Anybody NOT like where they currently live? (2 Viewers)

[AAABatteries]

Yeah, I can only imagine what you deal with in Atlanta in this regard.  I complain about it in Portland and it's 10x worse in Seattle.  But I've heard Atlanta is about as bad it gets for congestion.  Yuck.  

Would you stay in Georgia?

Honestly - I personally only find it horrible during commute time.  Outside that it's not bad but the commutes can be ####### brutal.

I think there's a perception about Georgia with poor schools and rednecks - I think both are almost exclusively a non-metro Atlanta issue.  Maybe Atlanta city schools but most of the suburbs have really good schools.

The three legitimate (IMO) issues are traffic (only an issue in metro area), the weather if you don't like seasonal changes that can border on extreme (this doesn't bother me) and some of the more conservative stances the state politics have taken over the years.

 

[Ramblin Wreck]

Northern Virginia area has a lot to offer but it is just a place to make some money before retiring somewhere else.  It won't be hard to move when the time is right.

I left NoVa well before retirement age and don't regret it for a second.  I enjoyed it while I was there and took advantage of all the history and museums that are in DC but the traffic just became unbearable.

 

[MAC_32]

They also need to have jobs in my industry and have the amenities I am looking for: mainly skiing, fishing, hunting, kayaking, and golfing.

I don't know your industry, but I can't imagine many of those mountain towns just inside the range don't have access to all of those activities.

Dear, do you have any objections to living just outside Grand Junction, Salt Lake, Logan, Ogden, Ft. Collins, Loveland, Longmont, Boulder, Denver, Colorado Springs, Pueblo, or Santa Fe? Maybe others.

Once the list is trimmed down look for industry fits then start shopping for towns 5-10 miles out.

 

[MTskibum]

I don't know your industry, but I can't imagine many of those mountain towns just inside the range don't have access to all of those activities.

Dear, do you have any objections to living just outside Grand Junction, Salt Lake, Logan, Ogden, Ft. Collins, Loveland, Longmont, Boulder, Denver, Colorado Springs, Pueblo, or Santa Fe? Maybe others.

Once the list is trimmed down look for industry fits then start shopping for towns 5-10 miles out.

We are looking at some of those, my wife has it settled that the only 3 big cities in the southern rockies are Albuquerque, Denver, and Salt Lake. So I am pretty much stuck on one of those suburbs. Grand Junction, Rock Springs, Bozeman, etc would be great, but they are too small.

The problem with Denver is that you live so far away from the activities. My sister lives in Parker, Colorado and she is a 2 hour drive from anywhere nice in the mountains, if not further. Plus there is the cost of living issue.

Albuquerque and Salt Lake are both closer to the mountains and they have a cheaper cost of living.

 

[wikkidpissah]

They also need to have jobs in my industry and have the amenities I am looking for: mainly skiing, fishing, hunting, kayaking, and golfing.

I've yet to post in one of these where-to-live threads without recommending Reno (Albq but closer to more stuff). Why stop now?!

 

[Bull Dozier]

Saw an article recently with statistics showing some huge percentage of Americans never live anywhere outside their hometown. I wanna say it was 40% or something. Which explains a lot, but that's another topic.

Now FBG's are generally more upwardly mobile than an average sampling of the population I'd guess. 

But the reality is that even if some people feel this way, many will never do anything about it. Many of them probably feel like they can't, or actually can't. But still. Kinda sad.

Not sure why this is sad.  I live a block from the house I grew up in.  Love the neighborhood.  My wife works a block away.  I have a 15-20 minute non highway drive to work.  Works for us.

I have traveled the US and seen plenty of it.  I don't like mega cities, no desire to ever go to NYC.  Just not my thing.  Have seen a lot of smaller mid sized cities that I enjoy.  But, I'm not sure why it is sad that I would choose to live where my family and friends are, just for the sake of being able to say I lived somewhere else.  

I don't begrudge people who like to live in various places, and don't like to put their roots down.  I'm not sure why the opposite is so looked down on.

 

[MTskibum]

I've yet to post in one of these where-to-live threads without recommending Reno (Albq but closer to more stuff). Why stop now?!

It is too far away from family. One of the reasons we are moving back to the rockies is to be within driving distance of all family members. However Las Vegas is within driving distance and we have not considered it.

 

[wikkidpissah]

It is too far away from family. One of the reasons we are moving back to the rockies is to be within driving distance of all family members. However Las Vegas is within driving distance and we have not considered it.

St George used to be nice.

 

[Gopher State]

Lived in MN, SD, WI most of my life.  We are retiring this year, and moving to AZ.  I told my wife five conditions for new home:

gated community (so my kids can’t just show up)

swimming pool in back yard

 view of the mountains 

lime tree in back yard so I can pick them fresh for cocktails 

lots of walking trails to hold my wife’s hand on our walks

life has been good looking forward to the next chapter 

 

[Binky The Doormat]

You really should check out somewhere further west. All the states in the Rockies and West Coast are light years nicer than the Midwest/Plains/South.

I really like the cost of living in Arkansas compared to those areas.  Given limitless funds - I'd probably pick a nice place on the beach in San Diego.  

 

[eoMMan]

Not sure why this is sad.  I live a block from the house I grew up in.  Love the neighborhood.  My wife works a block away.  I have a 15-20 minute non highway drive to work.  Works for us.

I have traveled the US and seen plenty of it.  I don't like mega cities, no desire to ever go to NYC.  Just not my thing.  Have seen a lot of smaller mid sized cities that I enjoy.  But, I'm not sure why it is sad that I would choose to live where my family and friends are, just for the sake of being able to say I lived somewhere else.  

I don't begrudge people who like to live in various places, and don't like to put their roots down.  I'm not sure why the opposite is so looked down on.

I can't speak for ConnSkins but sometimes people stick too close to family and friends in a hometown when they could be much more successful and happier in another town with better job opportunities, more affordable housing, etc etc. People get comfortable and don't like change....even if it could be for the better.

 

[MAC_32]

We are looking at some of those, my wife has it settled that the only 3 big cities in the southern rockies are Albuquerque, Denver, and Salt Lake. So I am pretty much stuck on one of those suburbs. Grand Junction, Rock Springs, Bozeman, etc would be great, but they are too small.

The problem with Denver is that you live so far away from the activities. My sister lives in Parker, Colorado and she is a 2 hour drive from anywhere nice in the mountains, if not further. Plus there is the cost of living issue.

Albuquerque and Salt Lake are both closer to the mountains and they have a cheaper cost of living.

Well, yeah - Parker is SE of Denver.  You need to be west of town.  If Colorado isn't affordable and those secondary cities aren't on the table then your options are really limited to the two you cited.  If you really want to live in the Rockies then just pick one.

 

[ConnSKINS26]

Not sure why this is sad.  I live a block from the house I grew up in.  Love the neighborhood.  My wife works a block away.  I have a 15-20 minute non highway drive to work.  Works for us.

I have traveled the US and seen plenty of it.  I don't like mega cities, no desire to ever go to NYC.  Just not my thing.  Have seen a lot of smaller mid sized cities that I enjoy.  But, I'm not sure why it is sad that I would choose to live where my family and friends are, just for the sake of being able to say I lived somewhere else.  

I don't begrudge people who like to live in various places, and don't like to put their roots down.  I'm not sure why the opposite is so looked down on.

The thread is about people who don't like where they currently live. So my comment was addressing the people who would like to live elsewhere and feel like they can't for whatever reason. I think it's great that some people love where they grew up. 

I do think everyone can benefit from living among different people than they grew up around. If you live in a diverse place with people from all walks, cool. But a lot of people live their entire lives in a bubble full of people just like them and imo that is a lot of the reason we're in the position we are as a country. But that's PSF stuff. 

 

[Bull Dozier]

The thread is about people who don't like where they currently live. So my comment was addressing the people who would like to live elsewhere and feel like they can't for whatever reason. I think it's great that some people love where they grew up. 

I do think everyone can benefit from living among different people than they grew up around. If you live in a diverse place with people from all walks, cool. But a lot of people live their entire lives in a bubble full of people just like them and imo that is a lot of the reason we're in the position we are as a country. But that's PSF stuff. 

OK gotcha.  I wasn't considering that.  

 

[The Tahitian Facemask]

Wisconsin is awful. 

 

[The_Man]

I've lived in upper middle class white Baltimore for 20 years and I can't think of a better place to have raised my kids. It's pretty much the most affordable place to live between Washington and Boston, enabling us to have a quality of life we probably couldn't have achieved anywhere else and still had proximity to family. We live in a great neighborhood that's about 15 minutes from work for both my wife and me, and 10 minutes from my 16-year-old's school (the older one is in college).

But we're looking to get out of here in 5 or 6 years, once we finish taking advantage of our employer's college tuition benefit for our kid. City government essentially no longer functions, with crime getting worse every year. We have the means to insulate ourselves from it (so far) but I don't feel good about capitalizing on what is essentially a segregated society here. And who knows how long until crime touches us? Before the uprising four years ago I never felt that way. But things have gotten dramatically worse since then, and neither the police nor the government seem to have any answers. As a big fan of Baltimore it pains me to admit that, but it's true.  

Also, after two decades, it's just time for a change. We'll be mid-50s when our younger son graduates from college, and we want to make one more move before retirement time. 

 

[Terminalxylem]

I would like to move away from Houston. Neither me nor my wife have any family within driving distance.

I have lived all over the country and would love to move to a small town in the Rockies, however my wife wants a larger city.

We may look into salt lake, it would be ideal except we are worried about discrimination from the Mormons. 

My friends who just moved to SLC say this isn’t a problem. Neither is religious, she is Asian and he is mixed ethnicity. Basically the city has LDS, Hispanics and people who love the outdoors.

 

[kevzilla]

I moved to Austin for college in 1979. 

Telecommuting now, which removed most Austinites' largest complaint. The next one would be weather...I got nothing.

My folks are 40 minutes up the road, and I love Austin, obviously. But after they pass, I will look into moving to Vegas for retirement.

 

[Terminalxylem]

We are looking at some of those, my wife has it settled that the only 3 big cities in the southern rockies are Albuquerque, Denver, and Salt Lake. So I am pretty much stuck on one of those suburbs. Grand Junction, Rock Springs, Bozeman, etc would be great, but they are too small.

The problem with Denver is that you live so far away from the activities. My sister lives in Parker, Colorado and she is a 2 hour drive from anywhere nice in the mountains, if not further. Plus there is the cost of living issue.

Albuquerque and Salt Lake are both closer to the mountains and they have a cheaper cost of living.

Albuquerque is a dump. Santa Fe is pretty awesome though.

 

[Slapdash]

You retired in your 20's?!? 

No:  "and allowed us to save a ton of money for retirement in our 20s"

 

[Terminalxylem]

St George used to be nice.

It still is, but too small and missing many of his desired activities.

 

[playin4beer]

I love West Michigan 6 months out of the year...

The other 6 can kiss my hairy ###....

 

[tommyboy]

Bit of an offshoot on this thread, where I found myself boasting like a peacock about my current state, Oregon.  Funny thing is, 20 year old me would have boasted just as much about my home state of Texas.  

Very much enjoyed the back and forth in that thread and cool to see people that are proud of where they live (or, in some cases, cool to see guys discuss where they'd prefer to live vs where they live now).

But I'm curious, how many of you DO NOT like your current home state/city?  What do you not like about it and where would you prefer to live?  Do you plan on changing this in the future or are you resigned to the fact that you might be stuck where you live (perhaps it's family or a job that is keeping your rooted in place).

 

i love oregon, sick of  Portland.  Lived here most of my life

plan is to retire in the next 5-7 years then sell house, move to central oregon, buy a 2nd home in texas and enjoy life.

i'll give you an example of why i'm sick of Portland.   23 years ago I visited San Antonio for the first time on a vacation with my wife.  San Antonio and Portland are the same size city and have been for all this time.   I go to  San Antonio 2-3 times per year the last 20 years.    In that time period both cities have basically doubled from 1.2M people to 2.4M people.   San Antonio has accommodated this growth by widening their old freeways from 3 lanes to 4 and 5 lanes, and by building double deckers in places, and by building entirely new freeways around the city.   Portland hasn't built or widened any freeway since 1983, the closest they've come is redesigning a connector (217), which is the busiest stretch of hwy in Oregon and 3 lanes still (was originally 2 lane hwy and stop signs; 45 years ago).  Portland has opted instead to spend 10's of billions on light rail which benefits about 4% of the total population of Portland, ignoring the other 90% of "the rest of us" that have to drive every day.   While light rail is nice, i would have preferred to embrace the power of the word "AND" here and built both light rail and new highways around the city to accommodate growth.    Its a city with no visible plan 

 

[General Malaise]

i love oregon, sick of  Portland.  Lived here most of my life

plan is to retire in the next 5-7 years then sell house, move to central oregon, buy a 2nd home in texas and enjoy life.

i'll give you an example of why i'm sick of Portland.   23 years ago I visited San Antonio for the first time on a vacation with my wife.  San Antonio and Portland are the same size city and have been for all this time.   I go to  San Antonio 2-3 times per year the last 20 years.    In that time period both cities have basically doubled from 1.2M people to 2.4M people.   San Antonio has accommodated this growth by widening their old freeways from 3 lanes to 4 and 5 lanes, and by building double deckers in places, and by building entirely new freeways around the city.   Portland hasn't built or widened any freeway since 1983, the closest they've come is redesigning a connector (217), which is the busiest stretch of hwy in Oregon and 3 lanes still (was originally 2 lane hwy and stop signs; 45 years ago).  Portland has opted instead to spend 10's of billions on light rail which benefits about 4% of the total population of Portland, ignoring the other 90% of "the rest of us" that have to drive every day.   While light rail is nice, i would have preferred to embrace the power of the word "AND" here and built both light rail and new highways around the city to accommodate growth.    Its a city with no visible plan 

San Antonio has way way way more land available for highway expansion.  217 doesn't even have a median.    Banfield doesn't either.  Where do you want the highways to go?  Agree it's a problem, but San Antonio isn't dealing with major rivers, hills or protected forests.  You know this. 

I take public transport (WES train) almost every day now.  It's delightful.  Requires a 5 mile walk all-told; also delightful.  I am going to need to see a link on your figures of Tri-Met use for commuting.  I see crowded trains and buses daily.  I also see a LOT of people using bikes to get around.

Portland has its issues, no doubt, but it also has challenges other cities like San Antonio do not and I also think Portland's light rail, buses, bike lanes/trails and trains are a huge feather in our cap. 

 

[ffweasel]

From Mid-Michigan and have lived in OC & San Diego, CA. Currently in Chicago and can’t wait to leave this city. My least favorite place I’ve lived in so far. Next month I’ll be looking to buy a home in the Austin, TX area! 

 

[5-ish Finkle]

I've yet to post in one of these where-to-live threads without recommending Reno (Albq but closer to more stuff). Why stop now?!

And I think I chime in whenever I see you bring it up.  Reno was a LOT better than I expected it to be when my wife and I lived there.  It gets kind of a bad rap from what it was 25-30 years ago. 

Admittedly, downtown is overall a pretty big dump (there are pockets of it that are being revitalized, but still too much of it is still stuck in the 70's and backward), but the outlying areas (particularly the old ranch lands south of downtown) are great, have a lot of space, are relatively cheap and are 40 minutes from Tahoe in one direction and Squaw in the other.  Tons of trails, wild horses walking into your yard during spring time, etc etc.  In general there the people were also very welcoming and kind/laid back.  Sparks isn't horrible either....though both it and Reno proper are probably going to see a housing spike VERY soon with Tesla/et al coming to town.

Still, as long as you don't go near Sun Valley there are far, far worse places.   We have toyed with the idea of going back if/when we are able to not have to worry about working 100% of the time.  You can't beat the views/proximity to probably one of the most beautiful places on this mudball.

 

[El Floppo]

Anybody not...like...where they currently live.

Other thread makes me read it like that, like.

now I'm reading it like borat from the movie taking the how to tell a joke class... NOT.

 

[MAC_32]

San Antonio has way way way more land available for highway expansion.  217 doesn't even have a median.    Banfield doesn't either.  Where do you want the highways to go?  Agree it's a problem, but San Antonio isn't dealing with major rivers, hills or protected forests.  You know this. 

I've never been to either city, but this seemed obvious just given each geographic location. Wife visited last summer and had lots of positive things to say about the city - just the one obvious con, homeless everywhere.

 

[msommer]

Just realized I've lived in a dozen digferent cities in my life in five different countries. The only one I didn't like when I lived there was Lima

 

[Steve Tasker]

Winter/Summer extremes here are better than Detroit/Toledo.  Thank you, Lake Erie.  Helps minimize the number of sweltering hot days and while we get a lot more snow that's optimal with the right infrastructure to the wind and ice that frequent the other side of the lake.

You can speak better to Buffalo winter's than I, but there's a huge difference between an eastern suburb of Cleveland and...well, anything east of here.  I know you get more snow than us and the highway that connects our two cities shuts down with frequency.  That strikes me as problematic, but I also don't care to find out.

Akron is to Cleveland what Toledo is to Detroit.  They're both arm pits.  What Akron has going for it vs. Toledo is its proximity to Cleveland.  A north Akron suburb is basically a south/east Cleveland suburb.  Same isn't the case for Toledo.  I grew up around there.  I lived in a great community, but we all couldn't get away from there fast enough - for good reason.

Recreational, I have zero perspective on Buffalo and any opinion on Detroit is very dated.  Cleveland now is better than Detroit then and from what I've read Detroit now is better than Detroit then, but compared to Cleveland now?     I just know that I love it here and we can't experience all that we want to experience..and while I have good experiences when i visit elsewhere I never come away thinking I may want to live there instead.  

I didn't mean literally Toledo, I was just throwing around other Rust Belt cities that may be smaller versions of these 3 cities.  I've never been to Toledo or Akron.  I've been to both Cleveland and Detroit a number of times over the years, both strike me as very similar to Buffalo in terms of the people, the "mindset", even the literal physical look of the cities.

In terms of weather, Buffalo is consistently 3-4 degrees colder than Cleveland, on average, according to climate data.  Cleveland is considered a "hot-summer humid continental" Dfa climate, whereas Buffalo is considered a "warm-summer humid continental" Dfb climate, bordering on Dfa.

Snow is very location-dependent here, too.  The city of Syracuse gets more snow than the city of Buffalo, but the southern suburbs of Buffalo get pounded with much more snow than the city itself.  Buffalo is just in the news a lot because the region will get 1 or 2 disaster lake-effect storms every year before the lake freezes.  People generally assume that it snows like every day during winter....that is not the case.  Usually we get a bad early-season storm or two, and then it levels off snows much more sporadically during the rest of winter. 

 

[MAC_32]

I didn't mean literally Toledo, I was just throwing around other Rust Belt cities that may be smaller versions of these 3 cities.  I've never been to Toledo or Akron.  I've been to both Cleveland and Detroit a number of times over the years, both strike me as very similar to Buffalo in terms of the people, the "mindset", even the literal physical look of the cities.

In terms of weather, Buffalo is consistently 3-4 degrees colder than Cleveland, on average, according to climate data.  Cleveland is considered a "hot-summer humid continental" Dfa climate, whereas Buffalo is considered a "warm-summer humid continental" Dfb climate, bordering on Dfa.

Snow is very location-dependent here, too.  The city of Syracuse gets more snow than the city of Buffalo, but the southern suburbs of Buffalo get pounded with much more snow than the city itself.  Buffalo is just in the news a lot because the region will get 1 or 2 disaster lake-effect storms every year before the lake freezes.  People generally assume that it snows like every day during winter....that is not the case.  Usually we get a bad early-season storm or two, and then it levels off snows much more sporadically during the rest of winter. 

That last part makes a ton of sense now that I see it written and remember exactly where Buffalo is on the map in relation to the great lakes. It's for the same reason Cleveland winter isn't quite as bad as areas NE of here. Once the lake is frozen the snow we get is usually manageable. So basically we may get snowed in one or two times early winter then expect one or two more somewhat big but not shut down the city big storms throughout the rest of winter.  When the arctic blast(s) come(s) down and gets everyone else it obviously gets us too, but it's not unique.

I am surprised to see Cleveland described as 'hot summer' though.  We'll get a couple of short blasts like what's coming in this weekend, but very rarely does it sustain for more than 2-3 days so it's easy to navigate. It's just mother nature's way of dictating pool days. I'm not sure if we've ever had double digit days in the 90's, but we typically have 70-80 days in the 80's.  If that classifies us as hot then so be it, but I think that number's pretty good...and my understanding is that's not the case in most MW cities.

 

[nirad3]

Some may think I'm crazy, but I hate Southern California.  Yeah, I know... the beach is awesome, weather is perfect, lots to do, blah blah blah.  

But there's just SOOO many people, the traffic is horrible, and I actually hate the weather.  68 and partly cloudy?  Is it July?  No, December!  There's just no variety in the weather, which I really love.  

And don't even get me started on the cost of living.  You don't wanna know what I pay for rent. 

I would much rather live in Austin again.  I realize cost of living is on the rise there but it's still nowhere near what it is here.  Plus I miss the thunderstorms and hot-### weather.

 

[General Malaise]

I've never been to either city, but this seemed obvious just given each geographic location. Wife visited last summer and had lots of positive things to say about the city - just the one obvious con, homeless everywhere.

The homeless camps set up all over the city - especially on what used to be pretty grassy knolls and embankments with wild flowers - off the sides of the highways, are a giant eyesore.  These have just grown in popularity over the last 5 years and it's very sad and hard to witness.  It's the first thing out of town visitors see now when they travel in from the airport through downtown.  

And downtown used to be a very clean, very safe place to visit day and night, with great restaurants, bars, shopping.  Now, it's a mess and the sense of safety has dwindled.  Seattle and San Francisco are even worse, IMO.  I don't know what the answer is, but it's a gigantic problem that we need to address and try to fix.  A lot of the people are struggling because rents are too high and they don't make enough to live here; many more are addicted to drugs and lack the ambition to better themselves.  The saddest of all, however, is the people dealing with mental illness.  Sucks all the way around. :(

 

[General Malaise]

Just realized I've lived in a dozen digferent cities in my life in five different countries. The only one I didn't like when I lived there was Lima

What about Lima did you not like?  Wish I had your experiences.  My biggest regret is not travelling the world when I was younger and had opportunities.  Now I feel like I won't ever get a chance to travel to different countries as I'll be over 60 when my last two kids enter college and with 5 kids to put through college, where the hell can I afford to visit?  Bums me out.  

 

[msommer]

What about Lima did you not like?  Wish I had your experiences.  My biggest regret is not travelling the world when I was younger and had opportunities.  Now I feel like I won't ever get a chance to travel to different countries as I'll be over 60 when my last two kids enter college and with 5 kids to put through college, where the hell can I afford to visit?  Bums me out.  

I got into an international career at 23, so that helped...

Lima as a city doesn't really work. An example is the electricity bill. There are mail carriers, but they don't bring out the bills. Those are handled by third parties (or whoever brings them out may actually work for the electric company, what do I know). Almost half the time the electricity bill would be delivered after it should have been paid. Obviously you can't pay the bill online (at all - that would be too easy) and if the bill is past due, you can't pay at the bank, oh, no, you have to go to the offices of the electric company (which may or may not be close to where you live), queue up with the other unfortunates and spend half your day there, all because some doofus ####ed up delivering your bill. I believe the electricity comapny for where I lived had like four offices, for a city of 10 million. I was fortunate and the closest office was about half an hour by car (didn't have one, so I had to take a taxi). Two choices, flag down one of the 250,000 illegal taxis in Lima and negotiate the price to go to your destination while standing in the street or, Uber it over there. Interestingly Uber (I used a competitor that didn't require me to pay with credit card) would generally be cheaper if you were going far. So, paying your bills/utilities was a bit more of a chore that most would expect.

Traffic was a mess, most non Uber type cabs did not have seatbelts but you really felt like they were needed when your Inca warrior of a driver threw the car in gear and attacked the other cars in the streets. I once had a taxi ride with a driver that was watching a talk show (and commenting on it) while he drove.

There were some nice supermarkets but the quality of non locally produced goods somewhat sketchy, if they were available. If you went to the local market instead you should remember that the butcher, fishmonger and dairy guy generally saw refrigeration more as an option than a requirement - and it gets rather hot in the summer.

Did I mention it is situated in a desert? You can't drink the tapwater unless you like diarrhea (many, many pipes contaminated with sewage) so you'd have to either install reverse osmosis systems in your house or boil even the water you'd wash dishes in. Keep your mouth closed when you shower and obviously brush your teeth in water from a plastic bottle you lugged home from the Super market. There are filtration systems but most locals say they are not sure how effective they are. The desert thing also plays into the dust - there is dust everywhere, all the time. 

I can go on, and yes, much of it is 1st world problems, but it's problems that I wasn't prepared to deal with alone with no safety net, so I bailed when the biz didn't give a return.

 

[General Malaise]

Wow.  That's pretty damn awful.  Appreciate the feedback!

 

[DA RAIDERS]

Some may think I'm crazy, but I hate Southern California.  Yeah, I know... the beach is awesome, weather is perfect, lots to do, blah blah blah.  

But there's just SOOO many people, the traffic is horrible, and I actually hate the weather.  68 and partly cloudy?  Is it July?  No, December!  There's just no variety in the weather, which I really love.  

And don't even get me started on the cost of living.  You don't wanna know what I pay for rent. 

I would much rather live in Austin again.  I realize cost of living is on the rise there but it's still nowhere near what it is here.  Plus I miss the thunderstorms and hot-### weather.

HB is the worst

 

[CGRdrJoe]

Some may think I'm crazy, but I hate Southern California.  Yeah, I know... the beach is awesome, weather is perfect, lots to do, blah blah blah.  

But there's just SOOO many people, the traffic is horrible, and I actually hate the weather.  68 and partly cloudy?  Is it July?  No, December!  There's just no variety in the weather, which I really love.  

And don't even get me started on the cost of living.  You don't wanna know what I pay for rent. 

I would much rather live in Austin again.  I realize cost of living is on the rise there but it's still nowhere near what it is here.  Plus I miss the thunderstorms and hot-### weather.

I'm from Seal Beach and I get the people/traffic but season's can kiss my ###. After 2 years in N. Michigan where Winter started in October and ended in May I realized that I'm not meant to live in a place like that. Spring was great for the 5 weeks it showed up, summer pretty amazing for the 3 days and fall was alright for it's short period but the winter's sucked ###. I'm happy to be back in CA and I'll put up with a high cost of living for quality weather year round.

 

[tommyboy]

San Antonio has way way way more land available for highway expansion.  217 doesn't even have a median.    Banfield doesn't either.  Where do you want the highways to go?  Agree it's a problem, but San Antonio isn't dealing with major rivers, hills or protected forests.  You know this. 

I take public transport (WES train) almost every day now.  It's delightful.  Requires a 5 mile walk all-told; also delightful.  I am going to need to see a link on your figures of Tri-Met use for commuting.  I see crowded trains and buses daily.  I also see a LOT of people using bikes to get around.

Portland has its issues, no doubt, but it also has challenges other cities like San Antonio do not and I also think Portland's light rail, buses, bike lanes/trails and trains are a huge feather in our cap. 

40 years ago they were going to build a freeway from Aloha via Roy Rogers through sherwood down around Wilsonville.   nope.   They could still do something with that idea

you could take 217, close half the exits, make it a double decker.  nope

405 downtown you could do the same thing without closing any exits, just make it a double decker.

26 from portland to St Vincents is basically stuck because of the tunnel but you could get 4-5 lanes by using the side median as a 5th lane.   Beyond St Vincents they could take both side medians and turn them into lanes and have 5 lanes both directions..

I-5 from Portland to Vancouver get rid of the HOV lane, open up the side median as a 4th lane.  Build a new freaking bridge already

I-5 from Portland south blow out the medians to 4-5 lanes both sides, same all the way down to Salem.

I-205 same thing

https://trimet.org/about/performance.htm

 

[eurotrashman]

San Antonio has way way way more land available for highway expansion.  217 doesn't even have a median.    Banfield doesn't either.  Where do you want the highways to go?  Agree it's a problem, but San Antonio isn't dealing with major rivers, hills or protected forests.  You know this. 

I take public transport (WES train) almost every day now.  It's delightful.  Requires a 5 mile walk all-told; also delightful.  I am going to need to see a link on your figures of Tri-Met use for commuting.  I see crowded trains and buses daily.  I also see a LOT of people using bikes to get around.

Portland has its issues, no doubt, but it also has challenges other cities like San Antonio do not and I also think Portland's light rail, buses, bike lanes/trails and trains are a huge feather in our cap. 

"look at me!  I'm a 4%er!!!"

 

[nirad3]

HB is the worst

I can see how people love it here.  The schools are great, you're 2 miles from the beach... downtown HB is fun if you're into that sorta thing...

I'm born and raised here in the OC.  I've never been a beach guy, and the allure of having the mountains a couple hours away does nothing for me.  And I'm not into the crap everyone does out in the desert either.  

I wish I would have gone to college in the South and just stayed there.

I'm from Seal Beach and I get the people/traffic but season's can kiss my ###. After 2 years in N. Michigan where Winter started in October and ended in May I realized that I'm not meant to live in a place like that. Spring was great for the 5 weeks it showed up, summer pretty amazing for the 3 days and fall was alright for it's short period but the winter's sucked ###. I'm happy to be back in CA and I'll put up with a high cost of living for quality weather year round.

I lived in MinneSNOWta for 2 years and yes, it sucked.  I wouldn't want to live in that kind of environment.  But the South?  Yessir sign me up.  I'm fine with hot and muggy and t-storms all summer.

 

[General Malaise]

40 years ago they were going to build a freeway from Aloha via Roy Rogers through sherwood down around Wilsonville.   nope.   They could still do something with that idea

you could take 217, close half the exits, make it a double decker.  nope

405 downtown you could do the same thing without closing any exits, just make it a double decker.

26 from portland to St Vincents is basically stuck because of the tunnel but you could get 4-5 lanes by using the side median as a 5th lane.   Beyond St Vincents they could take both side medians and turn them into lanes and have 5 lanes both directions..

I-5 from Portland to Vancouver get rid of the HOV lane, open up the side median as a 4th lane.  Build a new freaking bridge already

I-5 from Portland south blow out the medians to 4-5 lanes both sides, same all the way down to Salem.

I-205 same thing

https://trimet.org/about/performance.htm

That's a lot of data.  Can you elaborate on how TriMet only benefits 4% of us?  

 

[ragincajun]

ragin does that

Indeed

 

[General Malaise]

40 years ago they were going to build a freeway from Aloha via Roy Rogers through sherwood down around Wilsonville.   nope.   They could still do something with that idea

you could take 217, close half the exits, make it a double decker.  nope

405 downtown you could do the same thing without closing any exits, just make it a double decker.

26 from portland to St Vincents is basically stuck because of the tunnel but you could get 4-5 lanes by using the side median as a 5th lane.   Beyond St Vincents they could take both side medians and turn them into lanes and have 5 lanes both directions..

I-5 from Portland to Vancouver get rid of the HOV lane, open up the side median as a 4th lane.  Build a new freaking bridge already

I-5 from Portland south blow out the medians to 4-5 lanes both sides, same all the way down to Salem.

I-205 same thing

https://trimet.org/about/performance.htm

It's been a while since we caught up but aren't you in east or Westmoreland (sp)?  Assuming that's the case, why can't you hop on the new MAX lines that extend to Milwaukie and can take you to where you work, which I think is Beaverton, by St. V's?  Am I wrong?  

TriMet is a big benefit for our city.  It requires a little more time and egad, you might actually have to walk a little, but I am not buying your line that it benefits only 4% of the city.  

 

[Good Posting Judge]

But there's also the fact that a lot of people in Portland hate California transplants.  

WA too.

 

[Good Posting Judge]

 I think the hatred of Californians is way overblown. 

 

[Good Posting Judge]

The US is just a dump. Let's be honest.

 

[General Malaise]

The US is just a dump. Let's be honest.

 

[kevzilla]

At least I can take solace in the notion that nobody really minds if Texans move in.

 

[tommyboy]

That's a lot of data.  Can you elaborate on how TriMet only benefits 4% of us?  

I just looked at the total monthly unique max rides divided by 2.5 million population. The point being we could have done both freeway expansion and Max, not just max.