I grew up in New Jersey. Not the part of New Jersey that's been made famous thanks to shows like Jersey Shore, The Sopranos, or even The Real Housewives of New Jersey. I grew up in the part of New Jersey with zero beaches and even less drama. By the time I was 18, I was over it. My teenage angst was further amplified by the fact that in the summer of 2003, I had just broken up with the first boy I had ever loved. I was getting ready to go to college, but I was only going to Pennsylvania. It wasn't far enough away from my humdrum formative years and recent heartbreak. The summer was progressing in a swirl of depression and monotony. I wanted to be far, far away, in someplace like...California.