Think about this...

[NeverMore]

Okay rub it in , we got 6 inch of snow last week, and it's been raining, flurrying and sleeting ever since, Highs in the thirties and the night in the twenties, UGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I actually have a fireplace in the new house. Too bad it doesn't really get cold enough here to use it but one can only hope the temps drop low enough.

I'm incorrigible, ain't I?

[Pumpkin_Man]

We had an other snow day Tuesday. They kicked us all out the door at 11:00 am, so I lit a fire in my fireplace and roasted an Oscar Meyer smoked sausage for supper.

Mike

[Demonic Duck]

Fire roasted hot dogs sound good right now.

[Pumpkin_Man]

That's what I'm going to do when I get home tonight. At least it's not snowing, but it's a cold, wet, sloppy kind of a day, a great sleeping night.

Mike

[Boogeyman]

Mike, it is snowing here right now in SW Michigan. It is supposed to snow again tomorrow too. We are maybe 30 miles from Lake Michigan.

[Pumpkin_Man]

Boogyman, nobody is more ready for Spring and warmer weather then I am. Right now, as I write this post, temps are below 20 degrees, with a day time high today of only 30 degrees and an over night low of 15 degrees. It has been WRETCHEDLY dold in my neck of the woods, and the closest date to a warm up is a week from today, when temps are suppose to "soar" up to 47 degrees.

Last year at this time, I was running my air conditioner and taking my Harley to work, because the temps were like Summer time. I even had to mow the lawn before my St. Patrick's Day dinner, and Spring doesn't start until the 21st of March. That just blew my mind, because never before in my life, have I had to pull out the lawn mower before mid April.

I sure wish it could be like that again. It's been a long, boring, cold and snowy Winter, and I just wish it was over with for the year.

Mike

[Boogeyman]

You can have it as warm as you want, but you have to pay my electric bill. Since I am unemployment, I can't afford the $100 bills I had for three months last year. One question though, if you hate the cold that much why do you live in an area that gets winter? I personally love it but still want to move for other reasons. Mainly Detroit.

[Pumpkin_Man]

Boogyman, I have a job, a house, my brothers, sisters, nieces and nephews, and a life in Dwight Illinois. Perhaps when I retire I'll consider a move. As for Winter, I don't really "hate" the season in and of itself. I hated this particular Winter because of all the inconvenience, the flu bugs and ending up in the hospital for 4 days because of my ulcers. I have thought very often "wouldn't it be nice if I could move to Florida, or Southern California, or even Southern Texas." The only problem is that the cost of living in those places are far out of my budget. Especialy when I retire, money is going to be a bit tight.

As for heating and air conditioning bills, my largest heating bill for this winter was a little under 400 dollars. During one of the hottest, most brutaly humid summers, my largest air conditioning bill was about 127 dollars, so for some reason, it's actualy cheaper for me to cool my house in the Summer then it is to keep it warm in the Winter. Perhaps I should consider an electric furnace.

Mike

[Boogeyman]

The problem is Mike, that you can always dress warmer in cooler temps. You can only take so much off if it is too hot. I keep my thermostat at 62 and wear sweatpants and a sweatshirt during the winter and never get cold. I am on the third floor with water heat. That means I can't cool this place down for anything. It can be up to 15 degrees warmer in my condo than what the outside temp is, so 75 degrees can mean close to 90 in here for me. Add to that the allergies that will start soon and not being able to blow my nose, I am going to be miserable for about six weeks. I never look forward to spring.

[Murfreesboro]

Mike, would south Texas really be too expensive for you? I haven't lived in TX since the '80s, but I was always under the impression that it was one of the cheaper places to live.

Several years ago I heard that many retirees from other areas were coming to my home state, Mississippi, because cost of living is so cheap there. The climate is mild, and there are many more cultural amenities than people outside the South imagine, especially if you select a college/univ. town. And Mississippi is a Gulf State, if that idea is attractive to you. I mean, it has a coast line, fresh seafood, etc.

Boogeyman, I'm afraid the South isn't very likely to be your cup of tea, if you like it cold. Perhaps the mountainous South would appeal to you (East TN, Blue Ridge & Shenandoah Valley of VA, or North Carolina mountains).

[Pumpkin_Man]

Boogyman, about 200 or so pounds ago, I was exactly the same way. Even during Winter, I had to have a fan on, seldomely wor a coat unless I knew that I was going to be outside for an extended period of time, and my thermostat was never set any warmer then aroub 68 degrees. When Summer did arrive, my air conditioner was constantly running.

Murf, maybe Texas or Mississippi is worthy of consideration, and I LOV the beach and the Gulf of Mexico. Does Mississippi have a state income tax? What about fireworks laws? Would the state troopers down there throw me in jail for lighting off firecrackers on the 4th of July? Finaly, I am particularly fond of my 103 year old house. What are realestate prices like down there?

I ask all this, because I am seriously considering relocation upon retirement. Illinois does have a state income tax, and a state sales tax, but they don't tax pension income. So far, I am interested in Washington State, Colorado (I know, they get snow in those places, but they have more freedoms) Nevada, Arizona, and Tennessee.

Mike

[Boogeyman]

Mike, don't you own guns? You may want to rethink Colorado if you do. It has begun...
http://www.cnn.com/2013/03/20/us/colorado-gun-control

Good luck moving from one very liberal state to another like Washington or Colorado.

And my breathing problems come from being born with a cleft lip and palate, not weight issues. I have lost 80 pounds so I understand your point but that is not the issue for me. When I get stuffed up, I can't blow my nose so I am really miserable.

[Murfreesboro]

Mike, I moved away from Mississippi in 1975 to go to school in Tennessee. My mother continued to live there until shortly before her death in 1995, so I don't have much contact with my home state anymore. There is a state income tax, and I guess you'd just have to check on the fireworks laws to see if they suit you. As for home prices, I just did a quick internet check and found that the average home price in Hinds County (where I was born, site of the state capital) is currently under $200,000. However, average home price in Madison County, immediately north of Hinds, is just under $400,000. I know that all my friends from high school days have moved out of Jackson and are now living in Madison County, so I guess that is the place to be now.

Perhaps I have said this elsewhere, but for many years (perhaps 80) after the Civil War, no one celebrated the 4th of July in Mississippi, because Vicksburg fell on that day. Consequently, people would shoot off their fireworks at Christmas instead. Even in my childhood, Christmastime fireworks were big in Mississippi. We would almost always shoot fireworks on Christmas night. I don't know if that is still so much the case there, but I did see when I Googled it just now that fireworks can be sold there from June 15-July 5, and again from December 5 to January 2. So it sounds like people are still doing fireworks at Christmas down there. I bet most of them don't even know why anymore.

[Pumpkin_Man]

Thank you BogyMan and Murf. I will definately "look before I leap," when I retire. Relocating to another state requires, IMHO, lots of research on state laws, and local laws of the town or towhship where one will be moving to. I just threw out Mississippi and Colorado as examples. What I really want is the following.

1. NO STATE INCOME TAX ON PENSIONS.

2. No, or very low property taxes.

3. No major restrictions on fire arm ownership

4. No major restrictions against the detonation of 4th of July fireworks,

5. Various other personal liberties which I won't list.

Mike

[Spookymufu]

Mike the problem with Colorado and Washington is they are nanny states and for those that actually work and provide for them selves are going to be sucked dry by the state Gov to support the useless people who feel they are entitled to everything. Keep that in mind when you think harder on relocating, you can also add California to that list along with NY and several others.....