Suggestions for renting some place warmer and less "friendly" than west Sonoma county (San Diego: live, versus)

[NORTY FLATZ]

Originally Posted by starkid

The winters here are two cold for me. I'm considering moving to other parts of the county but, according to Wikipedia at least, the low temperatures are similar. I'm willing to consider the whole state.

Also I prefer to be mostly ignored; I dislike it when lots of random people greet me or initiate small talk. It seems like people here are going out of their way to seem neighborly, it's fake or inconsiderate at times, and I want to escape.

I'm a household of one with a housing voucher. I need only basic public transportation, quiet (so not a high-traffic town), space for long walks (so a place with sidewalks at least, trails would be great), enough safety to be out alone at night, and low risk of overt racism. A live-and-let-live attitude.

Where I live now, the streets are empty at night and I can go anywhere no matter how late, without anyone randomly calling the cops. I'd love to have something similar.

Local jobs and entertainment are not important, and price is something to consider later. A nearby hippie market with stuff like lots of organic produce and special diet options is very desirable but I can travel for those if necessary.

Thanks.

You might consider Slab City. There are some there, that don't want to be found, too. Winters aren't too bad, either.

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by tstieber

I live in SD, and while it's generally milder than the Bay Area, it's also still similar enough not to be in the category of Miami, Hawaii, or Phoenix.

I wonder what the OP's tolerance level is for hurricanes/typhoons, and volcanic eruptions.

[RMESMH]

Originally Posted by NORTY FLATZ

You might consider Slab City. There are some there, that don't want to be found, too. Winters aren't too bad, either.

lol.

[Tulemutt]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

I wonder what the OP's tolerance level is for hurricanes/typhoons, and volcanic eruptions.

Typhoons and volcanic eruptions don’t exist in Miami, of course … and in Hawaii they are nearly non-issues, as well. Typhoons are very rare in Hawaii, and generally sideswipes of brief disruptive duration and modest destruction, if any. Hawaiian volcanic eruptions are not violent, and are confined to specific areas of the Big Island only. Easily mapped and planned around. Fun to observe too. Great National Park with a couple cool campgrounds..

The issue with Hawaii is its prohibitive cost of living for most people …. And isolation from mainland connections.

But, more than that, Hawaiians - bless their cheery hearts - are very social folks. Gathering socially is the state pastime… filled with all the ‘uncles and aunties and keiki (little children)’, boom-box music, multi-picnic-table food feasting, drinking, shouting and laughter. Pretty sure that’s exactly what the OP most wants to avoid

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by Tulemutt

Typhoons and volcanic eruptions don’t exist in Miami, of course … and in Hawaii they are nearly non-issues, as well. Typhoons are very rare in Hawaii, and generally sideswipes of brief disruptive duration and modest destruction, if any. Hawaiian volcanic eruptions are not violent, and are confined to specific areas of the Big Island only. Easily mapped and planned around. Fun to observe too. Great National Park with a couple cool campgrounds..

The issue with Hawaii is its prohibitive cost of living for most people …. And isolation from mainland connections.

But, more than that, Hawaiians - bless their cheery hearts - are very social folks. Gathering socially is the state pastime… filled with all the ‘uncles and aunties and keiki (little children)’, boom-box music, multi-picnic-table food feasting, drinking, shouting and laughter. Pretty sure that’s exactly what the OP most wants to avoid

A typhoon is just another word for tropical storm, like those hurricanes than come up from the south. "Typhoon" comes from the Chinese words for "big wind". Practically synonymous with "hurricane", but in a different part of the globe. Isn't winter tropical storm season in Hawaii?

But anyway, Hawaii doesn't sound like the OP's cup of tea, anyway. Are there any Section 8 apts in your neck of the shoreline, Mutt?




Note to OP: You might ask the moderator to move your thread to the California forum. That's probably why you're not getting much of a state-wide focus in the responses. The moderator is "Count David".

[Tulemutt]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

A typhoon is just another word for tropical storm, like those hurricanes than come up from the south. "Typhoon" comes from the Chinese words for "big wind". Practically synonymous with "hurricane", but in a different part of the globe. Isn't winter tropical storm season in Hawaii?

But anyway, Hawaii doesn't sound like the OP's cup of tea, anyway. Are there any Section 8 apts in your neck of the shoreline, Mutt?




Note to OP: You might ask the moderator to move your thread to the California forum. That's probably why you're not getting much of a state-wide focus in the responses. The moderator is "Count David".

Yes, I know what typhoons are. Been through three. At sea. Fun!

[tstieber]

Originally Posted by Cloudy Dayz

San Diego is about 10 degrees warmer than the Bay Area in January. So it's a pretty big difference. But yeah, Hawaii would probably be the best option for the OP.

Yes, although not at night, more during the day, and I got the impression that the complaints about night time temperatures were one of the main ones. With San Diego generally getting more clear weather in the winter, it allows for more daytime warm up but also more nighttime cooldown. Basically, bayside temperatures at night between San Diego and oakland/san Francisco have only a few degrees difference and hover in the 40s, while Inland temperatures in both the Bay Area and San Diego average in the upper 30s. Inland communities regularly get frost in certain pockets, which could get the OP right back where they started. Of course, it really depends on whether we are in a drought pattern or in a good rainy season. The last few years have been chilly and wet, but we had years before that where it was like 75 or 80° every day in the winter.

In terms of overall weather patterns, California has that dry season, rainy season thing going, and I just wanted to make sure that the expectation isn't that it's tropical and just a milder variation of what they are used to. Hawaii and Florida are completely different climates, and some people who move to San Diego are disappointed when the ocean is cold or it's chilly and rainy at times. For us, it's the perfect climate because I don't think we would want to live in extreme heat or constant warmth either. So I like it much better than the humidity and monotony of tropical climates

[tstieber]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

I think San Diego could be a good option for the OP, potentially. He could ask around on the SD forum to learn more. Is it a relatively liberal community, aside from the military base?

SD has become very similar to the Bay Area, where urban areas are extremely liberal, suburban areas are slightly liberal, and rural communities remain more conservative. What I don't find as much here is the degree of citizen that you see in San Francisco, Oakland, or Berkeley. The attitudes may be the same, but it would be very rare to see freeways stopped by protesters. Of course we had those anti Wall Street and BLM protests a few years back but I think all that has calmed down a lot everywhere

[Cloudy Dayz]

Originally Posted by tstieber

Yes, although not at night, more during the day, and I got the impression that the complaints about night time temperatures were one of the main ones. With San Diego generally getting more clear weather in the winter, it allows for more daytime warm up but also more nighttime cooldown. Basically, bayside temperatures at night between San Diego and oakland/san Francisco have only a few degrees difference and hover in the 40s, while Inland temperatures in both the Bay Area and San Diego average in the upper 30s. Inland communities regularly get frost in certain pockets, which could get the OP right back where they started. Of course, it really depends on whether we are in a drought pattern or in a good rainy season. The last few years have been chilly and wet, but we had years before that where it was like 75 or 80° every day in the winter.

In terms of overall weather patterns, California has that dry season, rainy season thing going, and I just wanted to make sure that the expectation isn't that it's tropical and just a milder variation of what they are used to. Hawaii and Florida are completely different climates, and some people who move to San Diego are disappointed when the ocean is cold or it's chilly and rainy at times. For us, it's the perfect climate because I don't think we would want to live in extreme heat or constant warmth either. So I like it much better than the humidity and monotony of tropical climates

Actually all day, and night. The January temperature range in the North Bay is 38ºF - 56ºF. The January temperature range in San Diego is 48ºF - 65ºF. It's all the same coastal climate. Just warmer the further south you go.

The summer temperatures follow the same pattern, except the Bay Area has a lot of micro-climates which have big temperature differences, and San Diego has a weird weather pattern in the summertime, that drops it's daytime temperatures way down. So San Diego's summertime highs are at or below the coolest micro climates in the Bay Area. San Diego has mild winters and mild summers. Which makes it arguably the most perfect climate in the country.

[M3Guy]

Originally Posted by starkid

Not the whole bay area, no. Sonoma county is the coldest place in the bay I've ever experienced aside from maybe SF. The problem with most of the bay area is that it's too urban: it's noisy, lots of traffic, and too many parts are sketchy. High summer temps are ok with me. I'd prefer to avoid anything humid or above 90 degrees but I'd deal with it if it's the best option.

I lived in Sacramento briefly but I'm not sure how much of it is safe for walking at night nor what region is quiet. It's the sound of constant traffic that I can't deal with.
I've also considered Irvine but I'm not sure about the culture. Several old threads on here talk about packs of skinheads or something living nearby. I've never been to socal. The specialty grocery stores are not absolutely necessary. I can travel to shop. Davis is on my list but I'm not sure about the layout. I used to bike there from Dixon and it seemed like a ton of suburbs (boring and ugly place to walk through) surrounded by insanely windy agricultural land. Santa Clara I'll have to look up but it was very urban from what I remember. Thanks for your suggestions.

HA!

Originally Posted by NORTY FLATZ

You might consider Slab City. There are some there, that don't want to be found, too. Winters aren't too bad, either.

I want to visit Slab City. I think I would have blast. I wouldn't want to live full time there though.