In a message dated 9/30/2002 5:01:06 AM Mountain Standard Time, NJ-MEMORIES-D-request@rootsweb.com writes: > Newark, Nutley, Boonton, Lafayette Twp, Banner Elk, NC, Rockville, MD., > Fuquay-Varina, NC, Frederick, MD. and soon to Keedysville, MD. Last stop, > hopefully. I'm tired of packing and unpacking!!! > > When we moved here, I thought that it was going to be the final move of our lives. But we're already starting to think about retiring somewhere else. The cost of living here is going up dramatically; and with the exploding population in the area, Colorado Springs is going to be outstripping its water supply in about five years even if the current drought corrects itself next year. Already we're competing heavily for other Front Range cities for what precipitation falls on the Western Slope, and communities in the Rockies are digging in their heels about letting us put in more reservoirs. I find xeriscaping unpleasant to look at; it makes me feel like I'm living in a desert all year 'round. Don't ask me where we'll end up. We both liked the Bend, OR, area earlier this year; but their cost of living is 10% higher than ours is here. I also liked the look of the Great Lakes area when I visited it last spring, but Bill hasn't seen it yet, and there's always the problem of the humid summers. That was one part of NJ that I was glad to get away from. Doris in Colorado (Up2Nutrix@aol.com) "He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose." -- Jim Elliot, missionary and martyr