Looking for Retirement Heaven? I've found it!!

[Ed_The_Gypsy]

Unclemick,

We lived in Red Stick for a couple of years around '80 or so on a project. Loved it. A little steamy and a few mosquitoes and the wife was allergic to one of the popular flowering bushes, tho. If I ever win the lottery, I want to go back and learn how to be a Cajun. I used to listen to KBON out of Eunice on the internet ("Swamp-pop" music--i.e., bad country [is there any other kind?], zydeco and Cajun [I want a recording of "Who killed my pig?"], with ads in the craziest French accent you ever heard), which was a gas, but I don't know if it is still available. I did find one or two other Louisiana stations webcasting, but can't hear them over a telephone modem these days.

Love the eatin' down there.

But then, you know all that.

Laissez les bon temps rouller!

Gypsy

[MRGALT2U]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ed_The_Gypsy Unclemick, We lived in Red Stick for a couple of years around '80 or so on a project.* Loved it.* A little steamy and a few mosquitoes and the wife was allergic to one of the popular flowering bushes, tho.* If I ever win the lottery, I want to go back and learn how to be a Cajun.* I used to listen to KBON out of Eunice on the internet ("Swamp-pop" music--i.e., bad country [is there any other kind?], zydeco and Cajun [I want a recording of "Who killed my pig?"], with ads in the craziest French accent you ever heard), which was a gas, but I don't know if it is still available.* I did find one or two other Louisiana stations webcasting, but can't hear them over a telephone modem these days. Love the eatin' down there. But then, you know all that. Laissez les bon temps rouller! Gypsy

"Red Stick".....love the name! Have not spent much time in La. One trip
to NO and maybe 3 "just passin' throughs". Speaking of picturesque place names, my Dad was born in Kentucky near the "town"? of
Gravel Switch on the banks of "Old Milk and Mush". Man, you can't make this
stuff up

JG

[MRGALT2U]

Quote:

Originally Posted by unclemick2 Good summary Born in Vacouver, WA and grew up in Kelso/Longview - go Scoties! U of W, Boeing, etc - was 26 years old before fully realizing that Idaho was not a surburb of Brooklyn, NY like my Dad used to tell me. The SO thinks it's too much like PA - never wants to see snow again - likes New Orleans. Sold the old homestead (1957-1993) in Kelso and moved Mom down here. August is a good time to visit.

Your SO sounds pretty cool to me. I think your whole set up is neat, fish shack and all. Now if we could just do something about your Democratic party
leanings

JG

[unclemick]

I have this fond hope - should I make to 70 or so - SG will send me my curmudgeon certificate - and I can found a viable third party movement.

[HFWR]

I've got the curmudgeon part of retirement in the bag! 8)

[Eagle43]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ed_The_Gypsy On retiring in Oregon. Portland: I grew up in Portland and my parents spent their last days in an excellent nursing home south of Portland. Not what I would call a low-cost area to live. State income tax and relatively high property taxes, I believe, but no sales taxes. Perhaps the best thing would be to live across the Columbia River in Vancouver, Washington (sales tax, but no income tax) and shop in Portland. There is also a large community of live-aboard boats and houseboats where the Columbia River meets the Willamette River that always looked interesting to me. There is plenty to keep you busy. Portland has mountains, two rivers, beaucoup trees—and rain. Dynamite scenery--when you can see it through the clouds. Expect all outdoor activities to be conducted in the rain, in the cold. Winter days are dark. Can be depressing, especially for a teenager. When you are acclimatized, you can happily play golf in the dark in cold drizzling rain. All of the arts are very strong there—in-door stuff, y’know. An urban planner friend once told me that Portland was the smallest city in the world and Seattle was the largest small town in the world. There are several universities in and around town. I found it a very stimulating place to grow up. When you are tired of the rain in town, you can drive to the coast, where it also rains. Several good beaches. There is good skiing in the Cascades east of town. Beyond the Cascades is Eastern Oregon, where it is high country, much more sun and a lot less rain—perhaps high-country desert. Much more attractive for an outdoors lifestyle. Bend is a neat little town. It is possible to live in Portland without a car if you select your place carefully, but you will need one to fully enjoy the area. By the way, Portland has a big international airport close in, on the Columbia River. The Portland area, which is the population center, is definitely left-coast, just so you know. However, the rest of the state is rural, agricultural and red-neck. An interesting balance. When I was growing up, Portland had two newspapers, but it has been a one-newspaper town for a long time now. Sort of like seeing with one eye. Did I mention that it rains in Portland? Ashland in south-west Oregon: Drier, high-country desert, in the mountains. Sort of hot in the summer, sort of cold in the winter, but lots of sunny days and not much rain—basically, excellent weather. Skiing close by. Small town, local college, a retirement area with relatively expensive housing. Wine country is nearby. My sister and her extended family have retired there, which is interesting as Ashland is very liberal and they ain’t. Ashland is also home to the performing arts centered around the Ashland Shakespearean Festival. They are not interested in the Festival, but we drag them when we all visit in the summer. You still need a car, but the distances to good stuff are shorter. My family reports that medical care in Ashland, specifically for the aged, is excellent. Wish I could afford to retire there. Ed

What you didn't mention is Portland's transportation system. I understand that many are proud of it, but that it has its detractors. Any views?
http://www.trans.ci.portland.or.us/

[haha]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ed_The_Gypsy The Portland area, which is the population center, is definitely left-coast, just so you know.* However, the rest of the state is rural, agricultural and red-neck.*

This goes in spades for most of Eastern Washington, and SW Washington south of Olympia but north of Vancouver. Many of these folks in the wooded areas hung their hats in the Southern Appalachians before coming out here to work in the woods. Back in the 70s my wife and I were thrown out of bars because "We don't serve Injuns."

But my all time greatest Eastern Washington story took place one early AM in a motel in Omak. My wife and I had made a long drive, and we had a few drinks to relax and were just getting it on when a young Indian woman bursts into the room, grabbed my wife by the arm, pulled her out from under me, and warned us to get out of there because wife's husband was coming after her.

We both felt confused, because she had only one husband, it was me, and I was already there and reasonably happy with the way things were going. The interloper, who was somewhat drunk, insisted that my wife was her sister, that I was causing her to commit adultery, and that we didn't scram fast we were both as good as dead.

We decided if DW looked enough like this gal that she couldn't tell it was mistaken identity, we would have little chance with the aggrieved husband. By this time the lady who ran the motel was in our room screaming at us to get dressed and get out.

So we did.

Several months later I went back, and found out that the motel owner had spotted DW and called her "sister" in a farcical attempt to avoid murder in her motel.

Just one of many interesting events from rural Washington, which I mostly would not recommend for retirement for the average ER couple.

Ha

[Spanky]

HaHa,

Thanks for sharing your story about rural area. That's one of the reason that I want to live very close to a metropolitan area. I think that's pretty much the same in other parts of the U.S. also. As an example, we live in Minneapolis. The people are friendly and most do value diversity. However, the attitude changes drastically as you move into the rural area, i.e., Hibbing or iron mine country.

Spanky

[HFWR]

They don't call 'em "red" states fer nuthin'....

[Brat]

Portland's transportation system: planners convinced the community that freeways don't solve congestion but they do give you options. The light-rail system, MAX, has never lost a bond issue.

Seattle is a horror story.

[Ed_The_Gypsy]

I left Portland long before light rail came to town, but I am sure it works fine. It isn't utilized as much as it might be, apparantly. I once saw a photo of a coyote laying on a seat in one of the cars. It got in at one distant station and enjoyed the ride.

The bus system and a ten-speed bicycle were all I needed for many years. They will still serve the hardy.

Gypsy

[Nords]

The City & County of Honolulu is finally getting ready to raise the excise tax from 4% to 4.5% to pay for building a light-rail system. It's been controversial to say the least, and this is a debate that's dragged on for three decades in one of the nation's most solid Democratic one-party states.

Portland has been touted as one of the success stories. In fact the City Council members had to make numerous trips there (and many other places) to verify their research.

I'm just glad I'm not commuting anymore. Although apparently I'm gonna start paying for it...

[Eagle43]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nords The City & County of Honolulu is finally getting ready to raise the excise tax from 4% to 4.5% to pay for building a light-rail system. It's been controversial to say the least, and this is a debate that's dragged on for three decades in one of the nation's most solid Democratic one-party states. Portland has been touted as one of the success stories. In fact the City Council members had to make numerous trips there (and many other places) to verify their research. I'm just glad I'm not commuting anymore. Although apparently I'm gonna start paying for it...

Don't you think Honolulu needs something?? It's a mess, IMHO! Of course, if it costs as much as H-3, probably not worth it? Isn't H-3 the most costly interstate per mile anywhere?

p.s. How much does the bus cost these days? I didn't use last trip, but I remember (I think) it was about 65 cents or so for a complete roundtrip.

[Nords]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Eagle43 Don't you think Honolulu needs something??* It's a mess, IMHO! Of course, if it costs as much as H-3, probably not worth it?* Isn't H-3 the most costly interstate per mile anywhere? p.s.* How much does the bus cost these days? I didn't use last trip, but I remember (I think) it was about 65 cents or so for a complete roundtrip.

Hey, Eagle, you've been around. Let's do a thought experiment-- compare Honolulu traffic to (1) the Washington DC beltway (especially in winter), (2) the LA freeways (take your pick), (3) the San Diego freeways, (4) Norfolk metropolitan area, (5) Boston, (6) Manhattan, (7) your favorite Texas military town-- but you get the point.

At least our traffic jams can only wrap around the island once-- that's about 30 miles. The thundering rush-hour herd makes the worst commute-- Waialua or Ewa to downtown Honolulu-- about 90 minutes. Otherwise, unless there's an accident with a fatality that closes the highway for an investigation, rush hour moves fairly briskly at 20-25 mph. (Or so my spouse tells me.) There's been a big improvement with contraflow & carpool lanes during rush hour. Other trouble spots are being widened or additional roads are being built.

The H-3 crews have an official t-shirt that was passed from parents to kids (when the kids got their union cards and joined the crew) during its 25-year construction. On the back in foot-high letters it says simply "H-3". On the front, the logo is a pig with wings. It (the highway, not the t-shirt) was built at over $1B/mile (in 1970s-1990s dollars!) and even required a special act of Congress.

The latest spin is that we don't need to make more or bigger roads, we just need to reduce the peak load by 10-15%. Originally that was going to be more buses at shorter intervals, but it really chapped the bus company's accountant's hides to see people getting to work faster on buses that were less than 110% full.

The version before that was going to be developing Kapolei into a second city & auxiliary govt workplace. That's still happening but people aren't willing to wait another 5-10 years for the infrastructure to develop.

The "Vanpool" concept has been changed to big honkin' SUVs. That's catching on fast!

The bus is basically $2 for an adult one-way trip. There are bus passes, senior/student discounts, etc but it's still over a buck a trip at best. I don't see people throwing away their car keys for a light-rail version of the bus, even if it goes all the way from Honolulu to Waianae. But I could be wrong...

[Eagle43]

Thanks for the answer NORDS. Hey, to change the subject just a little, has anybody on the forum been to Curitiba, Brazil? I read about them 7-8 years ago, and thought they had a novel solution to transportation. Here's a couple of links:

http://www.pbs.org/frontlineworld/fe...portation.html

http://www.dismantle.org/curitiba.htm

http://solstice.crest.org/sustainabl...iba/part4.html

[Nords]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Eagle43 I read about them 7-8 years ago, and thought they had a novel solution to transportation.

I remember this got a great writeup in Scientific American, especially the "tube stops" to speed up the passenger loading. (I wonder how they'd handle the bicycle racks.) I wonder what they've learned.

This sure sounds better than an elevated rail. I'm sure our City Council is finding their passports & calling their travel agents now...

[Ed_The_Gypsy]

Eagle,

This article on Curitiba showed up recently:

http://www.escapeartist.com/efam/69/...ba_Brazil.html

Looks interesting.

Gypsy

[Eagle43]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ed_The_Gypsy Eagle, This article on Curitiba showed up recently: http://www.escapeartist.com/efam/69/...ba_Brazil.html Looks interesting. Gypsy

Thanks Ed, read it. Good article, although it only mentions transportation in passing. Anyway, seems like a "must see" if and when possible.