[swanstone1]

After moving from Houston to NH and then Vt , I kind of get the impression that VT is more set up for the people that are happy "to be". You don't necessarily have to "be doing this or that or going here or there"....I think the people happiest here are happiest within themselves. If you're seeking a lot of outside stimulation (other that that from the outdoors) you might be frustrated here. ( Ok, honestly it happens to me about twice a year.) But otherwise....

[LisaMc46]

Originally Posted by swanstone1

After moving from Houston to NH and then Vt , I kind of get the impression that VT is more set up for the people that are happy "to be". You don't necessarily have to "be doing this or that or going here or there"....I think the people happiest here are happiest within themselves. If you're seeking a lot of outside stimulation (other that that from the outdoors) you might be frustrated here. ( Ok, honestly it happens to me about twice a year.) But otherwise....

Your post is spot on. We're quite happy to "just be" on our front porch enjoying the view. Our relatives from NYC who need constant stimulation are bored when they come up while our friends who like to just relax love it here.

[sfchick]

Originally Posted by j_jimerino

In their defense, Vermont seems to show up in a bunch of magazine and news stories as "best places to live" for some odd reason. I never quite understood why as apart from a generally low crime rate and decent air quality (although it is manure scented part of the year) the state doesn't actually offer anything particularly special IMO. And it certainly has its drawbacks.

I wouldn't think it was ever particularly attractive to young people though. Even disregarding the job situation it has to be a tough singles market like any rural area is.

VT is attractive because it is beautiful, in the mountains, agriculturally fascinating (many things can grow seasonally in the micro climates), home to many artists, musicians, environmentally aware types, amazing restaraunts & craft beer spots, and is simply unique in every way. This is coming from someone who moved to PA and is dying to get out and back the the North east. I vacationed there recently in Stowe and the beauty practically brought me to my knees ( in mud season!). I lived there for 7 years previously, and try to remember why I left. It's an outdoor lover's paradise. If you are not interested in any of these things, you will probably hate it. With a vengeance. I'm not sure how anyone NOT interested in these things would ever end up in VT.

[Dreamn]

Originally Posted by j_jimerino

In their defense, Vermont seems to show up in a bunch of magazine and news stories as "best places to live" for some odd reason. I never quite understood why as apart from a generally low crime rate and decent air quality (although it is manure scented part of the year) the state doesn't actually offer anything particularly special IMO. And it certainly has its drawbacks. I suppose if one showed up during the fall festivals in one of the well off resort towns for a vacation you might even believe it was that great due to myopia. But I would hope most people would at least run some numbers. Its certainly not the worst place to live or anything though, I just think some people expect it to be perfection when they show up and its really just another place with its own warts.

I wouldn't think it was ever particularly attractive to young people though. Even disregarding the job situation it has to be a tough singles market like any rural area is.

Decent air quality is worth a bundle. Check out the yellow cloud that's routinely positioned over Tennessee and Southwest Virginia, as well as many other Southern areas on a regular basis.

AIRNow - Homepage

[looking4home]

Originally Posted by Dreamn

Decent air quality is worth a bundle. Check out the yellow cloud that's routinely positioned over Tennessee and Southwest Virginia, as well as many other Southern areas on a regular basis.

AIRNow - Homepage

Why is that? I live in Northern California, and we have an odd phenomenon that occurs frequently. The Sierra Nevada foothills, which you'd think would be pristine with fresh, mountain air, have terrible pollution problems because the wind carries the pollution from the SF Bay Area eastward and it gets trapped in the mountain areas at the lower elevations. Could that be occuring in those southern areas you mentioned?

[Dreamn]

Originally Posted by looking4home

Why is that? I live in Northern California, and we have an odd phenomenon that occurs frequently. The Sierra Nevada foothills, which you'd think would be pristine with fresh, mountain air, have terrible pollution problems because the wind carries the pollution from the SF Bay Area eastward and it gets trapped in the mountain areas at the lower elevations. Could that be occuring in those southern areas you mentioned?

If I have my geography right the Ohio Valley runs through that entire area and is known to trap the air pollution. And there's a host of culprits that spans everything from all the coal burning power plants, industrial activity, auto emissions from Atlanta etc.

We stayed in Boone, NC, Chattanooga, TN, Knoxville TN, And Bristol TN/VA for a week or more each recently and as someone who has both asthma and severe sinus allergies, Boone was the only place that had decent air.

[Dreamn]

I'm waiting to do a visibility comparison on the mountains when we get up north in a couple of more weeks. In the Southwest VA/TN area the mountains constantly had a hazy appearance. And I'm sure at least some of that was pollution.

[GraniteStater]

Originally Posted by Dreamn

If I have my geography right the Ohio Valley runs through that entire area and is known to trap the air pollution. And there's a host of culprits that spans everything from all the coal burning power plants, industrial activity, auto emissions from Atlanta etc.

We stayed in Boone, NC, Chattanooga, TN, Knoxville TN, And Bristol TN/VA for a week or more each recently and as someone who has both asthma and severe sinus allergies, Boone was the only place that had decent air.

The Tennessee and Ohio valleys trap many pollutants, but I think the air quality may get better with all of the coal plants that have been shuttered in the past few years. Most plants are converting over to natural gas now. It won't make much of a difference in terms of air quality for large metros like Atlanta, though.

[68vette]

The reality is most people believe the northeast or Northern New England has fresh clean air. Vermont’s Air Pollution Control Division looks at various levels of pollutants. From the state site, levels of benzene, formaldehyde, 1,3-butadiene, carbon tetrachloride, methylene chloride, chloroform, tetrachloroethylene, methyl chloride and 1,2,4-trimethyl benzene exist above the standards. Levels of ozone over the past few years have come very close to surpassing safe levels in Bennington and Underhill. It is widely believed that air pollution blowing in from large sources of coal burning plants in the Midwest contribute significantly to these high ozone readings. Looking at the NOAA map, Boston and even NYC have better air quality levels right now. The ozone level in NYC is half of Rutlands 22ppb vs 44ppb. I think this is the nature of the jet stream.

[GraniteStater]

Originally Posted by 68vette

The reality is most people believe the northeast or Northern New England has fresh clean air. Vermont’s Air Pollution Control Division looks at various levels of pollutants. From the state site, levels of benzene, formaldehyde, 1,3-butadiene, carbon tetrachloride, methylene chloride, chloroform, tetrachloroethylene, methyl chloride and 1,2,4-trimethyl benzene exist above the standards. Levels of ozone over the past few years have come very close to surpassing safe levels in Bennington and Underhill. It is widely believed that air pollution blowing in from large sources of coal burning plants in the Midwest contribute significantly to these high ozone readings. Looking at the NOAA map, Boston and even NYC have better air quality levels right now. The ozone level in NYC is half of Rutlands 22ppb vs 44ppb. I think this is the nature of the jet stream.

Yes, we can thank the idiotic Midwest energy policy for the being a bad neighbor to all the downwind states and for an almost complete reliance on coal (Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, etc). Hopefully, coal will be phased out in favor of natural gas, renewables, and energy efficiency.