Badger Blog

 Introduction After visiting Sacramento and checking out neighborhoods and boarding stables it was time to evaluate the feasibility of living there. The process was similar to what we did after returning from Portugal -- only this time rather than just considering the merits of life in a potential new place on its own we compared it with Portland (the most likely back up destination should Sacramento not work out). In the table below we have listed what we consider to be the most important aspects of our desired lifestyle and itemized how well we expect to realize each in Sacramento and Portland. The urban and suburban neighborhoods that represent each city were chosen because they are within our budget and are what we consider to be livable, but there are other examples in either city we would consider for living.  Evaluation Text in green indicates a perceived advantage of one city over another worth noting.   Sacramento Portland Cost of ...

Experience has shown that the research done on how livable a place may be, no matter how thorough and carefully thought out, needs to be backed up by "feet on the ground" reconnaissance. Our trip to Portugal in October showed that some of the places for which I had the highest hopes for living did not appeal to us at all while areas that I had ruled out ( <cough> Foz do Douro <cough> ) were our favorites. And of course the horse boarding and riding details that looked doable on paper turned out to be inadequate when seen on location. We expected the same sort of realignment with reality from Sacramento once we visited, but with better options for horse boarding and riding but fewer acceptable options for living -- in other words, the exact opposite of Portugal. Horse Boarding Because the horse boarding and riding combination is what doomed our Portugal retirement plans I'll start there for Sacramento. Our requirements were that the horses would get out into a ...

One of the items from our list of must haves on which we compromised was living in an urban center where we could walk to many (if not most) amenities. Well, maybe not compromised on so much as simply tossed out altogether. In cities like Portland there is a large area surrounding the city core where residential areas are intermixed with restaurants, theaters, shops, and even light industry. And so you could live well out from downtown Portland but still be able to walk to a wide variety of eateries, grocery stores, theaters and other necessities. Sure, if you ranged far enough out you will eventually find yourself in the suburbs, but there are a lot of neighborhoods to choose from before you get there. Unfortunately Sacramento is like most American cities: a small urban core surrounded by miles and miles of suburban wasteland. What's wrong with the suburbs? Nothing, if you like to drive everywhere for everything, if you don't mind giving over vast expanses of land to high tra...