NVR: Relocation advice
It's been a while since I have posted as I have been super busy with work (not of my choosing by the way!). So now I would say I am 85% vegan but I really am having a hard time packing in the cheese, everything else, milk, eggs etc. no problem but cheese. Strugling. Anyhow not overly concerned about it as I am a million miles better than I was 3 years ago in terms of diet. BUT.....there is one thing that I am strugling with living in Chicago......
OK, I have been in the Chicago area for nearly 5 years now and the winter is just killing me so I am planning on getting out.
Since I moved to Chicago I was diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis and in the winter my hands and feet are extremely uncomfortable, this is the 3rd winter with the arthritis and I don't see it getting any better. My psoriasis flares up in the winter too but a humidifier in the house helps a bit. Roll the clocks forward to the summer and no pain in my hands, unless i have had a hard day gardening, no pain at all in my feet and all my crustiness clears up also. So I have come to the decision that I have to move to a warmer climate rather than suffer for 4 months of the year unless I take some serious drugs (who's side effects a very very scary if you read them all!)
So rather than just open the floor to a "where should I live?" question which I know is too vague I will give you a bit of background information:
1. We need to move somewhere with a reasonable metro area as I need some manufacturing activity there and my wife is small animal vet so rural is out.
2. Neither of us is religious at all so am not sure if the bible belt will be suitable.
3. Both us are vegan/vegatarian so need somewhere that will at least have some grocery stores that will carry Boca/Gardenburgers/Tofu etc.
4. Both Liberal.
5. Love to be outdoors, like walking and biking.
6. Preferable no or extremely rare snow/ice.
7. Would prefer a more laid back lifestyle than the work, work, work one I currently have in Chicago.
8. Not too far from a reasonable size airport so family can visit with out too much hassle.
9. Good schools are no important as we home school or pets (we are not planning on kids, my condition being hereditary being one reason)
I really can't think of anything else, right now I am thinking of AZ (Phoenix or Tuscan), Las Vegas, or California (away from the coast).
Thanks for anyone who takes the time to read my post and reply.
GESC
I've never been to Phoenix or Tuscan, but I have been to Flagstaff and it is gorgeous. There is a health store that has a vegetarain/vegan deli. The energy there was great too.
I live in Saint Petersburg, FL, which is part of the 2-million population of Tampa Bay.
It is a metro-area with an international airport closeby
We're far enough south to be out of the Bible belt
It's easy for a liberal to be here, as I am way to the left myself, but there are all kinds here
Lots of nice beaches and parks, and a close to nice forests like the Ocala area for hiking
it never snows here
Life is what you make it here, you can be very laid back and hang out at the beach and drink beer if you want
The major downfall to living here is the high cost of insurance due to insurance companies ripping off the citizens and double and tripling insurance rates the last few years but it seems to be leveling off.
Also some people who aren't used to it have a hard time with the humid summers, but I've lived in humidity my whole life. They say it just takes one summer to get used to it.
Good luck in your move.
I'd go with Arizona or Florida.
get outta Illinois, that's for sure! Wish I could!
Portland OR. Voted Most vegan friendly city in America by PETA. 45 minutes from Mount Hood. 1.5 hours from the coast. 30 minutes from the Columbia river gorge scenic water fall area. Tons of hiking/backpacking/river rafting/mountaineering/bicycling. A town so liberal and anti religious that growing up here, I feel ill equipped to manage on "the outside world". Snow is very rare, and when it snows an inch the entire city shuts down for four days. The schools here completely suck, but you said that didn't matter. Our idea of dressing up is corduroys and a fleece vest.
I live in Tucson. i would say its very veg friendly. i go to a veg meet-up 1-2 times a month. But today, when I was in my favorite vegan restaurant, I saw a poster for an ethical vegetarian meet up in February...so it looks like the community is growing. We have lots of great health food stores here. its well populated and there are many reputable vet clinics. Tucson, is over all a very pet friendly city, they are allowed in some bookstores, hardware stores and on the porch of many restaurants and cafes.
The winters are beautiful here, the summers are harsh. Gardening is nice because of the extended season. We are rich in culture and fine arts, theres always something going on. Many parts of town are nice and have a low rate of crime (of course, like all cities, there are some smaller areas to be avoided.)
And one of my favorite features about the "old pueblo" (thats Tucson's nickname) is that we boast the most miles of bicycle paths in the country. We even just had a path extended so bicyclist can ride from the far east side of town into the downtown are, which is west. Many of the bike paths are in the city, but you can also catch a trail that will take you away from everything to enjoy the beautiful natural landscapes...Tucson is surrounded by mountains and they light up with the most brilliant shades of gold, orange, purple and pink during the sunset. Biking "culture" is pretty big here. Theres the tour de Tucson every year, community bike shop and lots of biking clubs. I'd look around on line for it is I were you. One of the benefits or the weather is that you can stay conditioned all year round.
yes, i recommend Tucson! too bad i have to move... :-\
oh yeah, and we have an international airport, but its relatively small. Ive never had a problem flying to or from it anywhere....and Ive never gotten lost in it either!
I am in a similar situation... I live in Michigan and I can't wait to get out of the cold. I plan to move soon after I finish nursing school in April. One place I am looking at moving fits your description perfectly... Asheville, NC. There are a few people on this site that live there and they can tell you all kinds of fabulous things about it. 8)
On a side note, you are lucky you live in the same town as my favorite restaurant of all time... The Chicago Diner! Yum! So its not all bad there ;) Good luck to you, and thanks for starting this post I am super excited to read what everyone is writing... Peace.
I've lived in almost all areas of California. I'm not sure how metro you're looking for or what type of manufacturing jobs.
In terms of areas not too cold here, I'll work my way down the state.
Chico: I don't know how much manufacturing there is there. It's a liberal inland college town and home to the Sierra Nevada Brewery.
Sacramento: This is a huge, sprawling place. You'll definitely be able to find whatever you want there, but the freeways haven't kept up with growth. You'd be close to the Bay Area and cool live music.
San Luis Obispo / Monterey: It's coastal, but it's metro-ish without the frenzy - and it's not too cold there because it's further down the coast.
Fresno: Fresno has bad air (1 in 6 kids has asthma). It's equivalent to Sacramento, but Sac has better air. The geography is like an inverted bathtub and all of the bad air from Sac gets bunched up in the Fresno / Bakersfield area. However, there are a lot of sizable communities and industry of everykind there and the cost of living is better than other areas of the state. A nice thing about Fresno is that you can live in the foothills and drive to the city in about 20 minutes. Yosemite National Park is a 1.5 hour drive and Sequoia/Kings Canyon National Park is a 1 hour drive. (Fewer vegan options, but there's a vegan meetup potluck there.)
Inland Empire: The IE is the inland area of Southern California. Housing is reasonable, there are multiple metro areas (well, the whole thing is pretty much a metro area), and there's a lot of manufacturing. Again, the air quality isn't so great, but not as bad as Fresno. Coastal LA, Orange, and San Diego Counties are prohibitively expensive. (Fewer vegan options, depending on where you live. In some places it's fine.)
I would suggest Houston, TX where I live, but I hate Houston.
My suggestion is San Antonio. I visited there for a couple of days, went on the river walk, and visited the Alamo, I really like San Antonio, the atmosphere is nice, it doesn't get too cold in the winter, never snows. And it is far enough west to offer some good hiking and biking options. San Antonio seems to have something for everybody and the people there are really nice.