The bay area value

[BayAreaHillbilly]

Some things I don't understand are comments like "stuck inside for X months out of the year."

Haven't you people ever heard of things like Underarmor, Goretex, etc?

[silverkris]

Originally Posted by BayAreaHillbilly

Some things I don't understand are comments like "stuck inside for X months out of the year."

Haven't you people ever heard of things like Underarmor, Goretex, etc?

Well that's for colder temperatures. I'm sensitive to heat and humidity - Goretex isn't going to help you in a place like Houston.

[BayAreaHillbilly]

Originally Posted by silverkris

Well that's for colder temperatures. I'm sensitive to heat and humidity - Goretex isn't going to help you in a place like Houston.

OK, fair point. But most of those comments are from people beotching about the classic Humid Continental Climates during winter. Places like the MidWest and Northeastern US.

[LoriBee62]

Originally Posted by BayAreaHillbilly

Some things I don't understand are comments like "stuck inside for X months out of the year."

Haven't you people ever heard of things like Underarmor, Goretex, etc?

California and Hawaii are the only two states I know of that have mild climate year round. All the others either have sweltering heat, oppressive humidity, long rainy winters or snow. The only states I know of that come close, where you can enjoy coffee on the patio nearly year round in comfortable temperatures, would be North Carolina and Colorado.

Is is also no coincidence that California and Hawaii are the two most expensive states to live in.

To many people, cheap cost of living is a priority. There's nothing wrong with that. Just like there is nothing wrong with the millions of people who will pay a premium to live in a mild climate.

That's where so many threads on this forum go awry. People feel the need to chalk Californians up as idiots for paying to live here, instead of maturely accepting the reality that people simply have different priorities. For some life is just about money. For others it's not. Some people love heat. Others live cold winters. Lucky them as they get the best of both worlds.

[sav858]

I think the climate argument is a bit overstated, there are a lot of very expensive places around the world with crappy climates.

[04kL4nD]

Originally Posted by LoriBee62

California and Hawaii are the only two states I know of that have mild climate year round. All the others either have sweltering heat, oppressive humidity, long rainy winters or snow. The only states I know of that come close, where you can enjoy coffee on the patio nearly year round in comfortable temperatures, would be North Carolina and Colorado.

Is is also no coincidence that California and Hawaii are the two most expensive states to live in.

To many people, cheap cost of living is a priority. There's nothing wrong with that. Just like there is nothing wrong with the millions of people who will pay a premium to live in a mild climate.

That's where so many threads on this forum go awry. People feel the need to chalk Californians up as idiots for paying to live here, instead of maturely accepting the reality that people simply have different priorities. For some life is just about money. For others it's not. Some people love heat. Others live cold winters. Lucky them as they get the best of both worlds.

You can go ahead and scratch most of NC off that list. Ice storms are pretty common in the Piedmont region and summers are brutally humid in most places, aside from Asheville and mountain cities, which coincidentally, get a fair amount of snow in the winter. People in NC brag about their weather being better than the Northeast, but it's really not saying very much.

Without question, CA has the best year round climate of any of the lower 48. Hawaii is nice and hot year round, but it also rains a lot and is pretty humid. I guess you'd get used to it, but after about a week or so, I don't find the weather to be all that great and I'm always happy to get home to Oakland.

I haven't spent a ton of time in Colorado, so I can't really comment on the weather outside of Denver, but maybe you're right. Based on my limited experience, I think it gets all four seasons and the extremes that come with it.

[Chuck5000]

Originally Posted by 04kL4nD

You can go ahead and scratch most of NC off that list. Ice storms are pretty common in the Piedmont region and summers are brutally humid in most places, aside from Asheville and mountain cities, which coincidentally, get a fair amount of snow in the winter. People in NC brag about their weather being better than the Northeast, but it's really not saying very much.

I live in the Bay Area and I love the weather, but really, the obsession with perfect weather is shallow....which is subjective anyway.

I'm from the East Coast, the "Northeast" of which the above poster refers to, and I prefer the weather here in the Bay Area, but you know what? I'd move back in a heartbeat if my career were different and my wife's family weren't out west.

There are more important things than my own self-gratification in the number of months I am able to lie in a chaise lounge. And believe me, I'm an outdoors guy, camping, hiking, etc. Believe me, I've taken advantage of California (and most of the great places are a multi hour drive anyway).

I know humidity and heat and cold, and it's not always fun, but complainers really irk me. It. Is. Life. You adapt. You enjoy the good days MORE. And you still get plenty of weeks of great weather. It's really not like how life is supposed to be. "Oh I want perfection all the time, and if you don't have that, your place sucks."

Other than extremes, humans have been living in a variety of climates since forever. There is beauty in all nature, whether it's cold, or hot, flat or mountainous.

[HockeyMac18]

Originally Posted by sav858

I think the climate argument is a bit overstated, there are a lot of very expensive places around the world with crappy climates.

And a lot of places with great climates that aren't all that expensive.

[04kL4nD]

Originally Posted by Chuck5000

I live in the Bay Area and I love the weather, but really, the obsession with perfect weather is shallow....which is subjective anyway.

I'm from the East Coast, the "Northeast" of which the above poster refers to, and I prefer the weather here in the Bay Area, but you know what? I'd move back in a heartbeat if my career were different and my wife's family weren't out west.

There are more important things than my own self-gratification in the number of months I am able to lie in a chaise lounge. And believe me, I'm an outdoors guy, camping, hiking, etc. Believe me, I've taken advantage of California (and most of the great places are a multi hour drive anyway).

I know humidity and heat and cold, and it's not always fun, but complainers really irk me. It. Is. Life. You adapt. You enjoy the good days MORE. And you still get plenty of weeks of great weather. It's really not like how life is supposed to be. "Oh I want perfection all the time, and if you don't have that, your place sucks."

Other than extremes, humans have been living in a variety of climates since forever. There is beauty in all nature, whether it's cold, or hot, flat or mountainous.

Some people really are affected by extremes in temperature and it makes them more than just uncomfortable, it makes them absolutely miserable and unable to function normally. I can deal with colder weather much better than hot and humid weather or extremely hot and dry weather. I could absolutely not deal with 3 straight months of 100+ degree temps like some people who live in Vegas or Phoenix do. In fact, when it gets above 85 in Oakland, I start to go crazy in my apartment since we don't have A/C- I honestly can't sleep and it makes me really irritable. My partner is the exact opposite. He grew up in Chicago and had to deal with the brutal winters there and will never, ever move back to a place where it gets that cold or you have to shovel snow on a regular basis. Humans are a really lousy indicator of temperature, and experience hot and cold very differently. Another thing that affects people differently is sunlight, rain, and clouds. I'd be perfectly OK in Seattle, gray skies and all, but he can't tolerate prolong periods of rain or grey- it makes him depressed. I, on the other hand, find the monotony of endless sunshine and heat to be just as depressing. In any event, I don't think wanting to be comfortable and able to function is a particularly shallow trait. Maybe in your eyes we're both wimps, but that's just your opinion, just like the difference between what one person sees as hot or cold.