Help me decide where to live please...

[skybytch 273]

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You think we would like Northern more than Southern California? Should I be concerned about the state of the economy in CA and the possibility of higher taxes to cover the huge deficits there?

I've lived in So Cal, the Central Coast (nice but no good dz's for fun jumpers) and NorCal. I think the people are nicer up here.

According to recent news reports, California's budget is balanced at the moment. Taxes are higher than in other states, as are general living expenses; up to you to decide if the benefits of living here outweigh paying more for taxes and housing than you might in some other state (with crappy weather).

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We don't want a congested city with long commutes, but we don't want a city that is too small either. We would kind of like it if there was a nice size university nearby. Outdoor activities we love are skydiving, cycling, hiking, skiing and tennis.

Come check out the Sacramento area. Half a million or so in the city limits, not sure of population in the entire metro area; traveling from one side to the other (rural to rural) takes about 30-40 minutes. Commute off rush hour and there are rarely traffic issues. Housing prices are far less than the LA or San Francisco areas. Two universities (Sac State and UC Davis). Three turbine dz's within 30 minutes or so of downtown (Skydance in Davis west of Sac, Skydive Sacramento in Lincoln east of Sac and Lodi to the south). Mostly flat and very bicycle friendly (Davis is one of the most bicycle friendly cities in the US). Loads of hiking trails within an hour or so drive, including several wilderness areas. Tahoe is less than 2 hours away; excellent skiing and hiking. San Francisco is less than two hours away.

It does get warm in the summer - 90F isn't unusual and a week straight of 100F plus is a given in August. But it's a drier heat than Florida; I'll take 100F here over 90F in Florida anytime. It can get a bit cold in the winter, but I don't remember seeing temps under 20F in the 8 years I've lived here.

[JerryBaumchen 1,363]

Hi Marion,

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A few more criteria... We don't want a congested city with long commutes, but we don't want a city that is too small either. We would kind of like it if there was a nice size university nearby. Outdoor activities we love are skydiving, cycling, hiking, skiing and tennis.

Since that is now some more criteria, consider:

http://www.corvallisoregon.gov/

Some more info:

Eugene Skydivers
www.eugeneskydivers.com
USPA Region: Northwest (NW)
Location: Hobby Field (77S)
83505 N. Melton Rd.
Creswell, OR 97426
12 miles S of Eugene

Contact Information
Phone: (541) 895-3029
Fax: (541) 895-5653
E-Mail: urbanj17@ymail.com
Distance to nearest hotel/motel: 1 mile

Aircraft: 2 Cessna 182s
Training: AFF, Tandem, SL
On-Site Services: Videographers, Wireless Internet/Internet Access, Gear Sales/Rental, Packing Services

We are a full time year-round skydiving center. With our professional staff, excellent pilots, and indoor packing, we are a must-visit DZ. We boast the friendliest atmosphere on I-5 and welcome all levels of experience. Warning: Jumpers who visit often never leave. Pack extra boxers.

Skydive Oregon, Inc.
www.skydiveoregon.com
USPA Region: Northwest (NW)
Location: Skydive Oregon Airport (OL05)
12150 S Hwy. 211
Molalla, OR 97038
20 miles S of Portland

Contact Information
Phone: 800-934-5867
Phone 2: 503-829-3483
E-Mail: skydive@molalla.net
Distance to nearest hotel/motel: 2 miles

Aircraft: 1 Cessna 182, 1 Cessna 208 Caravan, 2 Cessna 208 Grand Caravan
Training: AFF, Tandem
On-Site Services: Videographers, Wireless Internet/Internet Access, RV Hookups, Camping, Showers, Gear Sales/Rental, Rigging Services, Organizers, Swoop Pond, Packing Services

Private airport dedicated solely to skydiving! Enjoy turbine aircraft year-round, a 45-acre grass landing area, a 200’x 60’ swoop pond, air-conditioned club house and packing area, wireless internet, campground and spectacular mountain views. Nearby swimming, kayaking, skiing and climbing. Year-round operation, open seven days a week during the summer.

And to follow on what NWFlyer said, if you come to the Portland area, your wife & you have got a place to stay. I have a spare bedroom with a double bed; just plan in advance.

JerryBaumchen

PS) The Eugene Skydivers website is not currently up and running.

[BillyVance 34]

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FL: I am afraid FL is off the list. Unfortunately my wife says it is too hot.

I live in Central FL and I wasn't about to tell you to move here. She's right, it IS too hot! I would love to move to NC (Asheville is a beautiful area), but I'm not sure how close it is to a dz.

Isn't the Paraclete open air wind tunnel located outside of Asheville? Not sure...

But yes, its a beautiful area as well as the home to the famous Vanderbilt estate (largest privately owned residence in the USA, as well as the hometown of an ancestor of mine that was governor of NC in the mid-late 1800's - Zebulon Baird Vance. The monument (an obelisk that's shaped like the Washington Monument in DC) in downtown bears his name.

"Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban

[wmw999 2,446]

Asheville is gorgeous, but the closest DZ is about 100 miles away, and the tunnel is around Fayetteville. OTOH, Charlotte is also pretty (though not as pretty), with DZs much closer, and the tunnel also closer, and probably a much better job market, as well as a major university. Yeah, that was an awesome run-on sentence, wasn't it?

I'm not from there, I was just favorably impressed, and would consider it seriously if I were open to living anywhere.

Wendy P.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)

[billeisele 130]

NC/SC - Skydive Carolina

NC - Charlotte, Gastonia, Asheville
SC - Columbia, Fort Mill, Rock Hill, Greenville, Spartanburg

all near the mountains, fairly near the beach

Give one city to the thugs so they can all live together. I vote for Chicago where they have strict gun laws.

[forblueskies 0]

I'm very opinionated about this. Before you make any choice, please visit Portland, Oregon. There is every kind of terrain for every kind of sport, 100 microbreweries, great seafood, salmon, coffee, fruits and vegetables, an educated, laid-back, polite populace, amazing bookstores, every kind of music, and Portland State.

Eugene is home to the U. of Oregon, and about forty miles south, a great college town.

The Columbia River Gorge to the north has to be seen to be believed. Lots of sports, b&b's, a scenic route.
Oregon has less rain than Seattle and milder temps. It is quite dry in the summer. Balloon festivals. a Shakespeare festival, the sea lion caves at Florence, Crater Lake, and the Bend area. It is quite truly heaven!

Now, North Carolina is awesome, too, with natural beauty, pronounced seasons, culture, world-class universities, a vibrant economy, Asheville, Raleigh, and Charlotte.

Charleston, S.C. and Savannah, Ga, also have incredible charm, food, and lowland culture. On the ocean.

Nashville, Tn. is a good mid-sized city that is quite cosmopolitan. Ditto, Chattanooga.

Florida is very humid. Sarasota has sugar beaches and lots of culture. Also, lots of Snowbirds from the North.

[davjohns 1]

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FL: I am afraid FL is off the list. Unfortunately my wife says it is too hot.

I live in Central FL and I wasn't about to tell you to move here. She's right, it IS too hot! I would love to move to NC (Asheville is a beautiful area), but I'm not sure how close it is to a dz.

Hmmmm....my visits to central Florida are typically in the winter and I find it wonderful. I am considering wintering there and spending summers in Chattanooga when I retire. Highly recommend Chattanooga. Lovely area. All the conveniences you need.

I know it just wouldnt be right to kill all the stupid people that we meet..

But do you think it would be appropriate to just remove all of the warning labels and let nature take its course.

[skymama 37]

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Hmmmm....my visits to central Florida are typically in the winter and I find it wonderful.

Yes, FL is quite comfortable here in the winter, even warm on some days. It's those pesky months of May through October that suck so bad!

She is Da Man, and you better not mess with Da Man,
because she will lay some keepdown on you faster than, well, really fast. ~Billvon

[FlyingRhenquest 1]

If I were going to live on that coast, it'd probably be somewhere around Corvallis. I visited there a few years ago for work. Don't forget, the Rogue Brewery is not too far from there, either! I drove from Denver and it does feel kind of odd driving through hundreds of miles of land that doesn't seem to be populated at all to get somewhere (Seattle's the same way) but it's pretty nice once you get there. What are the winters like there?

Seattle's pretty nice too -- fantastic sushi there, but the traffic would drive me insane within a matter of days. They always say it's the weather that'll get you in Seattle but it's been sunny and blue every time I've visited, which makes me wonder if the locals don't exaggerate it to keep outsiders from thinking of settling. They're always like "No really, this is the first sunny day we've had in weeks!"

I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

[JerryBaumchen 1,363]

Hi blueskies,

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Eugene is home to the U. of Oregon, and about forty miles south,

Uh, could we make that 105 miles south?

My son went to school there so I have driven it a few times.



JerryBaumchen

[Amazon 7]

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Hi blueskies,

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Eugene is home to the U. of Oregon, and about forty miles south,

Uh, could we make that 105 miles south?

My son went to school there so I have driven it a few times.



JerryBaumchen

Maybe he has trouble with the varied aquatic creatures and discerning their habitat along the Willamette River Valley

[maadmax 0]

I have lived all over and it doesn't get any better than the place you left. GEORGIA . But you got to get out of Atlanta and up into the hill country.

Good Luck with your decision.

[popsjumper 2]

Marion,
Costa Rica


'nuff said.

My reality and yours are quite different.
I think we're all Bozos on this bus.
Falcon5232, SCS8170, SCSA353, POPS9398, DS239

[popsjumper 2]

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Uh, could we make that 105 miles south?

My son went to school there so I have driven it a few times.



JerryBaumchen

What were you doing? Spying on him? Bailing him out of jail? Helping with homework? Hittin' on the coeds with him?

My reality and yours are quite different.
I think we're all Bozos on this bus.
Falcon5232, SCS8170, SCSA353, POPS9398, DS239

[JerryBaumchen 1,363]

Hi Pops,

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What were you doing? Bailing him out of jail?

Once, he learned his lesson.

One time, during his first year there, he called on a Saturday morning & asked me if I had ever been teargassed.

I paused, thought some and said, "So tell me more."

Seems that he and some friends went to a rather large party that got out of hand, the cops were called, some dufuses ( is that the correct plural of dufus? ) started throwing beer bottles at the cops, and the cops responded with teargas.

He didn't get hauled in or anything but he did learn when to just get up and leave certain situations.

IMO college is all about learning. Right?????

JerryBaumchen

PS) And today he is an attorney. Hmmmmmm

PPS) Just about every year the City of Eugene says that they have to do something about all of this drinking & partying by these college students. Sure they will.

[Amazon 7]

Drunken ducks.... such a terrible thing to see

[ryoder 1,590]

I've hear a large landowner recently vacated some properties in Belize.

"There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones.

[fmmobley 0]

Great info.

No one mentioned Boise, Idaho. Any opinions on that city?

Also, no one mentioned any cities in the Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland area. Any opinions about those states?

... Marion

[OWB 8]

West Virginia is very pretty, There is a DZ near Huntington, you can ski at Snowshoe, there are rail-trails for bicycles, the roads are amazing for motorcycles. There is an RF quiet zone around Green Bank. Downside, I don't think the economy is that great.

Don't worry about nuthin' cause nothin's gonna be okay.

[Andy9o8 2]

You and your wife may also wish to consider whether regional cultures are or are not an important variable to you. For example, the climates in, say, the Carolinas and parts of California can be fairly similar, yet culturally they can be quite different. You should consider that factor at least long enough to either rule it in or rule it out as a variable that influences your decision.

[Southern_Man 0]

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Great info.

Also, no one mentioned any cities in the Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland area. Any opinions about those states?

I live in Harrisonburg in the Shenandoah Valley. It's a great four season climate and the outdoor recreation opportunities are fantastic. I live 20 minutes from the DZ. My city might be smaller than some people want (about 50,000) but does have a 20,000 student state university here. Charlottesville is also very nice. A lot of people like the more urban areas of the state as well (Richmond, Hampton Roads, Northern Virginia). I'm not a large city guy personally so my size town suits me better.

"What if there were no hypothetical questions?"

[oldwomanc6 52]

I must have missed it, but what do you and your wife do for a living?

This could make a huge difference as to where you want to settle.

lisa
WSCR 594
FB 1023
CBDB 9

[oldwomanc6 52]

I forgot to say: Come to Baltimore!

lisa
WSCR 594
FB 1023
CBDB 9

[fmmobley 0]

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I must have missed it, but what do you and your wife do for a living?

My wife is a Nurse Practitioner and I programmed IBM I-series computers. Tish does plan to return to work. I am not so sure I will ever go back to programming computers.

... Marion

[Krip 2]

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WA: Not sure about Washington. It all sounds great, but you say you can't jump half the time. If I could get 100 jumps in a year I would be satisfied. Is that possible there?

I easily get 200 jumps a year as a weekend jumper (and instructor) with other family commitments. Portland. Oregon is going to be only somewhat better, but still have similar issues.

John

What are you doing to the nice people

Western Wa

No sun, It rains all time, we have a 10% sales tax , cost of living, is significant etc etc. There's a reason infamous serial killers, Ted Bundy, Gary Ridgeway the DC sniper etc etc come from this area.

It's the weather

Portland is a excellent place to relocate to.
Nice DZ and vibes
Great mass transit system
Great bike trail system
No sales tax.

One Jump Wonder