Help me figure.........where do you live AND...........

[lindamarie]

Okay,
We need some advice. As many of you might know, we are planning on a move.
We had a long discussion tonight, and things got kinda crazy as we're not all that familiar with places that are warmer than Michigan where we could move.

I have a friend in Alabama. I water skiied for one straight hour on Smith Lake and loved it there. It's in Cullman County. Does anyone have any knowledge or live in Alabama that could help?
Other areas of consideration are the Carolina's.
I also have a friend in Tennessee who says he loves it. It's somewhere on a lake and he sits on his deck and sees the water and mountains.

What about Georgia?

I am seriously needing help here as we have to have some destinations in mind. We'd like to jump in the Tahoe next month and drive to visit some of these places.

Also, what is the weather like........hurricanes..........tornadoes......... bugs..........snakes........roaming animals..... We're taking all these things into consideration.
My ideal place would be on a lake like where we just vacationed...........where it looks and sounds like an ocean. But the Great Lakes are ALL COLD!!

Can anyone or as many as possible HELP US!!?? Since this forum has people from everywhere, maybe we could get some ideas from you guys!!

[tuffystar]

Oh Linda I want someone here so badly but we do get cold sometimes. The next best thing to having you here would be if you moved to CA and I could visit you!! We are warm more than cold and never as cold as back there. Some of the lake areas are real nice here! We would love to have you live closer!!! You probably were not thinking that far to move though.

[lindamarie]

AWWW Kathy! Thanks for the thought! Wouldn't it be super to live where all our doodles could play and we all could visit??
Unfortunately, I don't want to go West. I can live with a lot.....but not earthquakes.
I am such a chicken! I decided if I ever moved West, I need a helicopter in my yard so I could go straight UP if one started to rumble.........
Now...........anyone want to do a helicopter donation??

[Raleighsmom]

SOUTHERN NEW ENGLAND
Hurricanes are rare...tornado's rarer, fires and earthquakes practically unheard of...4 wonderful seasons, the worst of which is winter..more ice than snow, and a shorter one than up north...oceans are fairly warm by August..lakes definately swimable by mid June depending on the heat...maybe one heat wave a year where the temp is over 90 for 3 consecutive days...2 big cities for visiting...Boston and NYC...many cultural centers and museums all over...stay away from New York state if you don't want to be taxed to death..altho Ct. and Ma. are not far behind...no taxes whatsoever in NH except on property and meals..but it's a long cold winter...a little milder on the coast of Maine...sales tax 5% I think...Vermont? beautiful, but eh! (my opinion)..oh yeah..Maine and New Hampshire have tons of lakes..but again, cold winters...good luck Linda!
P.S. Big bucks in real estate on the Ct./NY state line.....!!

[lindamarie]

Kathie! I LOVE all the states you mentioned!! I could see me living in RYE NH!!!.........I would LOVE the east coast........but, I don't want any part of the cold.
BUMMMMMMMMER!!!!

[Raleighsmom]

My sister lives in Georgia....humidity unbearable..mother-in-law in south Florida...ditto...brother in law..Virginia Beach...awesome...but ditto...the Cheseapeake Bay area is awesome...but again humidity...ick! How about the outer banks of the Carolinas?...but no....hurricanes! hmmmm....maybe Pennsylvania or Maryland??

[MaxandMe]

OK THEN LINDA ........BACK TO THE EASTERN MID SOUTH TO SOUTHERN EAST COAST STATES

HURRICANES....depending where you live aren't as bad as if you LIVE on the coast
heck we've gotten them in catskills to upper NY state in Rochester where i live

i can say the electrical storms of the east coast are neat (yes love storms)
hurricane season doesn't last long......winters are NOTHING compared to many states
remember though SUMMERS CAN BE HOT but A/C helps so does having a pool.
above ground pools are inexpensive.


you can also fly cheaper for vacations out of NC and Georgia airports getting great vacation deals
but both STATES if you travel to coast are absolutely wonderful, gorgeous and WOW

i grew up on ATLANTIC OCEAN......lived 800 ft off of Lake Erie.......there is no comparision !
don't get me wrong Lakes are gorgeous and no salt water stingign your eyes when swimming hahhaaaaaaa
but the islands and lighthouses ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

[MaxandMe]

NORTH CAROLINA

1.Linda i am having problems posting server is acting up on this site for me!! grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
so the long reply i put on NC , you're right isn't here
so here goes:


North Carolina: depending where you live taxes , real estate food etc are less expensive considerably compared to where you live
alogn with many states like NY, MASS, CT, parts of Virginia but Virginia is also GORGEOUS!!! AND A MIDWAY POINT W/WEATHER!!!

NC........it's a few hours drive to outerbanks depending where you live and the outbank islands, lighthouses ohhhhhhhhhhhhh
serenity, beauty, the salt air, and sooooooooooooo much more.
YOu also have the mountainous region to vacation as well

NOW Raleigh/durham is more expensive but if you go on the outskirts it's much less expensive to find housing
you're where you smell the pines and tons of shopping yet in the country.

chapel hill area along with greensboro , winston salem is nice that is west of Raleigh/Durham
Charolotte is very much NORTHERNERS Living there. AGAIN NC has some very southern areas and then Northern transplant areas


there are 4 SEASONS......sping is beautiful and comes earlier than we're used to , SUMMERS ARE HOT but A/c helps
Winters are MILD compared to what you and I are used to, rarely does it snow but when it does its pretty and whole towns shut down
for a few inches of snow
fall is nice as well

hurricanes aren't that bad............and if you aren't living on the coast or an island well HELL we get hurricanes up north as well.
Electrial Storms are neat and you just UNPLUG applianes, computer etc

i can't say enough about NC...along with several major airports
Charlotta Airport is an internt'l airport thus good deals for vacations

didn't you say one of your son's live in Florida? NC could be a good midpoint for your kids to visit?????
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Georgia my cousin lives there and so does one of m y close friend's father............HOT summers
and i could get MORE INFO if you like

[Jac]

Oh, no you don't! You are not going to get off that easy....we do NOT live near earthquakes in our neck of the woods! They are common along the coast, but near the mountains (and LAKES) we don't have them...and we rarely get snow, it is warm and we have rain in the winter so it is green and lush and LOVELY !!! C'mon out! Lake Wildwood is just up the road from us...a golf course and retirement community...perfect, eh? (We are not in Lake Wildwood, but it is just down the road...)
Seriously a gorgeous place to live...I am in the ponderosa pines, foothills, oaks and meadows (okay, the meadows have foxtails...but, you can't have everything!)
No tornados, no hurricanes...we are not in a flood zone...and it is beautiful!

[Jac]

Just to tempt you...here are pictures of Lake Wildwood...
http://www.nevadacountyrealty.com/lakewildwood/ Scroll down....

And lots of local lakes, click and scroll for pics...tempting, eh?
http://www.aboutnevadacounty.com/lakes/

[Lucky Me]

I've got you all beat!!! Check out my area! http://mtshastachamber.com/visitor/recr ... sports.php
Ton's of lakes all over! Shasta Lake & Trinity lake are an hour away if you want to do the house boat rental thing. Our area is small... larger cities with airports, Costco's, Petco's, etc. are an hr. away. Great ski park on the mountian, downhill, crosscountry, snow-shoeing.
We also have a Jr. College, lots of classes you can get for $28 a semester.... http://www.siskiyous.edu/
4 season's , 7 days at most a year that it snows so hard the hywy. is closed. VERY rarely extremely hot weather, not humid, no earthquakes, we are sitting at the base of a volcano, but they give warnings, so you have time to run! It is a slower life here,we do have a coffee house & restraunt that bring in great bands/people from out of town. If you are close to town....fires are not that much of a worry.
4 hrs to Sacramento, 5hrs to San Francisco, 2.5 hrs to the Ocean, nice to get away but always NICE to come home!!!
I traveled a lot when I was young....I love this place. Can't think of another place I would want to live

[Jac]

Judy! hahaha I will admit you have a STUNNING place...but...um, she doesn't like cold (aka snow) and she fears earthquakes...don't think she'd be real fond of a volcano...hahahahaha
Still, I will admit that you live in heaven...volcano and all...Dave wanted to move out there before we came her.

[tuffystar]

Keep them coming Jac and Judy!!!! If I can't have her here close to me, at least she is in a place I am more likely to visit!!! Beautiful areas both of you live in. I have always loved Northern CA! Of course I was born and raised in southern CA so any CA is good to me even the desert. I would not however recommend the area I grew up in. Earthquakes and hot, hot, hot!!!

[Jac]

Kathy, I know you are from the south...but what city were you raised in?

[SamsonsMom]

Going to throw in my 2 cents....

OKLAHOMA! LOL! Summers are hot, perfect for lake retreats! We have a massive amount of lakes, so pick your poison - can visit a new one each week! Short drive to the Texas coast gives you a nice retreat to the ocean.

This weekend it's going to be a nice 80 degrees. PERFECT for being out on the lake. Just in my town, we have 4 lakes within about 30 o 45 miles. Don't mind a bit more of a drive? An hour from Tulsa will give you Grand Lake, full of resorts, camp grounds, restuarants right off the lake, etc. etc. etc.

Did I also mention we just got our very own NBA team last year???? Plus college rivalries you can't get enough of! OU vs. OSU! Lived here for 14 years, have never experienced a tornado in Upper Eastern Oklahoma.

Final argument - LOTS OF WATER + LOW COST OF LIVING = OOOOOOOOOOKLAHOMA! (Eureka Springs and Branson are close by too)