Meat,
...Or the lyrics might mean that John Phillips (who was a downer kind of guy anyway) was tired of his new young 19 year old wife complaining that she missed LA and he wrote the beginning of it, then she (according to her) wrote the church part after she visited St Patricks in New York. Perhaps it really was a cold winter day in New York and maybe they missed not only the weather but the freedom, free spirit that California held at the time (free love and all that).
True, the song has a dark side lyrically and Meat's version of a deep metaphoric version that the meaning is based on living one's dream (pull yourself up do something with your life!) works with the overall marketing of the HIHB album, so let's go with that.
The first time I heard Meat's version, I was like, "HUH!?" I was taken aback because I've heard the original so many times and how do you re-do a classic California hippie song, but I listened to Meat's version again. Now I love it! Different? Yes, but sometimes different can be good, just like John Phillips was trying to say to begin with, sometimes we need something different, sometimes we need California Dreaming, and that's a good goal to have.