[Fiddlehead]

Hello Michiganders!

I have an application in at UM for a faculty position. I work out here in Southern Oregon (Ashland) as a federal scientist. We would not move unless offered the job of favorable terms, and we would plan to stay at least 5-7 year, or longer.

Here's what I know. It's colder and flatter there than here, with an equally large number of rivers, and many more lakes and great thunderstorms. I hear there are excellent parks in Ann Arbor, and good schools. Economy is equally bad in both places. It seems like many people have a soft spot for Michigan, and it appears to be a beautiful state, but with problems too.

We love being outdoors all year in all weather. Rain, heat, snow. Are there good running and hiking trails around AA. Good places to run a couple hyper dogs? Has anyone made the move from the Pacific Northwest to Michigan? What worked and what did not? What was a pleasant surprise? What do you miss?

Thanks, Fiddlehead

[chiroptera]

I moved here from the Rocky Mountain west in 2001 - not to A2, but SE Michigan. Ann Arbor is a lovely city...not sure of specifics re: running trails and places for dogs but I don't doubt there's an abundance. I have dogs and have no problems finding great, safe, (legal) places for them to run....I also bike with the dogs. Probably do even more winter hiking and snowshoing than summer hiking, we love the snow and dislike hot, humid weather.

A2 is a little different to the rest of Michigan so my experiences may not mirror those of people moving to Ann Arbor. But FWIW, here is what I noticed.

I absolutely, completely do miss the ethnic and general diversity of humanity I left behind. Including but not limited to a very wide range of different restaurants and cuisines.
Much more blue collar/less progressive attitudes here. This probably won't apply to A2, though. Note that these are not bad things per se. But different.
Not outdoorsy here. I moved from the fittest most "outdoorsy" state in the nation to a place where beautiful wooded trails and lakes are virtually empty of people even on a cool, sunny weekend. On the one hand that is nice - uncrowded trails, quiet....on the other, it means it's harder to find people to do that sort of stuff with. Again that may not apply to A2 and an academic mileau.
Initially I found it claustrophobic here...few wide-open views unless you're near a lake. I've adjusted, and love woods. And morel hunting.
Things I very much prefer: The distinct four seasons. Love, love that. Just when you think you cannot take another single day of grey, freezing winter, there's signs of spring and not to sound corny but it's just magical.
I have made some really excellent friends here.
Lots more wildlife, critters everywhere. I suppose that depends on the type of critter and one's preferences. Overall, I like it.
Michigan is practically ground zero for many dog sports; since this is my primary hobby I love it.
Incredibly cheap real estate!

[bluebird39]

Hi there,

Feel free to search some of my older posts. My family and I moved here from Medford 3 years ago. I really don't know much about Ann Arbor, as we live in Northern Michigan, but the 2 states are quite different. Things I miss the most are mountains, fresh produce (harder to get in NE MI I'm sure than AA), good coffee, microbrews, good sushi, and tons of public land. Good things about MI are the schools (not so good in Medford, or specifically Central Point), great affordable medical care (if you aren't in a rural area), the amazing Great Lakes, loons, lake effect snow (I LOVE winter here), fall colors (you'll find it hard to drive in the fall because you'll want to look at the trees rather than the road). Also, you can get MUCH more real-estate-wise here than there (a big reason why we moved).

The economy here is bad. Like OR, MI has put a lot of eggs into one basket. Here it's cars, there it was timber. I find that the culture here is much different than out West. Roots run incredibly deep here, where in OR it's more transient. That is good in some ways...tons of support for communities, schools, families... but bad in others, primarily feeling like you don't fit in if you're not born and raised here. It's generally more blue-collar than out West, although AA and Ashland are both big exceptions. MI is also big time into sports, including motor sports. It's flat here, and the surrounding states are very boring geographically... lots of flat farm land...

Good luck with your decision!

[MittenDweller82]

[quote=Fiddlehead;10408181]Hello Michiganders!

I have an application in at UM for a faculty position. I work out here in Southern Oregon (Ashland) as a federal scientist. We would not move unless offered the job of favorable terms, and we would plan to stay at least 5-7 year, or longer.

Here's what I know. It's colder and flatter there than here, with an equally large number of rivers, and many more lakes and great thunderstorms. I hear there are excellent parks in Ann Arbor, and good schools. Economy is equally bad in both places. It seems like many people have a soft spot for Michigan, and it appears to be a beautiful state, but with problems too.

We love being outdoors all year in all weather. Rain, heat, snow. Are there good running and hiking trails around AA. Good places to run a couple hyper dogs? Has anyone made the move from the Pacific Northwest to Michigan? What worked and what did not? What was a pleasant surprise? What do you miss?

Thanks, Fiddlehead[/QUOTE

I lived in Ann Arbor throughout my undergraduate studies and found many people from Portland, Eugene, Spokane etc. to be living there. Culturally they are similar, eco minded, educated population with a emphasis on outdoor activities. You will find it to be more culturally diverse, with a large number of people from Asia and Europe as faculty at UM. What others have said about Ann Arbor is somewhat true, it is very different (culturally and politically) than the rest of Michigan, most rural parts of MI are conservative and traditional while Ann Arbor is very liberal. If I had to compare Ann Arbor to a west coast city, it would be a smaller Portland in a nut shell.

Good luck with your plans!

[chiroptera]

Just to clarify this (my opinion only; well I guess I'm not going to give any opinion but my own....) Most of rural Michigan is politically conservative. And much of Michigan is culturally conservative. But this has been a "blue" state at least in the more recent past.

Ann Arbor is sort of an anomaly in this state from what I've seen.

Originally Posted by MittenDweller82

than the rest of Michigan, most rural parts of MI are conservative and traditional while Ann Arbor is very liberal.

[michigan83]

Just to clarify this (my opinion only; well I guess I'm not going to give any opinion but my own....) Most of rural Michigan is politically conservative. And much of Michigan is culturally conservative. But this has been a "blue" state at least in the more recent past.

Very accurate description!! Michigan is a blue state, but is in no way a "liberal state." Not all blue states are created equal.

[Fiddlehead]

Hi All:

Thanks for all info. This is a great way to learn about places. I am enjoying learning about Michigan. Seems like a diamond in the rough in some ways. Unfortunately, sounds like many folks are feeling too much of the rough out there these days. Like us in Oregon. The free lunches are over. We thought we could mine old-growth trees forever, then gouge the incoming Californians on their custom homes forever, now we realize it is hard to live the good life on credit cards and a high school education. Many parallels, except it seems to me that Michiganders value education more than Oregonians. We keep starving the schools and colleges here-a shame. We seem resigned to being the doormat for the West Coast.

Well, at least both states have plenty who love them!

[bluebird39]

Yeah, the schools were a big part of why we moved. I have 2 school-aged kids. We've been very happy with schools here, and frankly how the governor really stands up for them. We do miss Oregon terribly at times, but I think MI is much more family-friendly than Oregon.

Also, there's just a lot more wealth here than there. People here don't believe me when I say it, but it's true. Having the influence of 2 huge cities close by, Detroit and Chicago is much different. Oregon really only has Portland, and it's really not that big, compared to this part of the world. There's not much "old money" in Oregon (if any), where there is still some of that left here.

Have you ever been here? A visit might help you make your decision. We have family in Chicago, so family played a big role in our decision to move here. I'm not sure we would have otherwise, but no regrets overall. The move also allowed me to be a SAHM for the first time. I wish we'd done it sooner, actually...

Good luck!

[Smooth23]

I live about 45 minutes from Ann Arbor, and have been there on many occasions. I find it a beautiful town with everything you could want in a reasonably sized city. If I had to choose a city in this state to move to I'd pick AA or Grand Rapids.

[Luzette]

I've done a lot of doctoring at U of M in Ann Arbor, and I love the city. I think Michigan's two nicest cities in the LP are Ann Arbor and Traverse City. I would think anyone would be happy in Ann Arbor. Best of luck.