Relocating to Denver (weather) not really nursing

allamericangirl · Jan 4, 2005

I saw some other posts about relocating to Co. I have a SIL in Highlands Ranch. I have never been to CO but it's calling me! Can you tell me about the weather? Is it true it is very sunny but cool? It sounds ideal to me! I'm originally from Michigan where it's always grey and right now I live in Tampa. I like it here but the summers are unbearable. I'd love to find a place with cooler weather but with sun!!!
Do they have many travel assignments there??
Thanks for any help!
Cheryl

I have been a real estate broker for over 20 years, and moved to the Denver area from the St. Louis, Missouri suburbs over 10 years ago. Many who live here love it. I think it is the worst move I have ever made for many reasons.

The climate is extremely dry. You will shrivle up and itch from the minute you get here. The terrain is flat and barren. It is a high desert. The trees don't grow very tall and it is hard to keep things looking green. There is no water, and the "lakes" are man madee and the size of ponds. The air is very poor quality and the communities look and are dirty. There is a very big brown cloud that looms ofer the entire metro area much of the time. Dirt and air polution! Yuck! One of the main reasons for this is the atmosphere being light and dirt particles are heavier than the air. The streets are covered with coorifice sand and gravely dirt in the winter months by the street crews. The traffic is as heavy as you experience in Florida during tourist season all year long here. The cars driving over the crap that they put on the streets grind it into fine sandy dust and it lays in a constant mound along the edges of the roadways, and is then swept up by street sweepers that come sweeping through making dense clouds of dust throwing it all over. You then breath this stuff, and the sand particles that you breath leave permanent scars on your lungs.

Housing in ALL areas is very expensive compared to most other cities in the US. There are huge developments of new homes. The construction will be cheap, shoddy, and poorly done, compared to the new construction in the area which you are moving from. There are few craftsmen here in the building industry, and the new housing is put on postage stamp sized lots. (I am not exaggerating this!) :uhoh3: The lots are so small that there is no room to roll your lawn mower between your home and your neighbor's home. Most of the back yards are as shallow as side yards in most other communities. The median price of a home here is $285,000. and you will not find an entry level home priced under $215,000. in any area here fit to live in.

The Denver economy is constantly either boom or bust. Currently it is BUST. Jobs are hard to find and the pay scale is not in keeping with the cost of living for most who live here. Everything is expensive here. Groceries, restaurants, etc., you will find to be over priced. If you are from New York or California you will think that Denver is a great place. If you are from anywhere else you will think it is ridiculous! You will find the people to be cold and reserved compared to Florida and your old home. :crying2: Probably because it is so transient. There is nothing to do but go to sports bars in the suburbs. All of the action is downtown mand in the mountain ski communities. It is a big cow town with an infra structure that has not grown yet to keep with it's size. It's art and entertainment culture is small, and the community is very self absorbed and has the self perception that it is a dynamic cultural center. :stone You will find it very lacking if you have had any kind of a life anywhere else.

This is how I see it. Denver and metro area: The highest priced, most boring, self absorbed, dirtiest, most unfriendly place that I have ever been. I'd move to South West Florida, or anywhere else east of the Colorado state line in a heart beat if I could. :nono:

If you want to live in Colorado go to the mountains or to Colorado Springs. :idea:

cb0027 · Jan 7, 2005

I saw some other posts about relocating to Co. I have a SIL in Highlands Ranch. I have never been to CO but it's calling me! Can you tell me about the weather? Is it true it is very sunny but cool? It sounds ideal to me! I'm originally from Michigan where it's always grey and right now I live in Tampa. I like it here but the summers are unbearable. I'd love to find a place with cooler weather but with sun!!!
Do they have many travel assignments there??
Thanks for any help!
Cheryl

Colorado is a great place to live. I grew up in southern Colorado and went to college in Colorado Springs. Two years ago I moved out to Boston to attend nursing school. Wow what a difference. The weather is great, Denver has more days of sunshine than San Diego. It can be 60F in January. Summer are very mild. Cost of living is reasonable. Denver was recently ranked as one of the top five healthyist cities by Men's Health. The people are friendly and very laid back. The mountains are a short drive from the city (

COwannabe · Jan 7, 2005

Allamericangirl - You are more than welcome to move back to St. Louis....

Soleilpie · Jan 7, 2005

I just moved to Florida from Colorado Springs and it's been quite an adjustment. The heat and the 2 hurricanes...!!! The house we're renting is still being fixed, which means there are people in our house almost every day working on it! Anyway, I don't know much about Denver but Colorado Springs is about an hour south of there and the weather is GREAT! There are some 200+ sunny days a year. This is definitely a sunny state. The summers are wonderful. There is no humidity and being outdoors during the summer is very pleasant. The winters are actually pretty mild. When it does snow, it doesn't normally stay on the ground for too long. The city of Castle Rock is between Colorado Springs and Denver and is a pretty nice area to live in. It's pretty costly from what I hear though. Good Luck!

spidermonkey · Mar 16, 2005

allamericangirl · Mar 16, 2005

I would LOVE to be anywhere but here. It isn't in the cards at the moment. Two more years and I can GO. I am already planning, selling my winter things a little at a time and getting rid of excess furnishings. Every thing here is just too DRY, HARSH, and BRITTLE for me. :)

I also live in Littleton. It is amazing that anywhere so run down and bleak could be so expensive. Lucky for Colorado that all of the Californians moved in and drove up their property values. Then there is also the lovely Highlands Ranch with thousands of cheaply built frame houses that look just alike, on lots so close together that you can hear your neighbor's toilet flush while standing in your kitchen. There is also the legacy of Columbine. I have certainly lived in better environments, thats for sure! Denver metro has an overall attitude of harshness.

If it were entirely up to me I would leave here tomorrow. Believe me, there will be no looking back when I do. I'm headed east and south, back to where people have civilized manners and aren't afraid to say hello and smile at each other. :)

Allamericangirl - You are more than welcome to move back to St. Louis....

infullbloom1 · Mar 16, 2005

I moved to Colorado from Indiana in 1990 and love it here- Yes, it is expensive(but Colorado Springs is much cheaper than Denver) but the weather is great. It changes often but is almost always sunny. No place is perfect, of course, so maybe stay a month or so to see how you like it? They do have traveling nurse opportunities and there are plenty of jobs here. I recommend at least checking it out and giving it a chance.

:)

sarita279 · Mar 16, 2005

I would LOVE to be anywhere but here. It isn't in the cards at the moment. Two more years and I can GO. I am already planning, selling my winter things a little at a time and getting rid of excess furnishings. Every thing here is just too DRY, HARSH, and BRITTLE for me. :)
I also live in Littleton. It is amazing that anywhere so run down and bleak could be so expensive. Lucky for Colorado that all of the Californians moved in and drove up their property values. Then there is also the lovely Highlands Ranch with thousands of cheaply built frame houses that look just alike, on lots so close together that you can hear your neighbor's toilet flush while standing in your kitchen. There is also the legacy of Columbine. I have certainly lived in better environments, thats for sure! Denver metro has an overall attitude of harshness.
If it were entirely up to me I would leave here tomorrow. Believe me, there will be no looking back when I do. I'm headed east and south, back to where people have civilized manners and aren't afraid to say hello and smile at each other. :)

oh don't worry about it, I am a native, lived in the same home here all of my life AND I feel the same way you do about Colorado. Although many can't understand that perspective, I'm with you on alot of it.

Like I said, I've been here all my life except for when I was away at college. It has changed so dramatically from when I left. I remember for the first two years of college I thought Colorado was so wonderful and I planned to live here my whole life. However when I moved back, I couldn't stand it anymore. Yes, I know this is due in part just to growing up and being away from home....but a large part is due to all the negative changes I have seen.

It does get on my nerves that when I do complain, you get the "sour grapes" attitude from someone who has only been here a few years! And yes, I will move somewhere else when I have the chance...so another Californian can take my place!! :chuckle

allamericangirl · Mar 17, 2005

Sarita:

Thank you for the support. I wanted to move here all my life. Had it in mind to go to college in Alamosa. I really love the gorgeous country there. Didn't get to come at that time, way back in 1964, but finally got here in 1994. OMG what it shock. It just isn't the same. Those 30 years ruined Colorado's friendly Western ways. Part of the problem is probably being in the Denver Metro area. I'm just not into big and dirty, and this place is the dirtiest place I have ever been. I'm sure that the people and the communities that are more into the mountains are more like the Colorado that I remember, and I do think that the area south of the Springs is probably a better choice than Denver for living conditions. Come on down to Florida with me. My daughter lives in Fort Myers and loves it. The communities are very friendly, and they keep everything clean. For teh time being, anyway the housing is more affordable. Or try the Missouri Ozarks or any where from there east and south. You will find lots of down to earth friendly folks. :)

oh don't worry about it, I am a native, lived in the same home here all of my life AND I feel the same way you do about Colorado. Although many can't understand that perspective, I'm with you on alot of it.
Like I said, I've been here all my life except for when I was away at college. It has changed so dramatically from when I left. I remember for the first two years of college I thought Colorado was so wonderful and I planned to live here my whole life. However when I moved back, I couldn't stand it anymore. Yes, I know this is due in part just to growing up and being away from home....but a large part is due to all the negative changes I have seen.
It does get on my nerves that when I do complain, you get the "sour grapes" attitude from someone who has only been here a few years! And yes, I will move somewhere else when I have the chance...so another Californian can take my place!! :chuckle

sarita279 · Mar 17, 2005

Or try the Missouri Ozarks or any where from there east and south. You will find lots of down to earth friendly folks. :)

HAHA, i know my brother and his wife live in Missouri and they go to the Ozarks rather frequently. If you knew them...yes they are VERY down to earth!

I imagine there are still places in Colorado that are more "old school" I think the same overbuilding and overpricing is happening everywhere, but it's really hard to see it happen to your own home. The people from California think it's cheap (and it is compared to there) and now I'm thinking...wow houses in Kansas City are so cheap. It's not hip there but oh well!

jgs284 · Mar 17, 2005

I have lived in Colorado for about 10 years, originally from southern New Jersey. (near Philadelphia) I believe that most of what AllAmericangirl has to say (that is negative) is true, BUT I must qualify. I love the dryness because I'm allergic to mold and there is virtually no mold. Your hair will look better anyway because there is no humidity - it will stay where you put it in the morning. I love not having silverfish, roaches, Japanese beetles, termites, carpenter ants etc. I LOVE the summer nights because you are outside enjoying them instead of driven inside by the humidity and/or the bugs. In the winder, the snow melts fast in the bright sun, and you never get months of grey days on end like you do back east. Spring days are inserted nicely right into the middle of winter, it's wonderful. And a BIG plus for me is the crime rate. Yes, there IS crime, but nothing like I saw in New Jersey or Philadelphia, or New York. In NJ, I would be so worried because of the ^ car jackings, home invasions, gun crimes, etc. We had to have an alarm system on our home in a pretty good neighborhood because there were robberies all the time - with guns. Here, I feel very safe. (I live near Castle Rock). Rarely robberies, and the ones that occur are usually because someone forgot to close their garage door at night and teens stole the bikes. The "bad" neighborhoods in Denver are like Disneyworld if you've ever lived in NJ!!! I was in a "bad" neighborhood and didn't even know it. These people don't KNOW what a "bad" neighborhood is! They've never prayed to God to just escape from a wrong turn alive, with a pack of drinking teenagers sizing you up as they close in on you. (Camden, NJ) And I disagree about Denver being dirty. I love this city. It is clean and safe and there is so much to do with your family. The museums are not overrun by thousands of creepy, truant skanks, cursing loudly and behaving like pigs in front of your children. ("Mommy, what's a motherf_er?") That is what I see in Philadelphia or New York when I visit there. The Denver "brown cloud" is sometimes there, but more often it is NOT there, and you see BIG BLUE sky, not grey, overcast miserable weather. The schools in my county are also very good, compared to most areas in Florida that I researched. We almost moved to Florida until I realized that I'd have to put 2 kids through private school for them to get an equivalent education as here. And the homes in Florida are just as expensive as the Colorado homes now. We were priced out of the market in Florida. Why don't you take an apartment or a travel nurse position and just try it to see if it's you? Best of luck.