Californians who've relocated to Oregon - weigh in (Beaverton, Bend: foreclosed, lawyers)

[ukiyo-e]

Originally Posted by kikiclark

Yes, I know the entire two weeks we were there the sun was out and it was warm so my view is biased probably.

Heh. I'm planning to move to PDX in a year or so. The dozen or so times I've visited my friends and relatives there have always been in the winter, and I've never seen the sun shine once. Lucky you! I bet it was awesome.

[ukiyo-e]

Originally Posted by angelbug

Heh. I'm planning to move to PDX in a year or so. The dozen or so times I've visited my friends and relatives there have always been in the winter, and I've never seen the sun shine once. Lucky you! I bet it was awesome.

But to clarify - I don't care about the winter! I'd rather have the rainy winter sthere than the freezing, foggy summers of SF or the 100+ degree summers here in Davis.

So I wasn't complaining. Honest! I've loved every visit to Portland.

[13Shells]

Originally Posted by Farmergrl

And Oregon too full?
I'm getting antsy...everyone here in So cal is splittin for Oregon! I wanna go too! May have to move the "2 year plan" up a bit!
Maybe all us SoCal folks should fire up the RVs, SUVs, scooters, whatever you drive and take a visit to see what we're missing! Me and the Mr are headin out the day after Thanksgiving. We'll be doing the 5 corridor and then shoot over to Coer de Alene to see family.
I'm worried all the folks who did well in the real estate thingy here will buy up all the good stuff before we can get going. We waited too long and now the values are down.
We SHOULD have moved when the kids were little. I hope they're not beyond feeling the magic a farm can do.
Save a lil peice O Paradise for me!

I hear you on the "magic farm feeling." I have lived in So Cal all my life. It's not that I hate it here, I just want a better place to raise my kids. My Mom and step Dad are ready to retire to Roseburg and have talked my in laws into checking it out too. After much research... we're all trying to get on the Oregon trail. My husband and I will be making a trip in two weeks to do some fact finding. I believe we will be putting together a portfolio to entice the rest of the family to come too. Although my 6 and 4 year old are excited, my sixteen year old is not at all happy about the possibility of moving (I remember when she used to beg me for a pony.) I worry about her the most because I know it won't be an easy adjustment. Best of luck with everything.

[13Shells]

Originally Posted by CalculusE.

I moved up to Oregon as a 13 year old kid with my family. I've visited the bay area several times over the years to see family and friends and more and more I prefer oregon. Once my dad died, I really lost any interest in going back even for a visit. San Jose and Frisco just don't interest me. The culture, the cost of living, just the attitude don't match me anymore.

I did get my fair share of crud from kids when they found out I was from cali back in the late 90s. I consider myself an Oregonian though since I've lived here for over half my life now, gone to school here and work here. Its not perfect here but I think I'd have a hard time moving out of the northwest to anywhere else.

Thanks so much for you input on the high school issue. Did you go to Roseburg High by any chance? I looked at their website and it seems to be a great school. I did notice that the kids pictured on the website use a lot less make up and seem to be more conservative in their style than where my daughter currently attends. She is in a world of piercings, skinny jeans, and make up. In So Cal it seems like anything goes. Although my daughter is not allowed to do most of what her friends here are doing I worry that she might have a hard time adjusting. Are the kids really that hard on Californians? Any input would be greatly appreciated.

[CalculusE.]

Just seeing this thread again... heh.

I'd say there will be culture shock to some extent. I knew a few folks in college who went to Roseburg High, seemed similar to Medford where I went. It was rough the first 6 months my freshman year in HS but after that you fit in more, make friends and thats that. Definately more conservative/country feel I'm sure with some urban mix. It wasn't that bad on the CA ribbing and probably less so these days. Just the opposite of what one would get going from rural to urban LA.

[Calgon]

We have a brand new gymnasium in Myrtle Creek. I'm originally from Southern California, born and raised, an original OC'er...Moved up here five years ago, and I wouldn't go back for anything, though I do make a couple of trips every year to visit relatives. My kids did much better in the small town environment, both are now in college. In California, they were skipping school and getting into trouble. They got more individualized instruction in Oregon. They came from a school of over 3,000 to a school of a little over 400...There aren't the easy distractions here, that they had in Southern California, going to the mall is a planned trip instead of being two blocks away. The weather is great, we only had a couple of cold (less than 20 degrees) days, no snow, and very little rain this year. The weather in Southern Oregon reminds me of weather we had in Orange County back in the 60's....

[BlushinRoulette]

This is great to read. I live in Northern California (about 4 hours north of SF, on the Coast) in a town of about 6,000. Corvallis has really worked out great for a couple of friends of mine, and now it's on my radar too. My town is not SoCal, but I work for county government, and it's extremely discouraging -- rural poverty with no resources. I will probably not work in government again. I'm pretty psyched about a city the size of Corvallis, with a REAL COLLEGE. wow! I promise to change my license plates the minute I arrive. ;-)

[V8 Vega]

I grew up in Myrtle Creek/ Tri City we lived right at the edge of the forest and I have many pleasant memories of playing with my friends and sisters in the forest and around the neighborhood in nice weather.
At age 13 in 1956 we moved to the Los Angeles area for work. My brother and his family live in Beaverton and each Christmas we get together there.
I had often thought where I would move to if things get any more unbearable here, I despise the goverment here, city, county, and state. Mainly because of constant never ending tax increases, really stupid laws that annoy me, their contempt for buisness, the only thing manufactured in Los Angeles anymore is poverty. Forcing the poor to compete with newly arrived immagrants who are even poorer.
Then I read in the paper that Medford is in a rain shadow and that got me to each evening spend time reading Wikipedia about Medford and surrounding towns. And recently I found this forum.
If I moved there I know I would hate the weather from Nov. to March. It's really hot here July, August , and September.The main reason to move there would be a lower cost of living and I'm not sure thats true. As much as I hate taxes I'm against no sales tax because with sales tax at least the deadbeats pay a little and then theoretically Income and property tax will be less for the rest of us.
We have proposition 13 which really saves us on property tax, The politicians have been trying to get around it for years. My house isn't worth that much, I undoubtedly could get a better house in a nicer
neighborhood in Medford.
Church is important to me and I found there are 2 big churches in Medford metropolitan and 3 more at least that are good sized. I'm sure there would be enough church activities to keep me doing something all week.
I'm a model railroad buff and Medford has a railroad park open from April to October with a mile of 7 1/2" gauge track, a G scale outdoor track club and a HO club.

[RizzoAzul]

V8 Vega "Forcing the poor to compete with newly arrived immigrants who are even poorer." manufactured poverty.... This is all the govt plan. A gen da21..... put that together and space 21. Not to be political but take our leader who wants us all to be 3d world countires cuz he hates brittish occupations and here we go. makes sense if you read it. Big idea workers on coast.. old farts middle of usa to get stuff moving.

This is VERY Soon to be mostly everywhere. IMO its with the bus loads of kids coming in not including all of the others that are coming. I see it is getting there too (area depends) but depending on your age we might die before it comes full swing again

I am too lookin at moving to OR for a slower pace of life and to get away of the people for my health. I need less, less noise, less everything. Tried of the types of people here too. Loved OR. I am in my late 30s and so I have to suck up at least another 35 years... or more.. I might be saying sadly at some point but want a nicer place to live where I dont worry about everyone going to rob me or harm me. Cant even walk in a store with a cane with out being pushed over. Just done.

[leftwinghillbilly]

I was born in NW California. In that short time I saw millions upon millions of out of staters move there and ruin it, overcrowd it, overrun it, plow up the orchards and farmland to build subdivisions and urban sprawl. The $38,000. dollar house my parents bought I could not now afford to live in, taxed at about 1 million dollars. They have run up the price of food, plasticised everything. I moved to Texas, which I also hate, to get away from them. So then I moved to Oregon. If you are from California, it is best not to tell anyone you are from there. There is definitely a bias against Californians, who are mostly not really native Californians. They are wall to wall ruiners and squatters. I left California to get away from them and I don't want them to ruin it here. I'm not the only one.