young, single female looking to relocate around portland. Any tips/advice? (Dayton: neighborhood, living in)

[beajordan]

I am a 20 year old woman born & raised (and still currently located) in los angeles. I'm looking to move to the Portland area in about a 1-2 year time frame. Alone, i might add.

Apart from being ridiculously expensive & crowded, los angeles is a bubble. I feel like the young people here have got their priorities all screwed up. The only greenery here comes from dispensaries & palm trees planted around malls.

I have a friend up in Portland, although i'm not sure i want to move from one city to another. I also have an acquaintance in dayton which i'm told is a lot smaller than portland but still within driving distance.
I've been looking into dayton and surrounding areas. Can anyone tell me more about these areas? As far as housing goes, is it less expensive than Portland? Etc. Things to do...or if it'd even worth moving to.

I just want somewhere quieter, I've lived in southern california all my life, bars & clubs & malls & all that junk doesn't impress me.

Also would living in somewhere like dayton & commuting to work in portland be plauisble? Or even a smart move haha.
thanks!

[kapetrich]

Originally Posted by beajordan

I just want somewhere quieter, I've lived in southern california all my life, bars & clubs & malls & all that junk doesn't impress me.

I have/had the same attitude when I move away from Baltimore, MD last year. If these things don't impress you, why move to a place like Portland? Granted, there will be less of it there than you and I are used to, but why not move somewhere totally unique to your here and now?

I did. Couldn't be happier. Every time I visit Portland I love it. Very unique city, but I am GLAD to have gotten out of all.that.****.

That said, Portland will feel like a big town to you, like me, rather than a city, city. So who knows...

Either way, good luck.

[sayulita]

The commute from Dayton to Portland would be about an hour, depending on when you commute and where your job in Portland is. I wouldn't do it. You say you want a quieter place, but how quiet your life is depends on how you live it. You can have a quiet life in Portland if you want one. Just don't go to the bars and clubs and malls. Maybe if you describe for us what an ideal week for you would be, we can better advise you. Moving to a small nondescript town is not likely a very good idea for a young person.

[Dual Citizen CA-OR]

Originally Posted by sayulita

The commute from Dayton to Portland would be about an hour, depending on when you commute and where your job in Portland is. I wouldn't do it. You say you want a quieter place, but how quiet your life is depends on how you live it. You can have a quiet life in Portland if you want one. Just don't go to the bars and clubs and malls. Maybe if you describe for us what an ideal week for you would be, we can better advise you. Moving to a small nondescript town is not likely a very good idea for a young person.

I agree with sayulita for one reason in particular. Having been raised in LA I moved to a small resort town when I was 18 for many of the reasons you mentioned. Thanks to the continual flow of tourists my love life didn’t suffer, but when I started looking for a more long term relationship I quickly realized how limited my options were. It’s just a question of numbers.

I suppose it’s possible but I’m always skeptical when I hear a couple who've never moved from their place of birth claim that out of every city from all around the globe they happen to have found their ‘soul-mate’ in the same Podunk town of five thousand.

[Minervah]

To the OP. If I am reading your original post correctly, it appears you are equating all cities with the one in which you live. You can live in a lovely quiet neighborhood right in Portland without bars, clubs or malls or whatever it is you dislike about your present neighborhood.

You don't have to move to a small town where there is nothing to do and is far from everything you need: greenery, nice people etc.

Portland is nothing like LA.