MidWest vs Socal

5 Hours west of Chicago is only, like, 6 hours from Road America. I say do it!

I think your wife's going to enjoy those river beaches

Maroon92 wrote: 5 Hours west of Chicago is only, like, 6 hours from Road America. I say do it!

Yebbut, San Luis Obispo is only 3 hours from Laguna Seca if you take the faster way (ie, not Hwy 1).

BoxheadTim wrote:

Maroon92 wrote: 5 Hours west of Chicago is only, like, 6 hours from Road America. I say do it!

Yebbut, San Luis Obispo is only 3 hours from Laguna Seca if you take the faster way (ie, not Hwy 1).

Also 2 hours to Buttonwillow or Willow Springs, and about 5-6 to Infineon or Thunderhill.

Eh, probably more like 4 hours to Laguna Seca.

Which location is going to allow you the space for your garage castle? 'nuff said.

I chose to move to California from Michigan so it's clear what my bias is

Another factor to consider is the cultural/ethnic diversity you and your family want to interact with. I don't know the demographics of the SLO (San Louis Obispo) Northern Ventura area. However, You would be roughly halfway between two of the most culturally and ethnically diverse metropolitan areas on the planet. California as a state has no ethnic majority group anymore.

This attracts some people and repels others. The diversity of people is one of the things I really enjoy about living in the San Francisco bay area. The demographics of the Midwest are changing too. There is more diversity everywhere, but not to the same extent.

This may or may not matter to you. I am not trying to lobby you either way. It is part of the cultural and political landscape in California that you will encounter if you choose to move here.

Yeah.. I'm trying to sort this out.

The more I dig into it, I find that the position in Iowa is a higher pay grade level, and would push my career further if I went back to corp HQ in CT.

The position in CA would be great but woudl also require tons of travel..

In Iowa, my wife would be able to be a stay at home kid.

If I were you, I'd choose Iowa in a heartbeat. And I hate cold weather.

Plus, you'd be much closer to SCCA nationals.

scardeal wrote: If I were you, I'd choose Iowa in a heartbeat. And I hate cold weather. Plus, you'd be much closer to SCCA nationals.

I agree, but to a non-midwesterner, the midwest can suck. Or it can be awesome. But it can be uberly boring sometimes.

Salanis wrote:

BoxheadTim wrote:

Maroon92 wrote: 5 Hours west of Chicago is only, like, 6 hours from Road America. I say do it!

Yebbut, San Luis Obispo is only 3 hours from Laguna Seca if you take the faster way (ie, not Hwy 1).

Also 2 hours to Buttonwillow or Willow Springs, and about 5-6 to Infineon or Thunderhill. Eh, probably more like 4 hours to Laguna Seca.

Sounds like you're leaning to the Midwest from des moines 5 hours to brainerd 2 hours to black hawk farms 5 hours to autobahn 5-6 hours to road america 1 hour to iowa speedway (nasa midwest uses it) 2 hours to mid america (Omaha, NE) 4 hours to motorsports park Hastings, NE

I was born in the midwest, Ohio, and have moved around a bit. One rule I have come up with is, the colder the weather, the warmer the people. Also, in transient areas, like Cali and Florida, people just seem a bit more withdrawn, less friendly. Somehow, Cali has zero appeal to me. Great car culture, but screwed up in so many ways.

Good info guys.

I spent some of my childhood in Kansas, and do remember it to be a great place to raise a family. With a 3 week old and 2 year old, Childfriendliess is a priority.

Also house affordability.

Had a pre-interview-interview on Friday for the Socal job, we'll see how that goes.

Small towns often don't have a real hospital. Is a medical emergency going to require a helicopter flight in the small town?

MrJoshua wrote: Small towns often don't have a real hospital. Is a medical emergency going to require a helicopter flight in the small town?

good question.. we'd be near a big university with teaching hospital in Iowa. In CA we'd have to go to a big city...

Yah know, Northern Ventura to SLO is actually a big area. Actually a bit more than 2 hour drive between them, not during rush hour either. I grew up between there also just outside the Air Force Base there. And a big disparage of standards there also. Ventura/Santa Barbara is basically city and high COL. SLO is slightly less COL but not a lot less. Also a bit less crowded. Both could be considered family friendly. Some places in between aren't so much though. Santa Maria isn't bad. The town I grew up in, Lompoc, is a place boredom could set in easily. According to my mom that still lives there you have to go to Santa Maria or Santa Barbara to buy anything more than groceries. Hit hard by the events of the past couple years. Can probably get a deal on a repo house there though, they are all over the place. People bought when housing was high, then all the homes lost value (some as much as half) and people walked away rather than take a huge loss.

On the bright side, it's beautiful country there. Beachs close by, mountains not far and lakes around there also. Not to mention the tracks. Mild weather. No shortage of things to do if you have transportation.

thanks for the info..

Ignorant wrote:

MrJoshua wrote: Small towns often don't have a real hospital. Is a medical emergency going to require a helicopter flight in the small town?

good question.. we'd be near a big university with teaching hospital in Iowa. In CA we'd have to go to a big city...

Yep, all the way to Santa Barbara where there are 2 big hospitals. SB is just north of Ventura.

I don't care about the smog laws, the cost of living, the horrific traffic, or the pretentious people... if you give me the choice between living in cow E36 M3 midwest or los angeles, I would pick los angeles ALL DAY LONG.

.... and I grew up on a farm in PA.

I lived in LA for 6 years. It was quite possibly the greatest time of my life.

The smog laws are not as bad as everyone thinks, and neither are the insurance rates or the registration fees. The most expensive vehicle I had was $68 a year to register, and smog was not as bad as you'd think. I had an OBD2 LT1 making 450 hp at the crank and it passed with flying colors every year. Think of it as a chance to educate yourself on how to make clean power.

Housing is expensive, gas is expensive, but taxes in Malibu are cheaper than they are here in Austin, TX. You'll pay a lot more for some of the farm staples you're used to in the midwest. Eggs are one that shocked me. I grew up with dollar-a-dozen eggs (literally) and I almost vomited when I saw them for $4.89 a dozen in LA.

Little things like that are what people use to demonstrate how ridiculously expensive LA is.... but seriously... how many eggs a year do you eat? Can you get by eating fewer eggs?

I understand its not for everyone, but LA just rocks. Period. If I were in a profession that paid more, I would still be there right now.

curtis73 wrote: Housing is expensive, gas is expensive, but taxes in Malibu are cheaper than they are here in Austin, TX. You'll pay a lot more for some of the farm staples you're used to in the midwest. Eggs are one that shocked me. I grew up with dollar-a-dozen eggs (literally) and I almost vomited when I saw them for $4.89 a dozen in LA.

I think that I would vomit if I saw them at that price. Depending on the time of year, here in central Illinois they are somewhere between $0.88 (September 2010) to $1.74 (last time I went grocery shopping)

Yeah one thing that sucks about Iowa is the state income tax up to 9%.

We'll see how the interview went and how it goes for Iowa.

Either place can't be worse than CT.

I am from Milwaukee; went to school in Iowa City.

Iowa City/Coralville/Cedar Rapids area is nice and I would be happy to call that home. I visit SoCal pretty often--my best friend is in The OC. I love visiting there--but after a week or so, I am always happy to go "home".

Indiana rules(minus da region)

You will never eat better than you will in Chicago. Ever.

Appleseed wrote: You will never eat better than you will in Chicago. Ever.

Oh, I politely disagree. maybe its just my taste, but LA was so full of good food IMHO that can't touch Chitown.

LA is so full of approachable luxury. The ideas of casual and formal are so blurred in SoCal. You could be a worthless slob like me, put on jeans and a nice shirt, walk into Vibrato and be seated by Herb Alpert himself. It doesn't matter if you sit at the table next to Brad Pitt, you get the same attention and service.

Not to mention the insane number of cultures represented, everything is so good. You want Nepalese food? check. You want Ethiopian food? There is a whole neighborhood of it. Heavy influences of Greek, Armenian, Mediterranean, Mexican.... the list is endless.

P.S. Los Angeles invented the bacon-wrapped hot dog. 'nuff said.

curtis73 wrote: P.S. Los Angeles invented the bacon-wrapped hot dog. 'nuff said.

How in the world can you prove that?