Retiring next year & Marion, IL is high on my list to move to

[reneeh63]

Originally Posted by meo92953

Thanks, beachgoer. That's more of what I'm looking for.



Treacherous winters couldn't possibly get as bad as ours. Last winter was really bad, but it was a bad year for everyone I think.
.

In places like Minnesota, Milwaukee, Chicago they expect bad weather, lots of snow and are pretty much prepared for it with lots of plows, salt, and resources - southern IL I'm not surprised that "a little" snow would be tough for them to handle. It's fine and dandy if you're used to rough weather, but if you're in a locale that takes a few days to get plowed and you don't personally have a great vehicle, you'll be stuck, literally.

[Swampmonster]

Originally Posted by meo92953

I've never heard of the town you mentioned. I will check & see where it is in relation to Marion. I do have to watch where I live due to back issues, ie: shopping, in-house laundry, parking lot, etc as I do use a cane.

You can check with "shawnee apartments" in Marion...don't know much about them,but if I remember right they do have laundry room for each unit...nice parking area and about as close to Kroger as you can get...shopping all around you from there.

Originally Posted by Beachgoer44

It was not the wait, it was the doctor and the care. I hear Evansville has a great hospital.

E'ville has two REALLY good hospitals imho.

[RJ8089]

When I retire in 2042, I'm headed to Las Vegas.

[meo92953]

Funny RJ, you may find that your priorities change by 2042. I will purposefully not live close to where I can gamble as I will only have Social security and housing, bills and food come first. Not going to be a high roller after that's done. May be some for bingo somewhere lol.

Sorry no communication for awhile. We (my sister and I) live in the country and are at the mercy of the network when internet goes out.

I'm glad I looked this over. Almost thought of looking at Florida but, after looking at some of the forums there, have decided to stay concentrated on Marion.

Shawnee apartments are the ones I was thinking of. I called them and got put on their list. I told them I'm not going anywhere until spring because I am not driving in the winter. Spring is soon enough.

[Beachgoer44]

Shawnee Apartments also has a complex in Herrin/Energy on Ford St. which is just a town over from Marion. They are in a good location, with easy access to 148 and 13. You would be happy in a Herrin/Energy too. The towns are just melted into Marion. Actually, anymore highway 13 connects Marion, Herrin, Carterville and Carbondale. If you aren't from here, you may not realize when you get into the next town.

[EricOldTime]

I was born in Effingham Illinois ( a little further to the north ) but most of my family is from western Kentucky. Speaking of Kentucky, Once you start getting around Mt Vernon to a little further south down to around Marion you start picking up a bit of southern influences from the upper region of the south as you approach the Ohio river. By southern I don't mean the deep south like Georgia or Alabama....but like Kentucky and Tennessee? Yes quite a bit...

Southern Illinoians in my opinion have more in common with western Kentuckians/Tennesseeans or folks from southern Missouri than I think they do of folks in the rest of Illinois. Albeit, it's subtle but increases in intensity as you approach the Ohio river.

I also heard that winters are not as harsh down there, like in western Kentucky ( at least generally ) and that they don't bury the plumbing as far underground down there as they do in Northern or Central Illinois. Also it's more wooded, not as open and flat as central Illinois and the terrain undulates more down there....more rolling to actually quite rugged hills and ridges in some areas.

[eddybok]

Well, I can give some comparable insight because I lived in the Marion-Herrin area while attending grad school at SIU in the nineties and I've lived in Minnesota for most of this century.

Some good points of that area of southern Illinois:

1) Compared to Minnesota you will think the winters are paradise;
2) Cheaper than Minnesota and not just in housing;
3) Livable and easy going place;
4) Mosquitoes in the summer aren't nearly as bad as in Minnesota;
5) Between Marion and Carbondale, the area has decent shopping for a rural area;
6) Some pleasant scenery and parks particularly near the areas closer to the Mississippi and Ohio rivers;
7) Because of being a large university town, Carbondale and the university do offer some low cost or even free entertainment events; their free outdoor summer concerts series were always a big draw when I lived there.

Some bad points of the area:

1) chronically depressed economically; while that shouldn't matter as much to a retired person, it does result in fewer small town amenities than you see in Minnesota;
2) brutally hot summers; although, once the sun goes down, walking in those warm humid summer nights can actually be pleasant;
3) not much snow but the area has torrential rains, sometime for multiple days;
4) there's really nothing as good as the Twin Cities area to escape to once in awhile; the St. Louis area (two hours away) is smaller and the city itself is more rundown and treacherous in numerous parts (whatever you do, don't go into East St. Louis);
5) while the area doesn't have as many lakes as Minnesota, it does have some nice ones; however, as might be expected, the waters are snakier and there are more poisonous ones there; also, by mid June, the waters are practically bath temperature, so the fishing is poorer at that point than in Minnesota.

As far as the people, I found them to be pretty decent. They're a bit redder than in Minnesota but a little more open, a little easier to get to know, and less snobby. Here in Minnesota, if you skip mowing your lawn one weekend, yours will stand out in the neighborhood. Less so down there. I believe you mentioned your church. The area is heavily Baptist. I never found the religious influence oppressive but the belief in the separation of church and state isn't as widely held there and I would think it might be a lonelier place for an atheist.

[eddybok]

Originally Posted by meo92953

I've never heard of the town you mentioned. I will check & see where it is in relation to Marion. I do have to watch where I live due to back issues, ie: shopping, in-house laundry, parking lot, etc as I do use a cane.

McCleansboro is fairly far from Marion and much less surrounds it. Really, if one is going to live in southern Illinois, sticking to the Carbondale-Marion corridor is the best bet. I would live in Harrisburg or even Anna before I would live in McCleansboro.

[meo92953]

I've been busy for awhile so haven't kept up. Haven't talked to that brother of mine lately either. Will rectify that today.

eddybok, while I was there I went to a Lutheran church my brother & family go to so religion wasn't an issue. I did hear all about the Baptist influence but was not confronted in any way by anyone.

Having worked in the nonprofit field for the majority of my career, I learned early on to find neutral ground with the people we worked with.

I'm starting to get things together here to get ready for the big move. Thankfully I can stay here until there is an opening at Shawnee so have time. Oh, you mentioned the cities. I worked there my entire career but am now living in the country 14 miles from Fergus Falls. Not a lot of night life or excitement. And that's the way I like it at this point in my life. So I should fit in real well, chuckle.