Californian born and bread here. Only wannabes call it Cali. Oh and in NorCal we don’t put the “the” in front of the highway numbers and San Francisco has always been referred to as “the city.” “Cali” gets in my nerves, too, although I know this is all in good fun.
It took me a lot of years in SoCal before I put “the” in front of highway numbers, but guilty as charged now.
@cap , I’ve lived here almost 50 years (all except college and a few years post-grad). Until a few months ago, I have never ever heard DMV as an abbreviation for this area, and I’ve only heard it referred to that way on news channels, never ever from anyone in general conversation.
In the same vein, I was surprised when I joined CC to see Michigan referred to as “UMich.” Huh? Michigan or U-M (pronounced U of M), but “UMich?” Just no.
(Sympathies to California natives from a Michigan native.)
“Frisco” and “Cali” have always driven me nuts. It also drives me nuts when tourists call the underground transportation the “Subway.” No, it’s just Muni or BART. It’s not NYC.
Another multi-generational Californian here. My grandfather and his 7 brothers worked as surveyors to map the Sierras and named many of the lakes and mountains. Still, my grandfather loved to call a particular valley YO-se-mite. And they all despised the term “Frisco”.
I never thought I would say “Inland Empire” with a straight face, but don’t think twice anymore.
@Ynotgo, what about “San Fran”? Is that allowed?
Disclaimer: I am totally east coast and know nothing about California or how to be California cool. LOL.
I visited some online friends in S. Ca. in the early 2000’s. Both ladies California natives. They care nothing for any other part of the country. They never ask questions about back east, they never travel back east, no curiosity about the rest of the country at all that I’ve ever been able to glean. Their entire world and center of the universe is California. It just seems like a place on its own way out there.
This issue chia fun thread to read after work.
Having no lived in SF, but never ever called it that f name.
When I lived outside LA, I would say I,lived in the foothills.
Very few people had heard of Caltech when my son went there. His principal questioned why he would go,so far for a state school. And it bothers me when some people write CIT. just no
Now, tourists to FL are recognized by their white pants, the madras, and sandals with socks. They also run around n bathing suits with flimsy tops, even going to nice restaurants Did I mentioned the sun burns?
It’s easier to use the postal abbreviation CA than Cali when typing. Just so y’all know, I never use the term Cali so I’m off that hook, LOL.
“San Fran” is NOT allowed. 
@sushiritto , thanks, got it! I do not want to offend anyone.
“I actually just saw an article on why we call all the freeways “the” in SoCal. It’s apparently related to the way that freeways used to be named by their terminal destinations. So… the Garden Grove Freeway terminated at Garden Grove. Now it terminates at… Seal Beach I think. I am old enough to remember when all the freeways went by the names, and never got it straight.”
When did the Garden Grove Freeway (aka the 22) ever terminate in Garden Grove? I moved to Orange County in 1974, and back then it went from the city of Orange to Seal Beach, just as it does today. Stopping in Garden Grove, which is right in the middle of the current route, would have made it a pretty short road.
And even though I know most of the freeways by both name and number, I like the use of numbers over names better. For one thing some freeways changed their names depending on which stretch of road you were talking about. For example the 5 freeway could be either The Santa Ana Freeway or The Golden State Freeway, depending on which section you are talking about. Similarly the 101 could be either the Ventura Freeway or the Hollywood Freeway.
Just saying “the101” is much clearer, especially to out-of-towners.
Haha! I saw this thread and thought I did something wrong for a sec lol But I’ve got lots of family ties to “Cali” hence the name, and I’ve always referred to it as Cali. Never got corrected.
I spent my first thirty years living in California, and I agree that “Cali” should not be a thing. No Californian I know of any age group or region of the state uses the term.
I live in Las Vegas now. Nobody cares if you call it Vegas.
Just want to include my lifted eyebrow of scorn of those who say Cali, San Fran, or (I shudder to even write it) Frisco
It’s a true tip-off to their ‘outsider’ status.
The other big outsider tip-off are those poor tourists who walk around in the same matching San Francisco logo sweatshirts during the summer months.
Did they all get the same pre-tourist memo, you might ask?
No. it’s just that they come woefully ill-prepared, thinking they’re arriving in the land of perpetual sun and fun for the summer and end up freezing, leading to countless desperation purchases of identical, overpriced sweatshirts from street-side card tables.
Just say no to Cali! Southern California girl here that has never called it that. We are guilty in San Diego of calling people that come in the summer from Arizona “Zonies.” Sorry about that 
Lol, @showmom858, I don’t know if they started it, but I remember Jeff and Jer on the radio always calling Arizona tourists, “zonies” back in the '80’s.
@lilmom - only Jeff is left on the radio. Jer has retired!
I’m not a native Californian (just aspiring) but I have never called the state Cali or even heard it referred to as such. My daughter, who lived in Arizona for several years and now lives here, always inserts “the” before the freeway number.
Speaking of freeways, does it bug you natives when we east coast transplants call the freeways highways? That’s a hard habit to break.
Meanwhile I’m * loving * that this thread has gone on for ten pages!