New Transplants ...I have a weather question (Columbus: place to live, move)

[SlimGem]

We are thinking of relocating to the Columbus area, but I am a little concerned about the weather. I'm not from sunny California or anything, but I'm am certainly used to alot more sunny days than the Columbus area offers.

So, I would really like to hear from those that have transplanted here recently from sunnier places. Was it a tough adjustment? Any SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) issues?

[Loyal426]

I'm originally from TN and I would say Columbus is very cloudy during the winter months. Some ppl may not like it because its cloudy and cold with very little snow, but it shouldn't prevent you from relocating here.

[jbcmh81]

One silver lining to the more cloudy conditions during winter... they actually serve to keep overnight lows higher. Clear skies allows temps to fall further, so a blanket of clouds insulates and keeps temps anywhere from 5 to 15 degrees above where they would be if skies were clear. You will very rarely have a below zero night (or even single digits) with any sort of cloud cover.

As far as winter overall goes, there are worse places for clouds, and Columbus is not the worst in Ohio for it. The vast majority of days years round are partly cloudy, so you still see more sun than not.

[xnyer]

Originally Posted by SlimGem

We are thinking of relocating to the Columbus area, but I am a little concerned about the weather. I'm not from sunny California or anything, but I'm am certainly used to alot more sunny days than the Columbus area offers.

So, I would really like to hear from those that have transplanted here recently from sunnier places. Was it a tough adjustment? Any SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) issues?

Summary of the last few years: Cold (zero or below wind chills) in the winter, endless overcast days, enough snow/sleet/slush/frozen rain, etc., etc. and enough morons on the road to make driving hazardous. Spring? Should be one at this latitude, or is it the one 50 degree day in April when the sun shines? Summer, 100+ degree heat indexes through July and August and high humidity that makes the very act of breathing a laborious job. Don't move here if you have asthma!!! Fall is just a short break between the extremes of summer and winter. Can there be a more miserable place to live?

[jbcmh81]

Originally Posted by xnyer

Summary of the last few years: Cold (zero or below wind chills) in the winter, endless overcast days, enough snow/sleet/slush/frozen rain, etc., etc. and enough morons on the road to make driving hazardous. Spring? Should be one at this latitude, or is it the one 50 degree day in April when the sun shines? Summer, 100+ degree heat indexes through July and August and high humidity that makes the very act of breathing a laborious job. Don't move here if you have asthma!!! Fall is just a short break between the extremes of summer and winter. Can there be a more miserable place to live?

Weather: Not for dramatic people.

[xnyer]

Originally Posted by jbcmh81

Weather: Not for dramatic people.

Dramatic? Somebody has to pump a little life into this otherwise dead place!

[jbcmh81]

Originally Posted by xnyer

Dramatic? Somebody has to pump a little life into this otherwise dead place!

I get that weather is one of those subjective things. Some people love snow and cold (I'm one of them),as well as the other 3 seasons, while others can't handle weather more adverse than a San Diego afternoon. That said, weather is also one of those topics that bring out a vast array of ridiculous hyperbole. "The worst ever!! Colder than Siberia! Hotter than the Sahara! Miserable 365 days a year!! You never see the sun!!!"

Ohio has variable weather, and it certainly isn't for everyone year-round, but hyperbole is just that. If a place was *that* terrible, you wouldn't need the dramatic statements to describe it. It would speak for itself.

[Traveler87]

Originally Posted by xnyer

Summary of the last few years: Cold (zero or below wind chills) in the winter, endless overcast days, enough snow/sleet/slush/frozen rain, etc., etc. and enough morons on the road to make driving hazardous. Spring? Should be one at this latitude, or is it the one 50 degree day in April when the sun shines? Summer, 100+ degree heat indexes through July and August and high humidity that makes the very act of breathing a laborious job. Don't move here if you have asthma!!! Fall is just a short break between the extremes of summer and winter. Can there be a more miserable place to live?

Try winters in the middle of the country where you have nothing to block the wind... or better yet, the extremes from one day to the next. I won't even get started on Wisconsin or Minnesota.

On that note, the weather you just described basically fits the Great Lakes Region and the Northeast. Go to New Hampshire where they just got slammed with 10 inches of snow.

[Torn2pieces]

Originally Posted by SlimGem

We are thinking of relocating to the Columbus area, but I am a little concerned about the weather. I'm not from sunny California or anything, but I'm am certainly used to alot more sunny days than the Columbus area offers.

So, I would really like to hear from those that have transplanted here recently from sunnier places. Was it a tough adjustment? Any SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) issues?

I've been here over 4 years and it's just lacking when it comes to sun. Talk about my Vitamin D lacking. Never had health issues until I moved to C'bus.

I've lived In NY most of my life. Lived in VA - Lived in CT, Lived in KS for 9 years... Moved here and now I"m sick all the time.

The sun comes out on occasion. I recall on the news, it shines about 100 days out of the whole year. Not a lot, huh?

[jbcmh81]

Originally Posted by Torn2pieces

I've been here over 4 years and it's just lacking when it comes to sun. Talk about my Vitamin D lacking. Never had health issues until I moved to C'bus.

I've lived In NY most of my life. Lived in VA - Lived in CT, Lived in KS for 9 years... Moved here and now I"m sick all the time.

The sun comes out on occasion. I recall on the news, it shines about 100 days out of the whole year. Not a lot, huh?

Columbus gets over 200 days with sunshine. It may not be a clear day 24 hours, but the vast majority of days are partly cloudy where the sun shines for a good half of the day or more.
Ohio has pretty much the exact same weather as NY and CT, so I'm not sure how suddenly you have health issues when nothing really changed. In fact, most of NY and CT get much more snowfall during the winter than Columbus does. The lowest, I believe, is actually NYC which gets about 29", the same as Columbus. They're even at the same latitude. Kansas I could see getting more sun during the year overall, but they tend to have severe extremes during the fall/winter/spring, from 70 one day to 20 the next, and summer heat is pretty terrible. If you are having health issues, it may not be the weather causing it.