So why do you live there?

[JWC Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close JWC]

John,
We live in a tiny town on Hwy 108, population 2400, soaring to 5000 in the summer. It's about 2 hours to Yosemite Valley, 2 hours to Livermore (where we lived for 25 years), and 2 hours to Sacto. In fact it's about 2 hours to most anywhere from here. We are right at the snow line so it's damn cold in the winter but the other seasons are very temperate. We spend 5 or 6 weeks in our timeshares down your way in Feb. & March. Most people comment on the decided lack of places to shop. Since shopping isn't one of my hobbies, it doesn't bother me. The big drawback for me is the challenges of gardening and keeping the wild critters at bay. We had a bear visit our garbage can last night. And the deer have obviously read the signs posted for hunting season and decided to camp at my place until the hunters have gone home.

I know that area pretty well. We often used to drive from Livermore to Jackson through Modesto taking different routes. We used to stay in Jackson for 3 nights at the Jackson Rancheria Casino/Hotel. You are south of Jackson. We have also driven Hwy 49 several times from Placerville all the way down to Oakhurst. That whole area is very pretty country. I could easily live there if it wasn't for the winter weather. We lived in Livermore also. Sandia National Laboratories in Livermore was a client of mine and I also worked at another high tech company in Livermore. We liked Livermore.

[Keitht Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Keitht]

I've lived in the same area for about 50 years, as my father came here when he was in the Royal Air Force. My parents had planned to move when he left the forces but ill health intervened.
I would have been happy to leave the area at any time as it holds no great pull for me. However my wife's family all live in the area and they were quite close. Her own parents died within 6 months of each other, leaving just her and her sister. Once that happened there was no way my wife was going to leave her "little sister" on her own. The fact that her sister was married with kids made no difference.

[barndweller Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close barndweller]

John,
I know you are a casino afficionado...have you been to Black Oak yet? It's a few miles down the road from my place. I've been there once to dine at Seven Sisters, an upscale restaurant on the top floor. Great food and atmosphere but you sure pay for it.

Keith,
Do folks in the British Isles move around much? I get the impression that Europeans tend to stay near their place of birth and are much more apt to stay close to family than we Americans. People here seem to move for financial reasons, usually better paying jobs or cheaper cost of living or lower tax rates. Family doesn't seem to be as big an influence on staying put. We could have moved out of California and paid less taxes and bought a much bigger home but we wanted to be close to our grandchildren and states with lower costs of living in the western US had lifestyle or climate issues that made them unappealling to us.

[JWC Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close JWC]

John,
I know you are a casino afficionado...have you been to Black Oak yet? It's a few miles down the road from my place. I've been there once to dine at Seven Sisters, an upscale restaurant on the top floor. Great food and atmosphere but you sure pay for it.

Black Oak is one of the very few California casinos that we haven't been to. Now I know pretty well where you live. You are about 50 miles south of Jackson.

[chs225 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close chs225]

I lived for 60 years with the Phillies usually being a horrible team. No way I'm leaving now.

[shaggy Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close shaggy]

I grew up in a little bitty town in Pinebluff, NC which is a suburb (ha) of Pinehurst/Southern Pines. I hated it as I didn't play golf, tennis, ride horses or wasn't rich. I go back now and see how beautiful it is but I need a small city, somewhere where I can at least get to a concert, a shopping mall, no big major traffic. We do have 4 seasons and the winter is generally mild.

I always thought I'd move to coastal Fla or NC but with all the hurricanes I have no desire. The only area I thought was as pretty as where I live is around the Branson area ( not Branson tho) I'd love to live in CA or in the northwest but I can't afford it.

I have just remodeled my house and love it. Kelli has a full time job with full benefits so looks like I'm ok right where I am. shaggy

[JWC Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close JWC]

I'd love to live in CA or in the northwest but I can't afford it. shaggy

I am wondering if you would have the same opinion of living in the Northwest after going through months of dreary weather. Many people like it but I lived there and I hate the constant drizzle for days on end. When I lived in SE Florida, someone from Seattle made the comment but we get less rain than Miami. I said that is true but our rain in Florida came down in a downpour and then the sun was out again. In the Northwest the sun often doesn't come out for many days. Don't get me wrong, I think Seattle is a great city and the Northwest is very beautiful but it can be very dreary for weeks on end. I am not a big fan of the weather in Florida either because of the high humidity. We like it sunny and dry.

.

[Elan Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Elan]

I am wondering if you would have the same opinion of living in the Northwest after going through months of dreary weather. Many people like it but I lived there and I hate the constant drizzle for days on end. When I lived in SE Florida, someone from Seattle made the comment but we get less rain than Miami. I said that is true but our rain in Florida came down in a downpour and then the sun was out again. In the Northwest the sun often doesn't come out for many days. Don't get me wrong, I think Seattle is a great city and the Northwest is very beautiful but it can be very dreary for weeks on end. I am not a big fan of the weather in Florida either because of the high humidity. We like it sunny and dry.

.

Actually, what you're referring to is the Pacific Northwest (specifically, west of the Cascade Range), not the Northwest. I live in the Northwest, in the high desert of Idaho, and we have around 10" of precipitation a year, tons of sunshine and 4 distinct seasons. The only drawback is that the winters are somewhat long, but they are not severe in terms of temperature or snow fall. The Northwest is indeed amazingly beautiful. I certainly can't say that I won't live somewhere else at some point in time, but it's hard to imagine leaving behind the rugged beauty of this area.

[Icc5 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Icc5]

Cupertino, California

Both my wife and myself were born withing 15 miles of where we now live. We are living right now in Cupertino in the house my wife grew up in. A year ago we lived in Los Altos but on the same street. I grew up in Santa Clara.
We don't have high paying jobs so living here can be rough at times and luckily we each owned a house before we got married, sold those and did pretty well for ourselves. We have thought about relocating when one of the brother n laws mentioned something about another area. We have been all across the country and found nowhere else that compares for weather except maybe San Diego.
Family is all here, mother is 86 and we help her out at times. Weather keeps us here, money chases us out. So far, the weather and family win.
Bart

[JWC Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close JWC]

Actually, what you're referring to is the Pacific Northwest (specifically, west of the Cascade Range), not the Northwest. I live in the Northwest, in the high desert of Idaho, and we have around 10" of precipitation a year, tons of sunshine and 4 distinct seasons. The only drawback is that the winters are somewhat long, but they are not severe in terms of temperature or snow fall. The Northwest is indeed amazingly beautiful. I certainly can't say that I won't live somewhere else at some point in time, but it's hard to imagine leaving behind the rugged beauty of this area.

Jim,

You are right. I was referring to the Pacific Northwest because I am positive that was what "Shaggy" was referring to. I have also spent a lot of time in Idaho, Eastern Washington, and Eastern Oregon and the weather is definitely much different than west of the Cascades. I spent 6 months in Spokane, WA on a consulting gig at Kaiser Aluminum. The day we left to come home in September it turned very cold.

[JWC Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close JWC]

Both my wife and myself were born withing 15 miles of where we now live. We are living right now in Cupertino in the house my wife grew up in. A year ago we lived in Los Altos but on the same street. I grew up in Santa Clara.
We don't have high paying jobs so living here can be rough at times and luckily we each owned a house before we got married, sold those and did pretty well for ourselves. We have thought about relocating when one of the brother n laws mentioned something about another area. We have been all across the country and found nowhere else that compares for weather except maybe San Diego.
Family is all here, mother is 86 and we help her out at times. Weather keeps us here, money chases us out. So far, the weather and family win.
Bart

We lived in Cupertino. It is a great area to live in.

[Carlos Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Carlos]

Thank Goodness for the Beach Boys

I live in an area that is sometimes referred to as the California Riveriera. I live in Mission viejo in Orange County, CA. I grew up in New York City and moved here to follow the dream... to be an actor. Also, I loved the USC Trojans growing up and the Gidget movies. Those influences along with the Beach Boys telling me the cutest girls in the world were California girls and I was sold!

I don't miss the snow and cold weather or the heat and humidity I grew up with in NYC. I came to California and have loved it ever since. I have only lived in southern California. I have lived in the beach cities of Redondo and Manhattan and have lived in San Diego which I loved very, very much. Work brought me here and I want to stay here. The city is well maintained. I have a hospital down the street with all kinds of doctors offices within walking distance as well. That becomes important as one gets older.

The beach is a five minute drive and there are the activities in San Diego or L.A. which are both about an hour away if I want them.

This is a beautiful area. I little on the expensive side, but I will probably stick around. My kids have moved back east and my family is still in NYC, but my wife is a California girl. (Yes, the Beach Boys were right.)

Although still in my forties for another week or so, I have been looking at where I want to retire. I go all over the country on vacations and I love Florida but not its humidity or mosquitos or hurricanes. I like Scottsdale but not the summer heat. The South is nice but my allergies bother me really badly in the spring. So that leaves me with the occasional earthquake and the annual wildfires (I keep my homeowners insurance up) of sunny southern California.

This is a great spot with great weather and all the trimmings. I only drive 5 minutes to work so I don't really deal with traffic. That is the key to southern California living, don't live too far from work.

[chriskre Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close chriskre]

Why do I live where I live? Hmmmm.

Have given this lots of thought over the past few years.

My yankee parents dragged me down here when I was 6 from Long Island. My parents had had enough of the snow and the NY pace.
So off to Florida they went and we've not left since.
Well, except for the many vacations.

Living in Miami is very convenient for a travel bug like me. On any weekend I can hop on a cruise ship and be sipping rum rinkies by the pool in less than an hour. And from here we are a gateway to Mexico, South America and even hopping over the pond is not so bad from here. Unfortunately Hawaii is a pain to get to from here and I've yet to hit the Pacific rim and Australia but it's on my bucket list.

Miami is like living in another country. Hardly anyone speaks English but the
food is awesome and cheap here. Hence my love handles. I have learned Spanish as a second language. Also a huge perk is the beach year round.
And definetely my main love of Florida is being so close to the mouse. It's practically a second home for me. If I could no longer travel anymore, I could just move into my timeshares in Orlando and live cheaper than owning a home.

Alot of my good friends did the North Carolina flight thing during the height of the market but they do tell me that they miss Miami although they wouldn't move back because they've plugged in in Charlotte. Although there are some beautiful places in this totally blessed country, so far I can't really see myself living anywhere except maybe San Antonio, TX. Okay, maybe Cape Cod too, but it's so expensive that I don't think it'll be happening anytime soon.

Who knows maybe with my continued TS travels I'll find the pefect place to retire. Unfortunately that is about 10 years away from reality so I'll just have to force myself to live in the Sunshine state til then.
I guess as a nurse I can live anywhere and have a job but for now I'm planted here.

[silly_stitcher Member Find all posts View Profile Close silly_stitcher]

I know I don't often post here (the rare times I do is in the Bluegreen board), but this is a question that's been on my mind as winter approaches.

I've been in Chicago for 13 years now and I've spent my entire life in the Great Lakes region. It's just so freakin' cold here in January and every single fall I start dreaming of warmer climates: Austin, Charleston, New Orleans, San Francisco all start looking really good.

And yet I can't imagine living anywhere else because I can't find a warm-weather city with both a decent cost-of-living AND world-class theater. Heck, forget cost of living: I don't know of a warm-weather city with just the theater scene that I'm now accustomed to! We've got home-grown theater companies, Broadway shows, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Lyric Opera... And I just can't give up my seats at Steppenwolf and Chicago Shakespeare: it's taken me YEARS of subscribing to get our perfect seats in both theaters (balcony, first row, dead center). I'm a total theater junkie: we go at least once a month here in Chicago, we head up to the Stratford Theater Festival every summer, and we try to hit London and New York at least once a year.

At least Chicago is blessed with three major airlines with hubs here (Southwest, United and American) so that ticket prices to almost anywhere in the world are decently priced and we can fly direct to almost any desirable destination. So heading to warmer climates when I'm sick of winter is quick and affordable.

Still, the very weird/twisted part of me wonders if global warming would be a good thing for Chicago...

[Luanne Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Luanne]

My sil and bil moved from Chicago to Santa Fe. So far they seem to love it.