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I love winter. LOVED winter. I like sunny cold days with snow or gray days with snow, I like the atmosphere of a warm fireplace, hot chocolate, the silence of snow falling and the starkness of black, leafless trees on a white landscape. I like the way the sky is always a dusty purple the night of a snowfall.
So what do we do? Move to the polar opposite. The way people feel about winter elsewhere (SAD) is the way I feel about spring, summer and fall in NC.
Spring starts on time, that's nice.
Summer starts early, ends late, and is like that last drunken fool at your party who doesn't know when to give it up and go home already. Open your front door at 4.30am (my husband leaves at this hour) and the heat and humidity are like a sledgehammer in the face.
Fall? Who knows, it's not really been seen in the time I've been here. I think it's a myth. (lack of deciduous trees vs. evergreen). But it's hot for me. Sweat through your Halloween costume, wear shorts some years to pick out Christmas trees.
If I ever get the chance to move back? I95-N needs to clear out because I will be like a freight train with no brakes.
There's nothing more vague than a temperature reading! Don't be misled!!!
Here, in Las Vegas, in June when the temp is at 100, with a glorious 5% humidity level, and when I read 85 degrees in Tampa or Atlanta or NYC with 80-90% humidity, I smile and smile at how much more comfortable I am here than there! And cooler evenings are always guaranteed much of the summer in the desert!
I simply can't leave here ever, due to my arthritis! I suffered too long with it in MN, and I've since found how magical this dry desert heat is if you're suffering from it!
I would like to leave here, and move furthur north, but for health reasons I simply can't! Stuck here, but I'm not crying about it!
I, too, suffered from sun-deprived depression in MN! But if you're a naturally depressive type, all this sunshine will help, but eradicate it, by no means!
I moved to Florida in 2000, from Washington State, a lot of it depends on what you like to do, if you like the mountains, move to California, or Denver, just don't come to Florida, you will be in total culture shock, the humidity is HORRIBLE, and I mean HORRIBLE, I am miserable here, and would love to move back, cost of living stops me, and I am not talking about the rental market, that is high, I just prefer to own and that is hard to do in Western WA..... I would trade the humidity, lack of mountains, for the rain and natural beauty any day..... Florida does have good winters, but global warming has caused this winter to be more humid than usual, they think I am weird here, because we had a rare cold day here about two weeks ago (high in the 50's lol)... I went to the beach I too had issues with the rain when I lived in WA, I am originally from Cali, but left there kicking and screaming as a teenager as my parents wanted a "less city" lifestyle, I eventually got used to it and took up hiking and camping, I still consider WA home, again a lot would depend on what you like to do when it is sunny, I am miserable most of the year in Florida, and stay inside in the AC, and , lol it's beautiful clear weather outside and I am INSIDE.... that would have been unheard of in WA on a nice day.... Go figure.....
Why don't you try vacationing in southern states in the summer and see how you enjoy it? I'm in Southern California and when I drove to Arizona last year during the summer, I found the Arizona heat to be a bit exaggerated (perhaps because I grew up in the inland empire area which is quite hot) and quite bearable. In fact, it was hotter after we came back to San Bernardino County than our whole time in Arizona. And we were so afraid that our tires might be inflated to the point that it would explode due to the heat before the trip.
It takes a while for a place to start getting to you, I think. At first, everything is hunky dory and soooo nice. Then the boring day to day stuff starts to get to you and you think, hmmm, where is a better place? Also, weather changes ! The summers in Phoenix are getting longer and longer and are so much harder to take. And this winter has been really cold ! The frost devastated my plants and I had to cut down nearly all of it, so there aren't any pretty flowers right now.
I agree with Jim that Phoenix is too much sprawl and too much of nothing. We have maybe 4 museums in the whole area. We have no nightlife (unless you are in Scottsdale) and we have unbearable heat (like being in an oven) for at least 6 months of the year. Given the cold winter this year, its been at least 9 months in the house with the heat or AC. I am unhappy here and planning a move to either North or South Carolina. Just have to decide which one.
Yep, it's boring... We surf, sail & fish YEAR ROUND in the gorgeous blue Pacific. Lot's of great lakes to play in as well. Or maybe off roading in the vast deserts is your thing. How about hiking in the Sierra's, or skiing in REAL mountains at Tahoe ('64 Winter Olympics) or Mammoth. You can go to the highest (Mt. Whitney) and lowest (Death Valley) points in the continental U.S. in one day.
Kids bored? How about the ORIGINAL: Disneyland. Plenty of other parks to choose from as well, all open every day of the year. Sea World, Six Flags, San Diego Zoo's Safari Park, etc, etc, etc...
Maybe some wine tasting in the country's finest wine regions? I'm into vintage sports car racing, and enjoy competing on the nation's first dedicated road race track; Willow Springs, and other world class tracks like Laguna Seca & Sears Point. Golfing at Torrey Pines is cool too. Year round, no pesky winter closures.
No, you're right... It is boring here.
I wasn't referring to CA as boring outside but the southwest (to me anyway, to each his own). I then go on to say I wish I could afford California. And going back to your original post I'll repeat again that not being able to afford CA does not make me "cheapo". At least I understand what I read.
So eastern WA is hot and cold...but also sunny? What about water?
It takes a while for a place to start getting to you, I think. At first, everything is hunky dory and soooo nice. Then the boring day to day stuff starts to get to you and you think, hmmm, where is a better place? Also, weather changes ! The summers in Phoenix are getting longer and longer and are so much harder to take
You can say that again!!After 15 yrs. of Phoenix's summers, I couldn't take anymore. When I moved there in the late 90's, it wasn't too bad, but looking at Weather underground, it really wasn't just a subjective feeling of it getting hotter--the data shows it getting hotter. The last 7-8 "summers" (4 1/2 months +), I just wilted. I didn't wanna make this a Phoenix heat thread, but you are right!
You can say that again!!After 15 yrs. of Phoenix's summers, I couldn't take anymore. When I moved there in the late 90's, it wasn't too bad, but looking at Weather underground, it really wasn't just a subjective feeling of it getting hotter--the data shows it getting hotter. The last 7-8 "summers" (4 1/2 months +), I just wilted. I didn't wanna make this a Phoenix heat thread, but you are right!
4.5 months of extreme heat is better than 9 months of depressing overcast and rain in the northwest. but then again, i never lived in phoenix, to me seeing the sun is heaven.
sigh... if i only have money, where i can just be a snowbird for life.
4.5 months of extreme heat is better than 9 months of depressing overcast and rain in the northwest. but then again, i never lived in phoenix, to me seeing the sun is heaven.
sigh... if i only have money, where i can just be a snowbird for life.
I get what you mean. Where I'm at now, it's grey/white skies from Sept. 1-late Jan., 5 months where you see the Sun maybe 4-6 hrs/week! In late Jan., it gets "sunnier," 2-3 days/week partly sunny, but we haven't seen it for 1 week again. I think Syracuse is 2nd to cloud cover to the Pacific NW, which is 1st. It gets to you mentally, but the heat got to me physicially.
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that would have been unheard of in WA on a nice day.... Go figure.....
We surf, sail & fish YEAR ROUND in the gorgeous blue Pacific. Lot's of great lakes to play in as well. Or maybe off roading in the vast deserts is your thing. How about hiking in the Sierra's, or skiing in REAL mountains at Tahoe ('64 Winter Olympics) or Mammoth. You can go to the highest (Mt. Whitney) and lowest (Death Valley) points in the continental U.S. in one day. 
