[Jigsaw John]

But I'm a native of San Diego so I know that California is such a big state that it's like ten New England states combined, so any sweeping statements people make about the entire state are usually false. Some areas in CA are losing employers while others are expanding employment rapidly and the quality of life is still very good.

I could not agree more. Nice to see a common sense post.

I noted you still keep a boat in SD. You know, we went to AZ a couple of years ago, to look at property...Went in the summer, and we soon changed our minds. It was just too hot for me and my better half. Phoenix looked no different than So Cal except it was super hot. Reading some of these posts here about CA, you'd think the whole state was SF or downtown LA. I honestly don't think people realize how big CA is and how different many regions are compared to others.

[defenderSD]

Yes, Phoenix is really hot in the summer. We're down in the East Valley right now but we're going to move up to the north end of the Phoenix area next year so we're closer to the mountains. From there, it's only a 90 minute drive up to Flagstaff to cool off and play some golf in the summer. We're going to take a lot of Fridays off and take long weekends up in the mountains next summer. California has great weather...unequaled in the US. You have to live there for a while to experience and understand the weather, scenery, and all the outdoor activities.