Willow ,'Storyteller'
[NAFDA] Spike-centric discussion. Lusty, lewd (only occasionally crude), risque (and frisque), bawdy (Oh, lawdy!), flirty ('cuz we're purty), raunchy talk inside. Caveat lector.
I wanna send Aimee ~ma, but there is that selfish part of me that doesn't want her leaving the state. I know I've only ever met her and Em once, but I don't want the chances of seeing them diminish. And yet, I want a happy Empress. Blarg.
Leaving our friends on the West Coast is the only con on our list. Truly.
Glad to hear about Matt's mom, beth b.
Aimee - sending mysterious vibes in your direction.
Oooh sumi. Those sound like fun vibes.
I think I'll find it in the suburbs.
Well, your smile is particularly dazzling, but they're going to be a tough nut to crack.
Not really. The Philly burbs are friendly, and I made lots of friends when I lived there. Lots of waving and smiling, and what have you.
and way too many Eagles and Phillies fans (the meanest fans in all of sports).
HEY! Some of my relatives and closest friends are Philadelphia sports fans (because I grew up 1/2 an hour away in Wilm. DE) and they are totally nice people!
Me, too! Born in Wilmington, I mean, and lived there until we moved to NJ when I was about nine. And my parents are in West Chester, PA, now, just down the road from Wilmington.
Philly/Eagle fans are pretty fanatic, though. Sports is like a religion in Philly.
All kinds of mystery and decision-making ~ma for you and Joe, Aimee. If you wind up anywhere near Philly, I'll greet you all with open arms!
Yay, Matt's Mom!
Aimee, you've sounded -- frazzled, to say the least, for some time, and it sounds like moving to Philly would at least be doing something about that. One question does pop into my mind -- how would a move affect MM's employment situation?
Hee. I just did the "Find your Spot" quiz (paging M. Porny Pants), and got...Portland!Well it does seem like Portland should have more buffistas than it does. I only know of one who doesn't even keep up her lurkerdom status. Though she does support me in email so we're good.
So if I move there, and then you bring the family along in a bit, we'll have created some balance in the universe. Even if there is "bring the cool kids to Portland" bend to the quizes...
::reads more::
Oh, those quizes really do like Portland. All of the cool kids should move there.
Though in Fair and True Disclosure, mine also always popped up San Diego and a few other places I think I would (or have been) really happy. That made me actually think it wasn't just pre-programmed so much as Portland is under-appreciated. Which makes property values much more attractive.
Trudy appearsI would be happy to cook for you but you might want to come back on Tuesday because I am in frantic mode trying to figure out what I need to do to make the plane tomorrow. Um, and I'm spending time on b.org right now. Which is helping me pack. Um. t does Awkward Turtle
It looks like transferring with my current salary and bonus is a go.Excellent! I know it is scary and huge but it just seems like it could be so good for your family. RightChoices~ma!
I'm not sure why it would be more attractive to do that if you weren't getting substantially more money or a much better job.The cost of living difference is huge. If I were in Aimee and Joe's situation (wee one and all), I would want a home of my own and frankly California is just beyond crazy about housing prices.
I haven't looked at median home prices in Philly but I know that between here and Portland, homes are a quarter the price. Given that the Miracleborns have always said that they don't plan to stay in LA forever, this seems at least like an opportunity they should explore.
Pamela lived there when she did her post-grad and really liked it there. They did eventually move back to the West Coast for family and mainly job reasons, but she enjoyed her time there.
Leaving friends is hard, but with the board especially, we can stay in touch in a way that was impossible a decade ago.
AlphaBits:
Aimee, what Trudy said about buying a home in Philly is absolutely true, but I will say this -- apparently buying in Philly proper is heavy on taxes. Now, that could be true of LA, too (I have no idea) but it's just something to consider. Houses can be cheap (way more than LA, definitely) but taxes are high.
Phillies fans regularly booed Mike Schmidt. The greatest third baseman in baseball history and a Hall of Famer. They're notoriously the meanest hecklers in the bleachers too.
I only know of one who doesn't even keep up her lurkerdom status.
Typo Boy/Gar is in Portland.
So is my ex-GF, another ex-roomie and JZ's brother and SiL.
how would a move affect MM's employment situation?
It's possible he can transfer. Might be a different job, but possible transfer. It's a key thing in our decision. With the wee-one, moving without the promise of employment is less exciting and more panicky.
If we were to buy a house out there, I'd probably follow the lead of most of my co-workers out there - buy in Jersey. Plus, Philly has no sales tax!