Oregon vs Hawaii (total area) Interesting Example...

[the1heat4u]

Originally Posted by Irish Eyes_Mrs. Z

Oh, I believe you! I love Oregon, but according to my (now deceased) parents who lived on Oahu for a couple of years while my father was in the service, Hawaii (not sure if they ever visited any other island besides Oahu) is absolutely paradise if you like the lifestyle and can afford to move and live there! I can't wait to find out, personally. I KNOW I'll love it, because the lifestyle suits me. It remains to be seen what my husband will think of it, since he was born in Glasgow and raised in Edinburgh--both fairly large Scottish cities. I've heard him make fun of La Grande (northeastern Oregon), saying "it's closed on weekends", while loving it here in Lincoln City, which is 5,000 people smaller than LG. Both places have slow lifestyles, with radically different but still lovely places to go/explore/enjoy/photograph. We shall see :-).

I didn't address lava, before I am not a FT resident, it doesn't obviously bother me much. However I have attended lava meetings. My main concern are the locals and FT residents. A house is a house, but most people have made a life there and for that it concerns me. I worry about the displacement of families who have spent generations in the area.. Or my neighbors. Insurance will pay for the house, and tho it would suck.. There are other people who will lose everything. Breaks my heart.

In general I keep up daily with what is going on and specifically where we are located I am not overly worried. Again, it would suck to start over but.. We have nothing special in our house. So it's just the matter or losing a special place.

As for LG yes... 8 pm the town is closed. Not far off with LC. I went with a GF for mothers days two years ago. The idea was to have a night away from kids. At like 10 we wanted snacks and the ONLY thing open when we ventured out was the mini mart across from Sambos. A bit of a shocker.. We spend a lot of time in PC and LC. I didn't realize it shut down so early (outside of the casino).

LC is a bit strange to me, but great for the Oregon coast!

[Irish Eyes_Mrs. Z]

I, too, worry terribly about anyone whose property is in the path of the lava. I've asked a friend of mine who lives in Orchidlands Estate about it, expressing my concern. She points out, truthfully enough, that when you live on the BI, it's a risk you take, and you just have to make your peace with it. That is undoubtedly true, but, like you, I worry about the people who couldn't afford to move or rebuild should their home be destroyed.

As for LC--yeah, it closes up early, unless you want to go to a bar. A few restaurants are open until 10 or so, but other than Safeway, a mini-mart, or one of the bars or restaurants that stay open fairly late, you're kind of SOL! Luckily we're not usually inclined to go out late. On the few occasions we do, it's because one of my grown children and their friend(s) have come into town, and they generally want to either hit up a bar or the casino, anyway, so we're set :-).

I lived in La Grande for 20 years. Again, because I was born and raised a country girl, and it suits my version of the laid back lifestyle, the fact that stores and restaurants aren't open late never bothered me. When my kiddos were small, occasionally I'd have to make an "emergency run" to Safeway for baby supplies in the middle of the night, but since it was open late (and is now open 24/7), it never bothered me. My husband, however, has actually had to LEARN to slow down, being born and raised in large cities. When he does relax, though, he likes it. And when he's restless, there's always somewhere to go walking or driving, and the list of "honey-do's" is long enough to keep him busy for quite some time to come :-).

I really think we'd both love Hawaii. We won't know 'til we visit, though. That's planned for this coming winter, and we'll both find out soon enough!