Why the PNW?

[partsed]

Born in Seattle, moved to NY, then to San Jose, CA and after my dad retired out of the Navy in 1971 we moved to Oregon (he was born and raised here) and I have been here ever since. Will probably move (unless we can change the political climate here) after wife retires in approx 5 years.

 

[SHOOTZMEDLER]

I came from southern California.
But before I got to Washington.
I lived all over California.
Lancaster . Bakersfield.Santa Barbara.
Redding.
Then I went to Alaska on a fishing boat via Seattle.
Then when I came back I stayed in Tacoma.
Never went back to California.
Now I think I have to find a new state to retire in.
Or just buy a camper and a boat and live where I want .

I like that idea! However my wife and the kid would not last long in that scenario

We drove up from Los Angles in my Dads '59 Volvo to the '62 Worlds Fair in Seattle. I was 6. Up Hwy 99 and back down 101. In '64 my dad got a job at Tectronics in Beaverton. I've called Oregon home ever since. I've visited a bunch of other states in my travels and a few foreign countries curtisy of the USN. Oh sure the politics suck but honestly they don't intrude in my life too much if I don't let them. Am I happy here? You bet, enough to stand and fight.

Thank you for your service! Wasn't it great getting the military to pay your expenses to travel abroad? I know I sure appreciated it!

Born in Oregon, 6th generation. We were here before the Invasion From the South. We'll be here when they ruin the place and leave (just like rats). Far enough from the cities to wait them out.

Wow. Thats some dedication right there.

Born in Germany.
Otherwise I have lived in the PNW all of my life. It has everything I need. Other places are great to travel to and stay for short periods.
I am afraid that is changing quickly. We are window shopping in 3 other states to make a move.
The taxes, the loss of liberty, and piss poor state leadership is driving our desire to leave. The infestation from the south is expediting it as well.

Things are dropping quickly here!! Outta curiosity what 3 other states you window shopping?

 

[BBQ Guy]

We are looking in Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming. The difficulty is the pay for my wife's job. All 3 states pay significantly less for her position. Cost of living is not commensurate with the lower wage. Frankly the reduced wage does not meet the work load either.
My skill set allows me to work across several industries in different functions.
So our other possible option is to move to the east side of the cascades if the right situation presents itself.

Honestly, I believed I would live out my life as an Oregon resident. It is home for me. It's where I decided to put down roots and do all the fun adult stuff in life.
Current social, political, and fiscal atmospheres are influencing our decisions.

 

[bbbass]

I grew up during the 50s in a small community called Pomona (named for the goddess of fruit. It was an AG area of orange groves and spinach fields) in S. Calif... it was a beautiful place and an idyllic life near the mountains but with beaches within a 2hr drive. But it started to change during the 60s. Rioting, crowded freeways, etc. By the time I went to work for AT&T/WesternElectric (same as my dad) in the Greater L.A. Basin, most people I knew wanted to move to the PNW. Many tried, most moved back after one year due to weather or lack of work. Driving on the freeway from Pomona into L.A. took anywhere from 2-3hrs of bumper to bumper stop and go traffic. Quit that job and moved to Huntington Beach. Would have been great except for the stagflation/recession of 1973-75 made it very hard to recreate the income that I had given up and I met the evil woman with two kids and wanted to get married, so having a neighbor in USCG Aviation, I enlisted as the last person in the US to enlist under the old GI bill, and in the final year that they would take me due to age.

My last duty station was San Diego. We lived in the eastern hills in a very small town named Harbison Canyon, near Alpine and I8 going out to the desert. The drive into work was 20-30 min. Many of the USCG guys talked about home or moving to a better place. One of my Bud's was from Boise. I vacationed with him a coupla times at his folks house in Boise and their cabin in the mountains, hunting and fishing, and he recommended La Grande as a place with lots of hunting and fishing, but still having some cultural activities due to what was then E. Oregon College (now University). I visited, liked it, and moved here at the end of my enlistment in 1980.

I didn't change this place. I became part of it. It was everything I lost from the 1950s and more, everything I had wanted. Married it. But it is changing. AG/Timber is way down, the railroad has left, and EOU pretty much runs the town. And also we are dominated by Portland and Salem. Especially the last few years. Tho it isn't the place I moved to in 1980, my second wife is related to the original settlers of the Grande Ronde Valley, we have generations here and in Asotin/Lewiston/Clarkston, and so the roots are very deep. I have now lived here longer than anyplace else. I've traveled and lived in other places... nothing compares except maybe Brookings, of which I miss greatly, and I will never leave.

I've been to NYC, hated it. Same with Washington DC. I lived in North Carolina in the late 70s... loved it there as well as most of the South. But it's not the same there either. Everywhere is changing. The kids/grandkids on my side of the family live in Ark. It is pretty there and the people are very friendly, but during a recent visit it became clear how much more appealing the scenery is in the West. I don't think they'll be moving back tho, their lives are much more healthy than they were in Buena Park 15yrs ago.

I hate big cities, HATE THEM!!!

 

[SHOOTZMEDLER]

I grew up during the 50s in a small community called Pomona (named for the goddess of fruit. It was an AG area of orange groves and spinach fields) in S. Calif... it was a beautiful place and an idyllic life near the mountains but with beaches within a 2hr drive. But it started to change during the 60s. Rioting, crowded freeways, etc. By the time I went to work for AT&T/WesternElectric (same as my dad) in the Greater L.A. Basin, most people I knew wanted to move to the PNW. Many tried, most moved back after one year due to weather or lack of work. Driving on the freeway from Pomona into L.A. took anywhere from 2-3hrs of bumper to bumper stop and go traffic. Quit that job and moved to Huntington Beach. Would have been great except for the stagflation/recession of 1973-75 made it very hard to recreate the income that I had given up and I met the evil woman with two kids and wanted to get married, so having a neighbor in USCG Aviation, I enlisted as the last person in the US to enlist under the old GI bill, and in the final year that they would take me due to age.

My last duty station was San Diego. We lived in the eastern hills in a very small town named Harbison Canyon, near Alpine and I8 going out to the desert. The drive into work was 20-30 min. Many of the USCG guys talked about home or moving to a better place. One of my Bud's was from Boise. I vacationed with him a coupla times, hunting and fishing, and he recommended La Grande as a place with lots of hunting and fishing, but still having some cultural activities due to what was then E. Oregon College (now University). I visited, liked it, and moved here at the end of my enlistment in 1980.

I didn't change this place. I became part of it. It was everything I lost from the 1950s and more, everything I had wanted. Married it. But it is changing. AG/Timber is way down, the railroad has left, and EOU pretty much runs the town. And also we are dominated by Portland and Salem. Especially the last few years. Tho it isn't the place I moved to in 1980, my second wife is related to the original settlers of the Grande Ronde Valley, we have generations here and in Asotin/Lewiston/Clarkston, and so the roots are very deep. I have now lived here longer than anyplace else. I've traveled and lived in other places... nothing compares except maybe Brookings, of which I miss greatly, and I will never leave.

I've been to NYC, hated it. Same with Washington DC. I lived in North Carolina in the late 70s... loved it there as well as most of the South. But it's not the same there either. Everywhere is changing. The kids/grandkids on my side of the family live in Ark. It is pretty there and the people are very friendly, but during a recent visit it became clear how much more appealing the scenery is in the West. I don't think they'll be moving back tho, their lives are much more healthy than they were in Buena Park 15yrs ago.

I hate big cities, HATE THEM!!!

That is a very thorough response.
Thank you for your service as well.
I too enjoy the south, one of the places I am considering moving actually.
I like it here a couple months a year but the gray and gloom and lack of ocean I am used to (Hawaii and south Florida) makes it hard on me.
Things really are changing everywhere and it seems the liberals have started to overtake a lot. Scary stuff.

 

[bbbass]

That is a very thorough response.
Thank you for your service as well.
I too enjoy the south, one of the places I am considering moving actually.
I like it here a couple months a year but the gray and gloom and lack of ocean I am used to (Hawaii and south Florida) makes it hard on me.
Things really are changing everywhere and it seems the liberals have started to overtake a lot. Scary stuff.

You're most welcome!!

My family's best friends in Huntington Beach have a boy that moved to S Florida for the scuba diving... I don't know whatever became of him. I should have visited, but my dad screwed up and the families became estranged. I also have a High Screwl friend that lived in Jacksonville for a long time and recently moved back to Pomona. I considered doing my Home Inspection biz there in Jacksonville, but the reality is that it is too hot/humid for me. My folks lived in Tarpon Springs for about 10yrs... I really liked it there.

Weatherwise, while S Calif had two seasons, Spring and Summer, La Grande has 4 seasons... Winter, Winter, Winter, Road Construction. It is either too cold, or too hot. And just right about two weeks out of the year.. in the fall. If you don't like the weather, wait 5 minutes, it will change. Seriously, since I can't do winter sports anymore, life has become a drudge. After a long winter, June gloom will fade away to hot July and August thunderstorms, then snow again in September. Lots of time to read indoors. (Not what I moved here to do... )

 

[The Heretic]

Native Orygunian here.

Been around the country - generally temporarily. Spent a couple of months each time on the east coast, Virginia and Vermont mostly. Hated the humidity in Virginia, Vermont was ok, but cold in the winter.

When I was 18 I tagged along for a few weeks with my older brother who was driving a semi truck for North American. Went thru a lot of different states going back to Kentucky and back to Oregon.

Spent some months working in Montana and Alaska. Been to California a number of times. So I have seen most of the country with some exceptions.

I like the PNW, especially Spring to Fall. I could do without the cloudy/rainy winters.

It is hard to say why different people move here. Jobs are probably the main practical reason. Mostly tech jobs in Seattle and Portland. Housing is still a lot less expensive than Silicon Valley/etc., and much less crowded. Weather - we have four seasons - for better or worse.

 

[SHOOTZMEDLER]

You're most welcome!!

My family's best friends in Huntington Beach have a boy that moved to S Florida for the scuba diving... I don't know whatever became of him. I should have visited, but my dad screwed up and the families became estranged. I also have a High Screwl friend that lived in Jacksonville for a long time and recently moved back to Pomona. I considered doing my Home Inspection biz there in Jacksonville, but the reality is that it is too hot/humid for me. My folks lived in Tarpon Springs for about 10yrs... I really liked it there.

Weatherwise, while S Calif had two seasons, Spring and Summer, La Grande has 4 seasons... Winter, Winter, Winter, Road Construction. It is either too cold, or too hot. And just right about two weeks out of the year.. in the fall. If you don't like the weather, wait 5 minutes, it will change. Seriously, since I can't do winter sports anymore, life has become a drudge. After a long winter, June gloom will fade away to hot July and August thunderstorms, then snow again in September. Lots of time to read indoors. (Not what I moved here to do... )

Nailed that right on the head for oregon weather.
I really enjoyed the keys when I lived there in south Florida alot for the diving but in all honesty it does get really hot there. I have family in north Florida (the panhandle) and that is where I am likely headed if all work out how I want. Its a mix of Hawaii and Oregon in my book. Palms and pines. Cooler winter but no snow and way less gloom and grey and not so drastically hot summers.

 

[The Heretic]

I like sunny warm (not hot) weather.

I can do without snakes, poisonous insects/etc., alligators/crocodiles, etc.

Mammalian predators like lions, tigers and bears? Ok. I can cope.

I like the trees - I am surrounded by them. I lived and worked in the Tri-Cities for a while and disliked the general lack of trees, and the severely cold winters combined with wind, and that was 40 years ago when I was better able to tolerate it.

Ideally, someplace where the weather is sunny in the low 70s, with occasional rain and everything is green year round.

My plan was to spend the spring to fall here in the PNW, then go to New Zealand for the winter. Not sure if that is going to happen now.

 

[QualityControl]

Family originally came here in the late 1800's and settled in Eastern WA. I was born and raised here, left after school and jumped back and forth between the Coasts a few times and finally came back to WA. Probably here for good now...but never say never.

 

[sobo]

Born in Everett since it was the closest hospital to Skykomish, where my parents were living at the time, moved to Naches as an infant for my Dad's job,
grew up in Walla Walla during my Dad's job, went overseas for my Dad's job, came back two decades later after graduating college cuz I was born here.

 

[ARFrog]

Born in Everett since it was the closest hospital to Skykomish, where my parents were living at the time, moved to Naches as an infant for my Dad's job,
grew up in Walla Walla during my Dad's job, went overseas for my Dad's job, came back two decades later after graduating college cuz I was born here.

So much to ponder..

Born in Everett since it was the closest hospital to Skykomish, where my parents were living at the time - gypsies?


moved to Naches as an infant for my Dad's job - talented infant but what did your father do to deserve you taking his job?

grew up in Walla Walla during my Dad's job - and still had time to commute to Naches?

went overseas for my Dad's job - again dissing your dad by taking another of his jobs!

came back two decades later - on the lamb or witness protection?

after graduating college cuz I was born here - you were born at your alma mater?


Bustin' the meme master's chops...

Best wishes Sobo!

 

[sobo]

So much to ponder..

Born in Everett since it was the closest hospital to Skykomish, where my parents were living at the time - gypsies?


moved to Naches as an infant for my Dad's job - talented infant but what did your father do to deserve you taking his job?

grew up in Walla Walla during my Dad's job - and still had time to commute to Naches?

went overseas for my Dad's job - again dissing your dad by taking another of his jobs!

came back two decades later - on the lamb or witness protection?

after graduating college cuz I was born here - you were born at your alma mater?


Bustin' the meme master's chops...

Best wishes Sobo!

 

[sobo]

came back two decades later - on the lamb or witness protection?

I was looking to take another one of my Dad's jobs, but he had already retired by then. So I missed out on that one. Dammit...

 

[ARFrog]

Forgot one...

- grew up in Walla Walla - wanted to be close to Iceberg's milkshakes and burgers?

 

[sobo]

Oh, GAWD yes! It's the greatest! Cheeseburger w/everything, fries w/fry sauce, and a blueberry shake! I get it every time I go to WW for my cancer doc appointment!

 

[PaulB47]

Grew up in Wisconsin, my friends in the service were mostly from here, so I tagged along and went to UofO with them after getting out. I like both states, and Wyoming too, even if they are all ruled by scum.

 

[Melmelhunter]

Born and raised in Southern California. Left in the early 90's to Colorado, then Arizona,Nevada,Texas and Idaho. Got a travel trailer and traveled the western United States for a couple years before coming back to Washington. It's beautiful here, I love the fishing, everything outdoors and learning to hunt. And the company I keep.