10 Habits That Embarrass Californians the Second They Leave the State

A Californian steps off the curb in Nashville, mid-block, no crosswalk in sight.

A pickup truck lays on the horn, and they don’t even flinch.

Back in Long Beach, crossing the second the street looks clear is just what people do.

These are the habits Californians carry out of state without noticing until somebody points them out.

1. Ordering “Animal Style” at Any Burger Counter

A Californian orders a burger animal style without pausing to think about it, no matter which drive-thru window they’re idling at.

In-N-Out has served the grilled-onion, extra-spread version since the 1960s, built for regulars who kept asking for it off menu, and the phrase stayed a California thing.

Protein style works the same way, a burger wrapped in lettuce instead of a bun.

Neither term appears on a menu board outside the chain.

Blank stare.

A teenager working a regional burger counter in Ohio has no idea what a Californian just asked for, and the explanation takes longer than the order should.

2. Dropping and Covering at the First Rumble

Californians drop before they’ve even decided to.

Every rattling truck, every slammed door, sends a flicker of “is this the one” through a brain trained by years of earthquake drills.

Schools across the state run “drop, cover, and hold on” drills every year through the Great California ShakeOut, and the reflex sticks for life.

A Californian visiting a state with real thunderstorms ducks under a doorway the moment thunder cracks overhead.

The locals just watch the weather, and nobody moves.

3. Saying “Hella” Without Thinking

Californians, especially anyone who grew up in the Bay Area, drop “hella” into a sentence the way other people use “very.”

The word traces back to Oakland slang from the 1970s and spread from there over the following decades, according to KQED, the Bay Area’s public broadcaster.

Hella good. Hella late. Hella far.

It works its way into ordinary conversation without an ounce of self-awareness.

Say it in a meeting in Ohio, and a coworker asks what “hella” is supposed to mean.

There’s no good short answer.

4. Sorting Everything Into Three Bins

A Californian stands over a single trash can in a hotel lobby, looking for two more bins that aren’t there.

California requires households and businesses to separate food scraps and yard waste from regular trash under a statewide law called Senate Bill 1383, so a green bin for compost sits next to the blue recycling and the black landfill can outside nearly every home.

The habit runs deep.

Coffee grounds go one place. Cans go another.

Nothing about one bin catching all three feels right.

A Californian in a state without curbside compost ends up carrying an apple core around for ten minutes, hunting for a bin that matches the one back home.

5. Bringing Your Own Bags Before Anyone Asks

Californians reach for a tote before the cashier even rings up the first item.

The state banned single-use plastic bags at checkout back in 2016, and a stricter law that took effect this January closed the loophole on thicker “reusable” plastic bags too, per CBS 8.

Paper only.

A decade of muscle memory means Californians keep a stash of totes in the trunk without thinking about it.

Hand one a plastic bag at a grocery store in another state, and she hesitates before taking it.

6. Turning off the Tap Mid-Lather

Californians shut off the water while they're still scrubbing their hands, out of habit more than necessity.

Years of drought orders trained the state to treat water like it might run out any day.

Lawns went gold instead of green during the driest years, and state officials went as far as calling a brown lawn a badge of honor rather than a mistake.

Habits don't reverse overnight.

A Californian standing in a shower in a state that never worries about water still cuts the stream short out of pure reflex, and the host of the house wonders why the water bill looks about the same as always.

7. Stepping off the Curb Without a Crosswalk

Californians cross the street wherever it looks clear, crosswalk or not.

A 2022 law called the Freedom to Walk Act stopped police from ticketing pedestrians for jaywalking as long as no car is in immediate danger of hitting them.

Crossing mid-block became routine.

Step off a curb the same way in a state that still enforces jaywalking, and a driver leans on the horn while a police officer eyes the crosswalk twenty feet away.

The Californian just shrugs. It's an old habit that never left.

8. Leaving the Umbrella in the Closet

Californians own umbrellas. They just never remember where they put them.

Los Angeles receives around 14 inches of rain a year, most of it packed into a handful of winter storms, so carrying rain gear never becomes a daily habit.

A light drizzle barely registers.

Move to a state that gets more than a passing drizzle, and a Californian ends up soaked walking to the car rather than dig out something to hold over her head.

She'll blame the forecast before she blames the closet.

9. Correcting Everyone's La Jolla Pronunciation

Californians will interrupt a conversation just to fix how someone says a place name.

La Jolla comes out "la HOY-a," never the way it's spelled, and San Pedro gets the same treatment, pronounced "San PEE-dro" despite its Spanish spelling.

Locals learn these the way they learn their own names, without ever questioning why.

Say either one out loud in front of someone who has never set foot in the state, and a Californian jumps in to correct the pronunciation before the sentence even finishes.

Nobody asked.

10. Expecting a Free Scoop of Avocado

Californians add avocado to a sandwich the way other people add lettuce, and they expect it to cost next to nothing.

California grows about 86% of the avocados grown in the United States, so the fruit shows up cheap and everywhere, from taco trucks to diner counters.

Practically free.