For me, at least, the trip to La Quinta (aka, the "new" Palm Springs) to scope out a vacation home was not really a waste of time, because I learned that...well, it's just not the lifestyle nor setting I prefer. Put another way, I'm both astonished and disappointed at my seeming ability to dive head first into a shallow pool. And now, I need to carp and niggle a little, just to work it all out in my mind.You see, my big dream of finding that quiet, affordable mid-century design desert hideaway with a pristine, sparkling swimming pool suddenly faded as we were shown vacant house after vacant house after vacant house in both open communities and walled developments, all of them built on or near well-watered golf courses. (Never mind there was no sign of a natural water source within 150 miles.) This is a community that flies in the face of reality: its main features are man-made lakes, waterfalls and other Disneyesque water features. It boasts hundreds (maybe thousands?) of acres of private thirsty golf courses, walled developments and members-only clubs, fancy restaurants and fast food eateries with no drive-thrus (how tacky is that), and building construction regulations that prohibit unique designs outside the ubiquitous sandstone-and-cream colored faux mediterranean and adobe rip-offs.
The "new" desert lifestyle -- with its casinos, clubs, golf carts and cantinas -- is not for us. Will we go back? Perhaps, but just to visit. And if we do, I won't be looking for the impossible dream. And Elliott promises not to say, "I told you so."
