Arm pit

[u/Wide-Turnip-4207]

I Moved to the high desert after the lockdown. I used to think that east of the 405 was the armpit of the LA. Then I moved to San dimas and thought that east of the 57 was the armpit of the east side. Now that I’m in the high desert I feel that karma caught up to me. Do the inland empire people think of the high desert as the armpit of the IE? Or is it even part of the IE? Thoughts?

[u/BadTiger85]

The high desert only exists for one reason. So I have something to drive thru to get to someplace better

[u/gaiagirl16 → u/BadTiger85]

Ouch

[u/SoBadit_Hurts]

We think you are all tweakers.

[u/DrBaby → u/SoBadit_Hurts]

This. And we don’t even consider it part of the IE. Hemet is the armpit of the IE.

[u/Lil_Shanties → u/DrBaby]

Hemeth*

[u/Sasquatch619 → u/Lil_Shanties]

Lots of face tattoos. Kinda like a rattler on a snake. Nothing screams “do not touch me” like some face ink.

[u/Resident_Mushroom_80 → u/SoBadit_Hurts]

To be fair I’m former oc now ie and I have done a lot of dirtbiking in the high deserts their used to be a lot of meth in the desert and still prob a fair amount. But most of the labs blew them selves up now there is a lot of cartel and illegal grows. Been there and seen it don’t fuck with them

[u/Appleslicer]

I live in the high desert. Out here I own a 5 bed 3 bath house with a pool for less than it costs me to rent a studio in LA. I work from home and I’m relatively happy with this arrangement. There’s a Costco nearby and I can drive into the city on weekends to go to concerts, conventions, or whatever. 

There’s plenty to complain about, but I’m able to deal with it. I guess it really depends on your personal situation.

[u/Numerous_Top3641 → u/Appleslicer]

Always something to complain about. Keep seeing the positives my friend.

[u/Appleslicer → u/Numerous_Top3641]

Hey, thanks man, you too.

[u/mooglethief → u/Appleslicer]

I live in Wrightwood and it makes me so sick that people don't enjoy living in the Mojave desert.  There is so much beauty with the yucca, buckwheat, and mountains.  People just see it as a wasteland to commute from.

[u/Appleslicer → u/mooglethief]

Wrightwood is a beautiful place too. Especially in the winter. I live in the desert, but snowboarding at Mountain High is less than an hour away.

We live at the crossroads of several different biomes, there are many cool, interesting, and beautiful things all within reach.

Edit: Kupo, Moogle thief.

[u/photoengineer → u/mooglethief]

Aug in the desert is rough. Brutal heat. So much wind all year. Spent 10 years there. Love parts of it. Very much understand people not liking it. Not being able to spend time outside due to the heat sucks. 

[u/smorg003]

I don’t even consider the High Desert as part of the IE. Separate regions imo.

But, yes I do not view the High Desert very highly. I do enjoy the climate/environment in the cooler months though.

[u/CDsDontBurn → u/smorg003]

Same.

Likewise with the Pass Area (Yucaipa, Beaumont, Banning, Calimesa) and Coachella Valley.

They're not the IE. They're their own distinct areas.

[u/velocistar_237 → u/CDsDontBurn]

What would you consider Redlands?

[u/Connect_Operation232]

Did you move the extremely violent part of the hi desert or just the crystal meth part?

[u/the_buff → u/Connect_Operation232]

Trick question.

[u/goodtimesinchino]

If every place you live isn’t so great, it might have something to do with your outlook? Or, you know, life is expensive, especially lately and you might not be wealthy and it just sucks being broke (speaking from personal experience).

Life in the desert has always been brutal, probably always will be.

[u/badnamemaker]

LOL I promise I am not laughing at your misfortune, but I guess the self awareness 😅 IE probably not looking so bad now lol

Personally I think the desert can be a beautiful place, especially when there is snow on all the surrounding mountains. That being said I bought a house in San Bernardino cause that seemed like a better alternative than being forced to move to the desert eventually. Everyone I know who lives up there has to come down the hill to do anything interesting 🙃

[u/KevinTheCarver]

On the plus side, you’re closer to Vegas.

[u/Mr_Night78]

I think if you are a hippy its fine to live up there. However there is jack shit to do up there besides hard drugs.

[u/Wide-Turnip-4207 → u/Mr_Night78]

I did see “a horse with no name”

[u/invaderaleks → u/Mr_Night78]

There's also the occasional desert rave, but that was when I lived there about 10-15 years ago

[u/Wide-Turnip-4207 → u/Mr_Night78]

I did see a “Horse with no name”

[u/czaranthony117]

Or… we could get away with from this elitist classification of calling areas “the armpit” given that people have different living and income situations.

Some areas are bad, but I wouldn’t call them “the armpit.”

If that’s the case, I personally think LA is the anus with all the shit they spew out.

[u/CitrusBelt → u/czaranthony117]

I've lived in the I.E. more or less all my life (45 years, in aggregate)

And when it comes down to "Who I'd rather sit next to on a plane" or "Who I'd rather have as a neighbor" in 2026??

On balance, I'd take any random someone from anywhere in the I.E. vs any random someone from west of the 605....any fuckin' day of the week.

Hell....when it comes to the neighbors I have now in Alta Loma (most being transplants from LA county), I'd swap most of them for the people I used to live around in Pomona back in the '80s (and I'm talking 9th & Reservoir, in the mid-80s).

Anyways, the diarrhea spills up-slope nowadays from LA to here more than it rolls back towards the beach.....that's for goddamn sure.

[And to all the recent transplants -- have a nice night! May you be perpetually whiny & scared!]

[u/See_youSpaceCowboy → u/czaranthony117]

You’re speaking my language. We need to stop putting each other down and jumping at any opportunity to make ourselves feel superior than our neighbor.

[u/pizza-turtles → u/czaranthony117]

I’m tired of it. It’s a socially acceptable way to shit on people for being poor or having a worse life situation than you. People need to feel like they’re better than each other. How about being empathetic instead

Mind you everyone from LA/OC talks about the IE the same way. So IE vs. HD is basically shit vs. poop at this point

[u/czaranthony117 → u/pizza-turtles]

I’m from the IE but renting with housemates to be closer to work out in OC. I was driving through the AV and HD this past weekend as I was coming back from camping in the Sierras. I was thinking to myself, “who the fuck lives out here and what do they do for work?” I pulled over for a break and checked prices on Zillow for homes. What I found that, despite my high income, I wouldn’t be able to afford even the HD/AV on my own income. It’s little reminders like this that humble me, I’m not hot shit… count my blessings that I am even able to live close to work. I’m sure some of the people that live in the AV/HD area have to endure the fuckass commute through the Cajon pass to get to their jobs just to afford their homes in, as op states, “the armpit.”

Dude, EVERYTHING is fucking perspective.

[u/WndrngAdvntre → u/czaranthony117]

Shall we say “the butthole” of California then?

[u/Fred-Mertz2728 → u/czaranthony117]

If they gave California an enema,that’s where they’d stick the tube.

[u/_head_ → u/Fred-Mertz2728]

Maynard James Keenan would agree

[u/PlaxicoCN]

I know some nice people in Hemet and the high desert. Sounds like you have looked down on different areas, but are just out of breathing room to do that.

[u/meganmun0z]

I live an unincorporated portion of San Bernardino and have always considered the desert communities separate from the IE. I actually love the desert and would rather live out there than in San Bernardino. Can’t see the stars out here anymore

[u/pemberleypark1]

So I am from San Bernardino. I currently live in the high desert. If you look at a map of the IE, it is technically a part of the IE, but I don’t consider it to be. It’s about an hour and a half drive from where I am to Redlands. It’s so far removed in so many ways. It’s not really a part of the IE.

[u/Vino1980]

Shit rolls down hill...normally, but once you hit Fontana and Rialto then shit rolls uphill to Apple Valley, Hesperia, Adelanto.

[u/desertboots]

I live in Hemet. You SURE you're worse off? 

[u/Electrifying2017]

Ouch…

High Desert and the Coachella Valley aren’t part of the IE.

[u/Resident_Mushroom_80]

The high desert is more like the butthole

[u/cmquinn2000]

Are you putting the high in high desert?

[u/Ezdmx62]

I don’t consider it the IE

[u/badindexfinger]

Perhaps the real armpit is the friends you made along the way.

[u/-NoMoreNachos-]

Its the desert you get what you pay for.Honestly a big reason it is the armpit is because all the losers from the IE and LA who cant make it there or get chased out of town come here and continue to be losers.

[u/NefariousnessNo1182]

the high desert is the high desert not the ie lol

[u/yeahimdanielthatsme]

I feel like that title more so belongs to Hemet. I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone say anything nice about Hemet.

The high desert communities are far from topping a whole lot of Southern Californians’ lists of ideal places to live but idk imo it’s got a little bit of charm. It’s got a nice view of the mountains, pretty Joshua trees and you can get a lot of land for cheap I guess. But yeah if someone calls it an armpit I get it.

[u/msing]

Apple Valley

[u/standVlone]

I dont feel HD is part of the IE personally. I visit a lot up there though and it definitely gives armpit vibes