I’ve lived in Highland Park the majority of my life. It’s a rather small town stuck in between Glendale and Pasadena. Eagle Rock was nearby too. I went to school here from preschool until I graduated. The town was much more different than it is now. The place used to be ghetto, where the only sounds you’d hear most of the time were the neighbors arguing loudly. It always sounded like a violent domestic dispute but my parents wouldn’t allow us to get involved. It worked out for us too since when it came time for my family to provide a neighborhood symphony, the neighbors never got involved either. My family lived on a hill, it provided a nice view of the street and the hillsides across from us. It was a pretty good deal, up until middle school, where I had to walk home and walked up that hill in the famous California heat. I’d enjoy walking until I reached the hill. When I was in high school, the walks got even longer. Walks from my middle school were ten minutes while walks from high school ranged from thirty to fifty minutes plus the hill. My high school was in Eagle Rock. While walking, I did notice more stores opening up along the streets. On my way home I would usually stop by some for a drink to prepare me for the nightmare hill. I’m actually glad that there are some places to go nowadays too. Before there was nothing of interest in the town, now, I have plenty of choices on where to go eat or kill time on the weekends. I have a bittersweet relationship with this town. It’s pretty boring at first, but it will soon grow on you.