But I have never had the privilege of unhappiness in Happy Valley. California is about the good life. So a bad life there seems so much worse than a bad life anywhere else. Quality is an obsession there—good food, good wine, good movies, music, weather, cars. Those sound like the right things to shoot for, but the never-ending quality quest is a lot of pressure when you’re uncertain and disorganized and, not least, broker than broke. Some afternoons a person just wants to rent Die Hard, close the curtains, and have Cheerios for lunch.

"annexed Hawaii Puerto Rico and Guam and invaded Cuba and then the Philippines becoming a meddling self-serving militaristic international superpower practically overnight. Her writing has been publiSarah Vowelld in The Village Voice Esquire GQ Spin The New York Times Los Angeles Times and the SF Weekly and Sarah Vowell has been a regular contributor to the online magazine Salon. In 2005 Vowell served as a guest columnist for The New York Times during several weeks in July briefly filling in for Maureen Dowd.

Sarah Jane Vowell (born December 27 1969) is an American author journalist essayist and social commentator. Often referred to as a "social observer" Vowell has written six nonfiction books on American history and culture most recently Unfamiliar FiSarah Vowells which was publiSarah Vowelld in 2011. She was also the voice of Violet in the animated film The Incredibles.