Where do you live and why? Why don't you live elsewhere? Where instead might you live?

[westwall]

If I holler "WESTYYYYYYY", you could prolly hear me.

Probably. We're probably less than 120 as the crow flies.

 

[Gracie]

Over yonder, across them thar hills>>>>>>>>>>

 

[Gracie]

I'm still trying to like it here. I probably would more if I had my own place. Well, maybe not. Summers are wayyyy too hot.

 

[westwall]

I'm still trying to like it here. I probably would more if I had my own place. Well, maybe not. Summers are wayyyy too hot.

You need to get higher! We're at the 7500 foot level so it stays nice most of the summer. Come winter though, and I have a lot of work to do!

 

[Gracie]

I'm still trying to like it here. I probably would more if I had my own place. Well, maybe not. Summers are wayyyy too hot.

You need to get higher! We're at the 7500 foot level so it stays nice most of the summer. Come winter though, and I have a lot of work to do!

I don't think I can get much higher unless I head over the border your way..or further north towards Oregon.

 

[westwall]

I'm still trying to like it here. I probably would more if I had my own place. Well, maybe not. Summers are wayyyy too hot.

You need to get higher! We're at the 7500 foot level so it stays nice most of the summer. Come winter though, and I have a lot of work to do!

I don't think I can get much higher unless I head over the border your way..or further north towards Oregon.

You could head for Shasta. I have a friend who has a place at the 8,000 foot level on the mountain. It's real nice.

 

[Darkwind]

I'm still trying to like it here. I probably would more if I had my own place. Well, maybe not. Summers are wayyyy too hot.

You need to get higher! We're at the 7500 foot level so it stays nice most of the summer. Come winter though, and I have a lot of work to do!

My parents lived in Silver Springs and if I remember right, that is something like 5,000 ft. It never really was that hot, even in August.

 

[westwall]

I'm still trying to like it here. I probably would more if I had my own place. Well, maybe not. Summers are wayyyy too hot.

You need to get higher! We're at the 7500 foot level so it stays nice most of the summer. Come winter though, and I have a lot of work to do!

My parents lived in Silver Springs and if I remember right, that is something like 5,000 ft. It never really was that hot, even in August.

Well, the airport there is right at 4260 feet, give or take a few, so if they were on the valley floor that's about how high they were. On the other hand if they were up on the valley wall, they could certainly get up to that elevation.

 

[flacaltenn]

The answers to the two title questions are for most folks overlapped, but I suspect they aren't entirely the same.

Where I live and why:

• Where: Washington, D.C. -- downtown
• Why:
  • Because I like cities where I can walk to much of what I want to do and where, when I don't walk, it rarely takes more than ten minutes to get where I want to go.
  • Because D.C. is, to my eyes, a beautiful city (the parts people live in as well as the federal part of the city) with an abundance of trees and parks.
  • I grew up in D.C. and insofar as nothing has militated that I move elsewhere, I just haven't.
  • It's reasonably close to both the shore and the mountains.
  • D.C. is fairly well insulated from natural disasters.
  • D.C. has good public transportation and decent access to the rest of the world via air travel.
  • D.C. is one of the nation's intellectual hubs.
  • D.C. is a small city.
  • D.C. is diverse -- there are people of (nearly?) all races, creeds, nationalities, and lifestyles in D.C.
  • The weather is temperate.
  • The variety of dining options is awesome.
  • There're decent performing arts.

Why I don't live elsewhere:

• Mostly because living in D.C. isn't, for me, "broken," so there's no point in my trying to "fix" it by moving elsewhere.
• The type of work I undertook to pursue as a career has no physical location constraints.

Where else do I think I could live happily?

• In the U.S.
  • Chicago
  • Austin, TX
  • Denver, CO -- provided I didn't think Yellowstone would erupt during my lifetime
  • Columbus, OH
  • Philly
  • Minneapolis-St. Paul
  • Nashville
  • Any number of "old word" style cities -- downtown is a nice place and one can walk to "everything" -- on the East Coast Piedmont plateau or Mountain Northwest (well north and/or west of Yellowstone) that is far enough from the ocean not to have to worry about hurricane storm surge and having a topography that is varied enough to keep tornados to a minimum and that doesn't generally have earthquakes.
• Outside the U.S.
  • Any major European city -- capital cities are my preference -- that doesn't need a wall of some sort to keep out the ocean and that isn't prone to quakes and volcanic eruptions. I would love to live in Amsterdam, but there's no way I would live in A-dam. Paris would be my first choice.

If there's any central theme to why I live where I do and don't live where I don't, it's that I have no desire to live in places where nature's unforeseen "drama" can "reach out and touch" me and my family in our home.

It's a great question. One that I've had to figured out over time. After nearly 20 year in Silicon Valley, the Golden State wasn't as appealing. Couldn't face the commute, the inability to GET into San Fran anymore since the freeways were destroyed, and the piss poor petty politics of the area.

Also had a daughter who needed a better choice of public school than the Bay Area could afford. I was living in a MODEST $$Mill home that would be worth about $250K anywhere else in the country. And it was 1/4 mile from the San Andreas Fault with no earthquake insurance since the govt fucked up that market.

But I had a job that was portable as a consultant and could live anywhere actually. Only needed a lab and FedEx and GoToMeeting software.

So we chose to travel the SEC (SouthEastern Conference) circuit for a couple years. Because I had visited most of the campuses during my early academic years. And there were LOTS of choices of very nice places on that list. Looked at Raleigh Durham, Atlanta suburbs, Florida, Louisville, bunch of others.

Rolled into Nashville and fell in love with the surrounding area. Stopped looking completely. The attraction is well managed public service, great schools (in the surrounding counties), plenty of entertainment, and absolutely drop dead gorgeous rolling hills and landscape. Got 4 times the house and land for 1/2 the price. Was able to buy a place with a finished ground level well windowed basement --- that was as large as my whole Cali place. It's on over a wooded acre in a GREAT suburb..

Nothing like waking up on the back patio with a cup of coffee, watching the wild turkeys and the deer that I know individually. MUCH better than elevators, cabs, suits/ties, riding the Metro tube and concrete. I'll live much healthier and happier tending to my "plantation".

I COULD live a lot of places -- not a snob at all. But it's all about VALUE and QUALITY of life for me..

You owe it yourself to ask yourself -- WHERE do you want to eventually retire? And plan accordingly.. Cali was NOT the answer. And I don't want to get old and die in a big city..

 

[Darkwind]

I'm still trying to like it here. I probably would more if I had my own place. Well, maybe not. Summers are wayyyy too hot.

You need to get higher! We're at the 7500 foot level so it stays nice most of the summer. Come winter though, and I have a lot of work to do!

My parents lived in Silver Springs and if I remember right, that is something like 5,000 ft. It never really was that hot, even in August.

Well, the airport there is right at 4260 feet, give or take a few, so if they were on the valley floor that's about how high they were. On the other hand if they were up on the valley wall, they could certainly get up to that elevation.

No, they were right there at the cross road. North to Fernley, east to Fallon, West to Carson City, and South to nothing. haha.

 

[Gracie]

I'm at 1700 feet. I'm used to 300 feet, lol.

I gotta write out the pros and cons of staying..or going back when they call with a unit. Part of me wants to stay. We get excellent health benefits here. Lots of conservatives. All are pro gun. Most are fat old white people or young duck dynasty type people with tatts, lol. Everything I want, I can go to the one of the MANY thrift stores here and pay a couple of bucks. Nature it right outside my back door. A raccoon chatted with me while I hung out the window having a cig and it was in my garden eating some of my corn. It was a nice visit. We do have a wonderful gas heater and an air conditioner in our room. No real near neighbors and those we do have all look out for each other.
At home...medical needs is a hit and miss. They are all liberals. Gotta know spanish to have any transactions with anyone. Lived there 30 years and really didn't have any close friends. The beach.

Sigh.

 

[Darkwind]

The answers to the two title questions are for most folks overlapped, but I suspect they aren't entirely the same.

Where I live and why:

• Where: Washington, D.C. -- downtown
• Why:
  • Because I like cities where I can walk to much of what I want to do and where, when I don't walk, it rarely takes more than ten minutes to get where I want to go.
  • Because D.C. is, to my eyes, a beautiful city (the parts people live in as well as the federal part of the city) with an abundance of trees and parks.
  • I grew up in D.C. and insofar as nothing has militated that I move elsewhere, I just haven't.
  • It's reasonably close to both the shore and the mountains.
  • D.C. is fairly well insulated from natural disasters.
  • D.C. has good public transportation and decent access to the rest of the world via air travel.
  • D.C. is one of the nation's intellectual hubs.
  • D.C. is a small city.
  • D.C. is diverse -- there are people of (nearly?) all races, creeds, nationalities, and lifestyles in D.C.
  • The weather is temperate.
  • The variety of dining options is awesome.
  • There're decent performing arts.

Why I don't live elsewhere:

• Mostly because living in D.C. isn't, for me, "broken," so there's no point in my trying to "fix" it by moving elsewhere.
• The type of work I undertook to pursue as a career has no physical location constraints.

Where else do I think I could live happily?

• In the U.S.
  • Chicago
  • Austin, TX
  • Denver, CO -- provided I didn't think Yellowstone would erupt during my lifetime
  • Columbus, OH
  • Philly
  • Minneapolis-St. Paul
  • Nashville
  • Any number of "old word" style cities -- downtown is a nice place and one can walk to "everything" -- on the East Coast Piedmont plateau or Mountain Northwest (well north and/or west of Yellowstone) that is far enough from the ocean not to have to worry about hurricane storm surge and having a topography that is varied enough to keep tornados to a minimum and that doesn't generally have earthquakes.
• Outside the U.S.
  • Any major European city -- capital cities are my preference -- that doesn't need a wall of some sort to keep out the ocean and that isn't prone to quakes and volcanic eruptions. I would love to live in Amsterdam, but there's no way I would live in A-dam. Paris would be my first choice.

If there's any central theme to why I live where I do and don't live where I don't, it's that I have no desire to live in places where nature's unforeseen "drama" can "reach out and touch" me and my family in our home.

It's a great question. One that I've had to figured out over time. After nearly 20 year in Silicon Valley, the Golden State wasn't as appealing. Couldn't face the commute, the inability to GET into San Fran anymore since the freeways were destroyed, and the piss poor petty politics of the area.

Also had a daughter who needed a better choice of public school than the Bay Area could afford. I was living in a MODEST $$Mill home that would be worth about $250K anywhere else in the country. And it was 1/4 mile from the San Andreas Fault with no earthquake insurance since the govt fucked up that market.

But I had a job that was portable as a consultant and could live anywhere actually. Only needed a lab and FedEx and GoToMeeting software.

So we chose to travel the SEC (SouthEastern Conference) circuit for a couple years. Because I had visited most of the campuses during my early academic years. And there were LOTS of choices of very nice places on that list. Looked at Raleigh Durham, Atlanta suburbs, Florida, Louisville, bunch of others.

Rolled into Nashville and fell in love with the surrounding area. Stopped looking completely. The attraction is well managed public service, great schools (in the surrounding counties), plenty of entertainment, and absolutely drop dead gorgeous rolling hills and landscape. Got 4 times the house and land for 1/2 the price. Was able to buy a place with a 1st floor lab that was as large as my whole Cali place. It's on over a wooded acre in a GREAT suburb..

Nothing like waking up on the back patio with a cup of coffee, watching the wild turkeys and the deer that I know individually. MUCH better than elevators, cabs, suits/ties, riding the Metro tube and concrete. I'll live much healthier and happier tending to my "plantation".

I COULD live a lot of places -- not a snob at all. But it's all about VALUE and QUALITY of life for me..

I used to commute from Milpitas to a silicon park just south of Moffet Field back in the late 70's. Traffic was horrendous then, I can't imagine what it would be like now.

 

[Gracie]

The answers to the two title questions are for most folks overlapped, but I suspect they aren't entirely the same.

Where I live and why:

• Where: Washington, D.C. -- downtown
• Why:
  • Because I like cities where I can walk to much of what I want to do and where, when I don't walk, it rarely takes more than ten minutes to get where I want to go.
  • Because D.C. is, to my eyes, a beautiful city (the parts people live in as well as the federal part of the city) with an abundance of trees and parks.
  • I grew up in D.C. and insofar as nothing has militated that I move elsewhere, I just haven't.
  • It's reasonably close to both the shore and the mountains.
  • D.C. is fairly well insulated from natural disasters.
  • D.C. has good public transportation and decent access to the rest of the world via air travel.
  • D.C. is one of the nation's intellectual hubs.
  • D.C. is a small city.
  • D.C. is diverse -- there are people of (nearly?) all races, creeds, nationalities, and lifestyles in D.C.
  • The weather is temperate.
  • The variety of dining options is awesome.
  • There're decent performing arts.

Why I don't live elsewhere:

• Mostly because living in D.C. isn't, for me, "broken," so there's no point in my trying to "fix" it by moving elsewhere.
• The type of work I undertook to pursue as a career has no physical location constraints.

Where else do I think I could live happily?

• In the U.S.
  • Chicago
  • Austin, TX
  • Denver, CO -- provided I didn't think Yellowstone would erupt during my lifetime
  • Columbus, OH
  • Philly
  • Minneapolis-St. Paul
  • Nashville
  • Any number of "old word" style cities -- downtown is a nice place and one can walk to "everything" -- on the East Coast Piedmont plateau or Mountain Northwest (well north and/or west of Yellowstone) that is far enough from the ocean not to have to worry about hurricane storm surge and having a topography that is varied enough to keep tornados to a minimum and that doesn't generally have earthquakes.
• Outside the U.S.
  • Any major European city -- capital cities are my preference -- that doesn't need a wall of some sort to keep out the ocean and that isn't prone to quakes and volcanic eruptions. I would love to live in Amsterdam, but there's no way I would live in A-dam. Paris would be my first choice.

If there's any central theme to why I live where I do and don't live where I don't, it's that I have no desire to live in places where nature's unforeseen "drama" can "reach out and touch" me and my family in our home.

It's a great question. One that I've had to figured out over time. After nearly 20 year in Silicon Valley, the Golden State wasn't as appealing. Couldn't face the commute, the inability to GET into San Fran anymore since the freeways were destroyed, and the piss poor petty politics of the area.

Also had a daughter who needed a better choice of public school than the Bay Area could afford. I was living in a MODEST $$Mill home that would be worth about $250K anywhere else in the country. And it was 1/4 mile from the San Andreas Fault with no earthquake insurance since the govt fucked up that market.

But I had a job that was portable as a consultant and could live anywhere actually. Only needed a lab and FedEx and GoToMeeting software.

So we chose to travel the SEC (SouthEastern Conference) circuit for a couple years. Because I had visited most of the campuses during my early academic years. And there were LOTS of choices of very nice places on that list. Looked at Raleigh Durham, Atlanta suburbs, Florida, Louisville, bunch of others.

Rolled into Nashville and fell in love with the surrounding area. Stopped looking completely. The attraction is well managed public service, great schools (in the surrounding counties), plenty of entertainment, and absolutely drop dead gorgeous rolling hills and landscape. Got 4 times the house and land for 1/2 the price. Was able to buy a place with a 1st floor lab that was as large as my whole Cali place. It's on over a wooded acre in a GREAT suburb..

Nothing like waking up on the back patio with a cup of coffee, watching the wild turkeys and the deer that I know individually. MUCH better than elevators, cabs, suits/ties, riding the Metro tube and concrete. I'll live much healthier and happier tending to my "plantation".

I COULD live a lot of places -- not a snob at all. But it's all about VALUE and QUALITY of life for me..

I used to commute from Milpitas to a silicon park just south of Moffet Field back in the late 70's. Traffic was horrendous then, I can't imagine what it would be like now.

Being out of heavy traffic is nice, thats for sure. But I loathe having to go to Oroville or Chico. Both are only about 16 miles, but my ears pop every time, and the traffic is pretty gnarly at times. Nothing like where I used to live, though.

I dunno. I think I just talked myself in to staying here!

 

[Gracie]

You owe it yourself to ask yourself -- WHERE do you want to eventually retire? And plan accordingly.. Cali was NOT the answer. And I don't want to get old and die in a big city.

That is the most important thing to muse on. Do I want to be even older and more decrepit THERE...or here? The answer is..here. There is nothing there any more except better weather and the ocean. Here? Better medical help when I wind up really needing it.

 

[flacaltenn]

The answers to the two title questions are for most folks overlapped, but I suspect they aren't entirely the same.

Where I live and why:

• Where: Washington, D.C. -- downtown
• Why:
  • Because I like cities where I can walk to much of what I want to do and where, when I don't walk, it rarely takes more than ten minutes to get where I want to go.
  • Because D.C. is, to my eyes, a beautiful city (the parts people live in as well as the federal part of the city) with an abundance of trees and parks.
  • I grew up in D.C. and insofar as nothing has militated that I move elsewhere, I just haven't.
  • It's reasonably close to both the shore and the mountains.
  • D.C. is fairly well insulated from natural disasters.
  • D.C. has good public transportation and decent access to the rest of the world via air travel.
  • D.C. is one of the nation's intellectual hubs.
  • D.C. is a small city.
  • D.C. is diverse -- there are people of (nearly?) all races, creeds, nationalities, and lifestyles in D.C.
  • The weather is temperate.
  • The variety of dining options is awesome.
  • There're decent performing arts.

Why I don't live elsewhere:

• Mostly because living in D.C. isn't, for me, "broken," so there's no point in my trying to "fix" it by moving elsewhere.
• The type of work I undertook to pursue as a career has no physical location constraints.

Where else do I think I could live happily?

• In the U.S.
  • Chicago
  • Austin, TX
  • Denver, CO -- provided I didn't think Yellowstone would erupt during my lifetime
  • Columbus, OH
  • Philly
  • Minneapolis-St. Paul
  • Nashville
  • Any number of "old word" style cities -- downtown is a nice place and one can walk to "everything" -- on the East Coast Piedmont plateau or Mountain Northwest (well north and/or west of Yellowstone) that is far enough from the ocean not to have to worry about hurricane storm surge and having a topography that is varied enough to keep tornados to a minimum and that doesn't generally have earthquakes.
• Outside the U.S.
  • Any major European city -- capital cities are my preference -- that doesn't need a wall of some sort to keep out the ocean and that isn't prone to quakes and volcanic eruptions. I would love to live in Amsterdam, but there's no way I would live in A-dam. Paris would be my first choice.

If there's any central theme to why I live where I do and don't live where I don't, it's that I have no desire to live in places where nature's unforeseen "drama" can "reach out and touch" me and my family in our home.

Well, I was born in Southeastern Iowa, but dad moved us to the San Francisco Bay area in 1970 and I lived in a number of ‘cities’ in the bay area until 1981 when I entered the Air Force. I was stationed in Sacramento after boot camp and tech training (that was in Denver, CO). I met My wife in an online chat room/RPG and in 1998 I moved to Newburgh, NY where she lived. She started her family later than I did and while My two sons were grown, she had children aged 5 up to 9 at that time. So it was easier for Me to move east than it was for her to come to California. A good choice too. I love everything about the state of California, but it has been rendered unlivable by the politics that happen there. When her father became ill in 2000, we moved to northeast Pennsylvania where I reside today.


I’ve lived in Arizona, Nevada, Iowa, Pennsylvania, and New York.


I really don’t like living here, but there are some serious advantages.

• · The crime rate is practically none existent. There have been two murders in the past 25 years.
• · There hasn’t been a burglary in 50 years or more.
• · Everyone looks after each other and very few people bother to even lock their doors.
• · The hardware store will leave their product on pallets on the sidewalk after closing hours.
• · The downtown area (if you can call it that) is a 5-minute walk from My front door.

There are some down sides too.

• · There is no real dining. What does exist is family style Italian (pizza, calzones, things like that) and one Chinese restaurant.
• · Entertainment is a forty minute drive away.
• · It’s a half hour to the nearest golf course and that course sucks.There is no real industry. My job is over an hour away. I put 520 miles a week on My car for work.

There are more downsides as well as upsides. It would take to long to list all of them.

Where would I like to live?

I loved California. But as I said, the politics and people have rendered it unlivable.

It's hard to say. I’ve lived in a number of places so I don’t fear moving or strange places. I’m a web developer by training and really, the best web jobs are in Pittsburgh or Philly in this state. Neither place appeals to Me.

I would like to either go to the far northeast (Maine) but really hate the cold; or south to some place like Virginia or North or South Carolina. I’d like to get to a climate that isn’t too hot in the summer (wife can’t do heat) but has little to no snow (Did I mention I hate the cold?). I was reading in another thread that the Shenandoah Valley is a nice place to live. I’d give that some serious thought but would need to see how the economy is there.

California -- what a Communist sh!t hole.

Where I lived in California, I was two hours away from Lake Tahoe. I was 3 hours away from Crater Lake. I was 1.5 hours away from the Pacific Ocean. I was 1 hour away from one of the worlds greatest wine area's, NAPA Valley. I was 3.5 hours away from Sequoia National Forest. I was 5 hours away from Yosemite National Park.

I could snow ski in May in the morning, water ski lake Tahoe in the afternoon, and by evening, surf in the Pacific. Within hours of My front door, I could white water raft any number of world class rivers. There was mountain hiking, historic sites, and ancient ruins.

Simply put, California is one of the most wonderful places geographically in the world. I miss much of it but still won't return because of the people and their politics.

It is what it is.

You've either booked a lot of speeding tickets or you've hit Bay Area traffic at the exact right times of day.

Just sayin.. I've done that tour in a day. But it's a lot of sitting in a car.

 

[Darkwind]

The answers to the two title questions are for most folks overlapped, but I suspect they aren't entirely the same.

Where I live and why:

• Where: Washington, D.C. -- downtown
• Why:
  • Because I like cities where I can walk to much of what I want to do and where, when I don't walk, it rarely takes more than ten minutes to get where I want to go.
  • Because D.C. is, to my eyes, a beautiful city (the parts people live in as well as the federal part of the city) with an abundance of trees and parks.
  • I grew up in D.C. and insofar as nothing has militated that I move elsewhere, I just haven't.
  • It's reasonably close to both the shore and the mountains.
  • D.C. is fairly well insulated from natural disasters.
  • D.C. has good public transportation and decent access to the rest of the world via air travel.
  • D.C. is one of the nation's intellectual hubs.
  • D.C. is a small city.
  • D.C. is diverse -- there are people of (nearly?) all races, creeds, nationalities, and lifestyles in D.C.
  • The weather is temperate.
  • The variety of dining options is awesome.
  • There're decent performing arts.

Why I don't live elsewhere:

• Mostly because living in D.C. isn't, for me, "broken," so there's no point in my trying to "fix" it by moving elsewhere.
• The type of work I undertook to pursue as a career has no physical location constraints.

Where else do I think I could live happily?

• In the U.S.
  • Chicago
  • Austin, TX
  • Denver, CO -- provided I didn't think Yellowstone would erupt during my lifetime
  • Columbus, OH
  • Philly
  • Minneapolis-St. Paul
  • Nashville
  • Any number of "old word" style cities -- downtown is a nice place and one can walk to "everything" -- on the East Coast Piedmont plateau or Mountain Northwest (well north and/or west of Yellowstone) that is far enough from the ocean not to have to worry about hurricane storm surge and having a topography that is varied enough to keep tornados to a minimum and that doesn't generally have earthquakes.
• Outside the U.S.
  • Any major European city -- capital cities are my preference -- that doesn't need a wall of some sort to keep out the ocean and that isn't prone to quakes and volcanic eruptions. I would love to live in Amsterdam, but there's no way I would live in A-dam. Paris would be my first choice.

If there's any central theme to why I live where I do and don't live where I don't, it's that I have no desire to live in places where nature's unforeseen "drama" can "reach out and touch" me and my family in our home.

Well, I was born in Southeastern Iowa, but dad moved us to the San Francisco Bay area in 1970 and I lived in a number of ‘cities’ in the bay area until 1981 when I entered the Air Force. I was stationed in Sacramento after boot camp and tech training (that was in Denver, CO). I met My wife in an online chat room/RPG and in 1998 I moved to Newburgh, NY where she lived. She started her family later than I did and while My two sons were grown, she had children aged 5 up to 9 at that time. So it was easier for Me to move east than it was for her to come to California. A good choice too. I love everything about the state of California, but it has been rendered unlivable by the politics that happen there. When her father became ill in 2000, we moved to northeast Pennsylvania where I reside today.


I’ve lived in Arizona, Nevada, Iowa, Pennsylvania, and New York.


I really don’t like living here, but there are some serious advantages.

• · The crime rate is practically none existent. There have been two murders in the past 25 years.
• · There hasn’t been a burglary in 50 years or more.
• · Everyone looks after each other and very few people bother to even lock their doors.
• · The hardware store will leave their product on pallets on the sidewalk after closing hours.
• · The downtown area (if you can call it that) is a 5-minute walk from My front door.

There are some down sides too.

• · There is no real dining. What does exist is family style Italian (pizza, calzones, things like that) and one Chinese restaurant.
• · Entertainment is a forty minute drive away.
• · It’s a half hour to the nearest golf course and that course sucks.There is no real industry. My job is over an hour away. I put 520 miles a week on My car for work.

There are more downsides as well as upsides. It would take to long to list all of them.

Where would I like to live?

I loved California. But as I said, the politics and people have rendered it unlivable.

It's hard to say. I’ve lived in a number of places so I don’t fear moving or strange places. I’m a web developer by training and really, the best web jobs are in Pittsburgh or Philly in this state. Neither place appeals to Me.

I would like to either go to the far northeast (Maine) but really hate the cold; or south to some place like Virginia or North or South Carolina. I’d like to get to a climate that isn’t too hot in the summer (wife can’t do heat) but has little to no snow (Did I mention I hate the cold?). I was reading in another thread that the Shenandoah Valley is a nice place to live. I’d give that some serious thought but would need to see how the economy is there.

California -- what a Communist sh!t hole.

Where I lived in California, I was two hours away from Lake Tahoe. I was 3 hours away from Crater Lake. I was 1.5 hours away from the Pacific Ocean. I was 1 hour away from one of the worlds greatest wine area's, NAPA Valley. I was 3.5 hours away from Sequoia National Forest. I was 5 hours away from Yosemite National Park.

I could snow ski in May in the morning, water ski lake Tahoe in the afternoon, and by evening, surf in the Pacific. Within hours of My front door, I could white water raft any number of world class rivers. There was mountain hiking, historic sites, and ancient ruins.

Simply put, California is one of the most wonderful places geographically in the world. I miss much of it but still won't return because of the people and their politics.

It is what it is.

You've either booked a lot of speeding tickets or you've hit Bay Area traffic at the exact right times of day.

Just sayin.. I've done that tour in a day. But it's a lot of sitting in a car.

LOL

Yeah, timing is everything.

 

[westwall]

I'm still trying to like it here. I probably would more if I had my own place. Well, maybe not. Summers are wayyyy too hot.

You need to get higher! We're at the 7500 foot level so it stays nice most of the summer. Come winter though, and I have a lot of work to do!

My parents lived in Silver Springs and if I remember right, that is something like 5,000 ft. It never really was that hot, even in August.

Well, the airport there is right at 4260 feet, give or take a few, so if they were on the valley floor that's about how high they were. On the other hand if they were up on the valley wall, they could certainly get up to that elevation.

No, they were right there at the cross road. North to Fernley, east to Fallon, West to Carson City, and South to nothing. haha.

Then they were at the 4200 foot level. Nothing to sneer at, and much cooler than the Cali central valley for sure.

 

[Darkwind]

The answers to the two title questions are for most folks overlapped, but I suspect they aren't entirely the same.

Where I live and why:

• Where: Washington, D.C. -- downtown
• Why:
  • Because I like cities where I can walk to much of what I want to do and where, when I don't walk, it rarely takes more than ten minutes to get where I want to go.
  • Because D.C. is, to my eyes, a beautiful city (the parts people live in as well as the federal part of the city) with an abundance of trees and parks.
  • I grew up in D.C. and insofar as nothing has militated that I move elsewhere, I just haven't.
  • It's reasonably close to both the shore and the mountains.
  • D.C. is fairly well insulated from natural disasters.
  • D.C. has good public transportation and decent access to the rest of the world via air travel.
  • D.C. is one of the nation's intellectual hubs.
  • D.C. is a small city.
  • D.C. is diverse -- there are people of (nearly?) all races, creeds, nationalities, and lifestyles in D.C.
  • The weather is temperate.
  • The variety of dining options is awesome.
  • There're decent performing arts.

Why I don't live elsewhere:

• Mostly because living in D.C. isn't, for me, "broken," so there's no point in my trying to "fix" it by moving elsewhere.
• The type of work I undertook to pursue as a career has no physical location constraints.

Where else do I think I could live happily?

• In the U.S.
  • Chicago
  • Austin, TX
  • Denver, CO -- provided I didn't think Yellowstone would erupt during my lifetime
  • Columbus, OH
  • Philly
  • Minneapolis-St. Paul
  • Nashville
  • Any number of "old word" style cities -- downtown is a nice place and one can walk to "everything" -- on the East Coast Piedmont plateau or Mountain Northwest (well north and/or west of Yellowstone) that is far enough from the ocean not to have to worry about hurricane storm surge and having a topography that is varied enough to keep tornados to a minimum and that doesn't generally have earthquakes.
• Outside the U.S.
  • Any major European city -- capital cities are my preference -- that doesn't need a wall of some sort to keep out the ocean and that isn't prone to quakes and volcanic eruptions. I would love to live in Amsterdam, but there's no way I would live in A-dam. Paris would be my first choice.

If there's any central theme to why I live where I do and don't live where I don't, it's that I have no desire to live in places where nature's unforeseen "drama" can "reach out and touch" me and my family in our home.

It's a great question. One that I've had to figured out over time. After nearly 20 year in Silicon Valley, the Golden State wasn't as appealing. Couldn't face the commute, the inability to GET into San Fran anymore since the freeways were destroyed, and the piss poor petty politics of the area.

Also had a daughter who needed a better choice of public school than the Bay Area could afford. I was living in a MODEST $$Mill home that would be worth about $250K anywhere else in the country. And it was 1/4 mile from the San Andreas Fault with no earthquake insurance since the govt fucked up that market.

But I had a job that was portable as a consultant and could live anywhere actually. Only needed a lab and FedEx and GoToMeeting software.

So we chose to travel the SEC (SouthEastern Conference) circuit for a couple years. Because I had visited most of the campuses during my early academic years. And there were LOTS of choices of very nice places on that list. Looked at Raleigh Durham, Atlanta suburbs, Florida, Louisville, bunch of others.

Rolled into Nashville and fell in love with the surrounding area. Stopped looking completely. The attraction is well managed public service, great schools (in the surrounding counties), plenty of entertainment, and absolutely drop dead gorgeous rolling hills and landscape. Got 4 times the house and land for 1/2 the price. Was able to buy a place with a 1st floor lab that was as large as my whole Cali place. It's on over a wooded acre in a GREAT suburb..

Nothing like waking up on the back patio with a cup of coffee, watching the wild turkeys and the deer that I know individually. MUCH better than elevators, cabs, suits/ties, riding the Metro tube and concrete. I'll live much healthier and happier tending to my "plantation".

I COULD live a lot of places -- not a snob at all. But it's all about VALUE and QUALITY of life for me..

I used to commute from Milpitas to a silicon park just south of Moffet Field back in the late 70's. Traffic was horrendous then, I can't imagine what it would be like now.

Being out of heavy traffic is nice, thats for sure. But I loathe having to go to Oroville or Chico. Both are only about 16 miles, but my ears pop every time, and the traffic is pretty gnarly at times. Nothing like where I used to live, though.

I dunno. I think I just talked myself in to staying here!

Well, I've only been to Oroville once, and that was 20+ years ago. Can't imagine it has improved much.

 

[flacaltenn]

I'm at 1700 feet. I'm used to 300 feet, lol.

I gotta write out the pros and cons of staying..or going back when they call with a unit. Part of me wants to stay. We get excellent health benefits here. Lots of conservatives. All are pro gun. Most are fat old white people or young duck dynasty type people with tatts, lol. Everything I want, I can go to the one of the MANY thrift stores here and pay a couple of bucks. Nature it right outside my back door. A raccoon chatted with me while I hung out the window having a cig and it was in my garden eating some of my corn. It was a nice visit. We do have a wonderful gas heater and an air conditioner in our room. No real near neighbors and those we do have all look out for each other.
At home...medical needs is a hit and miss. They are all liberals. Gotta know spanish to have any transactions with anyone. Lived there 30 years and really didn't have any close friends. The beach.

Sigh.

Next time I go back to the West Coast, I'm gonna kidnap you and take you to the beach at Carmel.. I'll be disappointed if you don't surf.. LOL...

 

[westwall]

I'm at 1700 feet. I'm used to 300 feet, lol.

I gotta write out the pros and cons of staying..or going back when they call with a unit. Part of me wants to stay. We get excellent health benefits here. Lots of conservatives. All are pro gun. Most are fat old white people or young duck dynasty type people with tatts, lol. Everything I want, I can go to the one of the MANY thrift stores here and pay a couple of bucks. Nature it right outside my back door. A raccoon chatted with me while I hung out the window having a cig and it was in my garden eating some of my corn. It was a nice visit. We do have a wonderful gas heater and an air conditioner in our room. No real near neighbors and those we do have all look out for each other.
At home...medical needs is a hit and miss. They are all liberals. Gotta know spanish to have any transactions with anyone. Lived there 30 years and really didn't have any close friends. The beach.

Sigh.

Next time I go back to the West Coast, I'm gonna kidnap you and take you to the beach at Carmel.. I'll be disappointed if you don't surf.. LOL...

I never could surf. I loved body surfing, and scuba, and all of that. But I could never get up on the board.