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I fi n it funny that so many move to California for the weather yet it was one of the reasons we moved from California. We wanted four distinct seasons all in one place.
The Ozarks are full of micro-climates. Right now it's raining where we are down in the holler on the lake (Table Rock) and were I to drive a few minutes to the top of the ridge it could be as dry as toast. You never know.
The Ozarks are actually a plateau that has been deeply cut by glaciers and water flow. But for the Ouachitas there really aren't any Ozark mountains. They just look that way. It's not that our hills are so high it's that our valleys are so deep. It's a unique topography and can change at every turn of the road, surprising you no matter how many times you've traveled it. We love the adventure of it.
I was amused and impressed driving through the Ouachitas and finding the pull-outs where slower drivers can pull off and let the rest pass. Very clever but I doubt they'd work anywhere else in the US, drivers are way more aggressive.
The Ozarks are beautiful. Moved here from Chicago and originally from Milwaukee. Not terribly cold here during the winter. Hot and humid weather is pretty much the rule here and if bugs, spiders and snakes bother you, stay out of the rural ozarks. I live in Wright county and we got it all. Wolf spiders as big as yer fist, (no exaggeration really) copperheads, black snakes, chiggers, ticks, tarantulas, and a cast of millions. Understand that when you move here you are moving to a giant forest. If these things are not for you, Springfield is a medium sized modern city with excellent medical facilities, good restaurants and abundant shopping. Warning; good jobs are few and the remainder are low paying jobs in the service sector or in one of the Ozarks many sweat shops. Most of these places are staffed by temp agencies paying minimum wage, no benefits and are jobs in outdoor warehouses working twelve hour shifts with few breaks and unsafe working conditions. Life is beautiful but extremely hard. You may also find that people here while generally friendly are quite suspicious of newcomers and being an outsider will make things even more difficult especially in a small town. I would not advertise that you just moved.
Also, watch who you deal with because strangers get taken advantage of. I would love to tell you that everyone is honest, upstanding and god fearing but like the rest of the country that is just not the case. We have crime here and a localized drug problems in the rural towns. In some areas the poverty is crushing and it shows. The good paying factory jobs went to china and mexico years ago and wrecked the economy of the ozarks. I think this is a pretty fair assessment of the ozarks and if it sounds slightly negative, I don't mean for it to sound that way. I can't think of anywhere else I would want to live and I have great confidence that these tows will start to turn around. please visit and and stay a while to experience life here.
Location: Finally escaped The People's Republic of California
11,314 posts, read 8,654,334 times
Reputation: 6391
I moved to rural Mo from NorCal last summer....
Before you make such a move I would suggest visiting in every season.
We have a friend from Ca visiting right now, she is miserable because of the humidity..
While my wife an I love it here, our friend is ready to head home....
I was amused and impressed driving through the Ouachitas and finding the pull-outs where slower drivers can pull off and let the rest pass. Very clever but I doubt they'd work anywhere else in the US, drivers are way more aggressive.
They're actually fairly common out west in many remote mountain roads.
Hubby and i want to relocate, we are thinking of MO. We live in So.Cal, you know where everyone thinks it is THE best place ever. But, the traffic, the overcrowding, the taxes, the freebies given to others that we work and pay for, it gets old. Everyone here thinks the weather is unbeatable.
When i mention MO people say " muggy and buggy". Is it REALLY THAT bad? MO looks and sounds so welcoming. Green, small towns, fields, pastures. Tractor pulls. Dang that is right up our alley.
We have horses, the riding in MO looks wonderful.
I will find out if i can tolerate the humidity, but i would enjoy hearing from folks who made the move to MO from a Western state.
Thanks,
Jo
You have heard correctly. Did they mention there's winter there? Lucky you like tractor pulls because other than fishing, hunting and going to the lake there is not a lot more to do.
You have heard correctly. Did they mention there's winter there? Lucky you like tractor pulls because other than fishing, hunting and going to the lake there is not a lot more to do.
That is so true! I wonder if the OP realizes there is no surfing here?
Well, maybe not quite true - there are 87 Missouri State Parks. Oh, and rather a lot of National Forest land. And Wilderness Areas. And Conservation areas. I suppose, at least theoretically, one could hike. Or camp. Or go sightseeing.
I've also heard of people taking scenic drives - like through the Ozarks, or along the Missouri or Mississippi rivers; I wonder if that is really possible?
Oh - and somewhere on this forum I think there was mention of arts - museums, ballet, symphony orchestras, plays. Someone should do a search to see about these. Maybe they have all closed. And the zoos too.
There used to be lots of interesting small towns to visit - Herman, Lexington, Weston, Ironton, St. Genevieve, lots of others - but I don't suppose anyone does that anymore.
Didn't the K.C. Royals win some tournament or something? They must have a park, or stadium, or something. Does anyone know if they let you come and watch? That is soooo last year, though.
When I was young there were these things called "colleges". At that time you could go take courses that interested you. Probably all gone now. Back then there were also "churches" where you could become involved in all kinds of activities. YMCA's, City and County Parks programs, civic clubs and organizations, softball leagues, swimming pools, amusement parks, festivals, pretty much all in the past now, apparently.
Of course, what would be great would be if someone could put together a place that would combine something like the Nashville music scene, the Las Vegas shows, a really good amusement park, and locally made crafts. What would be really great would be to put all that near a nice lake.
Dream on - they only do stuff like that on the coasts.
Location: Finally escaped The People's Republic of California
11,314 posts, read 8,654,334 times
Reputation: 6391
Here it is....
Cali BassMan
Quote:
Originally Posted by shash
My friend and I are moving to Liberty Missouri from Los Angeles California. We have never been to Mo before
......................... ......................
Wait a cotton pickin minute there Shash, You've never been to Missoui? and your moving there from Cali????
Is this a done deal? I ask because there is a lot of homework you should have done before deciding on a move like this!
Do you like California? if you answered yes, DON'T MOVE TO MISSOURI..if you answered no, please continue....
There has been a lot of folks who moved to Missouri from California and just hated it, and there are some who love it, and some who are just ok with it.
You can't compare the weather, we (California) have the best weather on the planet, 2 months of kinda chilly out and 10 months of let's play..Missouri has four distinct seasons, 0 degree winters to hot humid summers, and it rains all year, with big noisy thunderstorms that will shake you windows, and rattle your teeth...Lightening that goes all the way across the sky, an occasional tornado, frequent tornado warnings, some hail as big as golfballs, and bugs the size of seagulls, lots of them..........
No Ocean... nope none... The Ozarks, that the local's will call Mountains would'nt even qualify as foothills in California, not alot of shopping oppurtunities, pretty much a walmart dominated area....
A very noticeable lack of diversity, and not to welcoming to outsiders trying to bring in progressive thinking, yep these hillbillies like things the way they are, and don't want us left coasters coming in to try to help them, and bring them up to the standards we expect...
Paved roads??? in the area my kin folks live in the only paved roads are the hiways, all the other roads are gravel, really makes it tough on the fancy import cars with the big shiny wheels, and then they don't even bother naming the streets, they just call them road 1, 2 , 3 ,4 or maybe a, b, c. no cool names like Martin Luther King Boulevard or Cezaer Chavez Parkway...
and the people in Missouri have this rude habit of greeting and talking to people, they don't avert thier eyes and look at the ground, they actually try to look you in the eye and speak to you, you'd think that thet didn't relize we are in hurry or something...
I'd suggest a visit or two first before commiting to a move, there is some culture shock.....
and as for work, top dollar in Missouri is usually minimum wage, and that's not California Minimum wage, it's Federal Minimum wage...lot's of post on here about no jobs and low wages in Missouri....
Last edited by Cali BassMan; 06-25-2016 at 04:08 PM..
Well, maybe not quite true - there are 87 Missouri State Parks. Oh, and rather a lot of National Forest land. And Wilderness Areas. And Conservation areas. I suppose, at least theoretically, one could hike. Or camp. Or go sightseeing.
And there is that. Is it anything resembling Sequoia, Avenue of the Giants, Yosemite, Highway One? No. But it is lovely in its way...
Quote:
Oh - and somewhere on this forum I think there was mention of arts - museums, ballet, symphony orchestras, plays. Someone should do a search to see about these. Maybe they have all closed. And the zoos too.
Are there as many to choose from, in close proximity? Probably not. Though, you probably won't have to fight traffic and scramble to find parking to attend what is available in MO.
Quote:
When I was young there were these things called "colleges". At that time you could go take courses that interested you. Probably all gone now. Back then there were also "churches" where you could become involved in all kinds of activities. YMCA's, City and County Parks programs, civic clubs and organizations, softball leagues, swimming pools, amusement parks, festivals, pretty much all in the past now, apparently.
Would they have that class or workshop that you were used to in Calif? Let's see, how many local colleges in the Ozark area would hold an "Advanced Glaze Calculation" class or "Anatomy for Artists" class, and if there were classes or groups available for more specialized types of interests, would they be within close proximity to where you lived? Would there be more than one of your chosen class or get-together available, so you could find one that would fit your schedule? Would they be held year-round (including the winter)? Perhaps not...
Quote:
Of course, what would be great would be if someone could put together a place that would combine something like the Nashville music scene, the Las Vegas shows, a really good amusement park, and locally made crafts. What would be really great would be to put all that near a nice lake.
Or wait—how about having an amusement park based on one of the most loved cartoon characters, fairy tales and imaginative films, a very detail-oriented place, a lot of artistry went into the designing of this park.... but wait, if you grew up enjoying that, you'd better stay at the coast, because there's nothing like it elsewhere...
And if you were used to several amusement park type establishments, all within an hour or two drive, all different styles and appeals, so you could pick and choose...
Quote:
Originally Posted by shash
My friend and I are moving to Liberty Missouri from Los Angeles California. We have never been to Mo before
......................... ......................
Wait a cotton pickin minute there Shash, You've never been to Missoui? and your moving there from Cali????
Is this a done deal? I ask because there is a lot of homework you should have done before deciding on a move like this! Do you like California? if you answered yes, DON'T MOVE TO MISSOURI..if you answered no, please continue....
There has been a lot of folks who moved to Missouri from California and just hated it, and there are some who love it, and some who are just ok with it.
You can't compare the weather, we (California) have the best weather on the planet, 2 months of kinda chilly out and 10 months of let's play..Missouri has four distinct seasons, 0 degree winters to hot humid summers, and it rains all year, with big noisy thunderstorms that will shake you windows, and rattle your teeth...Lightening that goes all the way across the sky, an occasional tornado, frequent tornado warnings, some hail as big as golfballs, and bugs the size of seagulls, lots of them..........
No Ocean... nope none... The Ozarks, that the local's will call Mountains would'nt even qualify as foothills in California, not alot of shopping oppurtunities, pretty much a walmart dominated area....
A very noticeable lack of diversity, and not to welcoming to outsiders trying to bring in progressive thinking, yep these hillbillies like things the way they are, and don't want us left coasters coming in to try to help them, and bring them up to the standards we expect...
Paved roads??? in the area my kin folks live in the only paved roads are the hiways, all the other roads are gravel, really makes it tough on the fancy import cars with the big shiny wheels, and then they don't even bother naming the streets, they just call them road 1, 2 , 3 ,4 or maybe a, b, c. no cool names like Martin Luther King Boulevard or Cezaer Chavez Parkway... and the people in Missouri have this rude habit of greeting and talking to people, they don't avert thier eyes and look at the ground, they actually try to look you in the eye and speak to you, you'd think that thet didn't relize we are in hurry or something...
I'd suggest a visit or two first before commiting to a move, there is some culture shock.....
and as for work, top dollar in Missouri is usually minimum wage, and that's not California Minimum wage, it's Federal Minimum wage...lot's of post on here about no jobs and low wages in Missouri....
These are all very true.
If you really liked California, why on earth should you like MO and think that MO is "better" or a fit alternative?
It certainly has its charms and advantages. But if it's not what YOU want, then it's not... you shouldn't "have" to like it anyway. But if you're in MO (and you don't want to be) then it is prudent that you not voice your complaints too loudly to the locals. But will you still feel the way you feel? Darn right you will!
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