Moving to CA. (Sacramento: rent, day care, buy)

[Greenmon]

Originally Posted by TheStarLiesWest

Incredible. I was so afraid that we wouldn't find anywhere to go that's safe for us and our child. We're not rich by any means, yet. :P Nah I kid I kid. But their safety is important to me and I'll go broke for it. Mission Viejo sounds wonderful, as does OC in general. This may be a great home for us. 3000 miles from the monotonous crap we've dealt with for far too long.

This is a breath of fresh air that we've really needed. My wife studied into Ventura County a while back and saw nothing but good. I personally like the geographical location of OC better, but we could go either way. MV sounds BEAUTIFUL and I wanna go there!

why go to a state with so much traffic ,smog, growing crime and gangs, try eco friendly areas and states- your family will appreciate you more for it. Oh you want examples- Oregon, Idaho, New Mexico, Washington, Montana, Wyoming, -- common what happen to your pioneer spirit ! When i used to live in CA. i saw all the Sprawl developing and smog growing, became an angry anti-estabishment teen- yours will too. I wish you the Best of luck, i am just glad my 11yr old loves our place in No Arkansas, we have lakes , rivers, clean air and water, he comes from his mom's place in SO Cal, when people ask him where he prefers to live , he belts out ARKANSAS!! No we arent RED necks either, we just love growing Organic food and Range fed Chickens- once you taste the real thing , you wont go back !!! Happy ThanksGiving Week .

[missionhome]

Originally Posted by Greenmon

why go to a state with so much traffic ,smog, growing crime and gangs, try eco friendly areas and states- your family will appreciate you more for it. Oh you want examples- Oregon, Idaho, New Mexico, Washington, Montana, Wyoming, -- common what happen to your pioneer spirit ! When i used to live in CA. i saw all the Sprawl developing and smog growing, became an angry anti-estabishment teen- yours will too. I wish you the Best of luck, i am just glad my 11yr old loves our place in No Arkansas, we have lakes , rivers, clean air and water, he comes from his mom's place in SO Cal, when people ask him where he prefers to live , he belts out ARKANSAS!! No we arent RED necks either, we just love growing Organic food and Range fed Chickens- once you taste the real thing , you wont go back !!! Happy ThanksGiving Week .

The original poster already lives in a state/ area of the US that is like that. They live in Danville Virginia, it has 50k people and is the biggest city in the area. They are looking for a different experience than small town America which doesn't seem to be what they want. Different lifestyles are for different people.

Also, Mission Viejo is a very safe area. I know you may say that California has crime rates rising, but with California being so huge, what does rising crime rates in the Bay Area for example have to do with crime in Mission Viejo, 300 miles away. In California, you really have to take crime on an area by area basis.

For example, in 2005 Mission Viejo was the 4th safest city in the entire nation according to the FBI. Little Rock Arkansas was the 25th most dangerous, so your state has its share of crime too. Hot Springs Arkansas ranked 9th for most dangerous metro, and Pine Bluff Arkansas ranked 11th for most dangerous metro, followed by Little Rock metro at number 14 most dangerous. Since the poster is interested in Mission Viejo, I would not try to pull the safety argument.

[TheStarLiesWest]

I haven't been around in a few days to respond, so here goes. I'm incredibly and openly biased in where I will and will not move, and small time middle of nowhere country life is not for me. Life is too short for me to spin my wheels in a dying locality like I already have for 22 years. The town I live in has gone nowhere except closer to falling off of the map. No offense to anyone, but people in towns like this from my experience are not very kind whatsoever.

I love California, and I have had that dream, but not because I want to work as bus boy until I get discovered. I love the palm trees and beach scenery, I love the mountains and the vineyards, I love the weather and the climate overall, and I don't complain about warm weather. People who live in California who hate it are of course going to highlight nothing but the bad elements, and then end up being the ones who post the "I miss you OC!!!" posts.

Life is too short and I've made enough moving mistakes. People in my town, and on this board, are very quick to indicate that it is an impossible move and that I won't make it. That makes victory so much better, and the last thing I plan on doing is complaining about things that are normal and accepted. Life is what it is, and you deal with it. I love it for what it is, not for what TV says it is.

[missionhome]

Originally Posted by TheStarLiesWest

I haven't been around in a few days to respond, so here goes. I'm incredibly and openly biased in where I will and will not move, and small time middle of nowhere country life is not for me. Life is too short for me to spin my wheels in a dying locality like I already have for 22 years. The town I live in has gone nowhere except closer to falling off of the map. No offense to anyone, but people in towns like this from my experience are not very kind whatsoever.

I love California, and I have had that dream, but not because I want to work as bus boy until I get discovered. I love the palm trees and beach scenery, I love the mountains and the vineyards, I love the weather and the climate overall, and I don't complain about warm weather. People who live in California who hate it are of course going to highlight nothing but the bad elements, and then end up being the ones who post the "I miss you OC!!!" posts.

Life is too short and I've made enough moving mistakes. People in my town, and on this board, are very quick to indicate that it is an impossible move and that I won't make it. That makes victory so much better, and the last thing I plan on doing is complaining about things that are normal and accepted. Life is what it is, and you deal with it. I love it for what it is, not for what TV says it is.

That attitude is why I think you will have a very succesful move out here to California. You are a determined person moving here for the right reasons. I have hope for you which is why I have invested more time in this thread than others.

[TheStarLiesWest]

It warms my heart to see comments like that, and you along with jessem have been very supportive elements in my decision making process. I want to be the exception to the stereotypical rule that only certain people make it in California. Thank you so much for all of your help and I will never, ever forget you for it. This is an important time in our lives and we appreciate it so much.

[jessemh431]

Most of those people that don't succeed in coming out here or regret making the move are the ones that think everyone is beautiful, they are going to find a job immediately, and there is nothing bad about CA. Most also want to be in the movie business. This poster is coming here for his children's education and well being because he wants to make the best life possible for his family, no matter what it takes. It's the people that realize life will be difficult out here and will do anything it takes to overcome their hardships that do well out here, not these random people thinking they will move here just for the hell of it because they want to or think they can become a movie star. This man is determined to do something good for his family no matter what it takes, even he makes himself poor, as long as his kids are happy.

[TheStarLiesWest]

I'm flattered, I really am. That's one of the kindest things I've heard. I'm doing it for my daughter and for my wife and I, who've always dreamt of living somewhere desirable, and we have everything in common in that area. I have so many talents I want to try and fields I want to dip myself in, because I feel that I can make an impact. Determination makes it all happen..

[jessemh431]

Stars, I really think you have a chance out here. Don't listen to these negative people, take your advice from me and missionhome. I've had enough of these random people joining this site just to criticize what people are doing. It needs to stop, really. This is made for people like Stars to come here for advice and get it from people like me and missionhome, not stupid people who are hypocrites who complain about people complaining.

And Stars, even if you don't make it out here, which I hope doesn't happen, you know that you gave it a try and it just didn't work out. If you never try this, you'll regret it for the rest of your life. If you can't handle the business and expensiveness of LA, maybe it's just not for you and you should try somewhere else, but there's no harm in just trying to fulfill a life long dream. For what you want, you can't get better than MV which was rated the safest place in America, has great schools, perfect weather, and just everything you could ever think of. But, some people come out here and realize the can't handle LA life, and those are the ones that have no goals in life, just to move to LA and they think everything will be really easy. You don't think like that, you realize it's gonna be hard and are willing to try overcome the hardships you will face when moving out here. As long as you prepare for the worst, you will be fine.

JUST REMEMBER-DON'T LISTEN TO THESE NEGATIVE PEOPLE.

[oc2nyc]

Stars, I agree with Jesse, you need to at least give it a try. You can always move back if you hate it. If nothing else the weather is great, and even though it is expensive most salaries compensate for that. Regardless of all the reasons that any of us can come up with to move or not move, it's your dream, make it come true. There are positives and negatives to all places. You will make it work if you want to bad enough, but you at least have to give it a shot.

[TheStarLiesWest]

I agree, and I plan on taking that chance..