Originally Posted by
rideon7
Glad you were on the wavelength with the tone of my post. Aside from cycling, what else is it you're looking for in a community? Those criteria are as important when selecting a place to relocate to. You mentioned Grant's Pass, which has its own vibe, as do Bend, Ashland, Eugene, etc., not to mention the different weather in each of those towns. I would recommend a road trip (by bike or car) to areas you think you're interested in in order to get a feel for what it would be like to live there. Employment might also be an important consideration--some places have more (and more varied) opportunities than others.
We'd like a community like the one we live in now. We live in a college town (pop. 30,000) near the foothills, where downtown traffic is slow and light and has an old-town feel, even the day before Christmas. We have enough shops close by for convenience (Target, Kohl's, Joann's, grocery, needlework/quilt, Home Depot) but no high-rise downtown buildings. We have a GREAT ice cream shop and monthly cruise nights in town where people park their vintage 50s cars and folks stroll along listening to music and eating their ice cream. We're an hour from the beaches and an hour from the winter snow resorts. As far as climate, we wouldn't mind a little snow and prefer summer temperatures a little cooler than here (low 90s at most) with low humidity. I love the rain! My husband is retired and I will be soon, so employment won't be such a consideration.
However we're surrounded by over-populated cities, overly-congested freeways, and high-crime areas, and to get ANYWHERE we have to fight our way through ridiculous slow-and-go traffic no matter what time of day. It's common for people to think of going somewhere on the weekend, and then deciding to just stay home and BBQ instead of fight the traffic.
Originally Posted by gaston_45
Interesting article, thanks. Women wear less make-up, eh? Sounds like my kinda place!!!
I do empathize with the natives who have seen so much development and so many changes they don't like.
