Where should we move? Help us decide

shhhhh.......... and count your blessings if you are from Kansas

Hello,
My choice is New England of course, northern Maine is #2.
Linda (bilyn)

Here's another site to give you information on the cities you're considering.

http://www.monstermoving.monster.com/Find_a_Place/Cityprofile/

I was raised in a suburb of Madison, Wisconsin -- but I moved to NY about 12 years ago and I have to say that I love this area of the country. The east coast is just breathtaking. It is nice to be within driving distance to NYC or the ocean. I have found New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont . . . all to be just beautiful states -- and very nice for gardening. This part of the country also has a lot to offer culturally as well.

Thank you everyone for your responses. DH and I seemed to be narrowing down the the PNW (Washington or Oregon). Knowyourspot.com was a wonderful site to visit.

So, all of you PNWers, what is your favorite place in either Oregon or Washington?

Thanks a Bunch,

Sandy - Lady Aspen

There's my home state of Pennsylvania. The Pittsburgh area has all sorts of high tech stuff, with all the universities, and there is lots and lots of water. You'd want to live outside of the city of Pittsburgh because of the high city taxes, and the surrounding counties have more open space and larger properties.

West side of Oregon & Washington = Rain

East side of Oregon & Washington = pretty dry

I prefer the dry side myself, and like it here.

My parents live outside of Lexington, KY....horse breeding country. In fact, they live between 3 horse breeders! Perfect, since my mother is an avid planter...every chance she gets she gets rid of a little grass in favor of plants. Winters are there, but extremely mild. Rolling hills, so not too much clay at all. 20 minutes from Lexington, so its a real city.

You cannot do better than Chapel Hill.

my 1 1/2 cents

A word of warning on the Pacific Northwest!!! If you are at all susceptable to getting depressed from lack of sunshine...don't move there!!! While it is absolutely lush and beautiful, there can be very long stretches of time where the sunshine is sorely lacking. I'd personally avoid the Seattle area due to the close proximity of Mt. Rainier. I'd go with the Bainbridge Island/Bremerton area on the west side of the Puget Sound myself. Fantastic ferry access to Seattle and all the modern conveinences. Roughly two hours from the coast or ferry access to British Columbia. And if you want snow, you're just a short drive from the Olympic mountains. Just watch out for the black ice in winter. I lived there for about three years and loved it.

naturepatch

Being born and raised in the Puget Sound area I am a bit partial. Technology prospects are seemingly pretty good, microsoft still likes it here, Boeings is still in business. Weather is a bit dicey at times,but that's the case in most places. The San Juan Islands would be my first choice if it wasn't so overpriced, next would be Oregon. Anything along the Interstate 5 freeway will be terribly congested but a few miles east or west and things open up. Good luck in wherever you choose.

Balvenie,

DH and I are looking at the Olympia area. The area sounds so beautiful. I would love some insider information if you, or anyone else, has the time.

Thanks,

Sandy - Lady Aspen

LadyAspen, the Olympia area is very beautiful. You will like it there. It rains on that side of the state a little too much for my liking, but when it is nice, it is BEAUTIFULLY nice. When it's 70 degrees, it feels hot, as they are humid. They also have a longer growing season than on my side of the Cascades where we have true winters and they don't.

Karrie

Sandy, I lived in Olympia in the late 60's and enjoyed the area very much. Scenery is great, people were friendly, it has a college and lots of State Government Offices.(although that may not be anything to brag about ?) There are, or at least were, uncrowded areas nearby and it is still reasonably close to Seattle for Opera,symphony, museums, Pike Place Market, closer to Tacoma for the Glass Museum and Dale Chihuley's fabulous blown glass displays. Besides that its a good area for gardening.