i would love more than anything to move back to San Diego or anywhere else in CA for that matter, but alas, my industry is not there, and the cost of living (for what you get) is so much greater in Atlanta. i moved to central FL after CA, then up here to Atlanta, which was like...moving from perfect weather year-round with cold ocean and no seasons, to living in a humid swamp with warm beaches and no seasons, to living in a place with warm summers, cold winters, occasional snow, no beaches, and four very distinct seasons. i must say: i truly do love having seasons, but i really do miss the beach (don't miss the wildfires, earthquakes or mudslides though!)
i used to live in Poway, until around 1990. our house there backed up to mountainous terrain which was totally unsuitable to growing, and the yard wasn't much better - in fact, when you walked out our back door, you could walk for approximately 20' before hitting a steep dirt incline for the next 30' deep or so. the house was right at the corner of Roberto Way and Luis St (92064), which is off Pomerado Rd (where Twin Peaks Dr. becomes Camino Del Norte).
to this day, I still do not know what those mountains and/or park behind our house was, but it still shows on a satellite map. the things I do remember are...the ground was hard as rock, orangey colored, and broke away in pieces like shale...you couldn't get grass growing for anything...there were big snails everywhere, the kind you'd eat...we'd get some fierce Santa Ana winds...and I miss my neighbors, although the one I missed the most apparently moved to AL recently, so he's right around the corner, relatively speaking.