Letters to the Editor

• Can you really handle it out here?

  [Read the article: We're sick of Southern California! Should we move to the Midwest? ]
  [Read more letters about this article: Here]

  The pros (at least for here in the Flint Hills of Kansas): You really can leave your doors unlocked and go jogging alone in the dark. Parks and lakes feel like you have them all to yourself sometimes. Your commute will be 5, 10, or 15 minutes, depending on whether you have to drive "all the way" or just partway across town. Even young people hold doors open for the people behind them. People are generally genuine and friendly. The larger cities aren't too crowded, polluted, or dangerous.

  Now the cons: you can't get really exotic food unless you want to make it yourself with ingredients from local markets. Night owls have limited options. Cost of living is low partly because wages are low. Travel is a hassle. The mountains are a long day's drive away. You have to seek out diversity, or your kids won't see much of it. The diversity of the weather is another story: wind, storms, rain, snow, and humid summers might test your limits.

  Know what you're getting into--and what you're walking away from that you will miss. I've been around the USA and Europe and might settle on the East Coast someday. Southern California tops the list of places I could not live. Are you prepared for all the little things you're giving up?

  Permalink Tuesday, October 9, 2007 06:48 PM