From Baltimore to Portland - Is Portland for me? (Beaverton: apartments, rentals)

[Leisesturm]

Yes, yes, yes... but can you really tell the difference if its six inches or ten inches (of rain!) in a month? Trying to semanticize the differences between area's like Pittsburg and Portland seems pointless (IMO) when there are areas where rainfall is not at all an issue. At all. Portland has amazing natural attraction for myself and my better half. We don't 'love' rain or clouds and we aren't in complete denial, we are aware that AZ, NM and several cities in CA would have much more winter sunshine but they wouldn't be Portland. The takeaway here is that IMO to really make this work it is necessary to look at PDX and say "I want to live there "in spite" of the lack of winter sun". If you can't really bring yourself to say that and find yourself trying to convince yourself that 'it's doable' well... you might find yourself one of the SAD posters that rail against the sunshine contingent.

H

[Jimrob1]

I definitely think that if the gloom of Pittsburgh bothered you, then its going to be more so here. There is no way to get around that fact, rain and gloom are part of life here. If the people in St Augustine bothered you, then you really need to spend some time here before making a firm decision on moving here. Moving anywhere especially a long distance from what is familiar is very stressful, spend some time here and see how it fits. I don't recommend anyone move anywhere without a lengthy visit first.

[lolavanatta]

thanks for all the great and honest opinions, all!

[goozer]

It seems to me that the OP might find Boulder/Denver to be a better fit. Obviously, the weather/gloom factor was mentioned a couple of times as a negative, and that could become an issue for the OP in PDX. Also, the OP states that she gets along more with folks with a midwest/northern mentality. Denver/Boulder strikes me as a bit more "midwest/northern" in attitude than Portland, which IMO has a bit more of a pacific west coast vibe.

[mtngypzy]

I just read your post and I think I have the answer for you. Central Oregon. There are a few communities such as Bend or Sisters that are in the high desert (more sunny days) close to Mt. Bachelor and Mt. Hood, tons of outdoor stuff to do, i.e. hiking the Three Sisters, snowshoeing, x-country skiing, horseback riding, etc. It is an outdoor junkie's heaven. I moved here 2 years ago from PDX and will never go back. And besides that PDX is only 2 1/2 hours away, so you can get your big city fix anytime you want.

[Lee151]

You cannot buy acreage and build a log cabin on it for $300K in the Portland area.

You can barely buy a house on a small lot for that these days.

My parents and one sibling moved to Central OR several years ago and will never move back to this side of the mountain. It is a lot colder in winter though much less gloomy.

I have a friend who lives near Philadelphia and we compare weather all the time and she is definitely sunnier than I am. We are gardeners and actually talk about the weather daily.

[TheseGoTo11]

Keep in mind the OP is in Baltimore, where the massive number of abandoned buildings makes most people a lot more gloomy than a few clouds.

Every worthwhile city in this country is cloudy and dark in the winter. Unless you want to move to a sunbelt minivan paradise, there'll be bad weather anywhere in the winter. I've been in Portland in January, and upper 40s and persistent drizzle with night temps above freezing is a nice break from snow and ice.

[suncat]

Originally Posted by TheseGoTo11

Every worthwhile city in this country is cloudy and dark in the winter.

Really?

[TheseGoTo11]

Originally Posted by suncat

Really?

All the decent-sized cities with moderately interesting downtowns - Boston, NY, DC, Chicago, Portland, Seattle, Minneapolis, SF - all cold and dark in the winter.

Dallas, Houston, Orlando, Atlanta, Charlotte, Phoenix, LA - all have good weather in the winter, and lame downtowns.

Canada's biggest six cities - Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver - all are very walkable with excellent transit, except maybe Edmonton, and all have atrocious weather.

[Lee151]

Vancouver's weather is pretty much identical to Portland's.

I can't comment on the others but Atlanta and Phoenix do not have lame downtowns. Both are full of restaurants, bars and clubs. I go to Atlanta on business twice a year and spend that time in the downtown.

Phoenix has changed for the better significantly over the last twenty years. Especially the last ten years. When I worked in downtown in the 80's it was lame but not any more. They have built a ton of arty loft condos too and many are moving back to the downtown core from the burbs. I lived there for fifteen years and have friends and family there and visit often.