Why the Switzerland is So Damn Perfect and Why I'm Happy to be a California Girl

Okay, so maybe it's not Perfect. But it has the cleanest water, air, cities- you could even eat off the floor of the last bus I rode. The country has a history of neutrality, and therefore safety. It also offers financial safety with it's stable economy.
It's great, in a way. Paperwork abounds, but everything is done efficienty and without much delay. And of course bills come silently in the maid a few days later. But how does a whole country work like clockwork?
Up here in the mountain village, everyone is always watching everyone else, and then talking about it. People are always watching. I've had to cut down on my dancing and singing in the streets because "people are watching!". At first I was like "oh who cares? I'm free entertainment for them!" but eventually I realized that these are the people you want to hire me, or sell me groceries, or a flat, or knows some one who would have been able to hire me but then heard I was , well, wierd.
That is the whole mentality of the Swiss! Someobdy is always watching! And their system works, right? Why fix it?
To even apply for an appartment we had to go to the big Cantonal...I don't know what .Offical building. There we recieved a report card which, if we had been naughty girls, would have revealed any offense we ever comitted, be that a late payment or a parking ticket.
So I have come to the conclusion that the Swiss are so fastidious because they're AFRAID. Anything new or diffent is seen as a threat. Anybody out of line with the norms seems to challange the status quo. No one tries anything knew on the menue up here, because the same 7 dishes have always been offered.  Who needs anything even slightly different?
And that is why I am happy to be a Californian girl. I don't know about the rest of America (because honestly if it's not on the Pacific Coast, it's a foreign country to me) but I think Californians have confidence coming out their ears. Perhaps it's taken to the extreem, sometimes. But in general,  California is a place where creativity can thrive. It's a place where you can dream big, try hard, and yes, even make some mistakes! And you can succed! Yes you will indeed!  Look at Apple.
I know California has it's fair share of problems. I am always sad to see the earthly paradise being paved over for yet another computer business. Switzerland does take really good care of their natural resources, but has it's fair share of problems too,- they just hide them really well behind the towering Alps.
I thought everybody frolicked in the meadows barefoot, Heidi-style? Now I know why not every Swiss person is out with easel and paints, painting en plein air every weekend. There are some earth-loving hippies here, but they are not the majority.

Heidi - inspiration for the flower children?  

I am happy to be living here, but I am coming to realize what a gift it is to be born into a culture where anything is possible, where you are told you can achieve your dreams, where you can be who you are, even if that means you want to run around barefoot with dreadlocks, singing off key at the top of your lungs. Do thoese wackos in SF or Santa Cruz really hurt anybody? No! ( Far greater damage is done by big business in slick suits.)
 California has a history of different people living together, or right next to each other, in general peace and harmony (except for those two warfaring tribes in So Cal, but what can you expect in the desert?) Differences don't mean chaos. Change doesn't mean instability. I realize now that it's a choice to be confident, to be yourself. It takes courage. And while I am sure anyone can learn this at any age, I am soooo grateful to have been taught early, even if I am to this day working on it.