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Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
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Originally Posted by Serious Conversation
Ignore the listicles.
Size up what you want. Personally, I like green vegetation. I like to be in a real, mossy forest, with tons of green. I would never feel comfortable on the Plains. No amount of financial incentive would make me want to live in North Dakota.
I have just the place for you... PNW rain forest... (or the south pacific!)
I love the prairie and will return to ND if I ever need to find a TALL / slender 'capable' spouse
I will be back this summer to celebrate the 150 yr anniversary of family homestead. (prairie born and bred)
You are free to come enjoy my moss! and mow the grass every other day.
It is very difficult to fully, accurately portray and convey my situation, without it leading to a massive, disjointed and jumbled post... Just so many variables, even getting to the most germane issue of them all "what do you/I want", I struggle with. So many good suggestions, and my ability to triage them and my own ideas is a great challenge... And I'm not exactly sure why. A lot of it I think is just being overwhelmed with the process, which seems daunting. Having moved so many times and never really loving any place so far, always feeling temporary, nowhere feeling like home colors your thoughts of "another move". On top of all of this, new out of the blue health concerns yet to be fully assessed, have been weighing down my spirit. It takes the wind out of the sails, adds stress to the process, and feels as if it will dictate what I have to accept, rather than what I want.
For me, my number one priority now is wanting a place no matter where I end up, that is quiet and peaceful. I am very much an introvert, and need a home that is very quiet and tranquil. I could live in an urban environment, but must have a home that shuts this all out, which I know could be a very big challenge. I love visiting museums, walking on sidewalks for exercise, cultural events, being around many different cultures making new friends, and having a great many opportunities to continue on with my volunteer activities. Finding a place of peace and quiet, and not tilting my housing budget too much is the toughie I think.
I have always longed for a peaceful, quiet bucolic setting the most - But realize and have experienced it can be very noisy very deep in the sticks, and as I age I feel as if having a lot of land may be outside of my ability to take care of it, not to mention should I need medical treatment it would become a very severe burden depending on location. Having also lived per MY EXPERIENCE ONLY in many rural area's, some of the mindset/culture I have encountered does not jive with me. Not only this, but being referred to as a "Damn Yankee", "carpet-bagger", liberal from back east, "you ain't from around here" whatever the vibe of a new area would again not have it feel like home. I used to believe more of the "you get what you give" philosophy, but have come to realize that despite a well mannered, kind, accommodating, live and let live attitude, many areas are insular, unfriendly, and don't want you there. Of course this goes for all areas of the US... Dangit, where's my utopia?
So, to get to some concrete, winnow the wheat from the chaff I have tried to get to the most basic of binary, yes/no choices based on actual experience. Firstly I will rule out certain geographic areas by virtue of climate. For me that would be the SE of the US, The upper Midwest, and I'm afraid a lot of the heartland. To me it must be especially terrible to live in places that are extreme in both winter and summer. I do love a drier climate as I experienced in UT, so some parts of the SW may do the trick. I was stationed at Ft. Lewis WA for a summer, the driest at the time on record as I recall, so I got a skewed view of that neck of the woods. It was very beautiful (back in the late 80's), and Tacoma was a very rough place as I recall. I hear it has changed a lot.
What really stinks is since I am on Obama care, is seeing how much costs vary by location. This is another piece of the seemingly endless variables that have to be considered, esp as I get older/crazy political climate.
As to what I like to do; I enjoy fishing, target shooting (to include 'assult weapons'), putzing around working on vehicles, and simply enjoying the ability to kick back and relax. A segway into this is legal cannabis. I went to Denver in 2015 to see it for myself, and found it liberating and surreal. I know opinions are split with actual residence, just the same I strongly believe in the right to choose whatever I find helpful to alleviate my pain, and to indulge in something rather benign as a form of enjoyment. I think legalization will continue for many states, and I'd like to be in one that is legal now, or will be soon.
Housing costs/rent is a concern, but not my biggest concern. If I found "the place", I'd have no problem dropping the $$$, in all but the most costly of areas. I'm frugal but not cheap, and that means I just want a very modest, small, well thought out place that is very quiet and peaceful with an attached garage. Could be on some land, but I don't want a lot of grass to cut/yard to maintain. I always thought living out west and having a desert yard would be great. No grass to cut, in-line with nature, looks nice and is very different to what I have ever had before. Problem is, I just can't bring myself to drop $300k + on a double wide out west, all of the water regulations, and seeming ruination of the very areas by folks who want the idea of living out west, but change it to a freakish idea of "home", killing it in the process.
I saw New Mexico mentioned, and for whatever reason it has been on my radar for awhile. I always read of how impoverished it is, crime issues, waaaaay too much $$$ to live near the "good" areas, weird unfriendly vibe, poor medical facilities, ect. Also read of what a great place it is, the rich history, very pretty areas...
See, I rambled on in a dis-jointed, stream of jumbled consciousness post ... I have so much running through my head, and know I have to get in the right frame of mind, quit over-analyzing/over thinking, and get my butt out there and see for myself. Thanks if you read this book, and please keep the suggestions/help flowing.
Thought I would add more, as it relates to finances. Yes, 52 and retired, not on disability... And yes, it is very nice having been so since I was 46. I invested by myself via low cost mutual funds/REITS, low cost brokerage, saved from a very early age, invested any windfall, lived very far under my means, was/am very self-sufficient, and always valued time over chasing $$$ or material crap. Could not have done it having anyone/advisor charging 1-2% AUM (Assets Under Management), where IMO this will become even less doable in the future. I like to volunteer my time helping non-profits with their 403b implementation, and helping individual investors reach their financial goals, learn to budget, coach them toward dropping the whole more toys/keeping up with the Joneses guilt trip BS. Not to seem smug, humble braggy, or uncaring toward others who truly struggle, but I would have never thought money would be the least of my worries, rather managing what seems too much freedom of choice in my retirement is.
I could drop a substantial sum into a home, but tying up that much $$$ goes against my frugal nature, and IMO and experience the current housing market seems toppy,in all but the rarefied of areas... But that reverts too. I love the idea of having a shipping container/other alternate type of housing, or just a simple small ranch that is in an area not surrounded by blight/mental blight, that is quiet, peaceful, and inspiring. I want to relax in a place I love and feel welcomed, not being forced to endure the drama and coarseness of terrible, inconsiderate, unfriendly neighbors/neighborhood/location. Perfect being the enemy of the good enough, and "one-itis" I am really trying to keep at bay - I know I will have to compromise; I just don't know exactly where, and to what degree to arrive at a place I don't know as of yet. I know, I seem so pessimistic; just the same my life story and who I am at the core steers the ship, and for once I'd like to be in an area of fair winds and following seas... Make sense?
How about Montrose, CO? Decent community hospital, good fishing all around, the beautiful mountains within sight and a short drive away, low humidity (swamp cooler good for summer) and not all townies, etc. Closer to Moab than to Denver. Good public transport within town. A couple of nice museums (the Ute, History of Colorado, that kind of thing) art galleries within an easy hour's drive, not a pompous resort town or anything. Great fresh dry air and lots of sun all seasons. Four-gate airport, 45 minute flight to Denver, direct flights to L.A. in 90 min. I talk to people who go to L.A. for a long weekend and some urban enjoyment from here.
(Disclaimer- I live 24 miles from Montrose, closer to the mountains and always lived in a major Eastern metro area and do not miss the crowding, humidity, pace, congestions, etc. Although I liked having the big city arts around, I ended up not going!)
^^^Yes, I second Montrose. Or how about Moab, UT? You said you liked the dryness of UT. It's a fun, funky town of about 4,000 with a decent hospital. Stunning scenery with world-class hiking, biking, rafting.
I loved my 10 years there. Full of eclectic people who don't judge. No legal MJ though. But CO is only 90 minutes away!
I am pretending I am you. I, like you, appreciate peace and quiet, but I do need some people around me to talk to and do things with. When I was early 50s, I still wanted to be near fun physical activities, like skiing, biking or just gardening. I was not ready to quit working, but maybe you are.
Thing one: move only to a place where you have friends or family fairly near. It is very hard to form a social network from scratch, and I would need one.
Thing two: move to a more favorable climate.
Thing three: go to a lower,or the same, COL area. You obviously can’t move from PA to San Francisco or Manhattan.
We moved from OH to coastal GA and the pace is slower, and the winters are mild.
^^^Yes, I second Montrose. Or how about Moab, UT? You said you liked the dryness of UT. It's a fun, funky town of about 4,000 with a decent hospital. Stunning scenery with world-class hiking, biking, rafting.
I loved my 10 years there. Full of eclectic people who don't judge. No legal MJ though. But CO is only 90 minutes away!
No legal MJ? My 5 years in UT I could never figure out the rules for just getting a cocktail: we only serve beer or you have to order food or at least pretend to look at a menu as you order a G&T or you had to "join a private club" at some place you may never visit again. The solid Red land of "liberty & freedom" made you go to a single government run liquor store to peruse a pathetic selection of wines & liquor.... just like in the old USSR.
Enough to turn me to a rededicated pothead. The joke was always that the license plates read "Utah - Gateway to Nevada!"
Thanks for the continued help folks. Montrose CO huh.? I know I have looked into that area, as well as Moab. I LOVED visiting Moab when I lived in UT during the early 90's. Ironic, as I recently looked at local real estate for Moab, and was surprised at how costly it was. Again, double wide trailers going for huge, crazy to me sums of $$$. Park City was very nice too, but again crazy COL x a zillion. I remember liking a place called Richfield UT, but have not looked into COL. I'm sure it (housing) will be pretty steep too.
Little back story. I moved to Orem UT in 1992 for my then wife's new job, and wow was housing expensive even then, if you could find it. Finally found a very dated small 2 BR/1BA split level in town, no A/C (swamp cooler) no utilities included, noisy busy street, had to water and maintain the lawn/plow drive/clear sidewalks for $650/mo. It was the only livable place I could find. By 1996 out rent went to almost $800/mo, and we relocated back to the Midwest. I heard echo's of what I hear now "it's because of Californians", and some of this may have been true. The LA riots were still very fresh, and there did seem an exodus. Even if you sold your home for a sub-optimal CA price, you could build in UT for 1/3 of the cost, with dirt cheap taxes to boot.
No legal MJ? My 5 years in UT I could never figure out the rules for just getting a cocktail: we only serve beer or you have to order food or at least pretend to look at a menu as you order a G&T or you had to "join a private club" at some place you may never visit again. The solid Red land of "liberty & freedom" made you go to a single government run liquor store to peruse a pathetic selection of wines & liquor.... just like in the old USSR.
Enough to turn me to a rededicated pothead. The joke was always that the license plates read "Utah - Gateway to Nevada!"
Funny stuff. Yeah, but even the natives called it "Valium Valley"... Guess substance use hypocrisy is A-OK depending on frame of reference. I used to visit said 3.2% stores, and it was amazing how looooooooong some of those lists were from folks milling about. My LDS friends called them "Jack Mormons". Speaking of hypocrisy, I was always amazed at the amount and variety of cigarettes/chew available at Smith's Markets.
Almost forgot about the crazy drinking est rules, at least when I was there. One particularly weird memory was at a pretty swanky wedding in Park City. I remember asking for a Gimlet, and the barmaid told me of all the rules and regulations, can't do this or that... Kid you not, I went behind the bar with her OK, and started pouring my own drinks. I made it very worth her while.
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(prairie born and bred)
... I have so much running through my head, and know I have to get in the right frame of mind, quit over-analyzing/over thinking, and get my butt out there and see for myself. Thanks if you read this book, and please keep the suggestions/help flowing.
