Colorado people - do you like your state?

[jlee]

I was going to move to AZ.., but after buying a sled and now getting excited for winter, I'm thinking about Colorado instead.

So, do you love it? Hate it? Tolerate it? Do tell!

 

[theflyingpig]

Colorado is better than Arizona. You know why? I'll tell you why. It's farther from the border.

 

[guyver01]

I like Colorado. Moved here 3 years ago from NYC.
Except when it snows.

its fucking cold when it snows

but .. as they say.. if you dont like the weather.. wait 5 minutes.

and this is true.

i remember a year ago..
i was leaving for work at 5:30am.. it was raining out.
I took lunch at 12:30pm.. and there was a good 2 inches of snow on the ground.
when i left work at 6pm.. it was 70-something out, and no snow at all.

WTF kinda weather is that!?!?!?!

 

[zerocool84]

I'm sure I'd get bored of living in Colorado. There's really only one big city in the whole state. Also I'd probably be out of breath all the time with how high up it is.

 

[jlee]

I like Colorado. Moved here 3 years ago from NYC.
Except when it snows.

its fucking cold when it snows

but .. as they say.. if you dont like the weather.. wait 5 minutes.

and this is true.

i remember a year ago..
i was leaving for work at 5:30am.. it was raining out.
I took lunch at 12:30pm.. and there was a good 2 inches of snow on the ground.
when i left work at 6pm.. it was 70-something out, and no snow at all.

WTF kinda weather is that!?!?!?!

Heh I just checked the forecast out there - 4 degrees tomorrow night, and 43 on Saturday. WTF.

Snow is not a bad thing.

I'm not a huge fan of severe cold, though..how often does it drop below 0?

 

[Lummex]

I love Colorado. I do hate the cold, but I live in Boulder, so I can overlook it because it looks so beautiful when it snows in the mountains and on campus here. I'll probably live in other places after I graduate, but I really think I'll end up settling in Colorado again.

 

[BoomerD]

We lived on the Western Slope in the early 80's during the big oil shale boom.

The common attitude was:

"Welcome to Colorado.
See our scenery,
Spend your money,
Then go the hell home."

Nice country, not-so-nice people.
(yes, that's an over-generalization, we met lots of VERY good people there too.
(most were also imports)

 

[apac]

Colorado rules. Boulder/Denver are great places to live, everyone is friendly, skiing a little over an hour away. Great weather most of the time. It's fuckin rad.

 

[Jesusthewererabbit]

I'm not a huge fan of severe cold, though..how often does it drop below 0?

Depends on where you are at. I lived in Breckenridge for a winter, and it was fucking cold We didn't see the positive side of 0 for three straight weeks three different times and it was twenty to thirty below every morning. The winter I was i Denver as much better. It did go below zero a couple of times, but was nowhere near as bad

 

[surfsatwerk]

If you're from California then stay home. They got enough of you people migrating there.

 

[jlee]

If you're from California then stay home. They got enough of you people migrating there.

Uh..dude?

<--

 

[Ticky]

Come to AZ instead. We have Tamales. And the low is 41 today.

 

[l0cke]

It's pretty cool. Usually doesn't drop below 0 most places.

And yeah, the weather changes all the time. We had a snow day with blizzard like conditions and the next day it was too sunny to go sledding, not enough snow.

There are a lot of things that can be done in your spare time.

Not too many crazy laws or speed cameras here (stay out of Boulder in a car).

Plus, the worlds largest liquor store.

 

[jlee]

Come to AZ instead. We have Tamales. And the low is 41 today.

I'm trying - no luck so far.

 

[guyver01]

Plus, the worlds largest liquor store.

ayup!

Daveco Liquors in Thornton

The 102,000-square-foot Daveco is the size of most supermarkets.

It includes a customer-service area, 66 beer cooler doors, a walk-in beer cooler, a humidity-and-temperature-controlled 7,500-bottle wine cellar, a wine testing room and a cigar humidor.

There is also a sprawling kitchen and a 5,000-square-foot basement.

In all, Daveco features $3 million in inventory including 9,000 types of wine, 2,400 brands of liquor and 800 different beers at the store, located at 16434 Washington St., east of Interstate 25, north of E-470.

 

[Zedtom]

Colorado is a great place to live if you have a job before you arrive. This is a conservative state with high taxes. Boulder, Aspen and Breckenridge are liberal minded but all have a high cost of living. Denver is the most diverse, but has big city issues. Colorado Springs is heaven for conservatives and military.

If the OP is looking for employment in law enforcement, this may be your paradise. There are a lot of former officers from the east and west coasts that come here after they've done twenty elsewhere.

When you get away from the front range urban corridor and the ski towns, Colorado is as redneck as it gets. If Sarah Palin and C&W trips your trigger, then get your ass out to Collerahduh.

 

[TheSlamma]

May, June and September are great months here.. all the rest are complete crap. I can't wait to get enough $$$ and a job somewhere else so my wife and I can blaze.

 

[Ausm]

Don't live in Denver they have an assload of taxes.

 

[surfsatwerk]

Uh..dude?

<--

I can't be troubled with details when I'm posting. It's srs business.

 

[Gooberlx2]

I'm not a huge fan of severe cold, though..how often does it drop below 0?

Winters are comparatively mild in Denver and the front range in general. Nothing like the Northern Midwest states, like North Dakota, Wisconsin or Minnesota. Some areas, like Gunnison, are murder. I feel for those poor bastards all winter. Wyoming winters are pretty murderous as well (if you ever venture up that way).

The mountains are gorgeous and fun any time of year. I wish it were generally more humid and had more variety of seasonal colors (like what I'm used to in Wisconsin). And I miss the lakes.

Zedtom described the cities pretty well. I'll add that while Denver has big city issues, it's nothing like Chicago or Detroit. I find Denver to be similar to Milwaukee...with slightly worse traffic and generally healthier people.

 

[Gooberlx2]

ayup!

Daveco Liquors in Thornton

The 102,000-square-foot Daveco is the size of most supermarkets.

It includes a customer-service area, 66 beer cooler doors, a walk-in beer cooler, a humidity-and-temperature-controlled 7,500-bottle wine cellar, a wine testing room and a cigar humidor.

There is also a sprawling kitchen and a 5,000-square-foot basement.

In all, Daveco features $3 million in inventory including 9,000 types of wine, 2,400 brands of liquor and 800 different beers at the store, located at 16434 Washington St., east of Interstate 25, north of E-470.

Huh...I pass it all the time going to/from Costco and never bothered to venture in there. I'll be sure to check it out next time.

 

[aleckz]

Yeah, I ski every year in the Gunnison / Crested Butte areas. Around this time of year you will typically see below 0 temps in the morning. As long as you have a good set of winter clothes and some skis, you're good to go.

 

[waffleironhead]

I lived there for a few years in fort collins.

1) cost of living was pretty high.
2) people were generally rude
3) weather was very bland. Some people enjoy 80 and sunny every day, but I prefer change in the weather.

I probably would have enjoyed it more if I was making good money, but when I moved out there the economy was tanking( right around 9/11) and jobs were scarce.

The few times i ventured out of town and up into the mountains were nice, but for the most part I lived in a crap town with a nice backdrop.

 

[Ken g6]

We lived on the Western Slope in the early 80's during the big oil shale boom.

The common attitude was:

"Welcome to Colorado.
See our scenery,
Spend your money,
Then go the hell home."

The only reason I don't want people moving to Colorado is that we don't have the water to spare. Sure, we supply water to the Colorado and Arkansas rivers, but we're obligated to. Some of the Colorado River water goes to California, so we have about as much water to spare as that state.

Also, Colorado Springs is going to pot (and I don't just mean the medical marijuana.) A guy named Doug Bruce, anti-tax crusader or government troll depending on your point of view, has kept the city from raising taxes, so they're cutting services like firefighters and police. Gangs are growing and crime is running rampant. (OK, not like Chicago, but relative to what it has been crime is running rampant.)

So if you don't drink, don't bathe, and can find a way to volunteer for the CSPD, welcome to Colorado!

P.S. It dropped below freezing yesterday and is going to stay there until the middle of next week, but that's unusual. Well-below-0 temperatures used to be common, but since they're not so common anymore, pine beetles are destroying our forests.

 

[2dt Drifter]

Yeah, I ski every year in the Gunnison / Crested Butte areas. Around this time of year you will typically see below 0 temps in the morning. As long as you have a good set of winter clothes and some skis, you're good to go.

I went to school at WSC in Gunnison.. great times at the Butte.

Anyways OP if you're thinking of the Denver area there a lot of suburban communities due to the massive urban sprawl that happened in the 70's-80's. And getting downtown is not hard with public transportation. Downtown is no where near as crazy as some of the bigger cities, Thursday and Friday nights have a pretty good scene going. The Rockies and Broncos keep the city hopping.
Yeah skiing/enjoying the mountains is great and all, but with one major corridor going to the resorts you will find yourself in a traffic jam on the weekends and every freaking 3 day weekend holiday. We end up having to take an extra day off just to avoid it and it's getting worse every year.
Lots of sunshine and yes, crazy weather patterns. The only mean people you'll meet here are the ones that moved here which reminds me there is no such thing as a "Vail Native".