Thanks for all the feedback guys. There's a lot to think about here and I really appreciate it. The responses really are a good reminder of what I love about this forum: people here are generally quite smart, insightful, introspective and willing to lend a perspective or offer constructive suggestions. I appreciate the personal anecdotes too. I think maybe I'm scared about getting older and as I do, being less and less likely ("willing" I suppose is more correct) to move, shake things up and what-have-you to try and improve my station in life and my net happiness. I think I don't want to feel trapped - like I told a close friend the other day, "not all prisons have bars and many are of our own making". I sort of feel like I may have inadvertently built one for myself here and I'm wondering if I should "get out on parole" (implications of "for good behavior" not applicable
).
I did live in Portland for a year. Great vibe, good culture, great beer, nice people, good coffee. Could afford a nice house there. Decent schools, pretty scenery, fun flying (made me a damn good instrument pilot). Utterly horrid weather. I counted 50 straight days of gray and rain. I was nearly suicidal at the end. As a point of reference wasn't the biblical flood (Noah's ark) only 40 days? It rains a LOT. But at least it wasn't snow, just 40-45 degrees F and spitting rain. For 50 straight days. I loved it (when the sun was out) and would absolutely consider a summer / seasonal kind of place up there but I really don't think I could ever live there permanently. I need sunshine. A lot of it. And warmth. I'm seriously a different person in nice, warm, sunshiny weather and I'm much happier. I guess it sort of comes down to, "is it better to have a lousy job or no job in a sunny place or a good job in a rotten place"? Tough question. I've done both and in both instances I pointed to the opposite situation and said "the other one!" so I don't know if my perspective gets too slanted or what.
The "vacation in winter" suggestion is a great one and I've actually done it. I don't bother taking them in summer - everything is overcrowded and way more expensive. I try to do the opposite of what all the lemmings do as a general rule - usually works out pretty well. In summer I don't NEED vacations - my life is pretty great. When I lived in CA (12 years) I think I took two. I just didn't need them. I'd take an occasional 3-day or 4-day weekend and run to Avalon or Kings Canyon or the Channel Islands - stuff like that. My day-to-day life was generally enjoyable enough (when things were good, before the crash) that I just didn't need formal extended vacations. I always considered it wasting money, time, etc. My perspective has changed a bit on that now (older, kids, different living arrangements and crawling-out-of-my-skin for six months a year can do that). I find anytime I get out of New England I really like it and I rave about it for weeks afterwards. I went to Washington DC and VA a month ago and I can't get it out of my head. It was a blast and it got me out of here. And it was only DC fer cryin' out loud! My 2013 trip to St. Thomas / St. John was other-worldly and I still think of it daily (more so during the lousy winter months of course). The ONLY bad thing was having to get on the plane to come back here.
It's not all bad here - I just think I ought to live elsewhere and visit occasionally. That's my thought anyway. Just where?