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neighborhoods/la-mesa -- La Mesa
Down from my home in (dare I say) Los Angeles, I visited my childhood neighborhood this morning off the 8 and up the Severin-Fuerte offramp. This little enclave on top and on the side of a large hill between Severin and Murray Drives was an enchanting place to move into back in '69 a few weeks before that family had its way on Cielo and Waverly Drives up north. It always seemed so quiet and somewhat rustic. Having a sleep disorder as a kid, I recall packs of coyotes and an occasional fox in the wee hours running down the street in front of the family's large ranch style home on Hilmer Drive. And it was both funny and special that we had our own Anthony's Fish Grotto right around the corner from us. There were unique places to visit nearby like Mt. Helix and the like. And Grossmont Center was always a wonder to shop at in the days before corporations like Target and Walmart put their stamps on things. Grossmont High was a quarter-of-a-mile-long walk from my front door, and that's seemingly all I can remember about that phase of my schooling: walking to and from it. This was all, of course, before the trolley came in and kind of took away from the isolated charm of the "Jewel of the Hills." Well, if you want to see another kind of jewel, visit my beloved neighborhood of yore. If you hit Amaya, you've gone too far.— August 8, 2013 7:43 p.m.