Phoenix area or Denver

[Panamabob]

Job possibilities in both.
Pay is better in Denver by about 10K.

Thoughts?

 

[tonyb]

Housing costs in Denver are quite high.

 

[Panamabob]

Housing costs in Denver are quite high.

Westminster, colorado or Glendale, AZ. To be precise.

 

[Stearmen]

Denver is about a million degrees cooler in the summer! I lived in Tuscon in the 60s and now in Colorado, I'll take Colorado even with the snow any day of the week.

 

[HudsonHawk]

Denver is about a million degrees cooler in the summer! I lived in Tuscon in the 60s and now in Colorado, I'll take Colorado even with the snow any day of the week.

Yeah, but Phoenix is a million degrees warmer in the winter. Snow? Run away!!!

 

[Stearmen]

Yeah, but Phoenix is a million degrees warmer in the winter. Snow? Run away!!!

So, I would have to throw away all my leather jackets and coats?

 

[HudsonHawk]

So, I would have to throw away all my leather jackets and coats?

Yes! And remember the saying..."you don't have to shovel sunshine"

 

[LizzieMaine]

I went to Phoenix once -- a friend lives in Scottsdale. The whole time I was there it felt like standing in front of a gas station electric hand dryer, with the blower aimed straight at my face. How do people live there?

 

[hatsRme]

I went to Phoenix once -- a friend lives in Scottsdale. The whole time I was there it felt like standing in front of a gas station electric hand dryer, with the blower aimed straight at my face. How do people live there?

Perfect analogy. Much more comfortable. The question is back in your court, Bob. Hot, or cooler and varied. Personal preference, like chocolate or vanilla.

 

[HudsonHawk]

I went to Phoenix once -- a friend lives in Scottsdale. The whole time I was there it felt like standing in front of a gas station electric hand dryer, with the blower aimed straight at my face. How do people live there?

You wait until the sun goes down then you party like it's 1999.

 

[tonyb]

Having lived on the sodden shores of Puget Sound for a few decades, I quite looked forward to visiting wherever it promised to be downright HOT. Novelty, you know.

I could see living in the Valley of the Sun for maybe eight months out of the year, but I'm certain I'd be good and tired of 100-plus degree days after more than a few of them in a stretch.

Denver, where I've been for seven months or so, gets honest-to-goodness seasons. They tell me that this year has been unusually wet, and they got the stats to prove it. Fine by me. It's still warm during those months when one might expect it to be, and when it rains it typically does so for a little while and then the sun comes out again. (In Seattle it gets gray and stays gray, often, for days upon days upon weeks.)

Snow? Well, yeah, there's snow in Denver. But I've found getting around in it only mildly troublesome. And I've got maybe a hundred running feet of walkways to shovel. A cinch, really.

S'posed to be in the 90s here over the next few days. The natives tell me that's normal, get used to it, etc.

 

[ChiTownScion]

Denver itself isn't much to write home about, but go an hour or so west into the mountains, and it's quite amazing. The nice thing about skiing west of the Divide is that even in winter, the cold is not extreme until the sun sets. And if you're willing to drive a few hours on a long weekend, the southwest part of the state (near Durango) is quite nice.

Never been to Phoenix, but have seen enough of Arizona to know that I'd never want to live there.

 

[gear-guy]

Denver by a mile. I'm in Denver a lot and it is a great city. Very compact so getting around by bicycle, walking or transit is easy. The weather is wonderful and if you are leaving FT. Wayne you will never feel so cool in your life. NO HUMIDITY. Phoenix is hot and those are not clouds that you see it is smog. Westminster is nice and although a little pricy it is still doable and you are still close to everything. If we move to the Denver area that is where we will look. Esteban and Jenna will miss you.

 

[Stearmen]

Yes! And remember the saying..."you don't have to shovel sunshine"

With sunshine like this, I have no desire to shovel it. Just sit back and be amazed!

 

[tonyb]

Denver by a mile. I'm in Denver a lot and it is a great city. Very compact so getting around by bicycle, walking or transit is easy. The weather is wonderful and if you are leaving FT. Wayne you will never feel so cool in your life. NO HUMIDITY. Phoenix is hot and those are not clouds that you see it is smog. Westminster is nice and although a little pricy it is still doable and you are still close to everything. If we move to the Denver area that is where we will look. Esteban and Jenna will miss you.

Good transit system, for sure, especially for a city and metropolitan area of relatively modest size. The weather is all over the map, though. You can get a couple of 70-plus degree days in January and then a foot of snow. And that lack of humidity can be a problem. A physician recommended a humidifier in the bedroom to help address an eczema flare I got shortly after arriving here. Never had that before coming here. (Frankly, I've been happy for the unusually wet weather we've had this spring.)

 

[Benzadmiral]

Good transit system, for sure, especially for a city and metropolitan area of relatively modest size. The weather is all over the map, though. You can get a couple of 70-plus degree days in January and then a foot of snow. And that lack of humidity can be a problem. A physician recommended a humidifier in the bedroom to help address an eczema flare I got shortly after arriving here. Never had that before coming here. (Frankly, I've been happy for the unusually wet weather we've had this spring.)

I lived in Denver (and suburbs Lakewood and Aurora as well) for 4 years, 1997-2001. Part of the reason is that I'd fallen in love with the Mountain West after a visit to Albuquerque in '92, and a job offer came from Denver, so off I went. Loved it. People here in Da Swamp mutter, "Snow, it's cold," to which I say, "There's this new technology that's in all the stores now. It's called coats and jackets."

Oh, there is a wisp of humidity now, the Denver oldtimers told me -- that in the '60s and '70s, it was almost bone dry. You'll find a lot of houses and apartments that, crazily, have no air conditioning, and people there will repeat the mantra, "You don't need air in Colorado!" Piffle and panda feathers! When it gets to 95-100 F., I don't care how dry it is, you need A/C. Nowadays, though, or at least when I was there, the area was a fraction more humid because of all the swimming pools and sprinkler systems. Still almost desert-dry, though. And that makes the winter much more pleasant. It'll snow, and then the sun comes back out and steams the pavement dry.

Changeable weather, yes. "Don't like the weather in Colorado? Just wait a durned minute!" But it's a lot better than the nearly 10 months a year of steambath I have to deal with here.

 

[gear-guy]

Good transit system, for sure, especially for a city and metropolitan area of relatively modest size. The weather is all over the map, though. You can get a couple of 70-plus degree days in January and then a foot of snow. And that lack of humidity can be a problem. A physician recommended a humidifier in the bedroom to help address an eczema flare I got shortly after arriving here. Never had that before coming here. (Frankly, I've been happy for the unusually wet weather we've had this spring.)

You're right the lack of humidity, leaving the Ohio valley where 90% humidity is the norm I go through a lot of burt's bees lip balm when staying in Denver. The biggest problem for me though is that I leave a bicycle at my daughters house but can hardly ride it because of the altitude. The older I get the harder I breath. :eusa_doh:

 

[Stearmen]

Good news, Phoenix is expected to be only 111degrees Fahrenheit, (44 Celsius) this coming Wednesday!

 

[Benzadmiral]

Good news, Phoenix is expected to be only 111degrees Fahrenheit, (44 Celsius) this coming Wednesday!

Gee. Now where did I put that thick sheep-rancher coat of mine . . .?

 

[tonyb]

...

Oh, there is a wisp of humidity now, the Denver oldtimers told me -- that in the '60s and '70s, it was almost bone dry. You'll find a lot of houses and apartments that, crazily, have no air conditioning, and people there will repeat the mantra, "You don't need air in Colorado!" Piffle and panda feathers! When it gets to 95-100 F., I don't care how dry it is, you need A/C. Nowadays, though, or at least when I was there, the area was a fraction more humid because of all the swimming pools and sprinkler systems. Still almost desert-dry, though. ...

Since relocating here I have become much more familiar with evaporative coolers (aka swamp coolers) than I would have ever expected. They're the norm here, at least in my neighborhood. Roof-mounted units seem most prevalent, although the wall-mounted variety is much in evidence as well. The advantages over air conditioning include much lower operating costs and (a big plus in this climate) that they add humidity.

In Seattle it's common to see propane-fueled patio heaters. They're quite nice things to have, even on many a summer night (although reports are that it's been unusually hot there this year). In Denver I see these gizmos that look quite a bit like patio heaters, but they're actually misters. Never saw one of those in Seattle.

Oh, and misting fans here, as well. Trips to the big-box home improvement stores are real eye-opening experiences.