Lived here all our lives. Our retirement freedom
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7/17/2011
If you are considering Portland, don't be swayed by the commonly heard remark; "you will get used to it." Nonsense! My wife and I were born here. We are in our early sixties. We enjoy successful professional careers of 35 years. We live in a comfortable hillside home in one of the top ranked Portland suburbs. So life has been good... Except the climate has this little problem. The problem is not rain; the problem is what we call "The Grey Blanket." There are two seasons in Portland; the Grey Blanket Season and the Gorgeous Season. The Grey Blanket Season can begin as early as September and last as long as late-July. Fall, winter and spring are often indistinguishable. The grey days blend together with temperatures typically in the 40's and 50's, often accompanied by fog, drizzle, showers, or steady light rain. Typically, for roughly 40 weeks, cars have headlights on during the day and there are no shadows. Sound depressing? Guess what - IT IS! I'm not sure if it's related to the weather but Portland is notorious for suicide. Bloomberg's rated it number one in the top ten "Unhappiest Cities." Some people cope by taking sun vacations. We've vacationed in places like San Diego, Hawaii and Mexico during The Grey Blanket Season. Enjoying two weeks of blue sky seems to make it worse. On the return flight, dipping below the solid overcast layer on approach to Portland, in shorts and tans, has never been the happy moment one associates with returning home. As other contributors have noted; the 11 to 14 week Gorgeous Season can be wonderful because it is so lush and green, somewhat like a rain forest. Unfortunately, it is heart breaking brief. As I write this on Sunday, July 17th. It is now 58 degrees, overcast, occasional fog, with steady light rain. The weather man promises some sun breaks on Monday and then cloudy with showers the rest of the week. September is but 6 weekends away. This is why we plan to move upon full retirement.
Bp | Camas, WA