Moving to LA - what do I need to know?

Let the polarization begin. Blame game. pointing fingers at the other.
The rent prices are so high here that people in food pantry lines cannot afford to buy groceries for their kids. It's heart breaking to turn away families with children in their cars.
Families choosing shelter or food is shameful.
 
Just to set the record straight. You can have guns in CA - lots and lots if you feel you feel the need to 'defend' yourself from whatever the current boogeyman is.....
California has the most restrictive gun laws in the country and the second amendment was put into place so we could protect ourselves from tyrants. Don't become too complacent because psychopaths are attracted to positions of money and power and history always repeats itself. "That men do not learn very much from the lessons of history is the most important of all the lessons of history." Huxley
 
Maybe there is no Shangri-La to move to. I thought about just moving to a better part of the state, like in the Sierra foothills, maybe the Nevada City area, but you're still encumbered with the higher taxes that go with it. Nevada ranks in the top 7 best places to live tax wise so that's why I was considering the Northern Nevada area. Plus, Nevada borders California so it's a quick jump over the border to do the outdoor activities that it offers like mtn biking, hiking, backpacking, 4wheeling, and fishing.

So much has changed in a very short time. California has been on a gradual decline for a long time but the last 2 years have been very dramatic. But, maybe the decline is happening everywhere. Our world has changed an enormous amount over the last 2 years, and from my viewpoint, it's not positive change.

Sorry that the thread got detoured into a bit*h-fest. Maybe I've just become an angry old codger.

Northern Nevada is awesome man. Nevada and Utah are so beautiful and worth the move in my opinion. Cost of living in Utah has increased more than almost any other state in the country per capita (except Texas if I’m correct due to Austin) but I guess people really haven’t figured out how cool Nevada is yet.
 
Northern Nevada is awesome man. Nevada and Utah are so beautiful and worth the move in my opinion. Cost of living in Utah has increased more than almost any other state in the country per capita (except Texas if I’m correct due to Austin) but I guess people really haven’t figured out how cool Nevada is yet.
I would love to live in Northern NV, anywhere between stateline and Gardnerville and/or Reno, but not Carson City, Reno or Sparks. Smith Valley would be nice but lots of LA influx and prices are going up.

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Avoiding the politics...

The experience of Los Angeles and Orange County will vary widely based on where you are and what you focus your energy on.

I don't see any special needs for bringing a vehicle here. Higher chance of door dings, but much lower chance of sliding off an icy road. Driving in traffic is much easier on a vehicle than off roading. Other than needing to do a smog check every 2 years, nothing with a vehicle will be different here (as long as you don't modify the engine...).

-Charlie
 
Northern Nevada is awesome man. Nevada and Utah are so beautiful and worth the move in my opinion. Cost of living in Utah has increased more than almost any other state in the country per capita (except Texas if I’m correct due to Austin) but I guess people really haven’t figured out how cool Nevada is yet.

I really like the southwest corner of Utah, near Zion. If the summers weren't brutal, I would consider living there. The Hurricane area has some great mountain biking trails.
 
You were in an awesome area in Oregon. I love it that area for the mountain biking. Alaska must be nice but I don't know if I'm ready for that radical of a change. I like Central and Southern Oregon. I couldn't do the West Coast of Oregon for the same reasons I'm escaping the Bay Area.

it was an awesome area.. i ran into lots of good guys from this forum who came there to play and had a few beers with some of them....after work...and showed them some nice back roads. I knew you were into mountain bikes..and always wondered if I would run into you...as the trail there is known as one of the best mountain bike trails in the us.... From 2014 to 2019...if you ran that trail....you ran past my front porch...well within a few hundred feet...but I was always working....keeping things under control...as that area became a mad house...spent more time being a "cop" then a backroad friend or a park ranger.
and as far as alaska and being ready....just gear up and go for it....warm clothes etc.....fishing and hunting etc is amazing. snowmobiles and skiing are great....back roads and exploring....nope....nothing like the PNW. if you get off the back roads here and have an issue....your screwed...no cell phone..touchy satellite phone. everything is miles from no place bumb frick.
actually wish I was back in the mckenzie bridge area.
but im here casue my wife died from pancreatic cancer....my boys with their familes moved here....with my kids, gandkids and now my great grand kid here. wanted to be near family.. one has a fishing charter boat in seaward alaska...another a doc in fairbanks...yep...im old.....but still drive a 3rd gen :) with your and seans help taking care of it..
 
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it was an awesome area.. i ran into lots of good guys from this forum who came there to play and had a few beers with some of them....after work...and showed them some nice back roads. I knew you were into mountain bikes..and always wondered if I would run into you...as the trail there is known as one of the best mountain bike trails in the us.... From 2014 to 2019...if you ran that trail....you ran past my front porch...well within a few hundred feet...but I was always working....keeping things under control...as that area became a mad house...spent more time being a "cop" then a backroad friend or a park ranger.
and as far as alaska and being ready....just gear up and go for it....warm clothes etc.....fishing and hunting etc is amazing. snowmobiles and skiing are great....back roads and exploring....nope....nothing like the PNW. if you get off the back roads here and have an issue....your screwed...no cell phone..touchy satellite phone. everything is miles from no place bumb frick.
actually wish I was back in the mckenzie bridge area.
but im here casue my wife died from pancreatic cancer....my boys with their familes moved here....with my kids, gandkids and now my great grand kid here. wanted to be near family.. one has a fishing charter boat in seaward alaska...another a doc in fairbanks...yep...im old.....but still drive a 3rd gen :) with your and seans help taking care of it..

I did a shuttle ride from your ranger station probably around 11 or 12 years ago for the McKenzie River trail.

Sorry to hear about your wife. That must have been very tough to go through.

I'm not much of a snow sports guy so that's why was considering the Ashland area. I know it gets snow, but not like the area near Bend gets. I like Bend, but I've heard the homeless have messed up that area as well. Camps all over the place on the outskirts of town right where the nice mtn bike trails travel through. Huge bummer.

I'm retiring from the fire service in less than a year and a half. I'll keep making videos and probably do some volunteer work helping build and maintain trails but that's it for me. I'm not working for the man anymore. I've paid my dues.
 
You and I must live in different realities.

I misquoted my response, I was trying to say what you heard about restaurants was not true. Big concert venues were asking for Vaccination proof, but that's about it. Not sure if that has stopped now. I prefer not to use this venue for anything remotely political, so I'll shut up now.
 
I misquoted my response, I was trying to say what you heard about restaurants was not true. Big concert venues were asking for Vaccination proof, but that's about it. Not sure if that has stopped now. I prefer not to use this venue for anything remotely political, so I'll shut up now.
I think everyone is at some level of being over covid, ready to be done; some wish we'd reacted differently as a global community.
I'm rarely asked for a vaccination card in restaurants anymore here in LA, big venues yes.
I never had covid but I am sick of it. Go home, covid, you suck.

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I think everyone is at some level of being over covid, ready to be done; some wish we'd reacted differently as a global community.
I'm rarely asked for a vaccination card in restaurants anymore here in LA, big venues yes.
I never had covid but I am sick of it. Go home, covid, you suck.

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Yes and now unprecedented massive global economic reshuffle is on deck. Been sperging out on economic analysis since the happenings in Ukraine and the experts seem to agree this is the end of globalism, which we've only glimpsed with those covid supply chain disruptions. We off-shored all that labor to China for years (and leveraged it in to a giant stock/everything bubble) but we also off-shored our inflation through the petrodollar reserve currency status. All that stuff will have to come back to the US, there will be lots of production/fabrication facilities getting built soon. We have the resources and labor supply (if you include our soon-to-be largest trading partner Mexico) so we'll be fine in the long-term. But the next 5-10 years are probably going to be very rough as things adjust. It's a good time to get a feel for how different states might cope with things changing. The 2008 crisis never got fixed we basically been living off the credit card since then. It's going to have ramifications for pensions, social security, welfare and things.

Then there's other weird stuff to think about like non-political climate change, crop yields, land mismanagement causing the Ogallala aquifer drying out, forest fires and whatever.

Trying to figure out what to do myself, I doubt this suburban NPC thing is sustainable. It's been soul-crushingly boring even before covid tbh.
 
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I'd like to know why you're moving..... It better be for a good... no..... TERRIFIC job.

For a job.

This thread ended up taking more of a political turn. I just wanted to know about the additional wear and tear on the vehicle.

Thanks for all the responses.
 
Well don't believe everything you hear, just not true. Yes CA has had a net loss of people in the last few years, long overdue to be honest. We've been overwhelmed by people since the 80's. I don't mind people leaving, not one bit. CA still has a huge economy, I like where I live. Not perfect, I've seen a lot of the country and I don't think anywhere is perfect. Good luck wherever you you end up!


I have lived almost 60 years here in the LA area, although the last 35 in a suburb. I work in LA, grew up in LA and I am among it's harshest critics. That said I have been to the bay area and it has horrible traffic, rude drivers and homeless people. AND everything costs way more than it does here. LA proper is over 500 square miles, it can give you any experience possible, pretty much impossible to describe accurately in any brief dialogue. The same could be said about the Bay Area. I know the NorCal/SoCal rivalry is alive and well, not necessarily a bad thing, but we all have to be honest in our criticisms.
There are good things here, awesome cultures everywhere, food, cars, people, music etc. I bet some might say the same about the city by the bay. Personally it is way too cold there for me, but I loved(Past Tense) riding my Ducati through Marin county, over to Sonoma, Napa, up to Mendocino. I also love that I can be in the desert in 2 hours from here, in the San Bernardino Mountains in 2 and 1/2, just not on Friday afternoon LOL.
Welcome to LA, hope you find a good life here!


I agree, the Bay Area has turned into a shithole as well. It's the reason why my wife and I are getting out soon. My comment wasn't based on a NorCal / SoCal rivalry. It's more of a comment about certain areas of the state and what their policies have done to screw things up for those that live there.

Yeah, it's not all bad but I've lived in California my whole life and the recent changes with how bad the homeless problems have gotten and the increase in crime with nothing being done by the cities and counties governing those areas really sucks. I love the California weather and topography and that's where my love ends. The politics sucks. The cost of living sucks. The emissions laws suck. There's too much suck and not enough good anymore.

Santa Clara County where I live just lifted mask mandates for Covid. I thought we were in the Covid Nazi stronghold but I've heard from friends the Los Angeles area is even worse. You couldn't enter a restaurant without showing a freaking vaccination card. What a joke, because vaccination doesn't stop virus transmission.

I thought I'd never leave California but it's time. It's not the state it use to be. More people and businesses are leaving than coming. That says something. It will always be a nice state to visit to do outdoor activities in, but it's not a great state to live in anymore.

wow Tim, that sounds bad. Dont know what state your gonna head to...but hope its one full of fun back roads and adventures.
Oregon is still beautiful....but getting crazy....spent most of my life there....but as my kids grew older and they saw the changes....they and thier families ended up in Alaska....when I retired as a park ranger in central Oregon ( hoodoo, sisters, mckenzie bridge, and lastly head ranger of clear lake) ..i moved up to be near family. Even those remote Oregon places were getting nuts....with lots of cali transplants and prices going nuts. Seems like drugs, crime and homeless followed them.
choose wisely

Interesting perspectives... I think we're all from the same generation... I've travelled extensively across the Western US and especially Cali. California has definitely changed from my first trip there when I was 18. Definitely grew rapidly. Change unfortunately, is inevitable. LA and San Francisco both have incredible cultural attractions--- my Wife and I especially love the variety that LA has to offer. Unfortunately, crime and drugs and homelessness have increased in most places that attract population growth. This issue has also taken place in my hometown of Vancouver, BC, Canada and to an extent to where I now live in Vernon BC. We made the choice to leave Vancouver, as it was becoming really busy, crazy traffic and high cost of living(ridiculous housing prices).. Yes, California is HUGE. Its got 10 million more people than Canada, and it's economy is bigger. So much opportunity. If I was looking to relocate, my top choices might be Colorado or Utah... I'm approaching retirement and luckily I'm in the right place.
 
I may have overstated your risk of getting dismembered by CJNG siccarios or starving to death if you move to California. I'm sure the bulk of it is still amazing, even LA if that's your jive. But the crippling debt bomb, low level crime problem and mandates are all valid concerns IMO.

When I see stuff like this I tend to get a little jazzed up:

Fertilizer prices:

FOy-Ki-LIX0-AE-SMD.jpg


Farming inputs:

FO0-Kzvw-VEAA9f-QF.jpg


Fentanyl:

FO3m-H9-EXs-AQc2ga.jpg


There are more than a few whisperings about the Chinese CCP being behind this cartel stuff. Revenge for the Opium Wars?? I have a feeling we've been in WW3 without realizing for at least 2 years. A new 21st century 4th generation, hybrid, non-linear warfare. It's not just California it's Texas too, there are crazy incursions happening north of the border. Houston crime has shot way up and I suspect this could be why the FBI has refused to release the 2021 UCR stats which is very unusual. I think this CJNG thing will become a narrative soon.

There's also whisperings that this Ukraine thing is actually about China. In fact there are docs from the gov flat out saying it.

There's also pretty good math suggesting A LOT of people in developing countries are going to starve from this.

Getting back to moving states when I did my autist-level research before moving my top picks were Coeur d'Alene ID and Rapid City, SD. Was too far to move so I'm stuck here now. I wonder if the Black Hills might get boring after a while tho.
 
[MENTION=9502]repo[/MENTION] I'm going to try to keep this on brand. I'm guessing you do not have a sunroof on your 3rd gen because unless you have it retracted full-time, your tinfoil hat clearance would be rather compromised.

Kidding, kidding! I fully agree that Fetty is a form of chemical warfare and now that China has made a tiny and way too late effort to regulate export of the final product, the precursors are flowing unhindered from China to MX.

Borderland Beat: Search results for FENTANYL

But yeah, the sunroof does reduce head clearance by nearly 2 inches - I wish I didn't have one.
 
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[MENTION=9502]repo[/MENTION] I'm going to try to keep this on brand. I'm guessing you do not have a sunroof on your 3rd gen because unless you have it retracted full-time, your tinfoil hat clearance would be rather compromised.

Dude the covid stuff blasted my tinfoil hat clean off. You need a magic mushroom hat or something to deal with how weird the world has become.

As the great Terence McKenna might say:

"It's not only weirder than you can imagine, it's weirder than you can imagine you can imagine!"

:D

Edit: BTW the China connection angle has been coming from people like Ed Calderon, who probably knows more than anyone on the subject. Shawn Ryan Show #007 Drug Cartel / Narcos Expert Ed Calderon - YouTube
 
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