Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > General Forums > Retirement
 [Register]
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
 
Old 06-18-2015, 12:34 PM
 
Location: Near a river
16,042 posts, read 21,937,686 times
Reputation: 15773

Advertisements

Quote:
Originally Posted by meo92953 View Post

What happened to knoxgarden?
We don't know (well, maybe a few of the ladies on the original Women Retiring Alone thread know) but she suddenly stopped posting after quite a long time on the forum. She was a valuable contributor. I fear she may have passed away, but again, do not know.

 
Old 06-18-2015, 01:01 PM
 
2,015 posts, read 3,177,454 times
Reputation: 4082
I spend a lot of time on the Knoxville forum and a couple of posters there mentioned Knoxgarden had passed on. She was very active in a gardening type of club in Knoxville and this is how those posters who live in Knoxville found out. Hope it is okay to mention that on here. I learned a lot from her and miss her.
 
Old 06-18-2015, 05:04 PM
 
Location: Near a river
16,042 posts, read 21,937,686 times
Reputation: 15773
Quote:
Originally Posted by rigizug View Post
I spend a lot of time on the Knoxville forum and a couple of posters there mentioned Knoxgarden had passed on. She was very active in a gardening type of club in Knoxville and this is how those posters who live in Knoxville found out. Hope it is okay to mention that on here. I learned a lot from her and miss her.
Agree. Many of us followed her posts. She was happy in her Knoxville condo.
 
Old 06-18-2015, 11:06 PM
 
Location: Traveling
7,023 posts, read 6,254,979 times
Reputation: 14683
Quote:
Originally Posted by newenglandgirl View Post
Agree. Many of us followed her posts. She was happy in her Knoxville condo.
Exactly. She was very happy. If shd's passed on, she at least was very happy before she did.
 
Old 06-18-2015, 11:38 PM
 
Location: SW Florida
5,586 posts, read 8,376,625 times
Reputation: 11210
Quote:
Originally Posted by loveautumn View Post
Virginia has always been one of the top places in my heart to retire to and I've visited some locations there over the years (all of them are now too high COL) but I do still have Fredericksburg and Roanoke on my list. I have to figure out if I can visit both of them in the same trip. Just from my prior visits, for some reason I feel completely at home in Virginia and always have.

NEG, thanks for the links!
Didn't you go to VA on a site visit a few years ago? I thought I remembered Roanoke being on the list. Having read your other post about difficulty making friends or maybe I'm thinking of PhxBarb's, I would highly recommend a 55+ community. It is MUCH easier to make friends in mine than if I lived in a single home with mixed ages, couples with families, etc. Yes, there are a lot of couples here, but there are also a lot of single women, as well as couples who don't care if you're a single. I've made a ton of new friends and have many people I can count on if I get sick. That's how it is in a retiree community where people do things together because their families, for the most part, don't live around here.
 
Old 06-19-2015, 08:10 AM
 
Location: NY>FL>VA>NC>IN
3,563 posts, read 1,870,963 times
Reputation: 5996
Hi gals,

I'm retiring alone (on a low budget as well), JAN 2016 hopefully to CARRABELLE FLA. I'm flying there next TH-SA to view a condo and am so sick of looking for places and the cost of going to see them, I so hope this one works!

I lived in Roanoke VA from 2001-2013 so I thought I'd chime in for those asking about it. My adult daughter, hubby and baby (plus one on the way) live there still.

When I moved there I had a husband and two small kids and we rented the first year in SALEM, as we knew nothing about the area, had never even visited prior to and everyone told us SALEM was so great!
I did not like SALEM; I felt it had a Stepford Wives feel to it and very "clannish" and snobby, though the folks who were snobby had cheap shoes and handbags (I came there from PALM BEACH FLA with my IL Bisonte handbags so, ahem ) and their husbands were like, postal clerks but they were acting like they were social register. Delusional and silly women, but I cannot speak to the rest of the population as I was hanging out with other housewives with small kids then.

We ended up buying a house in RALEIGH COURT in ROANOKE which I highly recommend as a neighborhood.
It was full of transplants, more educated folks than not, but it also has some lower priced apartments. It is mostly Caucasian yuppie, but has an artsy/liberal feel to it for sure.

Even the "bad" sections have NO GRAFFITI nor garbage in the streets like I was used to coming from SoFLA. In the 12 years I lived there there wasn't ANY section of town I was afraid to go into, even at night.

I recall getting lost trying to find a church once soon after moving there, and stopping to ask directions and being told I was in a "bad section", far from my destination, by the store clerk I asked. I was flabbergasted as this "bad" section had well kept yards, kids playing outside, no filth in the streets , NO security bars on ANY windows, no crack heads or winos stumbling around.

I think what folks in smaller cities consider "bad" areas differs greatly from those of us who have lived in huge metro areas.

Any specific q's just ask.

Last edited by VexedAndSolitary; 06-19-2015 at 08:17 AM.. Reason: TYPOS
 
Old 06-19-2015, 10:03 AM
 
Location: prescott az
6,954 posts, read 12,023,860 times
Reputation: 14219
Hi Over It All:

Sounds like Roanoke is aok. Wonder why you are leaving there, especially with your daughter still there?
I hear ya about traveling around and looking at different places to live. It's expensive, exhausting and makes me wonder if I should just give up and stay in AZ. Am getting ready to go see Columbia,MO and Bella Vista, AR on Sunday. Only 6 days and tons of traveling through 2 states. I hate airplanes anyway so not looking forward to it. I will come back and probably just be more confused.
 
Old 06-19-2015, 10:13 AM
 
Location: NY>FL>VA>NC>IN
3,563 posts, read 1,870,963 times
Reputation: 5996
I sold my house in 2013, couldn't afford it anymore as a widow, needed to liquidate the equity.
My one daughter there is moving to Sebastian FLA after her hubby finishes NP school (2017) so she won't be there anyhow. Other kids are scattered 'round.

Moved to a small 1BR apt in NC, way cheaper, while I find the blasted retirement place! Arrgh.

I needed to go somewhere cheaper, cost of living wise; while Roanoke is WAAAY cheaper than Palm Beach where I moved there from, it's more expensive than the places I'm looking to buy. I looked in MO and AR and AL also, the houses are very very cheap there but my budget is so low, 30K max to pay cash for a place.

This condo on CARRABELLE is 28K asking price, VERY basic, Spartan actually, which suits me as I am a minimalist for sure, walking distance to the beach, (never dreamed I'd get that perk at my price). I swear if it isn't all it seems online I shall wig out. I am so sick of not knowing where I'll end up.
 
Old 06-19-2015, 10:18 AM
 
Location: Central NY
5,946 posts, read 5,098,041 times
Reputation: 16881
Quote:
Originally Posted by PhxBarb View Post
Hi Over It All:

Sounds like Roanoke is aok. Wonder why you are leaving there, especially with your daughter still there?
I hear ya about traveling around and looking at different places to live. It's expensive, exhausting and makes me wonder if I should just give up and stay in AZ. Am getting ready to go see Columbia,MO and Bella Vista, AR on Sunday. Only 6 days and tons of traveling through 2 states. I hate airplanes anyway so not looking forward to it. I will come back and probably just be more confused.
I wondered the same thing, why is over it all leaving a place she described as nice to live. But I am sure there are some good reasons for it. I just don't know what they are.

Like you, PhxBarb, I have done some back and forth traveling to find a place to live in NC. I had chosen the Winston-Salem area as I had visited there a few times and for me it seemed ideal. However, I don't have anyone living there or even close to there that could help me with finding a good apartment. So many things to consider when you reach a "certain age". Noise level, neighborhood, etc.

So after my last trip I am "home" again where I have spent almost my entire life, central NY. I have a rather large financial deficiency.... I'm broke (almost). Live month to month, pay my bills, have a few bucks left over. No extra for much of anything and my travels all go on an ever-growing credit card. Time for me to get real. Work on the debt (a couple of years at least) and then if I still want to relocate, do it. I'm 73 and worry I might not get to do it for one reason or another. Central NY holds no special appeal for me except a few very good friends. But I'm the only one of my group who is truly alone. Don't have a lot of emotional ties here.

So for me time will tell. As time moves along, I'm realizing how sick of being alone I am (over 30 yrs). I have two kids, but very complicated situation with them and don't trust that one or the other will remain in my life (their decision). But finding a suitable (for me) male companion seems impossible.
 
Old 06-19-2015, 10:26 AM
 
Location: NY>FL>VA>NC>IN
3,563 posts, read 1,870,963 times
Reputation: 5996
NYgal2NC, see my post above for explanation re: leaving Roanoke

I'm in Statesville NC, I drive through Winston-Salem often when I go visit my daughter in VA ( I don't take freeways, too chicken) and I like it a lot, it reminds me of Roanoke as far as appearance. Too expensive for me though.

Asheboro NC is darling, I think. I looked at a great house there, a foreclosure, put a bid actually but didn't get it. Winning bid was 19.5, it was a helluva deal. I bid asking price like an idiot (17.7).
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Similar Threads

All times are GMT -6. The time now is 01:56 AM.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top