Quality of Life Quest: It Begins

John had a big birthday this weekend, and the only thing he wanted was a house. That was a little hard for me to get, so instead I got him a folder full of maps, printouts of information on towns, and profiles of towns he already knows he wants to check out. Yes, I got him more than that for his bday, but the point is, that we're starting our quest. We're looking for a quality, affordable town to live in. It's a long term project that is expected to take many months, but it all starts with day one, today.

In an hour or so we'll head up the coast and have a look at the San Luis Obispo area including Paso Robles and Pismo Beach. Tomorrow we'll go south from there winding up at Chumash in time to play in a $25 tournament. I've never been to Chumash and am looking forward to it. Of course if we had our millions John would want to live in Santa Barbara. But we're not quite there yet, and you know me, I'm fairly flexible. Though as we have begun to talk about this, it's both exciting, and a bit scary.

What is our criteria? We're still trying to figure that out. We like different things, so there's got to be some middle ground. Weather is John's biggest care. He doesn't do winter. I love to see the seasons change and would move to Milwaukee or Portland or maybe even Maine, though I've never been to Maine, in a heart beat. So, it's almost as if we've drawn a center line across a map of the U.S. and are looking at the bottom half.

We both need the town to be tech friendly, I want it to have good public schools, though I have no idea how to measure that yet. The housing needs to be affordable. We're aiming for towns with plenty of houses in the $400K and under zone. And I need a good old town vibe. I would love for the town, notice I didn't say city, to be somewhat historic. I can't do a Murietta or Temecula style start up. I need character. Coffeehouses and newstands are a definite plus. Oh, and yes, it needs to be within two hours of a good airport.

Charleston is still on the list. And Wilmington, NC and Carolina Beach are also next in line. I'm sure we'll talk a lot more about what we want on the drive today and how we'll grade each town. Last night I bought a brand new Moleskine so that I can document this adventure. So, wish us luck and chime in if you know of a town that you recommend we check out. Money Magazine has a section called "Best Places to Live 2006" and my favorite part about that guide is reading the comments of the people who are irked that their town wasn't on the list and why they think it should be. Now, that's a resource.

Ok, let me get packing. I'll report later from our WiFi hotel in Pismo.

CURRENT: PASADENA, CA
NEXT: PISMO BEACH, CA

 

Comments

[CJ]

Well, I've already thrown in my two cents. Greenville, SC fits at least some of your criteria and Otis and Mrs. Otis can let you know if it fits more.

[pablo]

when you drive through Kansas, don't get discouraged with western Kansas. I highly recommend my home city of Lawrence Kansas. it's home to liberal University of Kansas. it reminds me of a mini San Francisco in the red sea of flat rebublican Kansas. it's ranked 20th on that Money Magazine article according to education.

best of luck and enjoy your travels!
~ pablo in hong kong.

[Charles]

Stop looking now and go straight to Athens, Georgia. It is progressive, has plenty of very nice homes in your price range, easy access to Atlanta, Mountains, and the coast, the music scene is great, and the University provides many things to do...and the schools range from good to excellent.

[Jen Leo]

Thanks for the leads guys! I appreciate it.

[JP]

Come to Birmingham Alabama. Alabama gets a lot of grief from people but the Birmingham area is great. Look into the surrounding towns like Hoover, Vestavia, and Mountain Brook. You'll love it.

[brandy]

Visit Austin, Texas! I know, Texas. but it's wonderful, the blue spot in the red state. tons of independent everything, bookstores, coffeeshops, movie theatres (Bookpeople, too many coffeeshops to list-let's just say that it's not cool to go to starbucks, Alamo Drafthouse for movies)
i'm selling my house in tampa,florida for 210K, to buy a way better one in austin for 140K. (i too must stay in the snowfree zone)For close to 400k, you could live in the ubercool 78704 zip code, we're going a bit further out, 78745,we're too poor, an artist and a teacher (austin=tech though, check it out)
i have a moleskine dedicated to our eacape from florida. good luck with your journey, we considered greenville too, but it's out of our range)