Golden Valley, MN just west of Minneapolis is a pretty wonderful place. The park by us is fantastic. My son goes to a great Spanish-immersion school. I work at a University that’s a five-mile drive from me. My neighborhood is nice looking and quiet.
Of course, people will say the weather here is horrible. Priorities I guess.
Sure you can “get along” without a car, Spectre; you could do all the basic things you need to do to survive. But if you want to experience a fraction of the social life you could possibly have in LA–or if you want to work or go to school–you need a car. San Diego’s the same way. If the only thing you ever do is shop and go to ballgames you could get along on the trolley, but it’s a pain in the ass to build your lifestyle around it.
Well, sure I need to own a car, but it’s nice that I don’t have to use it every day of my life. Sometimes it stays in the garage from Friday evening to Monday morning, which doesn’t sound like much when compared to a weekday commute of 25 miles round trip, but for me it makes an immense psychological difference to know that in my leisure time I can access so much without a car, and if it’s not in walking distance it’s only a short bus ride, like three miles or so. If, like many employers, mine weren’t so hidebound and reactionary about telecommuting, I would be able to cut that down a lot.
Hmmm, Ethilrist, I just took a look at your Public Profile and I’m intrigued: you’re a former NoCal’er, gamer, and active SCA participant now in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area. I was just in that part of the country for the first time last February for the wedding of a High School friend of mine who fits pretty much that description (though a native Brooklynite, he), and met a lot of his local friends who also fit that description.
…You wouldn’t know who I’m talking about, would you?
We have insanely low property taxes.
If I stopped to think about it, I’d probably be kinda depressed about that because property taxes pay for the public school system. Maybe it’s not such a good thing after all. :dubious:
I live in a town called Portsmouth, Ohio. It’s right on the river and about an hour from Ashland, Kentucky. It’s also about an huor and 45 minutes from Columbus (the way I think of it, it could be a little longer). I don’t particularly like the entire town - there are some areas here I hate to even drive through. The town itself is fighting becoming a college town, but the college seems to be winning, and I like that. I also know that our community - we live away from downtown and more towards the hospital - is very nice. Most of our neighbors are retired or work at the hospital, and they are pretty friendly. It doesn’t have a very good job market, but it’s better than some other places I’ve lived. From what I hear, there are some good school systems in the area, but I’ve not ever dealt with any of them.
Brendon
As a former Canberra resident, I’d agree with your summary Caiata.
I live in Key Largo, FL and I love it- there are too many great things to mention, but a few are the fishing, the diving, the snorkeling, and the weather.
The best part, IMHO, is the community. We’ve been here nearly a year and everyone has taken us in like we’re family. You’re never alone here- if you have a problem someone can and will help you. Everyone takes care of one another, parties with one another, and watches out for each other.
Great example: This morning at breakfast I overheard the owner chatting at another table with a couple we know. He was saying how well Randy (bartender at another restaurant) did in his recent first marathon run and they were like “Yeah, we watched the race online- he did it in what, 4 1/2 hours? That’s about what his goal was…” and on and on. Seems stupid, probably, but to me a community is one where everyone cares about each other, celebrates their victories, is there in the bad times, and comes together. That’s the nicest thing I can say about this community.
South Chicago is not quite the dump people believe it to be - at least, Hyde Park isn’t. It’s close to downtown and the university campus is lovely. Lots of museums for such a small area. And the lake shore is beautiful in any season.
I know a fair number of folk and businesses through much of Auckland, but those in the western portion are a particularly cool, cruisy bunch. There’s your ratbags and not-nice-folk, to be sure, but in the circles I move in folk in the main seem fairly laid back. Place has its own vibe.
Actually, there’s a heck of a lot of Auckland I love anyway. Very few places I wouldn’t feel welcome in.
Dallas has some amazing restaurants. I love Tex-Mex food and Dallas does it well. Dallas is one of the best restaurant cities in the United States.