[thechat] Find your ideal US city

Hugh Blair hblair at hotfootmail.com
Thu Jun 13 12:35:01 CDT 2002


> -----Original Message-----
> On Behalf Of Madhu Menon
>
> Hi Hugh. I'd probably find it difficult, if not impossible to even get a
> regular visa, let alone an H1B. :(

That sucks. Seriously.

> Climate
> a) Mild climate, neither too hot nor too cold (Bangalore, where I stay now,
> is such a place.)
> b) Hate lots of rain. It bugs the hell outta me.
> c) Take the cold better than the heat

OK - so stay North of Kansas City, and Seattle is out.

> Culture
> a) Don't particularly care if there are museums or art galleries nearby.
> I'm not the "art lover" kind.

Then ignore that criteria

> Education
> a) I prefer progressive education to back-to-basics curricula.
> b) Airport within driving distance is OK.

Stay out of most of the South and central Midwest.

> Recreation
> a) Not much into outdoor sports, except maybe biking, and walking. Indoor
> sports such as weight training - good.
> b) Wouldn't mind lakes

Upper New York, Minnesota, Wisconsin, but we're getting a little cold.

> Urban
> a) Prefer low-crime areas, but not at expense of the amenities
> b) Nowhere near a desert, thanks

Not Detroit.

> Religion
> a) I'm an atheist, so I couldn't care less
> b) Don't particularly care about having people from my community nearby
> either. Indifferent.

Any place won't matter then.

> Rent
> a) Have no idea what "average" rent is, but I can't afford NY City by a
> long shot. Some place where I don't have to spend more than 30% of net
> income on rent would be nice.

Then the place would depend on your income, but that's usually not a
problem. Income seems to be higher where rents are higher.

> So, Hugh, got any recommendations for me? ;)

My biases are: Not downtown, not farmland. I'm a suburb kind of guy.
That puts me close to all the good things of a large city, yet in a
quieter area - still with good shopping, culture, people.

I'm loving it here in Schaumburg, a western suburb of Chicago.
http://makeashorterlink.com/?W5B921D01
I liked it in Cherry Hill, NJ, close to Philadelphia and NY.
http://makeashorterlink.com/?J2D955D01
I liked it in the northern 'burbs of Kansas City.
http://makeashorterlink.com/?S69925D01
But I also liked it in the southern corner of Colorado
http://makeashorterlink.com/?P20A12D01
and on the coast of Maine.
http://makeashorterlink.com/?V22A12D01
I haven't lived there, but Minneapolis *is* really nice.
http://makeashorterlink.com/?E54A12D01

But everybody has different tastes, different wants. I just want to
win the lottery and retire to a chair on a beach here:
http://www.konavillage.com/map.asp
of course, I'll need a T1 and a backup power generator :)

--
    Hugh




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