Aqua Buddha

I know what the polling says about PA but I have a hard time believing that a state with a Dem governor and two Dem Senators that voted for Biden last time is going to vote for Trump now.

We're not down with living long term in a place with frequent natural disasters. (It's one of about 50 reasons Florida is not on the list.)

We've been flying in and out of there for awhile and you're right, that airport blew up. They just finished the Hyatt. I wish it were a hub for someone besides Southwest, though. Still very good airport. Good people watching on Sundays with hungover bachelorette parties shuffling through the terminal wearing sunglasses. Nashville and Austin are probably the two cities who handled their growth the worst. Everyone keeps moving there and they're doing nothing. I only mention Franklin because we like downtown Franklin. Otherwise, it's a McMansion subdivisions and faux gentleman ranches with wedding barns for people from small towns to drive in and have an Instagrammable weddings. Pretty MAGA, though. I remember one of the worst school board meltdowns was in Franklin and the leader was like a 25 year old who lived with this parents or something. To your point, Nashville also has a bigger corporate presence than most people think but since we're talking retirement here, that's a non issue.

Why Santa Fe? Just curious...

Only Biden can beat Trump? WTF, are some of you retarded? Joe Biden was always an average to below average pol who was good at foreign policy. He ran for president in 88, 08, and 20 and lost badly each time until the SC primary in 20 when the blacks voted for him because he was Obama’s BFF. (Had he not been Obama’s VP, he doesn’t win that.) He’s just not a good politician and the idea that the Democratic Party in 2024 can only win with 82 year old Joe Biden is ridiculous.

Lulz. Believe that. We actually really like Phoenix/Scottsdale in this equation. If we were more golf obsessed, it'd prolly be #1. There is no dense(isn) and walkable(isn) area there for this very reason. Also, if we were really into golf, how much golf are we playing in the summer? (Although, we do know a guy who is wired like a fucking camel and can play 36 holes of golf in the middle of the summer. He gets the best rates anywhere. He just waits until July/August and hits Florida, AZ, Palm Springs, etc.) Also, the average age in North Scottsdale is somewhere around 139. They make Joe Biden look young. It looks like a moonscape with olds from 'Sconsin, Chicago, Minneapolis, etc. Place looks like a car show, too. I was at a Starbucks and I saw Bentley's, Ferrari's, Lambo's, Aston Martin's, etc. A really old guy would always get out. We called them "Larry."

We want a dense(ish) and walkable(isn) neighborhood so hard pass on being "further out." Cherry Creek looks promising. I had seen some nice looking condos/townhouses in the Union Station area and remembered being there in 2019 but I guess it's a homeless encampment now. Hard pass on that as well. Scottsdale didn't seem to have much homeless but that's prolly because they'd spontaneously combust on the sidewalk during the summer.

Question for @mchookem or any other Denverite.... Back in 2019, I stayed in LoDo. I thought it was nice and walkable. We walked to a baseball game. However, I've read that LoDo/Union Station/downtown has gone to shit since covid. Is that true?

Yeah, I keep saying that's one of the knocks against Nashville. (That and lack of anything outdoorsy, really.) Nashville proper is fine. The Gulch, West End, Vandy, 12 South, etc., are all good neighborhoods but when you get into the burbs, you get the MAGA Warrior Patriots. Problem is those Nashville proper neighborhoods aren't enough to outweigh the state or even the metro area.

What the fuck did he just say? Harris wasn't qualified to be president?

This thing runs any later, it's gonna bump up against 8 pm EST.....

Who is in the "inner circle" besides, you know, the crack head son?

We've thought about that, too. Split time between here and somewhere else and if that's the case, definitely Phoenix/Scottsdale because of the weather flip. However, the wife doesn't like the idea of two houses across the country. "Shit breaks." She has a point. Just get a long term AirBnb if that's the case.

Yeah, that's where I took points away. Greater Nashville isn't enough to move the needle in TN and to your point, Franklin had the politics of the North Dallas burbs. We really like downtown Franklin, though, but only that very specific area. We don't care about some fake gentleman horse ranch outside of town.

So, the press conference was supposed to start at 5:30 CST and it's already 10 minutes late?

NYC doesn't get enough attention for a "retirement" spot. Most of the housing is on one level. (I hate stairs even now.) There is no driving and you can have most things delivered if you can't get out. Great culture, even on a random Tuesday. Lotta free stuff, too. Weather not as bad as people think. Sure, January and February are bad (with some shoulder weather) but overall, it's not Chicago or Minneapolis. Good point about the airports, too, but even out of here, I'm in Europe in two stops. That's why I laugh at all of the Southwest nonsense with 3 and 4 stops. I'm in rural Arkansas and in Rome with one stop.

She'll learn what the other women and Tim Scott have learned, which is despite the lip service, the Republican Party will never nominate anyone that's not a white man.

I actually really want NYC. The wife doesn't like "huge" cities, though. She doesn't like the grit. She's like "why can't we just fly in there and spend a week at the Mandarin every other month?" Fair point, I guess. Also, you are correct on health care. It's a downside to where we are now. At least the other cities I threw out are solid options in that regard. I've been surprised how difficult it is to get specialists in a small/mid sized market. Thanks for the input, though.

Vance is also smart but good at acting stupid. Has some damaging quotes in the past regarding Trump, though.

Thanks for the perspective. I was wondering about the bike trails. Trailforks shows a decent amount of trails so I was wondering. The rest of the city seems bikeable...? As far as COL, believe it or now the part of Northwest Arkansas I live in on par with anything in the Central and Mountain Time zones except for a handful of zip codes. It really blew up here for random reasons. If I can move lateral or down on COL, I'm fine but to your point, any nice place is going to cost.

Good mention on Raleigh/Durham. Good university towns and serviceable airport, actually. Also seems drivable to the mountains (Asheville) and coast (Charleston). We'll keep that in mind. Thanks.

We thought about Seattle and Vancouver. We LOVE them but don't know if we could handle the six months of drizzle. Good options, though.

Central Oregon and Asheville are too small. The wife really likes Portland but we've never been to Central Oregon. We really like Asheville but again, too small. Relatively good weather, food scene, and outdoorsy, though. Small airport, too. Would like to keep in the US. Sorry about that.

The delegates vote against him using the "good conscience" clause and rightfully so. If this is true, he should be threatened with that. Call his bluff. He'll resign. So, everyone except his crack head son thinks he should step down and he's listening to the crack head?

Some background, first. We’re in our early 50’s and looking to retire in the next 8-10 years. No kids so we don’t have to chase grandkids around the country to watch them play soccer games or something in a generic suburb. Preferences: Big city but too big, if that makes sense. No small towns or mid-sized towns unless they’re within 30 minutes of an actual city. Good airport Things to do on a random weekday. A raison d'etre for a city, if you will. A relatively outdoorsy place. By that I mean, we like outdoorsy stuff but no camping. A workable tax rate. We’re not going to slavishly chase a low rate but it does matter. Politics, both state and city. Prefer left leaning. (This exempts the South and Texas.) We are moderates. We like open minded people but not like walking through homeless encampments. Relatively good weather. (This exempts the South and Texas.) House budget -- $1.5M to $2.5M House preferably in a relatively walkable (or short drive) neighborhood close to shopping, dining, etc. A few places that we’ve narrowed it down to, in no particular order. Phoenix/Scottsdale Lots of outdoor stuff (hiking, biking, golf, etc.) Fairly extensive trail system in the city along with some hiking. Great airport Solid food scene Weather* *Yes, a blast furnace in the summer. However, it seems from about mid-September to mid-May, it’s fairly nice. (Is that accurate?) We know someone there and they said during the summer, they just know to wake up early, do things in the morning, nap/hunker down in the afternoon, and go out at night. We could also decamp in the summer to an AirBnb in La Jolla or someplace. We’d look at South Scottsdale. North Scottsdale looks like a moonscape and is full of olds. The politics outside of Phoenix are insane but Phoenix metro is enough to keep them in check. Denver Lots of outdoor stuff but not much golf, which isn’t a deal breaker. (I like golf but I’m not playing 3-5 times per week.) Great airport Solid food scene Weather: Not as cold as people think. Yes, it snows in the winter but there are also a lot of sunny 50 degree days. Summers are nice and even if hot, it’s dry. Seemingly good food scene Party train to the slopes on a Friday or something. We’d look at Cherry Creek. Downtown/Union Station area seemed nice last time I was there but that was 2019 and I’ve heard it went to shit after Covid. Workable politics all around. Nashville/Franklin Surprisingly little outdoor stuff to do. No real trail system to speak of Good but not great airport. Directs to most everywhere in the Central and Eastern time zones. Airport is at least close to the city, unlike Denver. Great food scene. Great entertainment scene. Lots of shows at all levels. Weather: Temperate but at this point that means you’re not outside for two months in the summer and two months in the winter. At least Phoenix has the 4 months all in a row. We’d look at The Gulch, 12 South, or downtown Franklin Politics are largely in insane, both at the state and city level. Nashville, unlike Phoenix, is not big enough to balance out the rural parts of the state. Northwest Arkansas We live there now. (Also, some on this board have ties to there.) Serviceable airport. It’s small but AA has directs to every major AA hub. Below average food scene Very below average entertainment scene. Great outdoor activities 9-10 months per year, weather permitting. Weather See Nashville We know where we’d look. Those areas are the same price points as the other cities and neighborhoods mentioned. Politics are insane at every level unless you’re in a very specific blue bubble. What are the thoughts from this august body on either the options above or if I’m missing anywhere?