Getting the Hell Out!

[RT Firefly]

Greetings,
"I like prominent landmarks to keep me oriented." I agree.




Prominent and in the Orient.

[BigJim]

We are in Mommie-fornia and are native to the state. I have lived half my life in SOCAL and half in NOCAL. We want out. The entitlement is to much to bear as are the Socialist rules.

We were / are considering retiring in WA state. After reading Marin's posts I am not so certain.

Gun laws, taxes, crime and traffic are what we are attempting to get away from so WA looks just like Mommie-fornia, only cooler.

What about Anacortes?

[Marin]

Originally Posted by BigJim

Gun laws, taxes, crime and traffic are what we are attempting to get away from so WA looks just like Mommie-fornia, only cooler.

What about Anacortes?

Well, Anacortes is in Washington so it won't get you away from the state's determined pursuit of progressive policies. Western Washington, specifically King, Pierce, and Snohomish counties which I believe carry more voting weight than the rest of the state's counties combined, is extremely liberal. For example they've created gun-free zones (where ironically several of the recent daily shootings have occurred) and the state is firmly in the camp of bigger government is better because government knows better than you do. In Washington, minorities rule, be they race, gender, cultural or religious minorities. In fact, the smaller the minority the more attention, money, laws, and protection it gets from the state, often at the expense of the majority.

What Anacortes does buy you is away from the Seattle-Bellevue-Redmond sorry-ass mess. It also gets you out of King County and their ludicrous taxes on just about everything.

Anacortes is a very nice town with a long history and an active and interesting waterfront including a substantial shipyard that builds cool stuff. It has one of the best marine hardware stores on the planet. There are several marinas in the town, the large city-owned marina and several private ones.

They have an annual arts fair where they close off the main street for a weekend and have all sorts of artist booths, good live music, and food stands. This year's was two weekends ago and we took the boat down for a Friday-Sunday visit and bought some cool stuff for the boat and the house.

There are a number of very good marine services in Anacortes if you need something fixed.

Anacortes has some very good restaurants if you're into dining out.

The town is not very far from the Mount Vernon/Burlington commercial corridor along I-5 so there is plenty of good shopping available--- Costco, etc--- a short drive away.

For a boater Anacortes is a great spot to be as it's on the doorstep of the San Juans and on up into the Gulf Islands in BC and if one has the time and inclination, right on up into SE Alaska.

The only downside I can think of to the place is all the ferries to the San Juan Islands and Sidney, BC leave from there, so you can get some pretty long lines of tourists and other ferry-goers snaking through town at times.

I have no idea how Anacortes stacks up in terms of housing prices and cost of living against other communities in western Washington.

[The Forklift Lady]

Greetings My TF Family:

Where to begin:
Well after reading Marin's post I saw my doctor right away for antidepressants and Xanax.
I think I'm ready to move forward now
I appreciate everyone trying to give an adequate interpretation of the area but I am from the Baton Rouge/ NOLA area. Taught school 9 years. Two were in lock down facilities with court ordered young people. 4 of my years in the public schools were inner city EBD students. We've got the 225's and the 504's shooting it up every night here. Luckily it's crime on each other and I stay out of the crossfire. I am now the Forklift Lady because Steve and I started Superior Equipment Services Inc. 18 years ago and also then, we never looked back.
Parks: I agree Forky is very lucky.
Sebi my Angel from Heaven fell from her nest when she was about 2 weeks old. I nursed her and was Mama when those eyes opened. Pictures to follow. Sebi (pronounced sibēē) made 1 year old July 28th.
Forkliftt is pretty squirrelly- but did I say he was coming with me hehe?!?!
Capt.Bill11: We are shopping rates to have our Gal (Patricia Louise II) shipped to our new spot. We considered all options, but we love the Old Gal and believe she is our classic lady.
Off Duty and FlyWright: Although Forky has been nick named squirrel by some nameless friends, no I'm not referring to him. Sebi is my squirrel girl living in this strange world of boating with us and doing very well.
Marty: look forward to a visit and I've heard if I ply you (a local) with copious amounts of free alcohol you will be nice to me unlike Marin.
Wifey B: So great to have another women on board. You gave me some great things to think about. All of our babies are boating babies- from 6 weeks of age. I'm even considering a Tea Cup Pig when our 14 year old Pom passes. Thank you so much for the encouragement. #nonanchorersunite
Craig: You are absolutely right. As the post stated, getting the hell out before the kids figure out we are missing .
We were in Seattle a year ago for my BDay and we adored it. In 4 weeks we will really begin to dig in when we visit.
Pack Mule: Forky comes with the Lathe. I get boat. Deal?
Don: Steve who?

Thank you all so much for the warm welcome and encouragement as we dream of all our possibilities. Please continue with any suggestions (other than don't come) for Seattle and the surrounding area as we prepare for our trip and maybe I could have YOUR slip if someone (no name mentioned) is no longer desiring to live in the area!










Patricia Louise II
Present 42 Sundeck
The Best is yet to be!

[Marin]

Originally Posted by The Forklift Lady

....... maybe I could have YOUR slip if someone (no name mentioned) is no longer desiring to live in the area!

If you are referring to me and my wife, we are WAY too smart to keep our boat anywhere near Seattle and its staggering moorage rates and restrictive marina rules (some marinas don't even allow boat washing anymore).

We keep our boat way up north and will continue to do so after we escape the mid-Sound asylum.

[Forkliftt]

It's anybody's guess what the accelerating climate change will do to this region--- the predictions are pretty depressing to people who've lived here a long time---- but for the time being, the parts of western Washington that aren't Seattle/Bellevue/Redmond/Tacoma/King and Pierce counties still have a lot to offer.[/QUOTE]


Well- at least any rise in sea levels will be much easier to cope with if you live on a boat.


1983 Present 42 Sundeck
Twin Lehman 135's
✌️

[psneeld]

Sometimes it depends which glasses you are wearing for how you see the world....maybe even Seattle.

[siestakey]

Thank you all so much for the warm welcome and encouragement as we dream of all our possibilities. Please continue with any suggestions (other than don't come) for Seattle and the surrounding area as we prepare for our trip and maybe I could have YOUR slip if someone (no name mentioned) is no longer desiring to live in the area!


I know what we have a old family farm in Clinton Louisiana(East Feliciana Parish) we can rename the same as one of the islands off the PNW and you would not have to move far at all to retire to it

Deal?

[Codger2]

Originally Posted by psneeld

Sometimes it depends which glasses you are wearing for how you see the world....maybe even Seattle.

Aint that the truth.....

[psneeld]

Originally Posted by Codger2

Aint that the truth.....

How are your rose colored glasses? Pretty good I'm guessing based on your pretty happy on line disposition....

Just got mine refinished with the BS filter and I am really having a hard time reading some posts these days.....

[ksanders]

So here's some thoughts about Western washing by a guy that went there last winter trying to decide if he wanted to relocate...

Seattle, Tacoma, the whole metropolis area...

Just too many people. Very nice for things to do but the people, and the crowds are a big turn off.

Whidby Island

Kinda neat in a funky hippie sort of way, but very crowded as well. This is a bedroom community. The ferries were pretty much full even at mid day. The homes were spread out, but I cannot imagine fighting traffic on the one, two lane road that bisects the island. Didn't even look at the harbor, it was just too crowded, too much like a offshoot of Seattle for us.

Anacortes

This is my favorite spot. Big enough town for shopping to be there or near by off of I-5, small enough to have a small town feel. I love the harbor. Its big enough to have a life of its own, and it's right across the street from the safeway store and down town.

Sequim/Port Angeles

Very nice weather. Didn't rain there during our trip. This is an area that appears to be growing, but more like suburban big box than small town. We liked Sequim quite a bit. There is a nice harbor, and they have 50' slips available. The only challenge is that the harbor is several miles out of town, and so small that it's just too quiet. Great restaurant at the harbor though.

[Marin]

Kevin- That's an accurate assessment of the mid-Sound region, I think.

Also, if one desires to be closer to a larger city but not actually in the open sewer that is Seattle-Bellevue-Redmond the west side of the mid-Sound region-- Kitsap Peninsula, Bainbridge Island-- has some pretty nice boating communities. Port Orchard and Poulsbo are good examples. Farther south on that side are Vashon Island and Gig Harbor.

One community on the east side of mid-Sound that has retained a decent degree of niceness is the waterfront town of Des Moines well south of Seattle and a bit north of Tacoma They have a nice-looking marina and older, quiet neighborhoods.

[wyoboater]

"Growing old is mandatory, Growing up is optional"! Welcome aboard, and like he said, go where ya want!

[Codger2]

Originally Posted by psneeld

How are your rose colored glasses? Pretty good I'm guessing based on your pretty happy on line disposition....

My disposition coincides with the boat I'm driving these days. Although I've had about 10 total years of having a single engine boat, it sure is nice having 2 monsters in the ER. (Not to mention a very enjoyable increase in speed!)
My wife is much happier too!

[Marin]

Two of my favorite paintings of Seattle by local artist Tim Wistrom who truly understands the city. It's what's coming. So there's hope yet.

[cappy208]

@FLL: Sometimes people don't understand the 'destination' is the boat. Where the boat is (as you mentioned by trucking) is changeable. Go, enjoy. You will figure the rest out.

[BandB]

Wifey B: Trucking...did you say trucking...what is it about trucking....hehe..

But seriously, why truck a boat. Too much to see between where you are and there. Just take it around the coast, through the canal. It's your chance to see places you might not otherwise. Now if you see all that then when you send it in a few years to the east coast, you make want to ship it.

As to places to live, I try to respect that every place on this planet appeals to someone. Frankly, I liked Seattle. But then I like everywhere we go. But the idea of boating and also having access to a big city for shopping, theater, music, and sports appeals to me. I've never lived in the middle of nowhere. The smallest metropolitan area I've lived in has 2.4 million people. The current one has 5.5 million. The Seattle metropolitan area has 3.6 million. The city itself only has 600,000+.

You mention New Orleans and one hits Bourbon Street and that area and you think "no way-come here to play but not to live." But there are very close outlying areas and some of them are very nice and the homes on some are actually above sea level. Actually I think 13' or 15' is the requirement for the new ones.

We all have places we like better than others but every area has pluses and minuses. If we haven't seen both the good and bad it's only because either we were never introduced to both or we weren't open minded.

Nice to see another former teacher as I was one. I never taught inner city though but have designed and put in reading programs for a couple. I'm so thankful there are teachers who will try to reach the inner city kids.

[Marin]

Originally Posted by BandB

Frankly, I liked Seattle. But then I like everywhere we go.

Seattle has a lot to offer, no question. Be it theatre, music, restaurants, a relatively compact size, a comprehensive bus service, a terrific university, some very cool older neighborhoods with fascinating houses, some very classy museums and other fun attractions like the waterfront piers, the Ride the Duck tours through the city and across Lake Union, the trolley cars, and so on, and a nice setting on Elliot Bay.

This is the Seattle the tourists and short-term visitors see. Sort of like the tourists who flock to Hawaii, where I grew up.

Like most places, visiting a city and living in or near that same city are two vastly different experiences. This is as true of my own favorite big cities-- Vancouver, BC, London, Reims, Toulouse, and Paris-- as it is for Seattle.

What happens here (and it's even worse in Hawaii) is that people visit, become enamored of the place so decide to move here, and then are confronted by the realities after it's generally too late to change course. So they can end up being very unhappy which can have all sorts of negative effects on their lives and even relationships. I've lived here (and in Hawaii before this) long enough to have seen this happen to acquaintances and co-workers countless times.

So if I come down on the Seattle-Bellevue-Redmond core pretty hard, it's based on having seen the direction this area is taking at an accelerating rate and the very negative impacts most of the changes are having.

As with any potential move, I think it is REALLY important to make it with one's eyes wide open. Take the time to get to know the city or location that one is interested in. By this I don't mean take the tours and eat in the restaurants and walk along the waterfront and do the tourist stuff. That's fine to do, but try to learn as much as one can by talking to people who have lived there for a few years or a lot of years as well as carrying out whatever credible research one can do on the internet.

We are in the process of determining a European base for a new phase of our lives. Not to move there--- we would never want to leave the PNW (other than the greater Seattle/Eastside area)--- but to pursue a new activity for us. It's a lot of work, digging up the kind of information we feel we need to have before making a decision and there is expense and time involved with multiple trips to check out the possibilities in person. But in the long run, the effort is, we feel, totally critical to the success this kind of venture will have.

[Forkliftt]

Originally Posted by BandB

Wifey B: Trucking...did you say trucking...what is it about trucking....hehe..



But seriously, why truck a boat. Too much to see between where you are and there. Just take it around the coast, through the canal. It's your chance to see places you might not otherwise. Now if you see all that then when you send it in a few years to the east coast, you make want to ship it.



As to places to live, I try to respect that every place on this planet appeals to someone. Frankly, I liked Seattle. But then I like everywhere we go. But the idea of boating and also having access to a big city for shopping, theater, music, and sports appeals to me. I've never lived in the middle of nowhere. The smallest metropolitan area I've lived in has 2.4 million people. The current one has 5.5 million. The Seattle metropolitan area has 3.6 million. The city itself only has 600,000+.



You mention New Orleans and one hits Bourbon Street and that area and you think "no way-come here to play but not to live." But there are very close outlying areas and some of them are very nice and the homes on some are actually above sea level. Actually I think 13' or 15' is the requirement for the new ones.



We all have places we like better than others but every area has pluses and minuses. If we haven't seen both the good and bad it's only because either we were never introduced to both or we weren't open minded.



Nice to see another former teacher as I was one. I never taught inner city though but have designed and put in reading programs for a couple. I'm so thankful there are teachers who will try to reach the inner city kids.

Wifey B- God bless anyone able and willing to work with the inner city kids. Patricia took it serious and loved her kids. Parents on the other hand...,
I'm pretty adventuresome. Maybe too much so at times. .
But a part of me could be all about the Keys/ Cuba/ cross the stream and down to the canal- ahhh.. The east side. Sea of Cortez, San Diego, San Francisco (great group of guys to visit with there) and then on up to the Puget Sound. Easy right?
Safety would be a huge concern while in Mexico. Well founded? Not sure.


1983 Present 42 Sundeck
Twin Lehman 135's
✌️

[BandB]

Originally Posted by Forkliftt

Wifey B- God bless anyone able and willing to work with the inner city kids. Patricia took it serious and loved her kids. Parents on the other hand...,
I'm pretty adventuresome. Maybe too much so at times. .
But a part of me could be all about the Keys/ Cuba/ cross the stream and down to the canal- ahhh.. The east side. Sea of Cortez, San Diego, San Francisco (great group of guys to visit with there) and then on up to the Puget Sound. Easy right?
Safety would be a huge concern while in Mexico. Well founded? Not sure.


1983 Present 42 Sundeck
Twin Lehman 135's
✌️

I don't know of safety being an issue at any of the marinas you would use. The general issues in Mexico are elsewhere and inland. There are some areas like Venezuela that I wouldn't visit at this time, but the route you're talking about is very nice. We found them all to be so accommodating too, even in places like Nicaragua that many would have misgivings about. Here is an excerpt from the current Mexico warnings and I advise anyone to get the very latest before heading on a trip.

Of particular safety concern are casinos, sports books, or other gambling establishments and adult entertainment establishments. U.S. government personnel are specifically prohibited from patronizing these establishments in the states of Coahuila, Durango, Zacatecas, Aguascalientes, San Luis Potosi, Nuevo Leon, Tamaulipas, Jalisco, Colima and Nayarit.

They advise not traveling at night and not going into remote areas. There are specific recommendations for each state. Now when you read the warnings it sounds scary but then when you read further you feel safe.

Mexico Travel Warning

Now, it's not an easy trip but if you have all the time in the world, it's a wonderful trip. I'm sure you would stay at the various ports longer than we did. We also didn't visit Cuba, but will in the future I'm sure.