5 ms·

So, serious question, explain to me why you think the weather is "miserable" and what is it you "do" all the time that you can't imagine living in Fresno? I do

by Mz 9y ago

So, serious question, explain to me why you think the weather is "miserable" and what is it you "do" all the time that you can't imagine living in Fresno? I don't get it. There are national forests there. Woodward Park is huge. There is an international airport. What kinds of activities are you into that you can't get your needs met in a city of 500,000 people, about the 36th largest city in the US IIRC, which means there are entire states that don't have a city that big in them.

fizx 9y ago
110 degrees in August.
- Mz 9y ago
  That's it?
- s0rce 9y ago
  but you have AC!
  - Mz 9y ago
    And it's a dry heat. I grew up in Georgia. I'll take 110 in a dry place with low humidity over 101 in air thick enough to slice with a knife any day.
jacobolus 9y ago
I’m sure there’s all kinds of cool stuff in Fresno if you know where to look. It’s not the same as the Bay Area though.
- Mz 9y ago
  That is generically true of any two places. But, you stated there was lots less to do there. I am curious what you are into that this seems to be true to you. What are your interests? I was a military wife. I have lived all over. I just find your statements genuinely baffling and I would like to understand where you are coming from.
  - jacobolus 9y ago
    Meetups, museums, lectures by visiting scholars, stops on book tours, concerts/plays/other performances, cultural festivals, interesting architectural sites, professional sports, restaurants, a wide variety of interesting neighborhoods within walk distance, .... There’s nothing wrong with Fresno. Plenty of lovely people live there, and I’m sure there are all sorts of things happening all the time. It just doesn’t (to me at least) seem comparable to the Bay Area. As one example, Fresno State is a fine school, but it can’t compete with Berkeley and Stanford. The population density is also relatively low, and it doesn’t seem like a very easy place to live without frequently using a car. (I end up using a car about once a month.) I really appreciate being able to walk to 3 different grocery stores within a 3 block radius, walk to 10 coffee/tea shops, walk to 100 restaurants of every imaginable type, walk to the park, walk to 2 library branches, walk to several little art galleries, walk to bakeries and fish markets, walk to all sorts of little shops, walk to the subway, ...
    - Mz 9y ago
      It just doesn’t (to me at least) seem comparable to the Bay Area. No, it isn't comparable. That is kind of the point here: If you are sick of the downside in the Bay Area of insane commutes, insane house prices, large numbers of increasingly aggressive homeless junkies, etc, then leaving might make more sense for some people than staying and hoping to fix some of these problems. But thank you for giving me a meaty reply.
      - jacobolus 9y ago
        My wife commutes to work 10 minutes by bike. I haven’t been accosted by any homeless junkies, and all of the homeless people I have talked to recently have been either friendly or politely distant (usually they seem pretty starved for human interaction, and are really excited to have a baby wave at them). I go walking around town in the middle of the night (sometimes with my 14-month-old walking beside me) and have never felt unsafe. There are a lot of car window smash-and-grab thefts in the neighborhood, which is kind of unfortunate. And sometimes people steal packages left on doorsteps. Bike thefts are also common. None of those have affected me personally. Housing prices are definitely a problem, but we are lucky to own a condo, so the main effect on us is a gradually gentrifying neighborhood (which process we are part of), which will probably mean less interesting neighbors in another 10 or 20 years.
- s0rce 9y ago
  So much closer to the mountains! Real mountains, not hills.

by Mz 9y ago

fizx 9y ago

110 degrees in August.

Mz 9y ago
That's it?
s0rce 9y ago
but you have AC!
- Mz 9y ago
  And it's a dry heat. I grew up in Georgia. I'll take 110 in a dry place with low humidity over 101 in air thick enough to slice with a knife any day.

jacobolus 9y ago

I’m sure there’s all kinds of cool stuff in Fresno if you know where to look. It’s not the same as the Bay Area though.

Mz 9y ago
That is generically true of any two places. But, you stated there was lots less to do there. I am curious what you are into that this seems to be true to you. What are your interests? I was a military wife. I have lived all over. I just find your statements genuinely baffling and I would like to understand where you are coming from.
- jacobolus 9y ago
  Meetups, museums, lectures by visiting scholars, stops on book tours, concerts/plays/other performances, cultural festivals, interesting architectural sites, professional sports, restaurants, a wide variety of interesting neighborhoods within walk distance, .... There’s nothing wrong with Fresno. Plenty of lovely people live there, and I’m sure there are all sorts of things happening all the time. It just doesn’t (to me at least) seem comparable to the Bay Area. As one example, Fresno State is a fine school, but it can’t compete with Berkeley and Stanford. The population density is also relatively low, and it doesn’t seem like a very easy place to live without frequently using a car. (I end up using a car about once a month.) I really appreciate being able to walk to 3 different grocery stores within a 3 block radius, walk to 10 coffee/tea shops, walk to 100 restaurants of every imaginable type, walk to the park, walk to 2 library branches, walk to several little art galleries, walk to bakeries and fish markets, walk to all sorts of little shops, walk to the subway, ...
  - Mz 9y ago
    It just doesn’t (to me at least) seem comparable to the Bay Area. No, it isn't comparable. That is kind of the point here: If you are sick of the downside in the Bay Area of insane commutes, insane house prices, large numbers of increasingly aggressive homeless junkies, etc, then leaving might make more sense for some people than staying and hoping to fix some of these problems. But thank you for giving me a meaty reply.
    - jacobolus 9y ago
      My wife commutes to work 10 minutes by bike. I haven’t been accosted by any homeless junkies, and all of the homeless people I have talked to recently have been either friendly or politely distant (usually they seem pretty starved for human interaction, and are really excited to have a baby wave at them). I go walking around town in the middle of the night (sometimes with my 14-month-old walking beside me) and have never felt unsafe. There are a lot of car window smash-and-grab thefts in the neighborhood, which is kind of unfortunate. And sometimes people steal packages left on doorsteps. Bike thefts are also common. None of those have affected me personally. Housing prices are definitely a problem, but we are lucky to own a condo, so the main effect on us is a gradually gentrifying neighborhood (which process we are part of), which will probably mean less interesting neighbors in another 10 or 20 years.
s0rce 9y ago
So much closer to the mountains! Real mountains, not hills.