early 21st century DSL technology

[vonkaar]

Hey, we knew the gray skies were bad here, we just had no idea that SHE would be affected by it. It didn't bother me in the least.

My wife is really interested in Hawaii too, but I have some concerns. My biggest fear is getting "Island Fever," which is, if I have it correctly, where you freak the fuck out by being stuck WITH NO ESCAPE. There's only so much space! For someone who grew up in Texas, I'm afraid that this could be a really really big deal. I mean, all of the islands put together add up to - less land than New Jersey. Even the big island, when the volcano is taken out (unusable space) is only the size of Delaware. That's NOTHING. That's like, 1 average county in Texas. WTF.

I'm also REALLY into hiking and camping, and I feel like I'd *see it all* after a single summer. Up here in Oregon, we've hiked or camped pretty much 2-3 times every month since we arrived. Despite that, I don't feel like we've seen even 5% of what the state can offer. Hawaii? It's TINY.

However, I talked to a friend here in Oregon, who was born and raised in Honolulu, and he said that the space consideration isn't a big deal. Everything feels much more close-in, and you hardly drive anywhere. That alone makes things feel enormous. And as for hiking, he said that it was at least as good as Oregon.

So, that's an option. Sort of. It's huge on her list and, "we'll see," on mine.

Maine is totally interesting. I THINK I could handle a decent winter, but I've never - not once in my life - even felt sub-zero temperatures. I mean, I was born in one of the worst winters in Missourri history (born in KC), so I know that my infant self at least experienced that, but we left MS before I turned 1. So I have no memory of even a Midwest winter. Maine? Heh. Sounds interesting. Superior seafood? My first instinct was to argue Portland Salmon & Washington Oysters vs Maine seafood, but holy FUCK I love lobster. The idea that they have so much of it that they can slap it on a bun and sell it in food shacks all over the state (lobster rolls) speaks volumes. HOly shit I'd eat that every day. Also, no local sports kind of sucks. It's not a huge deal, but I definitely feel the difference in Portland compared to Dallas. The average coworker here has very little interest in sports.

And for San Diego, her family is an old Jewish family down there and they have a ton of roots. The cost-of-living increase would be partially offset by the proximity to her family. Plus, I have a lot of job prospects down there. I just don't know if I want to live and raise my kids in THE DEN OF INIQUITY that is California. Just kidding. But, there are so many problems down there. The education cutbacks were enormous.

We could go move down under, or become Kiwis...

Really, I'm just hoping that this next winter won't be as bad and she votes to stay. Because I love it here. Just... not in this house.

[Zanchief]

That's the one thing I think is great about the US. You have such a crazy amount of vastly different climates and you can pretty much just pick where and how you want to live and move there. I can't think of any single country where you can go from a climate like Hawaii to Alaska to California to a desolate wasteland like Minnesota. Sounds pretty awesome.

[Lyion]

Given your wife's roots, I think you are crazy not to go to San Diego. It has so much more to offer than Oregon. You are close to Big Bear, with skiing and Mountains. The parks in San DIego destroy Oregon. Completely. You can head to Mexico for shopping and fun. You are an hour from Ocotillo Wells, and camping, dunes, and off roading that rocks. The food is great, and the weather is really amazing. The cost of living is a fraction of Hawaii, if you are comparing. Plus, better sailing, the San Diego Wild Animal park, and better sports teams.

I grew up in Fallbrook and the schools there remain good. My concern is the cost of living, but it sounds like that's not a big deal for you. If so, I'd jump at it. If you think Portland has a lot to offer, I really think you need to take a leap of faith and move to San Diego.

[Arlos]

Come to the bay area! San Jose would seem to fit your needs exactly:

San Jose, like most of the Bay Area, has a subtropical Mediterranean climate (Köppen Csb). San Jose has 300+ days of sunshine and an annual mean temperature of 60.5 °F (15.8 °C). It lies inland, surrounded on three sides by mountains, and does not front the Pacific Ocean like San Francisco. Because of this, the city is somewhat more sheltered from rain, giving it a semiarid feel with a mean annual rainfall of 15.82 in (402 mm), compared to some other parts of the Bay Area, which can receive about three times that amount.

The monthly daily average temperature ranges from around 50 °F (10 °C) in December and January to around 70 °F (21 °C) in July and August. The highest temperature ever recorded in San Jose was 109 °F (43 °C) on June 14, 2000; the lowest was 19 °F (−7 °C) on December 22–23, 1990. On average, there are 2.7 nights annually where the temperature lowers to or below the freezing mark, and 16 days where the high reaches or exceeds 90 °F (32 °C). Diurnal temperature variation is far wider than along the coast or in San Francisco but still a shadow of what is seen in the Central Valley.

With the light rainfall, San Jose and its suburbs experience about 300 full or partly sunny days a year. Rain occurs primarily in the months from November through April or May.

Most of the top-notch seafood places are on the coast, in SF itself, or up in places like Sausalito. Since those places are right on the water, though, they run a bit chillier, and can be subject to fog. Though, the east side of SF, like North Beach/Telegraph hill don't get as much, and some places, like Pacific Heights are often above the fog. Of course, SF is insanely expensive. (you can easily spend 1-2mil+ on a 1 or 2 bedroom condo, especially in places like Pacific Heights, where some houses have hit 60mil) One other option, if you want to be in the sticks, is to go to Los Gatos/Saratoga, which is up in the Santa Cruz mountains south of San Jose. Gets a bit hotter up there than SJ, but has very nice views, etc. Can be pricy there, too, though.

-Arlos

[Tikker]

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[vonkaar]

I'm sure we'll end up in San Diego. Bleh. I mean, I freaking love the city; if only to visit. We've stayed 10 days there and I never disliked it. I think I'm just finding my own reasons against it.

Tikker, that doesn't sound like much fun. Actually, I read somewhere that Victoria, BC gets an incredible amount of sunshine. So much that pilots sometimes reference the area as a blue hole in the clouds. I looked into the city and it sounds lovely, but perhaps too tiny to support a large tech industry.

[Zanchief]

My sister lives in Victoria, and it is very beautiful, but also very small, as you say.

[Tikker]

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[Zanchief]

Indeed. Some of the people that live there though? I think it's gotten to them that many people are of the belief that Vancouver island is the most beautiful place in Canada.

[vonkaar]

Snobbery? Or are they just really fucking weird like most of the Pac-NW?

[Zanchief]

Very snobby and protective of their space and not to friendly with foreigners and visitors (which they get a lot of). Very ultra hippy in parts as well, like not the fun happy hippies, the ones that organize en masse to prevent much needed power lines because of the ecological impact of a wire.

[Tikker]

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[Tossica]

Ordered my blazing 3mb/640k DSL service.