Thursday, March 4, 2010

This Is Living


Maybe you have fallen in love with Iowa. Nothing wrong with that. But on our web site alone, we have staffers in places like LA, Atlanta, and Phoenix. We're just wondering, if you could call anywhere in the US your home, where might you land ...

36 comments:

stonehead said...

I just want to move out to northern Idaho somewhere where you can be by yourself, live alone off the land, practice your own beliefs unencumbered by the paramilitary state, go to town once a month or so for supplies, and not have to deal with suits and ties.

Sort of like the unabomber.

Diamond Dave said...

Unabomber- How would the real estate classified ad run on his 170square foot palace?

Anonymous said...

Idaho would be the worst possible choice. I'm thinking Oregon. Perfect climate, lots of things to do, very scenic. Don't get me wrong. Iowa is OK. I wouldn't move without a good reason.

Anonymous said...

Trust me - when I entered the federal witness protection program I wasn't prepared for this small-town Iowa thing. It seems to me like it is cold all the time. And I'm running out of things to do. The entertainment quotient around here must be near zero. And to top it off, I have to teach all these little brats English!

mike said...

Friends of mine moved to Vermont a few years back. Not a lot to add here, just taking the time to vote. New England is an often overlooked area. One of the more scenic parts of the country where all seasons can be enjoyed.

Anonymous said...

I agree with Mike. I'd love to live in the northeast somewhere... Vermont, New Hampshire, maybe even Rhode Island. I kind of like the idea that if I miss my exit home (R.I.), that I'd end up in a different state. I just need a lake/ocean nearby for my sailboat.

larry d. said...

Most of the people I know basically like the area around Jefferson, but I'd have to say they would not mind moving south for at least part of the year. I guess we are all looking forward to retiring to Florida , Arizona, or even Texas. Not California, though - way too many nutcases.

Rick Bland said...

I've given this a lot of thought. First chance I get, we're heading to sunny Florida.

larry d. said...

I think I would like to spend my retirement years living next door to Diamond Dave, where I can throw all-night ear-splitrting parties, refuse to mow my lawn, and erect pro-Obama signage throughout.

Jefferson would probably not be a good location for this; I'm flexible as far as location goes.

Big Nasty said...

I do not know D.Dave, but have read his postings. From them I would predict that french fries spill from under his door into the hallway. Pizza boxes and Petrie water bottles grow his favorite household plants. He will show up at your parties with Carpenters cassettes, and mow your yard incorrectly when it gets too out of hand. I would also guess he sells insurance or something else over the phone. You do not want to retire with D.Dave. I am still on hiatus, but this disturbing post needed to be addressed.

Anonymous said...

Although its hard to imagine a place more scenic and a climate more comfortable than rural Greene County (my current home), I've seen pictures and on our television set that some very beautiful, warm places exist around the country. I have to cast my vote for Hawaii and hope I hit the lottery.

Diamond Dave said...

Close, you get a cigar. Mr. Large Nostranasty.

Rick Bland said...

I know Diamond Dave. Diamond Dave is a friend of mine. You, sir, have misrepresented my friend.

In Big Nasty's post, he errs when stating that Dave would bring "Carpenter cassettes" to your party. This is wrong on many levels.

First of all, having first-hand knowledge of Mr. Dave's extensive music collection, I can tell you that they consist exclusively of eight-tracks. Also, he vastly prefers The Captain and Tenille. At his last party, police were called in to force him to turn down a seemingly non-stop rendition of "Muskrat Love".

Diamond Dave said...

When the guy posted about Chad and Switzerland, I thought that something had happened to Jeremy. Nasty, what about Karen Carpenter? I haven't seen much of her lately. It's been a miserable downhill slide musically ever since.

The artist formerly known as Captain need no longer be mentioned. They did play "Muskrat Love" before the Queen. Not Queen. The Queen. Like of England.

Anonymous said...

Have you guys bothered to look out of your windows lately? Greene County - scenic?? The only guy who would like your climate is Kris Freeman, and he's in Canada.

You need to find a nice climate, without being surrounded by moronic out-of-state tourists half the year. Check out Taos, New Mexico, for example.

Anonymous said...

If you're a farmer, it seems to me that Greene County is probably the ideal place to be. It just depends on what you are doing. Every place has its advantages, some just not so obvious. The advantages of living in Greene County are agriculturally related. Small towns DO offer a few advantages, too, whether you are willing to admit it or not. Low crime rates, fresh air, lots of space, and decent schools come to mind.

Anonymous said...

I'll tell you what. Greene County is the ideal place to be if you're a PIG. Pigs must outnumber people by at least 10 - 1.

Anonymous said...

Don't you ever wish that there was something on the horizon to look at? A few mountains would be nice. Maybe an ocean or beach? There are times when seeing nothing but endless flatness gets pretty depressing.

I've also noticed that when you bring up things like this, my fellow Iowans quickly point out how flat and dreary Kansas or Nebraska is. I've been to all those places, and they are no different than Iowa.

Anonymous said...

The whole Midwest is pretty flat, most of it having been left behind by retreating glaciers hundreds of thousands of years ago. Usually the first time you go through mountains, Iowans see what attracts people to these areas for the first time.

It's pretty easy to get lost in the mountains, too. Another thing you instantly figure out is that you can't just lay everything out on a grid with perpendicular intersecting roads unless you're in flat country.

Anonymous said...

Why does Jefferson Iowa News need contributors from all over the country, anyway? Or do they even exist?

Marty Bryant said...

I exist and I post from Atlanta, GA. JIN doesn't need contributors from everywhere, it just so happened that we lived in these locations when this site was conceived.

Rick could explain the advantages of out of state ex Jeffersonians better than I can.

As for Greene County being an ideal home if you were a pig, maybe for a little while.

Rick Bland said...

I like the perspective we get from ex-Jefferson residents who have moved on. In fact, the bulk of our mail comes from people who fit into that group. Most have left Jefferson for better opportunities; and they are able to take a step back and view Jefferson from the impression of an outsider. I have always felt that after you live somewhere for a long time, you stop noticing the nuances.

Rick Bland said...

As I said, living in Jefferson too long sometimes causes you to stop paying attention to the goings-on around you. I remember being somewhere in Jefferson with Tars Tarkus, when we asked a local attorney where Bunkers Dunkers was located. They were unable to tell us.

Diamond Dave said...

Maybe all that means is that attorney weighs less than we do.

iona trailer said...

There's only a couple dozen stores downtown. You'd think a local lawyer would keep better track of his surroundings. I'd personally move just about anywhere where it was warmer. Anything to get me out of this dumb trailer.

Anonymous said...

Iona - pretty soon you'll be able to move underneath the railroad overpass.

Rick Bland said...

I see where highway 4 a couple of miles north of Jefferson was closed today due to flooding. Both directions.

All the snow must have melted a little too fast and there must be a lake there just north of town. I don't ever remember that area flooding out like that.

Rick Bland said...

I also asked a local insurance agent (who worked a block off the square) where Prairie Blue was located. He couldn't place it.

Anonymous said...

Has everybody forgotten about Colorado? Even if you're not into skiing (you would be eventually) it has to be the most beautiful place in North America. Every time you look out your window its like looking at a postcard.

After living in Denver for a while, you are struck by the desolate landscape when you come back to Iowa.

Anonymous said...

Karen Carpenter died in 1983, Dave.

Rick Bland said...

RelocateAmerica has published their annual "Top 100 Places to Live in 2010". The entire continental United States is considered. Currently their top ten is:

Tulsa, OK
Dallas, TX
Pittsburgh, PA
Durham, NC
Raleigh, NC
Huntsville, AL
Houston, TX
Albuquerque, NM
Lexington, KY
Little Rock, AR
Oklahoma City, OK

Interesting. Only Pittsburgh is north of the Mason Dixon line. Oklahoma, Texas, and North Carolina each place two cities.

Of note to readers of this blog, the following places made the top 100:

Dubuque, IA, Emmetsburg, IA, West Des Moines, IA, Lincoln, NE, Suwanee, GA, Sioux Falls, SD, and Madison, WI.

Marty Bryant said...

No one wants to live in Suwanee Ga anymore, it's too crowded.

Diamond Dave said...

OK Yogi.

Anonymous said...

I thought everyone left Jefferson because of John Rowland hair? He was in your top ten reasons why people left your city. Could you also spell the guys name correctly! I have heard John is now thinking of joining the professional senior golf tour shortly. Can anyone out there verify that his game is at that level.

Anonymous said...

wow john rowland sure must have made alot of enemies lol he sure is getting alot of HITS on here

Diamond Dave said...

It seems that it has been unusually windy lately. Is there any possible explanation for all this wind in April? I've also noted my peculiar hankering for Ottawa, Canada here of late. Hmmm.