Wow, that sounds too good to be true! I grew up on the Monterey Peninsula, about an hour or so south of Santa Cruz, and also lived in San Jose about 45 minutes north of Santa Cruz. Definitely a place I used to love visiting... great weather, eclectic population, decent employment nearby, and still plenty of rural area.
LOL, I think I just talked myself (and DH) into a short, mini-vacation to revisit our old stomping grounds!