists wearing outlandish costumes. Maddox Brothers and Rose, anyone?

They all played at the Blackboard...

Back in the 60s there was a Chevy (I think) dealer dealer in Shafter with the tag line "You'll get what you're after on the outskirts of Shafter". Used to raz the Shafter coeds about that.

Originally Posted by BajaGringo

They all played at the Blackboard...

Kinda reminds me that Bonnie Owens actually was married to both Buck and to Merle, just not at the same time. After she divorced Haggard, she continued to tour with him for decades. Weird fact- Bonnie died less than a year after Buck did.

Can't remember the car dealer in Visalia ..... but had his sign on 99..

"If I don't sell it ... you don't need it"