California living

[RainbowSprinkles]

If you live in CA, can you tell me about what it's like?

 

What do you like? What don't you like? If you could choose to live in another state, would you still stay in California?

[Miss Peregrine]

Love the weather. Of course we live in an area with four seasons! I love that we can be in the mountains and a little over and hour later, be at the beach! Hate the traffic.

 

We are stuck here due to DH's job, but I would move if we could.

[Miss Peregrine]

Love the weather. Of course we live in an area with four seasons! I love that we can be in the mountains and a little over and hour later, be at the beach! Hate the traffic.

 

We are stuck here due to DH's job, but I would move if we could.

What it's like depends on the area. Where are you looking?

[Mergath]

I lived in Monterey, California for a time when I was in the Army. Loved the weather, but everything was so expensive.

[SailorMom]

Dh and I lived in CA for 25 years.

We both grew up in the Sierra Nevada foothills, were snow skiers, and went to San Fran and the beach frequently.

 

What part of CA are you looking to move to? There are certainly good and bad spots :)

 

We had to move because of the military. We do really miss it - but we were glad to get away from the taxes and progressive/oppressive law making that is going on there.

 

The natural beauty is fantastic, there is always something to do. If you like hiking, camping, anything outdoors - it's a dream-world. The culture can be great as well, but it varies greatly based on what part of the state you're in.

 

If you can give specifics about where you're looking to move, I could be a bit more helpful :)

 

As for where we would go instead.... Probably the Rapid City area of South Dakota or in the southern Rockies in northern New Mexico (think Taos, Ring of Fire). Both are wonderful places to live. The only problem I had with them is that they aren't near an ocean.

[elfgivas]

What it's like depends on the area. Where are you looking?

 

:iagree::iagree:

 

its one of the things we like, how it is many different places all in one.

we live in the high desert, we camp at yosemite, or joshua tree. we love the coast.

 

we live outside here way more than anywhere else we've been. the fresh fruit is fabulous....

 

hth,

ann

[rdj2027]

We currently live just north of LA and love it here. Before we have lived in IN, NH, MA, RI, and WA. Life here seems to be more relaxed, the kids have far more freedoms than they had on the East Coast, weather is great, traffic in general not too bad. Cost of living seems to be higher but then we don't pay thousands of dollars per year for heating fuel so I think in the end it all evens out. We would stay if we could and are considering coming back here after hubby retires. Drawbacks are definitely housing costs and air pollution.

[SailorMom]

Drawbacks are definitely housing costs and air pollution.

 

Yep - but these are only a problem in certain areas.

We lived in the central valley - Merced - for a couple of years. No real pollution, but hazy. Houses were cheap because no one wants to live there :)

 

Near the coast, north of LA - no pollution. South of LA as well, for the most part. But - the housing is a killer!

 

There are some wonderful spots, not very well known, that are beautiful, and the housing is actually reasonable. Problem with those is lack of jobs.

[hsbaby]

I grew up in the Bay Area and then lived in the Central Valley for a few years. The pros: close to beaches, mountains, skiing, etc. Great weather. And that's it. Cons: super crowded everywhere, traffic, expensive, schools where I grew up (San Jose) have gotten so bad since I was in school. We got out of there seven years ago. We both had to work to survive and I wanted to be a SAHM. We moved to TN. I would never go back.

[rdj2027]

We are near the coast, about 10 miles from it. Washed my car yesterday and this morning it has a greasy, black coating mixed with dust on it. We are also surrounded by fields which are heavily sprayed with pesticides and what not, I would be very surprised if none of that gets airborne.

[Ellie]

Mr. Ellie is from San Diego. We lived there until 1987, and we loved it--great weather, beautiful scenery, many marvelous places to visit, great friends, wonderful churches (important to us). Only two hours from Disneyland. :D

 

We moved to San Jose (San Francisco Bay area) in 1987, and lived there until 2004. Loved it, too. Better weather, six hours to Disneyland instead of two, but the rest was the same. We would gladly have lived there forever, but we moved here to be close to Mr. Ellie's mother, and it turned out to be a good thing because of his job (long story).

 

I wouldn't want to live anywhere in the Central Valley (off I-5 north of the Los Angeles area, all the way past Sacramento and Redding, which I guess isn't part of the Central Valley, but it's still too hot for me, lol); central coast would be good, and in the S.F. Bay area on the Peninsula (or San Jose; we liked San Jose).

[Guest]

I grew up in Orange County. We left about 6 years ago, mainly spurred by financial reasons. You could not pay me to go back there. Smog, traffic, high prices...I will stop there.

[MyLittleWonders]

I've lived here my whole life, as has dh. The weather is wonderful, but I'd leave if we had the chance. Our economy stinks, our government (no matter which side of the aisle you speak) can't seem to manage money to save their lives, it is too busy (and we live in a much "quieter" area in relation to LA though we are rather close to it), and there's just no room to roam. We are near all needed conveniences but I'd rather have space, greenery, and fresh(er) air. But, chances are I'll be here my whole life; dh has a steady job (he teaches and his district would have to implode for him to lose his job, which is good because he is good at what he does) and our immediate family lives here. But yes, I'd love the option to leave.

[DawnM]

I love CA. I miss CA. I would move back in a heartbeat if the rest of the family wanted to, although I have made good friends here now.

 

We lived in LA County.

 

What did I love?

 

Mountains are beautiful and warm to ski in in the winter and great to go boating in in the summer

 

Beach is close by

 

So much to do (at least in major cities), outdoors, museums, historic sites, missions, theme parks, studios, and on and on. There is just always something to do.

 

Why did we leave?

 

I would most likely still be working as we couldn't really afford for me to stay home (or at least it would have been harder)

 

DH was ready to leave the traffic, smog, big city for some LAND and privacy

 

We are doing better here financially but part of that is due to changes in spending habits as well

Edited June 19, 2012 by DawnM

[Crimson Wife]

If you live in CA, can you tell me about what it's like?

 

What do you like? What don't you like? If you could choose to live in another state, would you still stay in California?

 

The weather is amazing, but other than that, I hate it.

 

We've been here since 2006 and it wasn't by choice (job transfer). DH has been trying to find something in the Northeast pretty much the whole time since, but while he's been in serious discussions for a few positions, he's never been able to land something that made sense from a career & financial standpoint.

 

What do I hate about CA?

 

• The insanely high cost-of-living. Housing, taxes, gas, food, medical care- you name it, it's way higher here than pretty much any place else in the country.
  
• Too many people all crammed together. Traffic is insane. Houses are right on top of each other (a "large" lot is anything more than 1/4 acre). Every place you go is crowded.
  
• This is not very PC to say, but too many immigrants. 1 out of every 11 individuals in the state is an illegal alien, and the total foreign-born population is a whopping 27%. Many of these immigrants are an asset to the state (all the doctors, engineers, etc.) but a substantial fraction are unskilled, uneducated, non-English speaking (and not motivated to learn the language), and a drain on the state's resources. The first generation tends to be law-abiding, but the 2nd and 3rd generation are frequently gang members and other criminals.
  
• People are very fake and passive-aggressive. Everybody's all nicey-nice to your face but then will stab you in the back the minute you turn. Where DH and I grew up in the Northeast, people tend to be open about whether they like you or dislike you. If somebody is friendly, you can trust them to be loyal. If someone doesn't like you, they don't pretend to be all nicey-nice but will rather be in your face about it.
  
• People are way more materialistic. The way I was brought up in New England was that it was seen as tacky and nouveaux riche to flaunt one's wealth. Here everybody seems to be obnoxiously trying to one-up the neighbors. :rolleyes:
  

Don't move to CA if you have any choice in the matter...

[JFSinIL]

I grew up in Orange County. We left about 6 years ago, mainly spurred by financial reasons. You could not pay me to go back there. Smog, traffic, high prices...I will stop there.

 

I grew up there, too - in the 1960s and 70s. Went to UCLA and lived in LA during mid-80s. Smog - traffic - rudeness....when I moved to Chicagoland for PhD program I was amazed at how clear the air was, how little traffic (compared to LA, Orange) and how polite and friendly the people were.

 

I am going back for a visit with my folks (and to "do" D'Land) mid-July. Am dreading the traffic and crowds and smog.

 

Also - the ranch tract house I grew up in cost about $20,000 in 1962. It got up to a hair under ONE MILLION DOLLARS a few years back - houses on that street still selling for 3/4 of a million. I could never afford to live in S. Ca.

The house we live in in Elgin, IL, a 1906 five-bedroom two-story four-square cost peanuts here (and is probably worth less than 100,000 now) - would be over a million in CA.

Edited June 19, 2012 by JFSinIL

[hsbaby]

A few more things I don't miss: smog (we had days when I was in school that PE was cancelled due to air quality), the graffiti, litter, the cars with their bumping music, the gangs, the gov., the teeny tiny yards....I'll stop! I would really recommend staying for a while wherever you are considering moving to get a feel for the people, traffic, etc.

[momto2Cs]

I've lived in CA all my life, and would NOT leave. I live in "Wine Country" (north of the Bay area), and it is beautiful here. A bit on the pricey side, but then having always lived with it, I'm used to prices.

 

Why I love it:

 

 

• Lots of outdoors things to do. In one day, I could (if I really wanted to) drive from the coast to a forest, to mountains, to a desert. It would be a lot of driving, but hey, it is all here! Within an hour's drive from my house, I have the coast, bays, redwood forests, a river, several lakes, mountains to hike in, and more.
  
• Access to great museums, etc. since we live close enough to San Francisco to drive down (about an hour). If we want, there's southern CA to visit, with Disneyland, the San Diego Zoo, and much more. In between, there's Monterey, with a fantastic aquarium, as well as tons of picturesque little places to visit.
  
• Very moderate weather here. It can be wet in the winter, and quite chilly. It can be hot in the summer. But, overall, it is very moderate, great for agriculture, so we have a year-round veggie garden.
  
• Compared to southern CA, we have very clean air! ;)
  

 

On the bad side, taxes and prices are high. Our state government, and budget, are a royal mess. But I figure you can't have everything!

[marbel]

As others have said, so much depends on where you live. It's a huge, diverse state.

 

I spent most of my life (around ages 10 - 40) in San Jose. Over time I grew to hate it. Hot, crowded, expensive - very hard to live on one income. We moved when our first child was born; my husband had a job opportunity in Oregon and we were happy to go.

 

The plus side is there is so much to see and do in the state. We were 30 minutes from the beach in Santa Cruz, but only 4 hours away from gorgeous Lake Tahoe and snow. Yosemite, Lassen, San Francisco, wine country, redwoods, north coast... we do miss those aspects of it. And the sourdough bread. ;)

[SailorMom]

 

 

 

[*]People are very fake and passive-aggressive. Everybody's all nicey-nice to your face but then will stab you in the back the minute you turn. Where DH and I grew up in the Northeast, people tend to be open about whether they like you or dislike you. If somebody is friendly, you can trust them to be loyal. If someone doesn't like you, they don't pretend to be all nicey-nice but will rather be in your face about it.

[*]People are way more materialistic. The way I was brought up in New England was that it was seen as tacky and nouveaux riche to flaunt one's wealth. Here everybody seems to be obnoxiously trying to one-up the neighbors. :rolleyes:

 

 

Don't move to CA if you have any choice in the matter...

 

 

As someone born and raised a Californian, and someone who has lived in 8 different states, I can say that that is certainly no more true in CA than it is anywhere else I have lived.

Just like everywhere else, it all depends on where you live, where you go, the neighborhoods you are in. There are some really snooty people in all the states I have lived in. We just didn't live next to them or associate with them.

[theYoungerMrsWarde]

Am I the only one who hates the CA weather? Okay, the mild winters are nice, if you only want to see snow for one morning/year. (We live in the foothills down Highway 50 from Tahoe.) But summers suck the life out of you (or at least me.) We went to the county fair on Saturday and it was over 102* by 2pm and we went at 6pm and it was still ridiculous. The only time I can let my kids go out to play is in the morning time in the small walled off patio when the sun is on the other side of the house.

 

Ditto what everyone said about it being crazy expensive and the mismanagement of our government. The schools are in the bottom 10 in all the states (if that ever had to become an option for you.)

 

Dh's company is planning on opening an office in Idaho. As soon as they do and accept his transfer request we are OUT OF HERE!! :auto:

[dangermom]

It really depends on where you live, so you need to tell us where you might go.

 

I live in rural northern CA, which is hugely different from the southern part. It might as well be a different state. North of Sacramento, we have about 2% of the population and a whole lot of space. It's much more rural--I live in Chico, a large town, but it still has a small-town feel and it's pretty easy to do farming and animals if you want. Chickens and goats are hip. (OTOH we have a rising crime/gang problem and meth is a scourge and giant 'medical' pot gardens are a pain.) We kind of resent it that SF and LA think they are the whole state, and that they take an awful lot of our water.

 

Life is still expensive. Houses still cost more than they do in other states, but in the smaller outlying towns prices are lower. The housing slump has hit us hard--it's easy to buy and we've never had the completely insane prices that the big cities had. Also you don't get a basement. Food and gas are still pricier.

 

People are much more granola here; there is not nearly so much emphasis on appearance as you get further south, and mostly people are very nice and friendly and relaxed. We have hippies and farmers and soccer moms, so it's kind of a funny mix. The city council wants to do lots of fashionable things like get rid of plastic bags and disallow businesses. I would throw them all into the next galaxy if I could.

 

There is a lot of fun stuff to do outdoors and it's super-hot in summer, as it is everywhere in the central valleys of CA. But we have trees and a creek to play in, so it's a huge improvement over, say, Bakersfield (where I was a kid). Be sure to get a house with a whole house fan, that is very important! The nights are mostly cool, so you can open up and swoosh the whole house full of lovely cool air before you go to bed and when you get up.

 

Also, the state is going broke. Beware.

[Roadrunner]

Positives: weather, beach, mountains, hiking, vineyards. I don't think I can describe how pretty it is where we live. We aren't in a big city, so traffic isn't an issue. I am 15 minutes from the beach, 2 minute walk from the river and on a hiking trail. It's amazing.

 

I do miss fall on the east coast, red and yellow leaves against brick houses....

cost. Living in around/under 1,000sf is rather normal around here.

We are too far removed from the world. We would travel more internationally if we were on the "other" coast.

My part of CA is too relaxed. Too much of hiking and surfing culture and too much relaxation. I would like a little bit of "Palo Alto" competitive spirit around here. It doesn't help that I am the only person I know who is so dedicated to education.

Overall, I feel like CA is a "Bermuda triangle." Once you fall into here, it's hard to leave. People get so used to weather they can't handle heat or cold anymore. I fear my children won't be able to leave outside of this state, potentially limiting their overall opportunities.

Would I move? Yes, but I have a gypsy spirit :D. I would move around all my life given the opportunity. On the other hand, my husband is a good example of the "Bermuda effect". He won't even consider relocating, ever! Every day: "You don't know what it's like to live in New York! Oh, the heat! The cold!."

[RainbowSprinkles]

looking at where fort irwin is, i guess it would be in the san bernadino area?

is anyone familiar?

[dangermom]

Fort Irwin as in, a bit northeast of Barstow? That's in the Mojave Desert, very far away from most things. About midway between LA and Las Vegas, close to Death Valley.

[DawnM]

Ok, that changes things.

 

Living out in the San Bernadino Mountains would not be my cup of tea. It will be very hot and you are a good 3.5 hours away from any of the things I mentioned earlier (museums, beach, amusement parks, things to do in LA and even further from San Diego.)

 

The smog from LA seems to gather out there at the foothills too.

 

Dawn

 

looking at where fort irwin is, i guess it would be in the san bernadino area?

is anyone familiar?

[JFSinIL]

Ah, the Inland Empire - hot, dry and the 91 freeway to get anywhere is awful. My dad is in Redlands, my sister in Moreno Valley - I just googled Fort Irwin and looks like you are in the middle of nowhere :-( It will be a good hour to get into San Berdo - longer to get to anything in OC or LA. At least you can use the 210 instead of the 91 to go west....

 

Make sure the a/c is working!

[Miss Peregrine]

Ok, that changes things.

 

Living out in the San Bernadino Mountains would not be my cup of tea. It will be very hot and you are a good 3.5 hours away from any of the things I mentioned earlier (museums, beach, amusement parks, things to do in LA and even further from San Diego.)

 

The smog from LA seems to gather out there at the foothills too.

 

Dawn

I live in the San Bernardino mtns. Closer to the city of SB, think Lake Arrowhead. The weather is awesome. We get a few days each summer where it gets into the 90's but it is usually so nice. We get snow and fall colors.

Fort IrwIn would definitely be hot! And much farther away from "civilization"

[hsbaby]

I've never been to Ft. Irwin, but I've been to Barstow which is about a half hour away, I think. What first comes to mind is desert heat! I would definitely check it out first. There isn't much around Barstow IIRC!

[Miss Peregrine]

I've never been to Ft. Irwin, but I've been to Barstow which is about a half hour away, I think. What first comes to mind is desert heat! I would definitely check it out first. There isn't much around Barstow IIRC!

And wind! Major wind. :glare:

[RainbowSprinkles]

Ok thanks you all. I don't think I want to live that far from everything, in the desert no less.. We still have a bit of time to decide where we want to go next, so just checking out different places. Thanks!! :)

 

If it wasn't this area, some parts of CA sounds very nice to live in. I visited for a summer about 15 years ago. We went to Sacramento and also spent a day in San Francisco. I did love it back then! :)

Edited June 19, 2012 by RainbowSprinkles
spelling

[deacongirl]

As someone born and raised a Californian, and someone who has lived in 8 different states, I can say that that is certainly no more true in CA than it is anywhere else I have lived.

Just like everywhere else, it all depends on where you live, where you go, the neighborhoods you are in. There are some really snooty people in all the states I have lived in. We just didn't live next to them or associate with them.

 

Exactly this.:iagree:

[shinyhappypeople]

If you live in CA, can you tell me about what it's like?

 

What do you like? What don't you like? If you could choose to live in another state, would you still stay in California?

 

Which part of California?

 

I like the mountains (Sierras), Sierra foothills and northern California.

 

I'd avoid: Southern California and the SF Bay Area (expensive, crowded)

 

I like it here. It's diverse, lots to do and see, beautiful, and there are a lot of options for home education.

 

ETA: just read your follow-up. Fort Irwin. Hmm... not sure I would move there. Not my favorite part of the state!

[KrissiK]

We live in the Fresno area. We both grew up here. I love the weather (most of the time). The Central Valley is beautiful. Close to the Sierras. We hike a lot. Close to the coast, too. California is a nice place to live. It's home. What I hate about it? Well, let me see! The idiot politicians. The area I live in is agricultural and we face a water shortage every year, yet our legislature is more concerned about the type of bedding used in hotels than the real problems we face. The biggest issue regarding water over the past years has been the Delta Smelt, a small fish that is not indigenous to the area, yet must be at all costs preserved, even though farmland here in the Valley is going fallow because of lack of water and unemployment is extremely high. If we did not have family here we would move in a heartbeat. I have no idea where we'd move but it would be away from here.

[SkateLeft]

I lived in CA for 20 years (since I was 17), and moved here to MN 2 years ago. We still own a home in northern CA (near Sacramento), and my parents live there. My brother lives in San Diego with his family, and all of my husband's family is still there. My husband grew up in the central valley. I went to UCSB and he went to UC Davis.

 

I know I'll be in the minority, but you couldn't pay me to go back to CA. :D I absolutely hated it.

 

I despised the weather. I was miserable in the heat. The air quality in the central valley is terrible, because all the smog from the Bay Area blows inland and runs up against the Sierra Nevada. You can see it flying into Sacramento airport as you descend through a layer of brown air. They have "spare the air" days where you're advised not to go outside. As an athlete and an asthmatic, it was a constant issue for me. My asthma had to be managed with medication on a daily basis, and I still ended up in the ER for breathing treatments at least once a year. After 6 months here, I was able to stop taking Flovent for the first time in YEARS.

 

I grew up in NY, so I missed having seasons. I missed rain in the summer. I missed big trees and falling leaves. I missed cool breezes in September. I felt like the central valley was covered in dead, brown grass half the year.

 

I couldn't stand having to drive everywhere. Although CA has better freeways than any other state, I felt like I spent way too much of my life driving back and forth on I-5 or I-80. As a cyclist, getting buzzed by farm trucks on county roads got old too. Twice, I was hit by a car. (Okay, so that can happen anywhere, but I felt far less respect for cyclists in CA than I do here.)

 

I felt like we got nothing for all of our taxes. We also lived in a very spiritually dry area with few other homeschoolers.

 

I could go on, but I think you get my point. My husband loves CA and misses it a lot. He's actually there this week. He spent pretty much every weekend sailing SF Bay, and you can't sail year round here. On the other hand, there is so much more here for the kids, and we don't have to spend hours in the car to get to things. We even have a great homeschool group.

Edited June 19, 2012 by sailmom

[Crimson Wife]

Access to great museums, etc. since we live close enough to San Francisco to drive down (about an hour). If we want, there's southern CA to visit, with Disneyland, the San Diego Zoo, and much more. In between, there's Monterey, with a fantastic aquarium, as well as tons of picturesque little places to visit.

Most major metro areas have great museums, zoos, aquariums, and other cultural attractions, San Francisco's are nice, but so are the ones in D.C., New York City, Boston, Philadelphia, Chicago, Seattle, Denver, etc. And most of those places don't have quite as insanely high a cost of living (Manhattan probably does, but the rest are a bit more reasonable).

[Crimson Wife]

looking at where fort irwin is, i guess it would be in the san bernadino area?

is anyone familiar?

 

Oldest DD was born at Ft. Irwin. Closest town is Barstow, 40-45 min. away. It's basically an overgrown truck stop. There is a Walmart & a Kmart, and an outlet mall. However, for most stuff you'll need to go to Victorville (about an hour ten to an hour fifteen minutes away) or Ontario (about two hours away). Victorville has a Costco, Target, and a small mall. Ontario has a huge mall. You get used to all the driving so it becomes no big deal to schlep down to Ontario or out to Vegas (3 hours away).

 

The base itself is really nice for an Army post (or at least it was while we were there from '99 through '03). It is very hot in the summer because it backs up to Death Valley. Everything is air-conditioned so you get used to going for walks at dawn or dusk and then staying inside otherwise.

 

There was definitely a HS community there because I knew several fellow officers' wives who HS their kids. However, my oldest was only a baby and HS was not yet on my radar so I'm not familiar with the specifics of what the HS community was like.

[Singingmom]

Unless you like hot, dry weather, a brown desert to look at, gang activity, lots and lots of traffic and smog, I wouldn't come here.

 

We live in the IE .....but on the very edge of it, bordering Orange Co. We drive into the OC to go to restaurants, and for most shopping, etc. This area is very expensive. We are leaving for Texas in a few months. I will miss Disneyland and the nice weather, but not much else. And if you lived out in Barstow, you wouldn't even benefit from nice weather!!

 

Not sure about the Barstow area price wise, since it's out in the middle of no where, and almost uninhabitable :) .

 

I hope you have other options! Good luck!

[kubiac]

I felt like we got nothing for all of our taxes.

 

I've lived in California all my life and mostly love it, but this feels painfully true to me. There are just too many people with too many demands and everything is chewed up and spit out so quickly.

 

With the possible exception of higher education (UC system, et al.) overall city and state services are appallingly bad/ugly/weak/ineffective/inefficient.

 

Another exception might be the library systems--we have access to both the city of L.A. library system and the county of L.A. library system and I think that's a combined total of about 15 million items available for circulation and both systems work extremely well.

 

We live in a smaller city within Los Angeles now and I am repeatedly shocked that our municipal government actually provides visible, usable, enjoyable quality of life benefits to their citizens, which was NOT the case in Los Angeles proper. I go to other states or even Orange County and my jaw drops at all the "treats" that residents there get. There is an element of life in Los Angeles that is very challenging, in an each-man-for-himself capitalistic kind of way.

 

That said, with even the slightest bit of initiative and some willingness to brave traffic and parking costs, there is an infinity of activities and events to experience in SoCal, and it makes it really fun to be a parent here!

 

I will also testify that as a gardener, the weather is more than just pleasant--if you are so inclined, the sun and overall climate mean you can grow huge amounts of food here all year round, and that's a treat. Of course, we're stealing water from the Sierras to do so, but hey... ;)

[ocelotmom]

People get so used to weather they can't handle heat or cold anymore. I fear my children won't be able to leave outside of this state, potentially limiting their overall opportunities.

I grew up in coastal Southern California, where the daytime temp range is about 55-85 (with maybe a few hotter days here and there) year round. Other climates are definitely an adjustment, but I've accepted the fact that anywhere with such a limited temperature range is going to be expensive, and managed to adjust. Most of the kids I grew up with have dispersed to less hospitable climates, too.

[Laura in CA]

:iagree::iagree:

 

its one of the things we like, how it is many different places all in one.

we live in the high desert, we camp at yosemite, or joshua tree. we love the coast.

 

we live outside here way more than anywhere else we've been. the fresh fruit is fabulous....

 

:iagree: :iagree:

 

I haven't read the whole thread, but what always amazes me is ... NO BUGS!

 

I've lived in New York (native), New Jersey, and overseas; the mugginess was brutal and I'd get eaten alive by mosquitoes. And my dad was always swatting flies. :001_smile:

 

Oh, and we're fairly far inland, but close enough to the coast to get the cool sea breeze in the late afternoons ... don't really need A/C except a few days a year. I LOVE how it cools off at night. I'm getting spoiled ... :D

[LAmom]

No Bugs?! Well, not mosquitoes but yuck, we have seen lots of nasty bugs around here and oh, the cockroaches. Ugh. Lots of black widows in my backyard, right where my kids play.

 

I HATE the weather. I want my seasons. I am in LA, by the way. From Chicago and also live in Michigan. They claim to have seasons. No. Not when you have a HOT summer and then comes September and you are ready for fall and it is still 80s and then even 80s in November. Blak. Nasty. I want my fall and winter.

 

Oh, I miss thunderstorms. Love them and we don't get them.

 

A plus for the weather: nights cool off and no humidity like back home.

 

HOUSING: My house is so-so, needs work, decent size but half a million dollars!!!!!!! Do you know what we could get in Chicago suburbs/Michigan for that price! WOW. So too expensive in that aspect. Gas is more, too, but I don't notice food prices being more.

 

Yes, traffic stinks. We avoid it since my husband works 5 minutes from the house. We know what times to avoid on the highways. Don't ALL big cities have that problem?

 

Smog: Not too much of a problem except for the area you are looking at. Seems dirtier and drier and much hotter. The closer to the ocean the better. Love San Diego. Love Santa Monica and Santa Barbara. :D

 

 

We are close to the ocean (20 minutes), close to lots of great museums, activities, easy to find quiet places to hike, enjoy nature away from city life, etc. Lots of pros, lots of cons. I would be miserable in the Valley or the place you are talking about.

 

But, I like cold weather, so maybe you would like it here. SMOG is nothing like it was years back. Friends here that are now in their 70s tell stories about school cancelled because of the air, it would hurt to breathe, etc. I haven't noticed that. There are strict smog rules for cars, etc., and I'd say much improved. The smog we do get blows out further than LA area though.

 

It also stinks that I can't get friends to move out here! Not affordable for them.

[Ellie]

Am I the only one who hates the CA weather? Okay, the mild winters are nice, if you only want to see snow for one morning/year. (We live in the foothills down Highway 50 from Tahoe.) But summers suck the life out of you (or at least me.) We went to the county fair on Saturday and it was over 102* by 2pm and we went at 6pm and it was still ridiculous. The only time I can let my kids go out to play is in the morning time in the small walled off patio when the sun is on the other side of the house.

 

Ditto what everyone said about it being crazy expensive and the mismanagement of our government. The schools are in the bottom 10 in all the states (if that ever had to become an option for you.)

 

Dh's company is planning on opening an office in Idaho. As soon as they do and accept his transfer request we are OUT OF HERE!! :auto:

Depends on what part of California you're in. :-)

 

San Francisco Bay area, west of the mountains, including Oakland and Berkeley: two thumbs up; east of the mountains (Concord and beyond, all the way to Tahoe): too hot for me.

 

Coastal California, almost anywhere along there: two thumbs up

 

Anywhere in the Central Valley, north of the Grape Vine, and to the state line (and that includes Sacramento): way too hot for me.

 

San Diego and Los Angeles: bearable.

[Laura in CA]

No Bugs?! Well, not mosquitoes but yuck, we have seen lots of nasty bugs around here and oh, the cockroaches. Ugh.

 

Ah, but you're in Southern California, which, as PPs said, might as well be a different state. A friend up here claims there are no cockroaches in Northern California; I don't know whether that's true or not, but in two decades (on and off) living up here, I've never seen one (and I saw LOTS of giant ones in New Jersey LOL).

 

I mostly meant mosquitoes and flies, which in New York were a daily nuisance. We can sit outside here in the evenings and it still amazes me how NOT humid it is, and how we don't have to cover our food with anti-fly devices or slather ourselves in bug spray. Sweet ... :001_smile:

[ocelotmom]

Ah, but you're in Southern California, which, as PPs said, might as well be a different state. A friend up here claims there are no cockroaches in Northern California; I don't know whether that's true or not, but in two decades (on and off) living up here, I've never seen one (and I saw LOTS of giant ones in New Jersey LOL).

 

I mostly meant mosquitoes and flies, which in New York were a daily nuisance. We can sit outside here in the evenings and it still amazes me how NOT humid it is, and how we don't have to cover our food with anti-fly devices or slather ourselves in bug spray. Sweet ... :001_smile:

 

There are definitely cockroaches in parts of Northern California. Mosquitos too.