[mkfarnam]

Originally Posted by malamute

I didn't know Oklahoma got all that cold -- is that unusual? I've been through Oklahoma a number of times in July -- it's hot as hell -- it seems you have the extremes there. But parts of the state are very nice as far as scenery and the people seem very friendly.

Yes, it's unusual and rare. Last winter it rained hail the size of small golf balls leaving dented auto bodies and damage windshields.

[redwingsfan19]

Originally Posted by mkfarnam

We had a layer of ice here in Oklahoma this morning. 29%

Woke up yesterday morning, looked outside and figure what the heck it is only a little bit of snow, I go outside with my shovel and it is a 1 inch of thick ICE!!! This is our first winter here in KS. and I guess they deal with ice more than anything else.
Michigan doesn't SUCK! it is just going thru some hard times, we had to move so we can feed our kids again but MI. is a beautiful place to be. When things get better will be going back home!
"mkfarnam" did you used to live in MI? how long have you been down here?

[Sparrow_temp]

I guess you have to live somewhere else for a bit to appreciate Michigan more. I still lean toward it sucking because I haven't lived anywhere else and suspect some of those longing to come back have forgotten the sucky parts.

[HotSauce]

My wife grew up in a tropical climate in a very exciting city, Hong Kong. I grew up in the Detroit area. About 11 years ago we moved to west Michigan in the Grand Rapids area. I currently work at home and we could really live anywhere (i.e., that we could afford). But we love it here in west Michigan. You will be hard pressed to find beaches as nice as those on the west coast of Michigan. I've been to various beaches on the west coast of the US (e.g., California. Oregon). I lived in Miami for several months. None of those beaches compare with many of the beaches we have along Michigan's west coast. I'll admit Hawaii has beaches that beat ours. But they don't have the beautiful Autumns, Winters, and Springs that we have. Summer all the time would get boring and hot after a while. Nothing beats the beautiful snow falls we get here in west Michigan. I'll admit that a Detroit winter some times gets long and dreary. But in west Michigan where we get the lake effect snow, you are pretty much guaranteed to have a white blanket of snow most of the winter. There have been occasional exceptions. But not many. I have often asked my wife if she would like to move somewhere warmer in the winter. But she always reminds me of how great it is to have four distinct seasons. Think of it as the seasoning in life! And don't forget the lakes all over and around Michigan. You might call it a paradise!!!

[HotSauce]

A few links that show what Grand Rapids is like:

Here's a beautiful shot of part of downtown Grand Rapids from a nice vantage point above the Grand River: Downtown Grand Rapids on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/darrinwassom/782111371/ - broken link)

Here's a photo tour of Grand Rapids (be sure to click the "Next" link at the bottom of each page: Grand Rapids Photo blog

[mkfarnam]

Originally Posted by redwingsfan19

Woke up yesterday morning, looked outside and figure what the heck it is only a little bit of snow, I go outside with my shovel and it is a 1 inch of thick ICE!!! This is our first winter here in KS. and I guess they deal with ice more than anything else.
Michigan doesn't SUCK! it is just going thru some hard times, we had to move so we can feed our kids again but MI. is a beautiful place to be. When things get better will be going back home!
"mkfarnam" did you used to live in MI? how long have you been down here?

Yes, I was born and raised in Michigan(Cadillac). I've lived in OK, since 6/07. I spent over 30 years in(hold on to you chair)So. Ca.
So starting over for me is exactly what it means.
In Michigan the people can handle the winters, down here when we get something like this, everything closes down
Picture gallery
http://newsok.com/my/weather/photos/?photo_id=52616e646f6d49563f8cd9625dc3857a133ff2d0 def41048 (broken link)

Pictures in Courtecy of LadyRobyn

73mile s. of OKC , taken today.
http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/ff80/LadyRobyn/Ice%20Storm%20Dec%2007/IMG_1224.jpg (broken link)

[mkfarnam]

Originally Posted by HotSauce

My wife grew up in a tropical climate in a very exciting city, Hong Kong. I grew up in the Detroit area. About 11 years ago we moved to west Michigan in the Grand Rapids area. I currently work at home and we could really live anywhere (i.e., that we could afford). But we love it here in west Michigan. You will be hard pressed to find beaches as nice as those on the west coast of Michigan. I've been to various beaches on the west coast of the US (e.g., California. Oregon). I lived in Miami for several months. None of those beaches compare with many of the beaches we have along Michigan's west coast. I'll admit Hawaii has beaches that beat ours. But they don't have the beautiful Autumns, Winters, and Springs that we have. Summer all the time would get boring and hot after a while. Nothing beats the beautiful snow falls we get here in west Michigan. I'll admit that a Detroit winter some times gets long and dreary. But in west Michigan where we get the lake effect snow, you are pretty much guaranteed to have a white blanket of snow most of the winter. There have been occasional exceptions. But not many. I have often asked my wife if she would like to move somewhere warmer in the winter. But she always reminds me of how great it is to have four distinct seasons. Think of it as the seasoning in life! And don't forget the lakes all over and around Michigan. You might call it a paradise!!!

I lived in So.Ca. over 30 years. There's acouple things you left out.
The Pacific ocean is too cold to swim in(like ice water) and you can't walk in the beach sand without burning your feet. 1 more, you can't go without some kind of sun blocker to prevent Ultra Vilot Rays from the sun.

[Coldjensens]

You are assuming that you can find somewhere to park within a mile of the beach to begin with. We lived there for 18 years. I went to the beach no more than three to five times a year. It was just such a hassle. However my wife and kids did get tot he beach a dozen or so times in the summer. It was nice when we lived at the beach, but our friends would not come visit us in the summer because it was too hard to get there and impossible to park. Thus,we ended up going inland to visit friends most weekends. When we got home, we would often have to chase people off our porch so we could get into the house. they woul djust plop down to get some shade and sit there smoking, drinking, even smoking pot sometimes.
It was fun, but too crazy for kids. we had to move inland for kids sake and then we rarely saw the beach. We miss the mountains, but do not really miss the beaches. We really do not miss the poor air quality and the endless sitting in traffic freaking out because you are always late for something.

[stock66]

Agreed! I live a few miles from the beach in LA and never go there. I LOVE the water! In MI I lived very close to the Detroit River and it was a rare day (summer or winter) that I didn't walk over to enjoy it. It was so calming and peaceful. I loved to see a big Lakers steaming by or the summer sail boat races. Here the last terms I would use to describe a trip to the ocean are calming a peaceful

[darstar]

Michigan has more water , than any Midwest state . If you add up the shoreline of all the Great lakes states, including those not in the Midwest, no other state even comes close.
Michigan has 3,288 statute miles of shoreline. A true USA treasure , Michigan is......