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My sister is saying no to Knoxville because she's read repeatedly that it's bad for allergies and asthma which she has.
Check out city-data's Knoxville Forum which tells a lot about this very beloved place.
Hi Nancy,
Have you been to Knoxville? I have a faint memory from going through this post that a woman who lives there was talking about it and that peaked your interest...is that correct? Did you do much research? Since I'm open to all areas that is one that I might check out...one concern I have is crime rate and if it's very high.
Wow, I'm now 50 and this post made me wonder when I retire if I would chose to continue living in the same basic area as my kids and grandkids or if I would chose to live in another place entirely. I think the best option is getting a really nice motor home. Then you can pretty well travel around where ever you want and still be home for the holidays or other special occasions.
When I retired I moved back to my hometown. It is only 60 miles from where I was living but is a very different type of town. I had been living in Madison Wisconsin (which I love) but Madison is VERY expensive and I knew that if I continued living there I would have to work until I died. Since that did not seem like a good idea, I sold my house in Madison and had enough from the sale to pay cash for my cozy little home in Beloit and put some in the bank for a rainy day. I have family here and do volunteer work in the schools and with the humane society so it isn't so bad. The worse part is my youngest daughter, her husband and my two youngest grandkids live in Madison and I was use to seeing them almost every day since we only lived blocks from one another. I really miss that.
Hi Nancy,
Have you been to Knoxville? I have a faint memory from going through this post that a woman who lives there was talking about it and that peaked your interest...is that correct? Did you do much research? Since I'm open to all areas that is one that I might check out...one concern I have is crime rate and if it's very high.
We have done research and the crime rate is too high for our "comfortability" (did I make up a word?) and yesterday we did more research on how living there would afect people with allergies and asthma. We're almost now 100% NO on the area, unfortunately. I know it's supposed to be beautiful and there's lots to do there but I don't think living there would work for us.
This is a comment about Dayton, WA (from C-D):
I taught here for thirty years and still live here. It is a small town and might be a little Cletis, but we like it that way. I wouldn't say there aren't jobs here. It is the county seat, has a hospital, golf course, two fish hatcheries, Little Goose Dam, Ski Bluewood, over thirty small businesses, and over 300 windmills.
It is very attractive to retirees. It has low cost housing, low taxes and a low cost of living. Everything you need is here including hospital, doctors, dentists, vision care, banks, lumber yard, hardware, appliance store, pharmacy, restaurants, Liberty Theater, golf course, Ski Bluewood and the Blue Mountains. The Touchet River runs through town and the Tucannon and Snake river is twenty minutes away. If you want better shopping, Walla Walla is 30 minutes away, the Tri-Cities is 60 minutes away, and Lewiston-Clarkston is about 70 minutes away. Spokane is two hours away.
We live in a little banana belt here with very mild winters. It was unusually warm today..Dec 7 and 58 degrees. The summers will have a few dry 100 degree days.
It has an easygoing lifestyle with low crime and virtually no traffic problems. We do have the only stop light between Walla Walla and Spokane though. This town is not for everybody, but I love it here.
This is a comment and some photos about Baker City, Oregon (copied from another thread in C-D)
As Waterlily said, there probably isn’t anywhere that has everything you want.
Eastern Oregon is the most sparsely populated and the most affordable. Because it is rural and there aren’t things like sushi bars and a lot of high paying jobs, it isn’t for everybody. But since you are retiring, you might be interested.
I can give you information on Baker City which has a population of about 10,000.
Baker City is in a valley with mountains on each side. It is in what is called the high desert (sagebrush, not Lawrence of Arabia), but much of it is irrigated and various types of hay are grown. It is ranch country, so you see a lot of cattle and horses. If you drive down a road outside of Baker City, you will typically pass by fields with irrigated hay and some with grazing cattle. Then you might come to a hilly area with sagebrush and shrubs. Then you might come to a mountainous area with pine forests.
If you are in the city you don’t know you are in the high desert – there are lawns and trees everywhere, just like in a normal city.
At one time, many years ago, when Baker City was a very wealthy gold mining town, many beautiful and expensive buildings were built. In recent years, many have been restored and are on the National Historic Register. For example, The Geiser Grand Hotel:
A lot of effort has been put into this. Because of it, Baker City, especially the downtown is probably one of the nicest looking small cities in Oregon.
To answer some of your questions:
Mild summers and winters? Not really, but not too extreme. It gets warm, sometimes hot, it the summer, but the humidity is low and it always gets very cool at night. At one time I lived in humid Northern Illinois, 15 miles from Wisconsin, and the summers in Baker City are much, much more comfortable. It gets cold in the winter with snow – probably not as much snow as you get in Wisconsin and maybe not as cold.
Shopping? Two major supermarkets and a Bi-Mart store and a lot of locally owned stores in town. A 40 minute drive to a Walmart Supercenter.
Affordable housing? Yes.
Low crime? Very low.
Fishing? I don’t fish, but it’s one of the major pastimes in Eastern Oregon. Not only lakes, but many rivers and streams. Here is a list of lakes. Probably not all of them are good for fishing:
Baker County, Oregon Fishing Lakes | Fishing Works
Mountain views? Here is a picture I took from my kitchen window:
This image has been resized. Click this bar to view the full image. The original image is sized 1024x361 and weights 58KB.
Catholic Church? You’re in luck here. A picture I took:
Plus some articles:
Cathedral of Saint Francis de Sales - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Once-wild gold-mining town, Baker City celebrates Catholic history | Catholic Sentinel
Make sure you scroll down to see Fr. Julian's photographs of Eastern Oregon on this site:
St. Francis De Sales Cathedral
Close to coast? Unfortunately no. About a seven hour drive.
Here is a link to the city Web site:
Welcome to Baker City, Oregon
and the Chamber of Commerce:
Baker County Chamber of Commerce
Hello ladies! I continue to be amazed & impressed by this thread. Above all, it is inspiring to read about so many women who have no problem facing the prospect of spending their remaining years single! Whether there is a significant other down the road or not, I know I will never be married again. Hearing of your thoughts & plans is very encouraging!
I'm a fairly young widow (47) & will most likely settle in the Tennessee area or surrounding country. I hope to be working in my own business for many years (& loving it enough that it will seem more like a hobby! ) Therefore, in reading a lot of your posts as to a business venture &/or community, I hope you will consider "hosting outsiders" like me. (For lack of a better term.)
Especially if you plan on having different speakers/events, etc. Hosting seasonal retreats & charging women who want to explore the path you have created might be a nice way to pay for your endeavor.
OK, back to this thread - time constraints keep me to about 3-5 pages a day!
This (above) is a video of the Osher Institute (see below for more info).
Hi Guys,
I'm still around, just busy with work – new boss, shifting duties, not a lot of "fun" time, right now.
I was reading how some of us desire to keep on learning -- until our brains become mush! :\
And I know a lot of us want nice weather -- I found some info combining both.
Many of us are looking for warmer climates and affordable living, and another place I have been looking at is Chico, California. It is a cute little college town north of Sacramento. It is also very close to Paradise, California, an artsy town that has a retired population of 55% (a little known fact I just found out recently).
Chico also has the Osher Institute and I am attaching a link (at the top) to a youtube video about it – I recently discovered it existed. I am hoping to go up in April and re-check Chico out. There are affordable areas in California…not many, but some. What I really like about the Osher Institute is that not only is it an educational institute for seniors, but has a lot of retired faculty from Chico University. In the video, you can see how crowded the room is. I was surprised. I have a friend who has a friend who is retired in Chico and is constantly sending her brochures about all the classes and events at the Osher Institute. Here is a link about it: About Osher Lifelong Learning Institute: Center For Regional and Continuing Education, California State University, Chico: Phone 530-898-6105
Contrary to what some people may think, Chico is also fairly liberal (it's a college town!), and has a lot of outdoor activities nearby. Housing is affordable, and it is surrounded by farms, which lends itself to lots of fresh fruit year-round!! And for those of you still in a snowy, cold place....this is California!!
Anyway, thought I'd just toss that one out. I know it gets "hot" in Chico, however, compared to Phoenix, it's not hot, and it's not any hotter than in Las Cruces. At any rate, since I can't sell my home right now, I've been looking around at what's out there.....
Since I'm not retired…yet….I have to go back to work….
Such wonderful information from everyone!! What a great group of women!!
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) and yesterday we did more research on how living there would afect people with allergies and asthma. We're almost now 100% NO on the area, unfortunately. I know it's supposed to be beautiful and there's lots to do there but I don't think living there would work for us.
I'm up to page 23!!!
) Therefore, in reading a lot of your posts as to a business venture &/or community, I hope you will consider "hosting outsiders" like me. (For lack of a better term.) 
And for those of you still in a snowy, cold place....this is California!! 
