Quote:
Originally Posted by Omaharocks
What are yours? Do you already live in 2 places? Would you choose differently if those two places could be anywhere?
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Yes. San Francisco in late spring through early fall; Tucson, Arizona in late fall through early spring.
I like fresh air and moderate temperatures--so I can keep the windows open and not need much heating or air-conditioning. San Francisco rarely gets much above 70 degrees in summer (and the maritime climate usually keeps the temperature within a 24-hour range of around only 10 degrees F) whereas Tucson in winter usually hits a high around 65 or 70 in the daytime but can get quite cold at night (which allows for a nice cozy fire if you want one). Tucson is also surrounded by mountains that often get snow on them in winter and there's even a smallish ski resort on top of the peaks that dominate the city. That means in theory you can ski in the morning and then play a nice round of golf wearing no more than a light jacket (or no jacket) in the afternoon. You can also have lunch in Mexico if you want (in more normal, covid-free times).
For the winter, Palm Springs might be an alternative and I know some people who go there but I like having a place outside California that gives me the option of switching "residences" for tax purposes if CA gets too ridiculous. Another option would be going a little farther to someplace like Santa Fe or Silver City, New Mexico but those are colder: Better skiing, not such great golfing.
In terms of being different, I call Tucson the "anti-San Francisco". That's not so much because of politics because Tucson is in the bluest part of AZ (mostly because of the U. of AZ being there but also a lot of midwestern transplants), but rather because you just don't encounter the urban "grit" you do in really big cities (even though the metro has a million people). I once got panhandled in a Tucson gas station while filling my tank and I couldn't help literally laughing at the poor guy. It was just that I am so used to being panhandled by San Francisco's hard core homeless he seemed like an "amateur". And one rarely sees graffiti or other evidences of grit.