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OT....A hypothetical question (just for fun).......

CTOkie

Sooner starter
Sep 20, 2001
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Portland Ct.
If you were told that you could live in any state in the Union.....but were NEVER to leave its boundaries for the rest of your life.....which state would you choose ?

My choice is Texas...with its mountains (the hill country and Big Bend National Park), its sea shore, a relatively stable economy, a culture that includes an avid interest in college football and, considering my age of 66 years, a generally acceptable year round climate.
It would be painful for me to give up Maine in the summer, Cooperstown, Gettysburg, New York City, travels abroad and my current turf in central Connecticut, but having lived in the Houston area 1/3 of my life and being a native Texan, Texas gets the nod.....but I would try like hell to live in a small town somewhere within the Austin-New Braunfels-San Antonio corridor or on the outskirts of Houston (Katy-Cypress-Tomball-The Woodlands).

What's your choice ?
 
If I could afford to live in a state that would allow me enjoy the same life style as I have here in Tulsa, I would seriously consider the Golden State and live in one of the many communities around San Diego. i have traveled Southern California on business and pleasure for almost 40 years and enjoyed each trip. The San Diego weather is wonderful. The state offers so much to see with its diversity. The only draw back is the political environment so I would pick TEXAS for the same reasons CT named. I too have lived in Houston and traveled, vacationed and love the Hill Country......also Living in Texas would ensure that I could always see the Sooners play live.
 
Geographically, California is a good choice......but I'm not a fan of earthquakes and liberal BS (which has spawned a bad economy).
 
Originally posted by sybarite:
California has it all, and I approve of liberal BS.
I think there's plenty of both liberal and conservative BS to go around and I'm not a fan of either. As Libertarian, I can't win as this party has and will be blackballed by the mainstream media (which in my opinion, includes Fox News). "Fair and balanced"....don't think so.

But to try to keep this thread on topic, my second choice might be Virginia...mountains to the west, shoreline to the east and lots of history...especially Civil War history as 60% of that war was fought in Virginia.
 
Texas.

The good: The Chinese brothers around Belle Gardens and the Viet brothers around City of Industry. The all breakfast cafe under the I-5 bridge in San Diego. Jack in the Box at Santa Nella. Climate.

The bad: I used to sit in the NW corner at McDonald's off Alameda, so to keep a close eye on the clientele. One had better know the reentry to I-10. Gang grafitti usually obscure sign's direction. I never got up the nerve to tour Watts. California ranks 49 on Forbes "busines friendly" list and has legions of food stamp recips. Mismanagement maybe? California occupys it's space on the Forbes 11 state "death spiral" list. Gay Bay is an illegal immigrant safe haven.

California is #37 on Forbes "Best states for business and careers" list.

This post was edited on 1/23 7:41 AM by Sunburnt Indian
 
Originally posted by CTOkie:

I think there's plenty of both liberal and conservative BS to go around and I'm not a fan of either. As Libertarian, I can't win as this party has and will be blackballed by the mainstream media (which in my opinion, includes Fox News). "Fair and balanced"....don't think so.

But to try to keep this thread on topic, my second choice might be Virginia...mountains to the west, shoreline to the east and lots of history...especially Civil War history as 60% of that war was fought in Virginia.
Unfortunately, the most fair and balanced news programming IMO is on RT... So do you carry the LP card or just believe along those lines?
 
I would choose Colorado, but not because of the legalization of pot. I would love to live in Ft. Collins or Colorado Springs.
 
Georgia and ATL in particular is outstanding! As much as I love Oklahoma and will never forget my roots, I will probably spend the rest of my days in the deep south and won't mind one bit. Winter is very quick and relatively painless. Spring and Fall are unbelievably beautiful and Summer is pretty bearable. Mountains an hour north, beaches in 4-6 hours south and east. Lots of rednecks, but there are lots of rednecks everywhere.
 
Washington.

We lived in Olympia and just south of Tacoma back in the mid to late '90's. The most beautiful scenery ever.

Hawaii would be #2. If this is a dream scenario, I'm assuming I no longer have to work either. I could retire and spend my days lazing around the different islands.
 
Here is the reality that I would miss being confined to a state
---I've driven the route of Paul Revere and the others who made the same ride. I walked aboard the USS Constitution.
---I've stood on the Boston Common and been on Breed's and Bunker Hill.
---I've driven the shoreline of the Charles River as it gently glides past Holy Cross, Boston College, Harvard, MIT, and Boston U.
---I've had Maine lobster and had the Fisherman's platter on a pier at Glouchester.
---I've had clam on the Cape and real maple syrup in Vermont.
---I've been to the Statue of Liberty and Central Park and tried to figure out whether to tip the guys in the restroom on Broadway
---I've climbed to the top of the Washington Monument and had a hot dog on Reflection Pool while staring at Lincoln.
---I''ve seen the Constitution and the Declaration at the Archives and visited Congress and the Supreme Court in session.
---I've been to the backroom storerooms of the Smithsonian and seen thousands of jars of copepods.
---I've had Maryland crab washed down with pitchers of beer, and dined at Annapolis.
---I've been to Japan, Tennessee and been shot at by an old woman in a rocking char who just wanted to let me know she was there. She didn't know where Japan was, hadn't been there in thirty years. It was about a mile over the hill.
---I've been to Old Hickory and the Grand Ole Opry, and looked over three states from the top of Lookout Mountain.
---I've had beignets on Bourbon Street, and etouffee on the Bayou.
---I've driven Lakeshore Drive and visited the Brookfield Zoo and the Museum of Science and Industry.
---I've seen the four-foot snow falls of Erie, and shoveled them in Nebraska.
---I've seen the Socorro cactus and the biggest ditch in the world.
---I've had fresh dates from a date palm, and compared Marineland to Sea World.

---I'm not giving it back.
 
Any answer other than California is tough to justify. We're talking your entire life.

1) First in tech. If you like tech toys, you're going to get them first in Cali.
2) Beaches - the only knock here is that they're barely usable without a wetsuit.
3) Snow Skiing
4) Some of the world's best camping - Yosemite, the Sierras.
5) A lot of people don't realize how much space and country exists in Cali. I think it might be one of the largest farming states.
6) Cities big enough to give you a flash of every culture on earth. You won't be limited to a single culture.
7) If MJ is your thing (gsxrace), illegality there is a formality. You can see just about any doctor and tell them you can't sleep, you're depressed, you suffer from panic attacks, whatever and you're in. Literally, just about every Californian has a medical MJ card. That's probably the reason they have trouble legalizing it, because the ones that want it already get it and aren't concerned about the law.
8) Sports. Pick a sport and they have it in spades.
9) Lake Tahoe - one of the most famous recreational lakes in the world
 
Originally posted by MiccoMacey:


Washington.

We lived in Olympia and just south of Tacoma back in the mid to late '90's. The most beautiful scenery ever.

Hawaii would be #2. If this is a dream scenario, I'm assuming I no longer have to work either. I could retire and spend my days lazing around the different islands.
Sounds pretty good.

I've always wanted to move to Washington or Oregon. I love the rainy, cloudy atmosphere.
 
I would be just fine moving home to Oklahoma and spending my days in a beautiful lake house on Grand Ole Lake Of The Cherokees!
 
Originally posted by Medic007:
Not being picky sybarite, but it's spelled Gloucester. I have family there. Have you ever been there during St. Peter's Fiesta? I have seen many a greasy pole contest over the years but have never had the guts to try it myself.
Posted from Rivals Mobile
I've always been in August, usually based in Somerville. I would have done nothing that would have resulted in my landing in that cold water. Loved the fishing villages.
 
Originally posted by CTOkie:
Sybarite
Any time you plan a Gettysburg trip, let me know.
Been there, done that. I tend to go where I have read about. I used my post-doctorate in Germany as a central location from which to visit every country in western Europe other than Ireland. I've had retsina in Patras, haggis in Scotland, green-spinach floured ravioli in Ancona, and breakfast in Barcelona with the strongest coffee I have ever tasted. I walked on stones that were touched by Socrates, and entered the Olympus field through the arch. The world is a beautiful place.
 
Originally posted by sybarite:
Originally posted by CTOkie:
Sybarite
Any time you plan a Gettysburg trip, let me know.
Been there, done that. I tend to go where I have read about. I used my post-doctorate in Germany as a central location from which to visit every country in western Europe other than Ireland. I've had retsina in Patras, haggis in Scotland, green-spinach floured ravioli in Ancona, and breakfast in Barcelona with the strongest coffee I have ever tasted. I walked on stones that were touched by Socrates, and entered the Olympus field through the arch. The world is a beautiful place.
You're a lucky man....I have been to Paris and took a train to see the Normandy beaches in 2008, other than that....a a few ventures to Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean, I can't compete with you.
I've been in 32 states and lived in 6 of them....Texas, Oklahoma, New Jersey, New York, Colorado and Connecticut.
My target now is Scotland and/or England.....how did you like those places ?
 
Originally posted by sybarite:

Originally posted by CTOkie:
Sybarite
Any time you plan a Gettysburg trip, let me know.
Been there, done that. I tend to go where I have read about. I used my post-doctorate in Germany as a central location from which to visit every country in western Europe other than Ireland. I've had retsina in Patras, haggis in Scotland, green-spinach floured ravioli in Ancona, and breakfast in Barcelona with the strongest coffee I have ever tasted. I walked on stones that were touched by Socrates, and entered the Olympus field through the arch. The world is a beautiful place.


Indeed it is, although some of the inhabitants of it tend to be less so. I'm guessing that some of your Adventures were planned; others, spontaneous. Your Verbal Pix of ALL are Excellent, Sybarite!

Where is that 'Favorite Spot' to which you'd like to return, and do you have a Bucket List that you'd share with us?
 
Originally posted by CTOkie:
Originally posted by sybarite:
Originally posted by CTOkie:
Sybarite
Any time you plan a Gettysburg trip, let me know.
Been there, done that. I tend to go where I have read about. I used my post-doctorate in Germany as a central location from which to visit every country in western Europe other than Ireland. I've had retsina in Patras, haggis in Scotland, green-spinach floured ravioli in Ancona, and breakfast in Barcelona with the strongest coffee I have ever tasted. I walked on stones that were touched by Socrates, and entered the Olympus field through the arch. The world is a beautiful place.
You're a lucky man....I have been to Paris and took a train to see the Normandy beaches in 2008, other than that....a a few ventures to Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean, I can't compete with you.
I've been in 32 states and lived in 6 of them....Texas, Oklahoma, New Jersey, New York, Colorado and Connecticut.
My target now is Scotland and/or England.....how did you like those places ?
I traveled England, Scotland, and Wales with a four-month old baby, a wife, and a mother-in-law in a VW Beetle. We stayed mostly in bed and breakfast places that tended to be people's homes as they usually took in one visitor per night. It led to discussion of the area and of the history of England and Scotland. Spent a wonderful evening in Edinburgh having tea and biscuits (cookies) with a very well-read older man and his wife. I assumed he was a college professor. He was a retired butcher. Learned how the lineage worked, and how titles were inherited or not. Beautiful city.

The first evening in England was in a B&B in Dover with a lady who baby-sat while we went out to eat. The cliffs are, indeed, white. She made breakfast the next morning, and there were fried sliced tomatoes, fresh from her garden. We visited the Cathedral at Canterbury, the walled city of Durham, as glorious as Roger Whitaker says it is. We actually stayed in a hotel in downtown York, near the Cathedral.

We did visit Hadrian's Wall, although it is more like an outcropping these days. We went to St. Andrews to see the golf course where it all began (I don't play golf.). We went on up to Aberdeen which was a bit of a surprise since it was heavily laden with oil storage tanks like a Texas port. Then, we drove across country to Inverness, stopping at a B&B halfway across to stay with a women who was flying with her sister to visit Toronto the next day. She gave us tea and scones (biscuits)(got that? Biscuits are cookies, and scones are biscuits) and spoke to us in old Scottish which she said the young usually couldn't speak. Inverness looks a lot like Gloucester Mass. We drove down through the Lake Country which is beautiful as long lakes bounded by hills line the highway. We visited a Castle at Loch Ness (or Lomond, it's been a while).

We did visit Stonehenge, but an epidemic kept us from Liverpool and Mancester (they discouraged visitors). London is as we have heard. The countryside of England and Scotland was actually more interesting to me than London. They were so self-contained and peaceful, like a time warp.
 
Originally posted by Senior Sooner:
Originally posted by sybarite:

Originally posted by CTOkie:
Sybarite
Any time you plan a Gettysburg trip, let me know.
Been there, done that. I tend to go where I have read about. I used my post-doctorate in Germany as a central location from which to visit every country in western Europe other than Ireland. I've had retsina in Patras, haggis in Scotland, green-spinach floured ravioli in Ancona, and breakfast in Barcelona with the strongest coffee I have ever tasted. I walked on stones that were touched by Socrates, and entered the Olympus field through the arch. The world is a beautiful place.


Indeed it is, although some of the inhabitants of it tend to be less so. I'm guessing that some of your Adventures were planned; others, spontaneous. Your Verbal Pix of ALL are Excellent, Sybarite!

Where is that 'Favorite Spot' to which you'd like to return, and do you have a Bucket List that you'd share with us?
In the three years we were there, we took one long vacation every year. 1. Italy,, Austria, Greece. 2. Belgium, England, Scotland, Wales, back to Germany through Belgium and Luxembourg. 3. Switzerland, Monaco, Southern France, Spain, Portugal, back through Paris to Germany. But, when we got there, the institutes was in Wilhelmshaven which was on the North Sea. We were a day's drive from Denmark and took short trips up to Odense (Hans Christian Anderson's home). Holland was about an hour away, and Amsterdam was only four hours away. We went often. Spent a Christmas in Brugges, Belgium. After the institute moved to Ladenburg bei Heidelberg (my son was born in Heidelberg), we were two hours from France or Switzerland. We went to one or the other almost every weekend until our son was born.

My favorite places:
5 Stars: Greece, especially Olympus and the Acropolis. Italy: I prefer the eastern coast with Venice, Ancona. The Italians make any meal fantastic dining. Washington, D.C. Boston. English countryside.
4 Stars: Amsterdam, Heidelberg, Zermatt (no vehicles allowed, base of the Matterhorn), Seville, Rome, Venice, Luxembourg, Lyon, Vienna, London, Lichtenstein. Chicago, New York, LA

I would love to go back to Olympus and visit the original site. The modern city of Olympus is probably ten mile away from Mt. Olympus and the Olympic stadium. The stadium is surrounded by fallen temples at which the athletes communed prior to their endeavors. I loved the Acropolis---some of the most beautiful art in the world. There is an old Corinth, but there isn't much to it.
 
Without a question and I wouldn't even have to think long about it. Colorado is a place I could get lost in and with so many mountains and things to do it would never get boring. Spent almost 5 years of my military time at Ft. Carson and just around Colorado Springs things can keep you busy for months.

Texas isn't a bad place and San Antonio is a really nice city to live around but I wouldn't want it to be the place. Lots of cultural history there though that's for sure.
 
Originally posted by Soonerborn59:
Without a question and I wouldn't even have to think long about it. Colorado is a place I could get lost in and with so many mountains and things to do it would never get boring. Spent almost 5 years of my military time at Ft. Carson and just around Colorado Springs things can keep you busy for months.

Texas isn't a bad place and San Antonio is a really nice city to live around but I wouldn't want it to be the place. Lots of cultural history there though that's for sure.
I like San Antonio, and I love Corpus Christi. Hope it remains above water, although I have little hope for Padre.
 
I'm choosing Florida, but I could do Hawaii or Calfornia!! Texas?? Never!!!! :)
 
I'd have to say Texas.

Lived there before. No state income tax. Very diverse and spectacular really.

My kind of people there. Guns, guitars...gals. The three Gs.

Gulf of Mexico. Deep sea fishing et al.

Yep, if I have to be land locked somewhere, that's where it would be. Tejas.
smokin.r191677.gif
 
Sybarite,


From reading all your post you are certainly a man who has been around the world. I have been fortunate enough to spend 3 years in Germany and loved (77-80) my time over there. Beautiful country and for the most part very good people. Especially the older generation. One of the places I loved most in Germany was Garmisch and the view of the Swiss Alps. The one country that I could care less rather or not I ever visit again though is Korea. Spent a year there and although the country has some of beauty (Although rare) it is a country that seems to be way behind technology when I was there. I know many of my fellow soldiers at the time though would have disagreed with me on my views of Korea.

In the end had it not been for Uncle Sam I would have never got to experience those countries. To see other view pics of the Swiss Alps go HERE.

Ort_garmisch-partenkirchen_12076927_fritzen.jpg


This post was edited on 1/23 3:10 PM by Soonerborn59

This post was edited on 1/23 3:14 PM by Soonerborn59
 
Originally posted by Soonerborn59:

Sybarite,


From reading all your post you are certainly a man who has been around the world. I have been fortunate enough to spend 3 years in Germany and love my time over there. Beautiful country and for the most part very good people. Especially the older generation. One of the places I loved most in Germany was Garmisch and the view of the Swiss Alps. The one country that I could care less rather or not I ever visit again though is Korea. Spent a year there and although the country has some of beauty (Although rare) it is a country that seems to be way behind technology when I was there. I know many of my fellow soldiers at the time though would have disagreed with me on my views of Korea.

In the end though had it not been for Uncle Sam I would have never got to experience to those countries.

ec
Uncle Sam sent me to Baltimore for three years. My best friend got Germany up by Hanover. I was only at Garmisch one time, on my way to Innsbrook.
 
Originally posted by Soonersincefitty:
I'd have to say Texas.

Lived there before. No state income tax. Very diverse and spectacular really.

My kind of people there. Guns, guitars...gals. The three Gs.

Gulf of Mexico. Deep sea fishing et al.

Yep, if I have to be land locked somewhere, that's where it would be. Tejas.
smokin.r191677.gif
Here I am on the coast and never been... Hmmm... sounds like a great idea...

Now, who all is going?
 
TX although MT is a close 2nd, and I was born there. Beautiful couintry, except for those damn long winters. Lived in Houston area since 91, kids and grandkid born here. Unlike PtLavaca, I have been deep sea fishing and go bay fishing whenever possible.
roll.r191677.gif
Ride my scooter year round, golf year round, in shorts most of the time, can drive three hours to hill country, piney woods, blue ocean water,.SW desert, mountains and high plains takes about six hours.

Other than TX, I could do the south coast of MI or AL, or the FL panhandle, SC is nice and Virginia. After that weather just get's too cold.

Sybarite, where did you post doc and what is your discipline?
 
Originally posted by rhSooner:
TX although MT is a close 2nd, and I was born there. Beautiful couintry, except for those damn long winters. Lived in Houston area since 91, kids and grandkid born here. Unlike PtLavaca, I have been deep sea fishing and go bay fishing whenever possible.
roll.r191677.gif
Ride my scooter year round, golf year round, in shorts most of the time, can drive three hours to hill country, piney woods, blue ocean water,.SW desert, mountains and high plains takes about six hours.

Other than TX, I could do the south coast of MI or AL, or the FL panhandle, SC is nice and Virginia. After that weather just get's too cold.

Sybarite, where did you post doc and what is your discipline?
Max-Planck-Institut fur Zellbiologie: Cell biology.
 
Originally posted by CTOkie:

My choice is Texas...
Buddy, I'm already in Texas and it's a really solid choice.

If I were to pick a place other than Texas to live, I would say maybe Montana. That was my first duty station in the military and lived up there for almost 3 years. I loved it!!! I know most people love beaches and warm weather. And yes the winters up there are long and brutal. But I just loved it up there. But I'm more of an outdoors kind of person who loves hunting and fishing, so living up there was just greatness!! And I'm more of a mountains kind of person than beaches. That was over 15 years ago when I lived up there and I haven't been back. I really need to take a week or two vacation and go up there again.
 
Originally posted by Sunburnt Indian:
Sie Katzen einen Bufehl der deutchen Sprache? Ich habe in Hanau.
Mein Grammatik war nicht sehr gut. Ich habe schnell gesprochen, aber nicht immer richtig.
 
Seeing the German getting thrown around in here, no doubt BY FAR my top choice would be living in Germany. Hands down, and it's not even close. My first post was Montana since the OP mentioned here in the US. I lived in Germany for 2 years and absolutely loved it. Wish I had never left.
 
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