They call California the Golden State. This is the state where your wildest dreams can come true. Coming from Iowa, this is exactly what I was hoping to come and find out. All I wanted to do since I was in middle school was come to California and live my dream. Now to be here, to experience what California is truly all about; Now I know what everyone was talking about. I can come here and be a totally new person. I can reinvent myself into whatever I want. I can be kind, mean, funny, depressed, or even change my name and be a completely different person. Along with this, dreams and time took me to the best state in USA, California. Ever since I was in middle school, all I wanted to do was be in cinema, or be a part of cinema in any way. or shape. Become someone famous or hang out with famous people. The place people always told me to come to was the west coast, in sunny California! This is the state where all the action takes place, where the movies are made, where the celebrities are seen. Being from Iowa you don't get out much. I grew up in your all-American town. A small town called Orange City where everyone knows everyone. Everyone goes to church, no one mows the lawn on Sundays, and no one talks about drugs and alcohol. Drugs and alcohol are present in the community, but people simply don't talk about them openly. Also, there aren't a lot of movies coming out of Iowa. While my city has made a couple of low-budget films, none noteworthy on any scale of the imagination, it's not like... middle of paper... So far California has truly been my dream location. I reinvented myself into the best person I can be. Lopez says it best: “The most important thing I learned was that I could do pretty much anything I wanted, within reason (16). That's exactly what I'm trying to do now. Be the best I can be. People always said it's the best state to live in. I'm here to say that so far I completely agree with them. Compared to Iowa I'm in heaven! Work cited Rawls, James "California: a place, a people, a dream . "California Dreams and Realities. Eds. Maasik and Solomon. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin: 2005. 11-17.