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Yeah, I'm what's wrong with this city. Because I didn't bring a company and a thousand jobs with me? Because I don't vote the way you like? I specifically bought an existing home because I wanted to be a replacement person, not an add-on person. I'm very careful about water and electricity use, waste generation, and all the other environmental stuff. I'm retired, but I'm a contributing part of the community. I keep busy with volunteer work in the community. I spend a lot (really, a lot) of money in the community, in locally-owned businesses whenever possible. I support the Botanical Garden, the Zoo, and several museums.
Money and business doesn't make a place "world class." Otherwise, Indianapolis, Salt Lake City, and Bentonville, AR would be world class cities. But they aren't, yet liberal, socialist pits like NYC, Boston, Chicago, SF, and LA are. In short, I came just for the weather, but I'm here, and I'm the kind of educated, cultured person this city needs more of if you want it to be world class.
And if you want to replace the seasonal tourism and retiree sectors with something else, after you fix your cratered economy you're gonna need to re-train your service-sector workers and import a boatload of well-educated "enterprising" types (And where can you find this type of person? I know! The liberal, socialist pits on the coasts!).
If you really feel that way, maybe stop posting about how other people's priorities and life choices are wrong, and how people like me don't belong here.
I didn't just pick Phoenix from a tourism brochure. I'm sure most people put a little more thought into their choice than that, as well.
Each year, for 30 years, my work had me in Phoenix for 2 to 3 months. I was also in SoCal, the Southeast, Florida, The Northeast, Europe, and a few Caribbean islands for extended periods each year. I'm very familiar with all these places, could afford any of them, and Phoenix is where I decided to retire.
Most years in the Boston area, there's a week or two in the mid or upper 90's, and with the humidity it's way worse than 115 here. While 115 isn't optimal, it's not the end of the world, either. And it's a lot better than -10 with a 60MPH wind and face-shredding ice pellets. I find the weather here outstanding for at least 8 months of the year. And for the other 4 months I make adjustments and manage just fine. Sure, month after month of nothing but sun can be monotonous, but endless months of grey are monotonous and depressing. Seasonal Affective Disorder is a real thing, and the extra level of nasty and grumpy in the Northeast in January, February and March is no fun.
Phoenix weather is just dandy for me, and I'll bet a lot of other retirees here would agree.
When I worked here it was in an un-air conditioned building with large industrial furnaces. You adjust - Stay hydrated and take frequent breaks. Always enjoyed it. You seem really certain about the likes and dislikes of others. And you somehow know that heat lovers are a tiny minority here.
Yes, so sad that I moved here for the climate and don't find family as important as you think I should. But, y'know, "to each his own."
I frequently take advantage of the "big city amenities" and I have season tix to the Coyotes.
I loved your post too, even though I can't rep you again. But those negative posters will be negative no matter what anyone posts. It's what they live for. P.S. I am a conservative
I planted a lemon tree in the backyard and watered it with drip irrigation, and it thrived (sadly I couldn't get a grapefruit tree to "take", twice in a row).
Wonderful about your lemon tree success. The flowers smell heavenly. I'm in eastern Oregon now, but back in the early 90's I stayed in Phoenix with friends for a month. The house was on the older irrigation system that flooded the back yard weekly. I will never forget the delightful jungle they had back there. It was a rental but had every tree, and shrub you could think of including lemon, banana, and yes grapefruit. It was a hummingbird haven too. There was a great amount of leaves, and other decomposing organic matter on the ground which enriched the soil, and made it alive. I wanted to stay in that yard forever.
Y/T has lots of videos about growing all kinds of tropicals in the desert using loads of organic material to retain water, and cool the soil, and it works. Try looking for those videos over there. There are a great many. Maybe using their tactics you could be successful with the grapefruit. It was mentioned that having a place that had flood irrigation would save on the water bill. Best of luck.
You're probably correct about the tech sector, but I was referring to commerce in general, which includes financial, manufacturing, etc. I don't really care about the politics of this, but the main focus is how Phoenix is still lacking as a business hub in all aspects compared to many other large cities. We are a notable regional hub, but that's about as far as it goes in many cases. With all the growth over the last few decades, and with our population as it is now, there should have been a sizeable increase in corporations, but this hasn't been the case.
Again, I go back to the kind of new arrivals we attract. Sadly, many of them don't seem to have the skill set needed to bring in the competitive jobs. A lot of them still come here primarily for the weather, but that's about it. A metro area can't expect to have a thriving job market (outside of the service sector) if our focus is sunshine, retirement, and snowbirds. That might have been fine when Phoenix was a mid sized place 40+ years ago, but it won't get us where we need to be anymore. So if somebody moved to AZ just for the weather/climate, that's fine, but I have to ask why they chose the Phoenix area when there are many other smaller, quieter places for their relaxation & enjoyment of the weather. It's really not all their fault because we as a city & metro area need to act more grown up & adjust our economic focus.
I know what you mean about the winter weather conditions in the Pacific NW and many northern regions. Too much of that would get very monotonous, but you have to think of it from different angles. I grew up in Phoenix, and there was a time when I didn't mind the summer heat at all ... in fact, I actually looked forward to it. Now that I'm older, it becomes much more difficult to handle. One nice thing about our location is it's fairly easy to escape to the higher elevation forests, and the drive to coastal CA is about 6 hours on average. So it's pretty convenient to find cooler temps & a change of scenery compared to other parts of the country. It has gotten to the point where I need to take those summer travel breaks for my own health & sanity. You'd know what I'm referring to if you lived here ... especially if you're a long-term resident.
The bolded section is where I'm at as well. I much prefer the heat to the cold but, like you, as I get older our summers are becoming unbearable to the point where I now plan frequent mini trips to cooler destinations for my sanity. Rather than complain (because we do live in a desert) I prefer to explore. It wasn't always that way, though. I certainly did my share of complaining when we first moved here from the humid southeast.
The sun melts their brain and the get lost trying to leave loljk Its hot so everyone is irritable so they complain alot that's why they say they hate it besides it takes alot to up and leave to somewhere where when most if not all your family and friends live in Arizona. I've had so many friends get lost in the system and want to leave Arizona and never get a chance. I've had only a couple friends actually leave Arizona but everyone of them says it was the best decision and they seem to be happy for it
I've had friends (a lot) who left Phoenix and said it was the best decision they made, while I had others who regretted moving away and wish they could move back. It certainly depends on one's preference. I will say desert living is not for everyone, but if you enjoy the wide-open spaces (once you get outside the city) and diverse climates then the Sonoran desert has a lot to offer.
I've had friends (a lot) who left Phoenix and said it was the best decision they made, while I had others who regretted moving away and wish they could move back. It certainly depends on one's preference. I will say desert living is not for everyone, but if you enjoy the wide-open spaces (once you get outside the city) and diverse climates then the Sonoran desert has a lot to offer.
My experience has been kind of the opposite, I know quite a few people who have moved away and miss a lot about Arizona from the climate to the city/amenities along with overall lifestyle. More than 3 of my friends/couples that I know left have moved back after trying somewhere else for a while.
I do have coworkers who have left, that I wouldn't call friends per se but more so acquaintances, and they seem to be happy where they're at. None of them have told me "leaving was the best decision I made." Some moved "back home" to be near family or try something different but even those people still comment on conference calls about missing the area be it the sunsets, local hiking spots, trips to Sedona/high country, our food, amenities, events, etc...
Not everyone is as heat sensitive as you it seems.
I'm sure you have a lot of fun sitting outside in 110 degree weather. Please go try to fool some newcomer with that 100+ degree weather is nice Phoenix booster comments, especially in June. And it has nothing to do with sensitivity by the way. I'd like to see you actually sit outside in June weather for more than 1 hour and tell others they're too weather sensitive.
Considering half this forum is realtors and the other half obsessed with their housing value going up, it's no wonder people here want to exaggerate and bend the truth about living here. Not that I'm saying any place is perfect. I have yet to find some utopia I can declare as perfect. Again, I don't get why so many here are obsessed with trying to make others think that there are only 3 bad months in terms of extreme heat, when I counted at least 6 just in 2020 (May-October). Other places deal with extreme cold for less months than you have to deal with extreme heat here, especially as the average temperatures go up and the night time cooling is all but gone. People should at least be upfront about that.
I'm sure you have a lot of fun sitting outside in 110 degree weather. Please go try to fool some newcomer with that 100+ degree weather is nice Phoenix booster comments, especially in June. And it has nothing to do with sensitivity by the way. I'd like to see you actually sit outside in June weather for more than 1 hour and tell others they're too weather sensitive.
Considering half this forum is realtors and the other half obsessed with their housing value going up, it's no wonder people here want to exaggerate and bend the truth about living here. Not that I'm saying any place is perfect. I have yet to find some utopia I can declare as perfect. Again, I don't get why so many here are obsessed with trying to make others think that there are only 3 bad months in terms of extreme heat, when I counted at least 6 just in 2020 (May-October). Other places deal with extreme cold for less months than you have to deal with extreme heat here, especially as the average temperatures go up and the night time cooling is all but gone. People should at least be upfront about that.
Location: Live:Downtown Phoenix, AZ/Work:Greater Los Angeles, CA
27,606 posts, read 14,601,062 times
Reputation: 9169
Quote:
Originally Posted by Thomasaz
I'm sure you have a lot of fun sitting outside in 110 degree weather. Please go try to fool some newcomer with that 100+ degree weather is nice Phoenix booster comments, especially in June. And it has nothing to do with sensitivity by the way. I'd like to see you actually sit outside in June weather for more than 1 hour and tell others they're too weather sensitive.
Considering half this forum is realtors and the other half obsessed with their housing value going up, it's no wonder people here want to exaggerate and bend the truth about living here. Not that I'm saying any place is perfect. I have yet to find some utopia I can declare as perfect. Again, I don't get why so many here are obsessed with trying to make others think that there are only 3 bad months in terms of extreme heat, when I counted at least 6 just in 2020 (May-October). Other places deal with extreme cold for less months than you have to deal with extreme heat here, especially as the average temperatures go up and the night time cooling is all but gone. People should at least be upfront about that.
I've worked outdoors in the summer weather, and I'm still alive to tell the tale. I'm not the only one either. Bunch of whimps on here
And 95°F/70°F isn't extreme heat when you've lived here and gotten used to it. Especially considering that dewpoints are typically only in the 30s with those temps
Why do people live in Phoenix if they hate heat and sun?
Because they know they're going to 'Hell' one day and they want to have the experience to prepare for what their future is really going to be like when they do expire.
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