Tired of people telling me to not move to Keene (college, living in)

[WannaComeHome]

totatlly different parts of southern NH - what sort of things are you looking for? Keene is a bit remote and gets more snow than Londonderry or Merrimack (which are relatively close by). And with Keene State College in town, the kids can get a bit.. college rowdy.

[mosrto]

Originally Posted by Suzet2262

My family and I just got back from having dinner. We ran into a friend of ours we havent seen in many years. He asked what we were up to, I told him about our plans for moving to Keene, and before I could finish, he was like NO dont do it!!! He then proceeded to give a list of reasons for us not moving out there. I guess tonight it really got to me. For the first time I actually feel confused. Can someone from So Cali really be happy back east? Sigh, I dont know. I am just really tired of people always telling me we are making a HUGE mistake by moving. Yes I know it will be a different way of life, but that is what we are looking for. One of my daughters wants to stay back here in Cali, and we are fine with that (well not fine, I will miss her very very much!! But she is 22 and time for her to live her life). I understand it gets cold in NH, I personally love the cold. I love cloudy days, I prefer them to just plain sunny skies. I love rain (when we get it). Yes we arent experienced with snow, but should that be a reason for not moving? There are mother nature issues in EVERY state. I dont know how many of you have been through an earthquake, but let me tell you, I have never experienced a more terrifing(sp?) feeling in my life. And I dont want to be out here for "The Big One", the thought of it keeps me up at night. So dealing with snow to me, seems like not that big of a deal. Haha, I say that now, only because I have never dealt with it. Ask me again, after my first spin out or driving off the road...LOL

Out here we have heat, heat, and more heat, then we have heat mixed with smog. I am just tired of the whole Cali way of life. Sigh, I dont know what I am really saying, I am just confused I guess I am looking for someone to say hey, that is a great idea, and I wish you and your family luck on your move. I am tired of people making me feel like I am nuts for wanting to move.

Suzette-Just do it If you listen to people here in Ca. You'll go into depression 101. They really don't understand what its like. I also have people asking why i'm going back east. But being born & raised in NE. I know what im going back to. We miss the four seasons, We miss the winters. You go girl ! Follow your heart, you're doing the right thing leaving there

[fallfanatic]

Originally Posted by WannaComeHome

totatlly different parts of southern NH - what sort of things are you looking for? Keene is a bit remote and gets more snow than Londonderry or Merrimack (which are relatively close by). And with Keene State College in town, the kids can get a bit.. college rowdy.

Hi wannacomehome!!! I really have just begun researching the areas, and wasn't going to bother y'all until I had it narrowed down to just a few places. I haven't even begun to read all the previous post about any of the areas I am researching.
In short, we are military and are leaving at the end of the year. I will be heading over there in October to visit places myself. I am trying to compile a list of places that seem to suit our family best. We homeschool and I work from home. My husband will be working from home also. We are looking for a very quaint hometown. We love mom and pop places and prefer them, but we do need to have a walmart type place near as well as a grocery store. We mostly stay at home and are happy with that, but an occasional lunch or dinner out would be nice, so a couple of restraunts would be a plus. High speed internet is a must...we have comcast right now and would really like to keep them if it is possible, but we do have to have high speed internet. I would like to find a town with a community center or some form of activities for the kids. We would also like a town that has events throughout the year, weather it is festivals, craft shows fairs or something to that effect.
That is the short version. I have just started researching, so nothing has been narrowed down or taken off the list yet.

[lisa g]

mosrto, you're right about the majority of Californians not understanding the quality of NE life. Many of them (friends, even) live in denial of a lot of CA's problems and for some reason defend SoCal as if their egos would suffer an irreparable blow should they admit to the area having any flaw. Partly why I felt like an alien from another planet while living there.

[nhrocky]

Originally Posted by WannaComeHome

totatlly different parts of southern NH - what sort of things are you looking for? Keene is a bit remote and gets more snow than Londonderry or Merrimack (which are relatively close by). And with Keene State College in town, the kids can get a bit.. college rowdy.

Remote from where? An 2 hr ride to Boston isn't very far IMO if you really need to get there for shopping/entertainment. It wouldn't really be great for a daily commute, I admit. The college is on the Main Street in Keene and while it has taken up quite a few of the surrounding neighborhoods, there are more than enough outlying residential areas to not be disturbed by the college crowd, plus there's many other small towns close to Keene within a 5-20 min drive. As for snow, last year was an exceptionally snowy weather in terms of the preceding years, but really not anything out of the norm. The seacoast does tend to not have the accumulated snowfall of western NH, but I think that holds true for NE seacoast areas in general.

[Coconut_express]

Originally Posted by nhrocky

Remote from where? An 2 hr ride to Boston isn't very far IMO if you really need to get there for shopping/entertainment. It wouldn't really be great for a daily commute, I admit. The college is on the Main Street in Keene and while it has taken up quite a few of the surrounding neighborhoods, there are more than enough outlying residential areas to not be disturbed by the college crowd, plus there's many other small towns close to Keene within a 5-20 min drive. As for snow, last year was an exceptionally snowy weather in terms of the preceding years, but really not anything out of the norm. The seacoast does tend to not have the accumulated snowfall of western NH, but I think that holds true for NE seacoast areas in general.

Be careful of towns outside of keene. Most have a hard time getting highspeed or its not offered at all. As for commutes. 2 hours might not be long in the summer to boston, but do that in the winter on the curvy windy roads and you can turn that easily into well over 3 hour commute.

[twixcookie]

I moved across the country and boy, it is hard. I know NO one here. Except for my pets, I am totally alone.
Also, culturally, people are different in different areas.
I did it so I could be employed, and have a job, so I have to take what goes along with it. Had I had a choice, like the OP, I would have stayed where I was...

[lisa g]

twixcookie, Hello, nice to "meet" you. Your post got my attention, and I wanted to give you some encouragement. Although you've moved for work, hopefully in your off time you'll be able to make an effort to get to know even a couple of people somehow. Yes, people are different in different areas, and if you're in New England (your location says midwest) some people can seem cold at first, so don't take it personally. Hang in there.

[Captjob]

Originally Posted by mosrto

Suzette-Just do it If you listen to people here in Ca. You'll go into depression 101. They really don't understand what its like. I also have people asking why i'm going back east. But being born & raised in NE. I know what im going back to. We miss the four seasons, We miss the winters. You go girl ! Follow your heart, you're doing the right thing leaving there

Mostro, well put. We live just south of you in Murrieta. Although I have a few years to wait, getting to NH is the ultimate goal. I have traveled back east extensively over the years and what can I say, we are in love. Can’t wait to get out of California for good and become a true New Englander living in Northern HN.

Every time we need a seasonal change it takes 5 plane tickets and a 7-hour flight to get one. I talk to people all the time about retiring in NH and most people look at me as if I were crazy. I get the typical response like "doesn’t it snow there" or " why would you pick New Hampshire?"

They just dont understand. Bad for them, good for me.

Captjob
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[WannaComeHome]

I get the typical response like "doesn’t it snow there" or " why would you pick New Hampshire?"

They just dont understand. Bad for them, good for me.

CaptJob- I get the same reaction here in MD