Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion The Water Cooler I'm Young, I'm Naive. Where to move after college?

I love Hawaii, the beach, board sports, the music, the food, the attitude.

But living there full time, I'd go out of my mind. Too small...

Austin is a good call - I'd live there.

Of course I have to consider if a woman ever gets involved. They always have a tendency to interfere with a man's well intentioned and free-roaming plans.

The big island is actually pretty big. No, not like living on the mainland but there is alot of variety that the other islands dont have.

My ideas are pretty close to Tom's. I have visited Seattle and Portland and love them both. I might lean a little more towards Portland as a place to live though as I think it is a little less expensive.

If you need any information on Alaska, just shoot me a note. Unless a person has actually lived here, don’t believe what they say about the state. I find a lot of amusement in the stories I hear about this state.

A couple things to consider when looking for a place to live…

1) money / employment
2) climate
3) population
4) hobbies
5) scenery / landscape

Alaska has taken the economic hit fairly well, but it’s rolling up here now too. The climate here is harsh, to varying degrees. It all just depends where you end up. It’s a big state. The most densely populated area is the city of Anchorage. It’s nothing compared to Denver or the other insane cities throughout the US. Get outside of Anchorage and you can literally drive for a hundred miles without seeing another human being. If you like to hunt / fish, this is where you need to be. No other state can offer what this one can. You are severely limited to many other main stream activities though. Golfing comes to mind. The scenery is my favorite part of the state. There’s no other place like it in the world. No sense even trying to describe it, as you just have to live it.

I’ve been hear for 25 years and I do love the state, but I’m looking for property elsewhere. I want four seasons. I want a swimming pool in the back yard, but have snow on the ground Christmas morning. I want to see mountains, and not many street lights. I’m going to upper state Idaho this spring looking for a chunk of land on a mountain side over looking a lake. I’ll let ya know what I find.

Coeur d'Alene and the surrounding area is amazingly beautiful. Also, two of my uncles -- who used to live down the street from each other -- both moved to Star Valley, Wyoming about 4 to 5 years ago and they're both really happy with their new digs.

Thanks for the plug, Tom!

I love Austin, but based on Dan's distaste for what he experienced in the Florida summer, I think he'd hate the summer here. Not as humid, but I will admit that weeks of 98F+ wears on people. But, having said that...

Great univesity town with tons of stuff to do. Live music capital of the world (well, at least we claim that). It's the capital, so plenty of politics for those so inclined. Incredible number of outdoor activities to engage in, even in that summer heat (you just learn to do some things early or late in the day). Gotta acknowledge that there's no skiing around here, but most folks go to Colorado to ski, or to escape the summer heat. Housing is not cheap, but not California levels either.

I could go on and on. I've lived in the Northeast (CT and NY), and the Bay Area, and other than missing being near the ocean, I can sincerely say that I love Austin more than any other place I've lived.

Rich

Austin's a good choice. I can attest for the great college town, bars and music. Heck, if you're a programmer, you already know about SXSW.

Plus you can get some good ol' Texas brisket there. Granted I went to the Salt Lick, which is like the Hard Rock of Texas BBQ but it was still pretty good.

I am not one for the heat though. Dry heat or wet heat, it's still hot. I like my temperate climates.

I would love to attend SXSW sometime. Seems like a lot of fun.