Need Opinions

Due to numerous reasons, job security, casinos, family over-involvement, etc, im ready to pack my bags and move somewhere else.
Our cars will both be paid off next year so hopefully we will be able to start seriously thinking about moving then.
I know there was a thread once along these same lines but i havent gone looking for it.
Why do you like where you live? What are the schoools like? Jobs? People? Growing season (would be hard to go from 11 months to 3 months : (
I'm just tired (at 34) of the rat race!! I want to move somewhere that i can find peace.
Thanks
jen

Jen...I have liked something about every where I've ever lived...Virginia and Florida ....I love them both...but not the humidity.

Now that I am visiting here in the East right now I already wonder how I took the humidity before....so I like Arizona because:

It's a dry heat
we have a very long growing season
a very casual life style...no getting all gussied up
so very much to see and do.Taxes are a little high...compared to Florida.
My area has cooler winters than Tucson and Phoenix...but also is cooler in the summer.
Jo

I love east Tennessee because of the following reasons:

Gorgeous natural beauty (mountains, etc.)
Evenly distributed seasons (3 months per season)
Easy to grow things (compared to other places I've lived)
Salt-of-the-earth, loyal, family-centered people
Old-fashioned values, great patriotism
Low taxes
Lots of birds for bird-watching
A day's drive to many, many other places to explore

Jen, if you want peace, I can tell you Alaska can offer that. However, you'll definitely be gardening in a different way. The growing season is short! I can plant on June 1, and the show is over by mid September at the latest. What you can get in Alaska is opportunity and a frontier attitude that is gone from most of the US. People are friendly up here, and the landscape is incredible. You either love Alaska or you can't wait to leave. And of those who leave, many come back because life is just easier up here. If you are willing to work, you'll always find employment. If you are social, there will always be friends. I've live here for 28 years, and I've never regretted it.

oops ~ sent it twice!

This message was edited Tuesday, Jul 2nd 2:52 PM

Jen, that's certainly a tough question! I have spent most of my life in Ohio and I like it here. But, I have to say, if it weren't for my DH, I would much prefer Michigan, Canada or Alaska. I just love the Northern states & I'm not exactly sure why. Friendliness, neighborliness and good old fashioned values are what strike me most. Oh yes, and a reasonable pace!

I've never been to Alaska, but from the way Weezingreen describes it, it sounds just I dreamed it was. I would love to be on one of the few frontier type areas left in this world and I'm a huge nature buff. If I could afford it, I would build a dog sled team so that I could train & practice for the ultimate of all dog sled races, the Iditarod :) Ohio just doesn't lend itself to that sport.

Jen, I have been in 42 of the states, and have lived in FL (Key West to Jax), GA, SC, NC, MD, RI, MA, KS and CA. I love the mountains here in NC the best.

The summers are cooler than the flatlands (although we are having a hot spell right now, high 80's to near 90 this week, 60's at late night), and the winters colder but manageable unless you are at a very high altitude that gets a lot of snow that stays. In the 9 years I have been here, we have had 2-3 snows a year on average, with only a couple that were more than 2-4 inches or lasted more than 2-3 days. However, in '93 they had a freak blizzard that dumped 3 feet of snow and immobilized everything for a week.

The growing season is great... mostly Zone 6b here at my house, but Zone 7 just a few miles away. I garden from mid-April to mid-October but we often get a late frost (usually not a hard freeze) in late April to early May. I just mulch, or cover stuff then!

The opinion of cost of living here varies... people from up north-east, and California or Michigan say it's much cheaper. I found it somewhat cheaper than Atlanta, and people from Alabama or central Florida have mixed opinions. Affordable Housing in Asheville itself is scarce because we are in a bowl surrounded by a ridge line and buildable lots for new housing are few. Many mobile homes here outside the city area now, but still lots of affordable property available within 45 minutes of the city. Most of the city area is priced at or above $100,000 for housing, with many nearer $200,000. (My 2 BR/1 BA house was $72,000 5 years ago, and now worth around $115,000, but I have also improved it, mostly cosmetics and work on the kitchen and bath.) Housing that needs renovation is still available at a decent price.

I'd love to try Alaska as I am adventuresome and love the idea of there still being a frontier, but not for me now, being so near to retirement age! Like GrannyLois, I also love east TN because it is so much like my side of the mountain ridge in terrain and temperature, but with more people and cities (and highways!), so maybe more jobs.

I think a lot of your decision might depend on what type of employment you need. Jobs here in Asheville are mostly: medical (with the regional hospitals here), service (trades, restaurants, motels), education (State Univ. here and some small colleges), and self-employment. Some manufacturing, but not a lot.

I find the people friendly, and thoroughly mixed as to interests. The city is becoming quite cosmopolitan for so small a city and restaurants offer all kinds of cuisine now. There isn't much you cannot find here no matter what your interests. This area also abounds in crafts people (over 8,000 in our 13 county area with over 35% making a full time living from it) and there are many retirement communities within 50 miles.

That's the glimpse of my area... and I know we all love where we live the best!

wow, thanks for all the input y'all.
i lived in fayetteville, nc (fort bragg) for 3 years, left with alot of bad memories and promised myself i'd never go back. darius, wheres "the gorge" in relation to you? dh is an otr driver and talks about the 6% grade. ive been through there 2x and thought it was gorgeous. i also want to take a vacation there sometime and tour biltmore.
the places we're really considering are tn, ky and upstate ny (need a greenhouse for sure ). colorado has been mentioned a time or 2 also.
i want seasons, not just cool, hot, hotter, and summer.
grannylois, are you any where near pigeon forge? went through there once also and had that peaceful feeling. i have a friend that lives in murfreesboro (did i spell that right?) but im not sure how far that is from pf.
jen
thanks again yall

MsJen, you might talk to David (the dave from davesgarden.com). His place is for sale, and it's just west of Knoxville (about an hour from PF). I'm about an hour the other side of PF (east).

Jen, "the gorge" is on I-40 between here and Knoxville, which is about a 2 hour drive. I avoid driving through the gorge as there are so many fatal accidents there... took the back roads to I-40 on the other side of the gorge from here last weekend when I went to the Roundup. The scenery through the gorge is beautiful but I've seen it, and now avoid it! The other somewhat "bad" spot on the highways here is the "Saluda grade" on I-26 going south towards SC. Not as bad nor as long as the gorge, though...

Pigeon Forge is just off the Knoxville side of the gorge a few miles, probably about an hour from here. I love to shop all the outlets there.

I've been near Ft. Bragg, and I hated even driving through... much living there, so I understand!

Hope you find your Oasis, Jen.........wherever it may be!!

"eyes"

Thanks "eyes".
My son overheard us talking and offered to help with the relocation expenses. I'm becoming prouder and prouder of him.
Still no clues as to where to go tho, lol

Texas is a purty, darn good place!!!!

"eyes"

There's a lot to be said about the Pacific Northwest.
We have good schools, clean lifestyles, not too much crime, the weather is iffy though...lots of rain, gray winters, (No sun) temps dont get higher than high 70's low 80's and one a season we'll get a heat wave (into the 90's) we have mountains for skiing, the pacific coast, the gorge for windsailing. It's pretty cosmopolitan.
I wouldnt urge anyone to move here though because of the dreary winters. You are used to a much longer growing season, better stick wit h a warmer climate.
P.S. when you find the perfect place, let me know, cause I'm itching to find a longer grpwing season.

don't come here! had the animals rabies shots a few weeks ago, today i get a bill from the animal shelter!! gonna send it back and tell them the animals ran away. if you are in the county and don't pay the local utilities, the county charges you 10% surtax on lite and gas bills. two years ago they tried to pass a 1cent sales tax for recreation, failed, so the next year they tried to get a 1 cent sales tax for something else and got it. this is the 2nd most taxed county in florida. cement plant moved in, the county has spent millions suing trying to stop it. the plant has been open a year and the county is still suing. PLUS... the $7,000 .00 collected by the "choose life" car tags that is supposed to be going to the choose life people is being hung up by the county commission because they don't believe in choosing life. the city keeps trying to annex everyone in, finally annexed an area that is 90% students.... now the city and county are fighting about who is to pay for emergency services...now that the city got their wish, they don't want to cover the expenses of emergency services. 60,000 students in the area. now, if you move to a county close by, the living is great.
in my travels to visit my mom while she was alive, i thought St Louis Missouri had the nicest people.

Northern California is the place for me! REdwood trees, mild climate here on the coast, Snow in the surrounding mountains but only a light dusting here in the winter now and then, lots of winter rain (I like rain) good people and an added bonus should you decide to move here...We could be neighbors! ( that last item may be a plus or....:~)

florida is out, lol..
i would love to move to california, but i have to say that im overwhelmed by the "how expensive it is" talk.
i'm afraid it would take a years salary here just to have start up costs there.
we keep rolling around east TN and upstate NY.
i imagine ill go in to shell shock no matter where we move. funny how important a growing season is tho.
jen

MsJen, i bet the florida panhandle would be great, maybe not far enough away from you. i was born in this area, live in the "sticks" and do like it though i wish we'd gone a couple of miles further into a different county. the middle school my kids went to has camera equipment that the local tv station could use for their local stuff and would never miss a beat!!! now, why would anyone in their right mind spend that kind of money on 12 to 14 year olds?

those california earth quakes bother me, at least we have warnings to get ready for the hurricanes.

MsJen - I found the following site - if you want to check out what the cost of living is for various communities:

http://www.homefair.com/homefair/calc/salcalc.html

I've lived in eastern Nebraska all of my life. It's hot durinig the summer and can get pretty cold most winters. Your husband would be snatched up in a heartbeat if he is an OTR driver as we have lots of trucking companies around here. But I know - Nebraska sounds kind of boring.

Our property taxes are high but we are one of the only states in US that don't have casino gambling and that may be why our taxes are higher. Our schools, for the most part, are pretty good, considering how low are teachers are paid.

Good luck! It has to be very hard to make this kind of decision.

NebraskaJewel, i was born in Wahoo and spent my first few years in valley. i remember the 2 room school house i went to, district 24?
i have an aunt that lives in omaha and another in york.
my moms family (years ago) is originally from kearney? and my biological fathers family is from sargent (sandhills area)
my roots run deep in nebraska. my g-grandmother was a diehard husker fan and was probably buried with a flag in her coffin..(i say that VERY lovingly). all the women were eastern stars and my g-father was a mason.
thanks for the info..im headin off know to check the link.
thanks again, (especially for the memories)
jen

MsJen - just checked back to this thread. It is a small world isn't it? My cousins went to a two room school house near Wahoo for awhile - can't remember what district it was.

MSJen,

I've lived in Minneapolis, Minnesota my whole life and even though I've traveled the world (on business and leisure) plus have the means to relocate to any city in the world, I wouldn't move. If my job required working elsewhere, I'd commute. We are known, here, as "Minnesota Nice". The people with solid mid-western, hardworking family oriented values. My husband was born and raised in New York City. He loves New York, but has found, in Minneapolis, a city he loves even more.

We have major sports teams and cultural facilities. Taxes fall in the higher range, but we have the amenities to show for it e.g. wonderful park system, lakes, lakes and more lakes (all within the city limits w/ excellent fishing), jogging/bike trails, great highway system, trees, trees, and more trees, and last, but not least, an excellent school system with "adult ed" programs having something for everyone.

You want seasons...Minnesota is the place to be, we have them all in their intense glory. I have a hard time choosing which season I like my garden the best. Even in the dead of winter, the dried ornamental grasses and seed pods are magical bathed in ice crystals reflecting the intense sunlight from the azure blue sky. It may be extremely cold, but who cares when there's so much beauty all around. Just put on another layer of clothing and you're set. And every spring we're rewarded with perky flowering bulbs, stiffened in the brisk cool breezes that try to hold on to winter just a bit longer.

We are predominately of German and Scandanavian descent. We also have the highest concentration of Native American and Hmong people in the US. Add to these statistics the fact that we have many corporate headquarters (home based in the Twin Cities) that transfer in workers from all over the world. The resultant population is very diversified and contributes, in a very positive way, to the cultural tolerances displayed by the residents.

And finally, another benefit to living here...because we're frozen almost half of the year, we've actually discovered the fountain of youth...people in their 80's look like they're in their 60's, etc. etc!!!! People around the world pay big dollars to achieve this look through cosmetic surgery...we come by it naturally!

Hope this gives you a good snap shot of my home. Good luck in your search.

Methinks MsJen should work for her Chamber of Commerce!
Nicely said!

jardin, thanks so much for the insight in to mn. i have to admit that that was a place neither one of had considered.
fishing would definately be a perk, but im afraid it would be to big of a city for me.
a friend told me that we were nuts for wanting to move somewhere that we dont know anyone. are we?

MSJen,

Sorry for the late reply to your last note...I've been away for awhile.

There are many wonderful small towns in Minnesota if the larger cities like Minneapolis and St. Paul are not your style. Although, Minneapolis has been reported to have a small town "flavor" with the cosmopolitan amenities of a major city. Next tier down are cities like St. Cloud (center of the State), Duluth (on Lake Superior), and Rochester (maybe 1 1/2hrs south of Minneapolis and home of the world renouned Mayo Clinic). Garrison is smaller town about 2 hours north of Minneapolis and right on Lake Milacs (one of the State's most popular fishing lakes). Then there's Brainerd about 3 hours north of Minneapolis, right smack dab in the middle of the State's most popular resort areas. FYI, Minnesota is noted as the State with 10,000 lakes filled with Walleye Pike, Northerns, Bass, Sunfish/Crapies/Perch...some lakes have trophy Muskies and Trout.

Our growing season is from April (spring bulbs) to October (mums and decorative flowering cabbages/kales and even some roses hang on to the first snowfall.) Minnesota would be a major life change for someone from the south primarily due to the climate. It sounds like you're young and seeking a life change, though, and any change poses great challenges. And of course, meeting thoses challenges offers great rewards. As I stated in my first post, Minnesotans are wonderful and down to earth...we have good solid family values and tell it like it is...not a lot of "putting on aires" here in this State.

Whatever you decide to do, do it whole heartedly and without hesitation. Positive thinking makes all the difference in the end results. Good luck!