Last week we signed our last 1-year Lease here...........that is, we hope so! Because our winter months still go on in April and sometimes part of May, we may have to go to "monthly rental" when our Lease ends in 2023. Last weekend, we rented a 10 x 10 foot storage where we have our boat. Had a 5 x 10 storage, but that definitely isn't going to be big enough for boxes/plastic storage containers we will have full. Don't totally know where we are moving to, but definitely not to Texas, Florida or any Southern or East Coast State. And, not back to California or up into Oregon or Washington. In fact, may end up staying right here in Colorado, but not in the city were in. The complex we are in, now for 2 1/2 years, is like living in a college dorm. Most of the residents here could be our grandkids. Not kids, but grandkids. That young! Actually, the city has changed even more since we've moved here in 2019. Many Seniors here don't like the change, that started occurring about 15 years ago, but many own houses and can't move. We know what we like and don't like and will look for better. One thing for sure, people here sure aren't as friendly as they were in 2003 when we visited here during their County Fair. Guess I still remember the small town of Churubusco, Indiana back in the mid-late 60's. Not only did local farmers know us, the barber we used knew us also. The bank knew us. The cafe just outside of town knew me, step-mom and step-dad. People would say "hi" or "good morning" to each other. That sure doesn't happen here!
Moving won't necessarily give you what you want, Cody. You have bemoaned the last two places you've lived, on the "other forum," years ago, and now in here. You seem to want things to be the way you remember them, back in the day. Well, things have changed, greatly, everywhere. Just because you move doesn't mean you'll find a place where things are as good as you may remember, from the past. Janet and I have, over the last few years, taken my RV to many different towns, looking for a new place to live. I've been in Austin for the last forty-four years. It was a wonderful town when I got here. It's pretty bad, now, with bad air, water, traffic, expenses, crime, and more. The thing is, each time we weigh the pluses and minuses of Austin vs. any new town, we grudgingly admit that Austin wins, so we stay. As far as you not finding your age group, for socializing, that's just the way things will be unless you have the funds to afford a move into a very nice retirement area where you'll find more people your own age. The only town where Janet and I were not always the oldest folks attending various functions was in Woodland Park, CO. Yeah, it's a different world, Cody. People our age keep more to themselves, now, I think, when it comes to getting out and socializing. The internet gives our age group a way to "talk" to others our age, but I'm not so sure that any town you move to will give you enough in-person exposure to older folks. At our age, we all know what the world is like, out there, and many of us are not willing to get into venturing out, in a big way. FWIW, if your funds limit you to apartment complexes, those spreading urban cancers that dominate all urban centers, these days, you will always find mostly younger people there, because those apartments are what they can afford. I hope you either find a new town, soon, or simply change some things in your life, to the point where you can accept that you'll be living in apartment complexes, as above, for the foreseeable future, and just take things in stride, with calm understanding.
Very true Trevalius. The other day I came close to recommending a place in Arizona where I lived and worked and quite frankly grew quite fond of but that was 40 years ago and other than one thing, I have no idea if it’s the same as it was. Patagonia, Arizona was the epitome of an old west ranching area. It’s just down the road from Sierra Vista where many of the old western movies were shot and a few miles from Tombstone and the epitome of an old west ranching town with real, very hardworking cowboys, some of whom still rode their horses into town, It was a town where the height of the July 4th celebration was the cow chip throwing contest in the town square. Whilst I was slinging drinks at the hotel, it was there that I met people like Lucky who owned and leased out a gold mine and paid for everything with silver dollars but he’s undoubtedly passed. I met old man Gill who followed after his dad’s occupation of building Puddle Jumper and Concord stage coaches. Of course, he built them for the movies but when I met him he was 92 years old so he’s gone by now. I knew the owner of a 29K acre ranch but again, he was old when I knew him so poof, that bit of the past is no longer. What I’m getting at is that my recommendation for perusal would have been in error because nothing stays the same. Note: The one change I do know of is that someone bought up some acreage and built some kind of vegan new age wellness ranch but how far out of town it is, I have no idea. The rest might just be the same slow moving town that it was, complete with a mayor who got ticketed for DUI whist riding a horse but for all I know, it could be filled with cell phone wielding tourists.
Well, we left CO in 2007 due to a fall I took in ice/snow in the driveway of the house we were buying. That fall resulted in a rotator cuff surgery. And, on top of that, I was driving 28 miles, each way, to a job about a mile from downtown Denver. Well, we made the mistake and moved. Why do I say "mistake"? I didn't want either of us to fall in ice/snow, especially me again, and become handicapped, if that happened. Neither of us even gave it a thought that we could fall anywhere we would live. And, as it happened, I fell in the parking lot of the apt. complex we lived in in Jacksonville, FL. Again, another rotator cuff surgery, but the other shoulder. Anyway, from CO to NC (Huntersville). We were drawn to Lake Norman for boating/fishing, but we never did. The lake has a Nuclear Power Plant at the one end that makes the lake water very, very warm (some 90 degrees warm) in the summer. We did go to an Indian Casino (Cherokee) in the mountains a couple of times and that was pretty fun. We also went to Cape Fear River, by Wrightsville. This was the very first time I'd ever seen the Atlantic Ocean! Well, it ended up that my wife didn't like NC, plus she got laid-off of her job she got in Huntersville. So, we visited Jacksonville and decided to move down there. Not only did we give up rodeo in NC, we pretty much gave up everything "Western" in Florida. No mountains, no Elk, no rodeo action (anywhere close to wear we lived). Bought a bought there, but boating in "brackish" salt/fresh water in St. Johns River was much fun for us. We like freshwater lakes, like we had in CO. After 10 1/2 years, living in Jacksonville, we really realized we should have never/ever left CO. We just didn't make good "Southerners". Although, we did do a number of fun things in Florida. So, were now back in CO, but the northern part this time. We have really found out how much the entire Front Range aka Eastern Slope has changed since we move away in Oct. 2007. IOW, way, way too much! And, it's not just us that don't like how it's changed, it's many, many Seniors (our age and older) that don't like it either. So, it's just not us that have the feelings, it is well shared here. But, those that own a house, would have to sell it or rent it out, in order to move. We don't have to do any of that. We will be looking in Ft. Collins, just west of where the livestock auction is. There are apts. a few miles west of the auction. Will see what happens, BUT, we do, without a doubt, know that we don't want to continue living in this city for the rest of our lives.
So, from reading my previous post, #4, we felt like we had good reasons for leaving CO, NC and then FL. And, now, the city we live in. We are looking for Utopia, but someplace where we don't have to complain so much. Then again, isn't that what Seniors are good at.........complaining? LOL
You can throw yourself in that complaining boat but I don't detect that characteristic among others here.
Oh, Al, as I tell some folks "get your head out of the sand". I could go thru this entire forum and show many, many "complaining" threads, from how people feel about Biden to the virus, to family members and on and on.
A lot of threads on this forum sure don't sound like "expressing an opinion", but definitely more like complaining! IOW, a whole heck more of "dislikes" than "likes" from threads I've read.
Just how do you determine dislikes? Opinions are not complaints lookup definitions in dictionary if you don't believe me.
Much of what you seem to be looking for can still be found in a smaller Western town, although they may not exist any longer in the cities that have been taken over by younger people with no interest in rodeos and such. However, in a smaller town, you'd likely have to face the fact that you're not from there, while many of the other older residents were born and raised there, with long-term friendships. We have faced that here, being "from away," but we still know at least half the people we come across in town, and consider several of them to be friends, including some who are thirty years younger. I have friends who are younger than my son because once you've reached fifty, a couple of decades doesn't mean that much anymore. In Millinocket, at the time of the 2010 census, the median age in the town was 51.5 years. 15.5% of residents were under the age of 18; 5.5% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 17.8% were from 25 to 44; 36.6% were from 45 to 64; and 24.6% were 65 years of age or older. I don't have all the figures for 2020 but the median age has risen to 57.4. I know that you've said that you need a larger city because that's where the apartments are but I've been in several small towns that have apartment housing, and houses also tend to rent for less in small towns. I'm guessing that you probably won't find what you're looking for, but I wish you well with the search.
I moved to this rural county coming up on 12 years ago, and it was exactly what I was looking for. Twelve years later and it's becoming more and more like the overcrowded/over-controlled county I left. You will occasionally see bear (and coyote and bob cat and turkey and fox etc) in your yard, yet the outsiders are pushing to have dog ordinances enacted...not for packs, but for the occasionally offending stray. And it ain't because they're raising chickens...they're just jerks looking for something to "be wrong." There are a couple of unneeded "industrial parks" being built because of inside land deals with relatives of some county supervisors...the same kinda corrupt crap that ruined Fairfax County back in the day. I just told a friend the other day that I'm thinking of pulling up stakes and moving to an even more rural county. But then I would be really removed from decent grocery stores, other shopping, medical care, etc etc etc. Right now I'm fortunate to be on a remote large lot well off of the paved road and still have all that nearby (in country terms.) And as Ken said, there's the risk of being the outsider. Right now I have people here I can call to take me to a doctor's appointment...I gave someone such a ride yesterday. I got lucky that the folks here have been very welcoming, even thought they are nth generation locals. I don't expect that will be universal. @Cody Fousnaugh Estes Park has both governmental and non-profit Senior's activities organizations. We got the same kind of stuff around here...I'm just not certain that I want to be around people solely for the purpose of not being alone. Time to channel my inner Thoreau...do I want a pumpkin or a velvet cushion?
You know what, Al, I do really get tired of arguing with you about some things. You have your feelings and we have ours. End.