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Old 10-25-2015, 05:53 PM
 
Location: Shoreline,CT
25 posts, read 22,505 times
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Thank you everyone for your responses!. I've been researching the areas you've recommended and thinking about taking another trip there in December.
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CT lifer thinking about moving to CA. Need your advice!-snow.jpg  
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Old 10-25-2015, 05:57 PM
 
5,381 posts, read 8,683,351 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by GbaileyCT View Post
Thank you everyone for your responses!. I've been researching the areas you've recommended and thinking about taking another trip there in December.
That picture brings back very bad memories.

Best of luck
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Old 10-25-2015, 07:16 PM
 
Location: Vancouver, WA
8,213 posts, read 16,686,935 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by pacific2 View Post
That picture brings back very bad memories.

Best of luck
Hahaa, here's a couple of ours that bring back similar memories.








We're glad to be done with that mess. If/when we ever miss the snow we are happy to go visit it in Tahoe... and then come home to more comfortable environs.





Winter at the coast:







Derek

Last edited by MtnSurfer; 10-25-2015 at 07:27 PM..
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Old 10-25-2015, 08:31 PM
 
Location: Shoreline,CT
25 posts, read 22,505 times
Reputation: 19
Awesome pictures, espesially the one with the Orca whale! I'm definitely going to visit Monterey Bay on my next visit. It looks beautiful there. Thank you for sharing, Derek!
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Old 10-25-2015, 08:40 PM
 
5,381 posts, read 8,683,351 times
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Derek,

Your pictures are always beautiful, but the snowy ones are nightmarishly so (I remember that stuff!).

The Monterey Bay pictures are what it's all about!
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Old 10-25-2015, 09:14 PM
 
Location: Santa Cruz, CA
1,722 posts, read 1,740,991 times
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Welcome to California (in advance).

I'm from CA but lived in New England (northern and the boston area) for a bit too long . I kinda got stuck back there and i was so glad to be back in California.
It's an entirely different paradigm here in CA and i'm happy for your kids! They will grow up in a much more open and tolerant part of the country where there is a much greater freedom and allowance to be one's sSelf. Which is not to say that CA doesn't have its problems. It's not paradise although there will be times when you swear that it is. And New England has its virtues. I just can't remember what they are.

California (especially the coast) is less stayed and stable compared to New England. Ya just gotta pay attention to your feet out here, ie; stay grounded and get used to a more "live and let live" attitude and be open.
Once in awhile i run into a New Englander and they tend to be tight and closed and seemingly fear-ful. It'll be more of an adjustment for you since you're older and maybe a bit set in your ways. Allow California to un-set you (which may be a little unsettling).
If you can find a safe community / safe schools for your sons, they will be fine and happy to be living on the coast of California!
But it is expensive. So that $2800 will not get you here what it gets you back there. Be prepared for that reality. But if you can be flexible re; your housing (maybe less square footage, a bit funkier, etc.) and if luck is no your side, it's worth it. Imo.

I'm not sure why you're wanting to live in the East Bay. I sure wouldn't want to.
If you can find a way to live on the Monterey Bay, in a good area of either Santa Cruz or Monterey county, i suggest that you do so. Imo, S.F. and surrounding areas including Silicon Valley, are so impacted now that it's just nuts. You might want to choose an area that's not so crazy populated.
Since you're leaving that entire Bos-Wash corridor back east, you might not want to enter another variation of it ... super densely populated and with a lot of hyper ambitious and aggressive people. Yuck!
Santa Cruz county (somewhat of a / something like a bedroom community of Silicon Valley) is now, for me, too impacted as well but there's so many redeeming features in this area that if you can find an affordable place to live, it can be worth it. And there's still space here if you want rural (or semi-rural) living.
Monterey county (specifically Monterey, Carmel and Pacific Grove) is another option and actually, if i had kids, i might prefer to raise them there.
Monterey county is a bit less frenetic and chaotic than S.C. county and perhaps there will be less tempting no-no's than in S.C. county where the culture is a bit more wild.

The music scene is S.C. county is great now and is also historically very rich.
And of course Monterey with its history, ie; The Monterey Jazz Festival (this year 58th!).
Santa Cruz is just a couple of hours south of San Francisco. And the Monterey Bay is beautiful with strong nature, ocean / beach, strong surf culture (your sons may want to learn to surf btw ) lots of hiking, mountain biking, etc.. If i were a kid, i'd love to be growing up here.

Below are some musical links to inspire you and your sons. The music scene here in Santa Cruz county is alive and well!
I'm less familiar with the music scene in Monterey county (roughly an hour south) but Mtn. Surfer can inform you about that.

Good luck.




KKUP 91.5 FM Cupertino | San Jose | Commercial Free | People's Radio

KZSC Santa Cruz - College Radio that ROCKS!

KUSP.org

Santa Cruz Music Calendar | Santa Cruz Good Times

https://kuumbwajazz.org/

The Catalyst

Moe's Alley - Home of Great Live Music - Santa Cruz, CA

Don Quixote's International Music Hall~ Come Have Dinner &A Show

Events

58th Annual Monterey Jazz Festival - September 18 - 20, 2015
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Old 10-25-2015, 10:06 PM
 
Location: Vancouver, WA
8,213 posts, read 16,686,935 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by GbaileyCT View Post
Awesome pictures, espesially the one with the Orca whale! I'm definitely going to visit Monterey Bay on my next visit. It looks beautiful there. Thank you for sharing, Derek!
Thanks, Gbailey. Monterey is a very beautiful place if you enjoy the outdoors, especially with Big Sur in our backyard. Its definitely more laid back than the Bay area and far less impacted. Though we can still be in San Jose in a little over an hour. So we don't feel cut off from bigger city stuff. Its a great balance for us. As Blueskywalker mentioned, Santa Cruz county is nice as well. Though its a bit more crowded there. Still, you have the redwood forests and the coast which are both very nice. We've got redwoods in the Big Sur mountains as well. My son and I go backpacking, hiking and mountain biking among other things year round here. This is recent sunset which we enjoyed. Overall, it is a nice place for our kids to grow up.







Here's a waterfall we backpacked into underneath the redwoods:





Derek
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Old 10-26-2015, 08:48 PM
 
Location: Santa Cruz, CA
1,722 posts, read 1,740,991 times
Reputation: 1341
Gbailey, convinced yet?
East Bay or Monterey Bay? Hmmmmm? It's a no-brainer. It's just a matter of whether or not you can find affordable housing and good safe schools for your sons. I betchya can do it.
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Old 10-27-2015, 02:34 PM
 
Location: Santa Cruz, CA
1,722 posts, read 1,740,991 times
Reputation: 1341
^^^^^^^^^

I think that's the goofiest post i've ever written.
And as if i know where / what is best for you and your sons. Duh.
I guess i just have this notion that your kids (any kid) would be happier and healthier on the Monterey Bay as opposed to much of the S.F. bay area. Bur that may be more about me than you and yours.
Anyway, good luck and happy trails where ever you go.
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Old 10-28-2015, 07:58 PM
 
Location: Shoreline,CT
25 posts, read 22,505 times
Reputation: 19
Sorry for a delayed response, guys. I had to go visit some customers in upstate New York, where they already had snow accumulations in the past 2 weeks. After my return, I read your welcoming messages and looked at the beautiful pictures of the Monterey Bay and decided to go for it. My boys are very excited! I already told my boss, and he is going to start the ball rolling.
Another strange thing happened...I talked to my sister who lives in Seattle, WA, and she reminded me that she used to live in Pacific Grove before moving to Alameda, then Seattle. She spoke very highly about the area and all it has to offer in terms of its beauty, good schools, and safe community. I believe the company would want to transfer me to CA in January, but I'll know more next month. I don't know if it's too early to start looking for rentals. I just hope, when it's time for us to move, there will be some inventory available.
My sons are very excited about the Jazz festival in Monterey, the music scene in Santa Cruz, and they want to take a trip to Oakland during Grateful Dead festival.
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CT lifer thinking about moving to CA. Need your advice!-rips-toads.jpg  
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