Monday, August 23, 2010

Five Places for Retirement

Yahoo's front page this morning featured Five Places for Retirement as "havens offering tax breaks and leisure." I'm always curious to discover what other places offer that my own home town doesn't--so I scanned the article. Was the grass greener on the other side of the country?

Well, let's see.Charlottesville, VA offers a mild climate, proximity to golf courses, parks and wineries, art & theater scenes, developed downtown district. On the downside, there's an above-average cost of living & moderate tax breaks, with a mid-sized public transit system. Sounds like home. Guess I won't be moving to Virginia.

As I looked at the other four cities, I discovered they offered nothing positive (except for a low cost of living in Pittsburgh, PA) that I don't have right here in Portland, Oregon. On the downside, however, they offered these negatives: high tornado risk, high hurricane risk, higher than average cost of living, and high crime rates. No thank you!

I believe I'll remain content where I am and yearn for only one "retirement" destination: the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God (Hebrews 11:10).

What about you? Are you content to stay where you are? If not, what compels you to find "heaven" on earth?

2 comments:

  1. I really like where I am. Oregon is a beautiful place. However, my son and his wife are moving to Pittsburgh, and should we end up having grandkids across the country, we might possibly move. Heaven on earth would definitely include family.

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  2. I couldn't agree more about that. Wherever on earth family is, that's where I want to be. Actually, I've seen recent photos of Pittsburgh and it looks nice--not like I remember it from decades ago.

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