[2LEYS]

Well here is a breif history.

I grew up in Canyonville OR. Lived there my entire life. Then when I was 20 I moved to the Portland area for work. I was married with no kids and it was OK. We both hated the city but it was easy to drive 3 hours and be home. I work a compressed work week and have 3 or 4 days off every week.

We lived here for almost 2 years when we decided to move back home. I stayed working in Portland though. I shared an apartment with a couple guys who also commuted from southern OR to Portland every week.

Then my wife had a baby. Then it got hard to be away. So when he was a year old we packed up and moved back to Portland. We still hate it here. I am not sure what I hate more, driving 200 miles every wednesday morning after a 12 hour shift, or living in the city.

Now I have 2 kids. We went down to visit the family last week and my 3 year old was in heaven. We saw all his Grandmas and Papas. We went for a walk in the creek where I prowled as a kid. We threw rocks and watched the fish. We caught frogs in my parents pool. We walked down town and lived the small town life again.

Now we want to move back. We thought about moving to Scapoose. We were almost set to do it. It is nice but it isn't home. I go to sleep at 9:00am and I wake up at 4:30pm and leave for work at 6:30. My kids don't get up until 8:30 to 9. So I don't get to spend much time with them while I work.

My parents are talking about selling their house and we both think we want to buy it and move back home.

So we will probably end up moving back home.

 

[ampersat]

I don't know what you do for money but a friend of mine was able to work out a telecommuting deal for a company in San Diego. They're kind of small and he's the IT department, whole ball of wax, phones, infrastructure, etc. I haven't talked to him in a while but he said that if he could make it work doing it from PDX, he was planning to move somewhere remote. Maybe that's an option for you, maybe it isn't.

Your other option is moving on to your second career. Perhaps there's something you'd want to do that would work out in the small town. Depending on what interests you, the internet can help make anybody their own storefront and you can ship just about anywhere.

Bottom line: quality of life means more than just about everything else. If you and your wife are happy in Canyonville, go for it. I moved to PDX (from Texas) back in '95. No job, no family, no friends. Just packed up and moved. I had to convince our first landlord that he'd get paid even if I had to dig ditches. It was tough at times but it was the best thing I ever did. I doubt you'll regret it.

 

[judyfish99]

I kinda know how you feel. I grew up near 71st and Halsey until I was 2, then 117th where my dad built a new house. It was country at the time, now it is city. I kept moving more South each time. Now I am near Gladstone with a 20 min drive to downtown PDX. Have you considered Estacada or Boring, Oregon? Kinda countryfied but wld take max of 45 min drive. Molalla-Colton cld be another option. Check it out. Better than a 3 hr drive? :dance: :hearton: judyfish99

 

[KROY]

Re: Where to live dilemma.

I was in your shoes a few years ago. My wife and I grew up in Myrtle Creek. We went to college in K-Falls. My first job out of college was in Everett, Wa. Talk about culture shock. We drove to MC every chance we got. It was 6 to 9 hours depending on traffic. I transfered to the Portland plant in 91'. We lived in Troutdale and still traveled to MC on holidays and family days. After our first child was born, we started considering moving back to southern Oregon and even looked at jobs. We considered everything: schools, church, traffic, jobs, cost of living, fishing, hunting, crime. We decide it was a lot better for our kids and us to stay in Troutdale. We have since moved to Boring and have a little piece of country close to the city. We decide to make this our home and that meant considering it our home.

I have a lot of family that still live in Douglas County. Looking back, I know we made the right decision. I drive down to MC about twice a year and I don't miss that drive.

Whatever you do, pick a spot and make it your home and I don't mean just the house. There's good and bad in all places.

 

[Bait O Eggs]

Re: Where to live dilemma.

Tough decesions.

I have the draw to live at the coast after being born and raised there. I have a draw to live in Central Oregon. I have done some traveling and there are several places I could be happy to live. I currently live in PDX and dont much care for it but it pays the bills, it is a driveable distance to where I want to play on weekends and allows the wife to stay at home with the kids until they are in school.

Once the kids are in school we will have to re-evaluate what is important at the time.

50 years ago, people worked for one company until they retired and got the gold watch, todays job market forces most to be flexible and go where the jobs move around to. Where you live is a function of where you work. Either find a job where you want to live, or live where you find a job. I am in the ladder right now.

I believe when you return to home and actually live there, it isnt like your mind perceived it when you were a child.

 

[id. painter]

Re: Where to live dilemma.

Personally ,I wouldnt want to move back into a childhood home. Same town would be fine. It would just feel too strange.
My father had a government position with D.O.E.. He was highly sought after , and the government threatened to make our family move to large cities several times. Washington D.C.. Denver, etc.... My mother always told him no that she would not move ,,, she wanted her children to be raised rural. I thank her each and every day for that . God Bless Mother. :bowdown: :bowdown: :bowdown: id. painter

 

[wannacatchem]

If you want a real small town, try Columbia City. 2 cops, a stop light (why, I don't know) and a mini-mart. Thats it. We go into St.Helens for vittles and such. I, too work in the same industry as you, maybe in the same place, and it's a 40 minute drive to work/home on an average day.

Like BOE says, home is where you make it. Not the house you live in, HOME. I was born and raised in Bend for 24 years. Nice place to visit, couldn't live there again. Fred Meyers sits on a favorite rabbit hunting spot, the quail spot is a tract of $400k homes and it's now illeagal to feed the ducks in Drake Park. It ain't "home" anymore. We have been where we're at for just 8 months, and my wife can't imagine living anyplace else....could be the boat ramp thats 12 minutes from the house, I mean...home

 

[3riversBob]

I will hopefully retire in about 12 years and have started thinking (dreaming) about what I will do when I retire. I first thought I would like to move to Southern Oregon (Grants Pass area)but then I wasn't too sure about that. I thought about Central Oregon, (Sisters/Bend area)but not sure about that either. I was born and raised on the coast and thought about moving back there. What I have come with is this...........if I move to any of the locations mentioned I would do alot of traveling to get to the other places. It's a long way from the coast to Central, Southern Oregon or just to the Willamette. I've decided to stay put and make the hour and half drive to the coast, the 10 minute drive to the Willy, the two hour drive to Central. I seem to be living in the hub and that works well for me.

Good luck on your decision making.
Bob

 

[Joe Schwab]

Wannacatchem, I second that. We have lived in 5 states , 2 countries, 10 different cities that I can remember and we feel more at home in Columbia City than anywhere we have lived. Close enough to Portland but not in Mult. Co. Close to the coast and right on top of great fishing. 4 lane highway all the way into Portland. Life doesn't get much better.

 

[Thumper]

Soozy and I go through this regularly. She lives and teaches in SE Portland, not far from Pete's place. I wouldn't be caught dead in that area. Creepy folks. Tatooed and punctured in amazing places. Purple and green hair. :shocked: Except, of course, for Soozy and Pete, who are very nice and normal. :crazy:

I love Vancouver, actually Hazel Dell, where I am 20 minutes from either the East or North Forks of the Lewis and 30 whole minutes from the mouth of the Lewis. Year around fishing. Course I am a bit biased as I grew up here way back after WW II. Ewwww. Very old.

I would, however, move to Sisters, OR in a heartbeat. Maybe after Soozy retires. :smirk:

 

[bllelk]

Well Joe, just the other night you were whining about the 15 minute drive to the boat ramp and wishing we had a ramp in Columbia City.
Now it turns out there are three ifishers in town! Good grief, time to move! :laugh:

 

[Tilla]

Yeh, right Thumper and you're going to sell the sled and take up dry fly fishing and golf! Eeeeuu! :wink:
I have taken a liking to having the coast and anadramous fish nearby. Clams, crabbing, and Salmonoids. :cheers:

 

[wannacatchem]

blelk and Capt Hook....maybe we ought to get together for a howdy-do. Since Columbia city is so big, we can't be more than five minutes from each other. Besides, I need somebody that know how to fish for springers, what better neighbor could that be?

 

[fishnxtc]

I say move

 

[happybrew]

If you want the feel of a rural area, Mt. Angel isn't too bad a commute, or there is rural property outside of Oregon City. It sounds to me that if you want to stay where you grew up, your best option would be to get a job there. Of course, if you need to be in the Portland area to work, then commuting a shorter distance may be an option. Aurora, Canby, Donald... lots of small towns within an easy commute.

happybrew

 

[bllelk]

Wanna-
That's a good idea. Send me a pm. We'll have to get Joe to show us how it's done. :idea:

 

[dimwit]

One thing I discovered is that you should decide on where to live before your kids get to high school age. By the time they get that old, where you are is home to them and they don't wan't to move. They won't understand the parents wanting to live and raise kids in a rural setting and they will not want to leave their friends and home.

 

[Nuttinbutnet]

2LEYS- I don't envy your position. After living in Tualatin for 22 years, I got the chance to work down here in your old stomping grounds. They say home is where the heart is, but, in this day and age, it's more like where the paycheck is. :depressed: Living in the city had its advantages, especially for the kids(who are now grown). Schools and youth sport programs were high on our list when we lived there. The wife and I were both raised in Hawaii and both miss living there, but with each trip home, we find it is not the same place it was in our youth. As parents, we decided to make our living conditions based on what was best for our children as they were our biggest responsibility. Sit down with the wife and actually prioritize what is really important to your family. I am sure that you will make the right decision by doing this. It has helped me alot over the years in keeping what is important to the family first.
Good luck with whatever you decide to do!

 

[metalhead madness]

2LEYS, I grew up in MC as well. Love to go back and visit. Fish the South fork, Hunt Jackson creek. After school I lived all over the area from 10 miles above Galesville to Tiller, Cville, to MC. But it wasn't until I moved to Portland that opportunities started to surface for me. I own a couple of construction companies and dable in a few other things. I know that in south county I would not have been able to do what I'm doing. I don't Love Portland but I wouldn't be able to provide for my family there like I can here. I have a couple of acres in the redland area and it is still close to everything. IMO living here and visiting there is a better lifestyle for me and my family.

p.s. just one guys opinion

Metalhead out

Ken