So, where was I?
Ah yes. I resigned from my job to become a full time writer, and pen the next great American Science Book: "Death from the Skies". That’ll happen in late May. But there’s a little backstory…
So a little while ago I get the contract from the publisher, and Mrs. BA says to me, she says: You know, a writer can write anywhere.
And I say, Well, yeah.
And she says, Rohnert Park is boring.
And I reply, Well, yeah.
And she says, Little Astronomer will be going into middle school next year, and we need to get her to a better school system.
And I think, She spends a lot of time researching stuff on the Internets, so she’s probably right.
So I reply, Well, yeah.
Taking this as confirmation that I’m agreeable to moving (which, in fact, it was) Mrs. BA starts the research. She looks at place after place, and where the schools might be good, the weather is terrible. Or it’s too urban. Or too rural. Or it’s on the East Coast, which we left back in 2001 (and don’t miss the weather, or the traffic).
Anyway, Mrs. BA works and works on this, and one day she walks into my home office and says to me, she says, How about Boulder?
Now, many thoughts crowded into my head at that point. Boulder? I love Boulder! It has a rich atmosphere, it’s a fun place, the mountains are spectacular. I have many friends who live there. People who live there love it, and seem amazingly happy. I spent weeks there working on a Hubble camera, and had a great time. It was the setting for Steven King’s The Stand. What’s not to love?
So I say, It’s cold there.
And she replies, The schools there are incredible. They have two of the top 300 high schools in the nation there.
And I think, we’re done negotiating.
It was that simple. OK, it was actually a lot more complicated. We needed to go to Boulder and reconnoiter, so we combined a vacation with poking around and looking at houses. We found one we loved, and we went back and forth on it, but we have settled on it. We put our house in California up for sale, and amazingly, it was sold immediately. I’ve never seen such a thing. If I were superstitious, I’d say it was fate. But in fact it was due to years of Mrs. BA’s effort into making our house really pretty nice. Also, we had the best house in our price range on the market in this area, and we priced it to sell. No luck or fate needed (since they don’t exist).
Sorry. Even when telling a story I have to let a little skepticism sneak in.
But there you have it. That’s the final part of the big news. I’m writing a book, I resigned my job, and the Bad Family is up and moving to Boulder, Colorado.
I have no idea how this tale will end, except that at some point a book will come out, and the Little Astronomer will get a great education, and that soon enough we’ll be reminded, after six years of rain and fog, what a real winter is like.
Sounds like fun. Eastward ho!
April 12th, 2007 at 10:50 pm
Best of luck! Er, what I mean is good fortune to you… oh, whatever. Congratulations to you and your family! Enjoy your new adventure.
April 12th, 2007 at 10:53 pm
Nanoo nanoo!
April 12th, 2007 at 11:07 pm
Boulder cold? Oh, you’re moving from California …
On the plus side, you should be able to find plenty of “woo” in Boulder to write about on this blog.
April 12th, 2007 at 11:27 pm
what a sell out. sounds like a nice place, but i’d feel weird living away from the ocean.
April 12th, 2007 at 11:37 pm
Yeah, the first time I heard about a place called “Boulder Colorado” was on Mork & Mindy all those years ago. Hey…do they need any high school physics teachers out there?
April 12th, 2007 at 11:37 pm
Aw nuts, someone already made a Mork joke.
April 12th, 2007 at 11:55 pm
My family, except for me all live in various locations in Colorado and Mrs. Chip and I have visited Boulder quite a bit. This may be a bit lower on your ‘reasons to move there list,’ but here are a few other cool things about Boulder.
Good school – CU Boulder Center for Astrophysics and Space Astronomy and CU Boulder Department of Astrophysical and Planetary Sciences - you likely know some people there.
Some great book stores. (One of which combines hot coffee and books very well. Nice in the winter.)
Believe it or not, one of the best sushi bars in the country is in Boulder. Just ask the locals.
Music scene pretty good. We’ve booked some very good nationally known blues and Americana musicians at clubs there – if you’re into that. The overall cultural scene is pretty good.
Natural beauty of the Rockies nearby.
And of course:
Skies. Usually clear dark skies not far out of town. (Except when it is snowing.)
My only regret: We had dinner with you once after the Davis Astronomy Day a few years ago and it was fascinating. Your move out of California somewhat lessens the chances of that occurring again, but maybe someday we’ll get a chance to see you lecture again and say hello while in Boulder. All the best!
April 13th, 2007 at 12:02 am
Also, you’ll be near to South Park! Cool.
April 13th, 2007 at 12:04 am
Don’t you mean to say that it has a [i]thin[/i] atmosphere?
April 13th, 2007 at 1:15 am
Heh - everything I learned about Boulder I learned from the Stand
April 13th, 2007 at 1:37 am
Congrats and all but why in the hell would anyone want a real winter?
April 13th, 2007 at 1:41 am
Good luck, but one question, did you check the dark sky map before picking a place to live. I mean its important to have a nice dark sky so you can show the little astronomer all the cool stuff up there.
April 13th, 2007 at 3:52 am
Congratulations and good luck.
But you chose Boulder over, say, central MD (even better schools) ’cause you don’t like the weather on the East coast? C’mon, it’s all about the skies, innit?
April 13th, 2007 at 4:03 am
Nice move, studied engineering at Boulder. Loved it there, but would have to agree with a comment from a former colleague though. “Boulder, 30 square miles surrounded by reality”. Unless it has changed a lot in 15 years, there will be plenty of “material” for the BA to get his teeth into
Still, if you wanted a proper winter you should have moved a few miles up the map to the great white north.
April 13th, 2007 at 4:14 am
You lucky, lucky, ba.. err… bad astronomer. The Rocky mountains are beautiful!
April 13th, 2007 at 4:16 am
Boulder is great—if I were ever to move back to Colorado (I grew up there) it would be to Boulder.
But you should know you’re part of a 15 year trend—the California Immigrants have something like quadrupled the population of the state of Colorado in the last 15 years.
There used to be a lot more open space between Boulder and Denver along US-36, now it’s all condos and suburbia and big-box stores. But Boulder itself is still beautiful.
April 13th, 2007 at 4:25 am
so wait, if there’s no such thing as luck then what is a random fortunate happening, like coming across $20 on a park bench?
April 13th, 2007 at 4:59 am
Of course there’s luck; it’s either end of the Random Fortune Bell Curve. The BA was on the right end selling his house. I think he means he’s trying not to think it’s Destiny!
April 13th, 2007 at 5:13 am
Hey Phil, welcome in advance to Colorado. I live in Longmont, just north of Boulder, in Boulder County and a lot less expensive than Boulder proper. Colorado is OK, but I miss California all the time. I don’t know how great the schools are here. Did you miss PZ’s rant about the IDiot teaching science at the middleschool here in Longmont? Fortunately all the press seems have to caused the lousy teacher to resign (or be fired? he says the same thing as you, that he’s quitting his job to write a book.). And Marilyn Musgrave — sponsor of both the anti-flag-burning and anti-gay-marriage proposed Constitutional amendments — is our representative in Congress. Sigh. Boulder is, admittedly, more liberal than the rest of the county and most of the state, so there are probably no IDiots teaching there. At least we are pretty far away from Colorado Springs, but it’s still embarassing to live in the same state as James Dobson. At any rate, I hope you like it here. And we welcome the addition to the secular & skeptical community.
April 13th, 2007 at 5:16 am
Good luck on the move and everything, BA!
April 13th, 2007 at 5:38 am
What a real winter is? Hmmm… Not sure of that. I live in Quebec, Canada… You should move up here. Now, THAT’s a real winter!! But hey, I suppose Boulder might be a fine alternative to Quebec!
Good luck to you and your family!
April 13th, 2007 at 5:58 am
You’re easing into that “real winter” thing aren’t you BA? After a few years, you’ll be hankering for a real “real winter” and move up here into PZ country. We just got about 3 inches of snow on Wednesday (April 11th). Now THAT’S real winter!
April 13th, 2007 at 6:00 am
Oh, and we’ve only had on “real winter” since I moved here in 1999.
April 13th, 2007 at 6:26 am
Hey, I’m in Longmont too. I hadn’t been impressed with what I heard about any of the local school systems, actually, so I’m somewhat surprised. But then I haven’t done much research into the subject yet.
April 13th, 2007 at 6:31 am
Welcome in advance Phil! Living in Boulder myself, I’ll be looking out for you to give your Moon Hoax talk here at the University of Colorado;-) (*laughs* Being a native coloradoan, I don’t miss california at all)
April 13th, 2007 at 6:32 am
Hmmmm….first BA announces he is going to write a book about Death from the Skies. Then he announces he’s moving to a considerably higher elevation and well away from the Coast. Coincidence?
Having lived in the Front Range for six years, let me say good luck as the water supply continues to run out; stay off I-25 as much as possible; practice saying, “Damn Californians!”; get ready for more thunderstorms with little rain but LOTS of lightning; and, check out Oh My God Road if you get the chance.
Best thing in Boulder? McGuckins.
April 13th, 2007 at 7:07 am
Bummer! California loses another brain to the high mountains. Well, best of everything, Phil. If the Green Lemon band makes it to Colorado to play again, you should check them out. They’re a really good jam band out of Okla. City,. The lead guitarist(looks like a young Jerry Garcia), Steve(real name is Matt but that’s another story) is the son of my step daughter, Jennefer. Good music, good vibes,,,
Have fun. Stay skeptical.
GAry 7
April 13th, 2007 at 7:10 am
Phil,
I myself just moved out here to Arizona from Rohnert Park (I lived pretty close to the College). I havn’t looked back once. You’re right-RP is boring plus the 101 sucks, and from what I hear it ain’t gonna get any better in the near future. You and your family will be much better off where you’re going.
April 13th, 2007 at 7:11 am
BA as a mountain monkey huh…. So the book will be called “Death from the Skiies”.
April 13th, 2007 at 7:24 am
Winter is always a good thing. Great for you!
April 13th, 2007 at 7:31 am
Is the colorado thing set in stone? I mean, I got a bit excited when you said eastward that I might have someone cool to hang with (finally).
Thinking of maybe going a bit more east? Like… north-easternish?
Yea… I know… its cold but not the good skiing kinda cold that you get in CO.. Well the skiing is sometimes decent.
But look:
I have a 1080p tv, a pool table, a big gas grill… okay that’s at my parents place.. er.. you can come over some time and chill if you live near here. My brother has an xbox 360. We can get some beers or something… Maybe watch a ballgame?
April 13th, 2007 at 7:56 am
Excellent! We’ll be neighbors again!
April 13th, 2007 at 8:06 am
Well, based on the slap down I saw little BA give you last summer on black holes, her education is already pretty good
I get up to that area occasionally…I’ll drop you a line when I do. It’s pretty, but too cold for me! Although I have enjoyed my visits to the area. Fall is nice there.
Rob
April 13th, 2007 at 8:20 am
You will love Colorado. It is the best place I have been.
April 13th, 2007 at 8:32 am
Welcome to Colorado. I think you’ll like it here. Just ignore the weather reports for today.
April 13th, 2007 at 8:40 am
DrBuzz0, given that we’ve sold our house here and bought one in Boulder, yeah, it’s set in stone!
I forgot about Mork and Mindy. That’s funny. I’m such a nimnull.
ABR, I have been to McGukins, and I don’t see the draw. But Eads, on the other hand, rocks. I love that place. Now if I can just find a good local coffee roaster where I can get dark, oily decaf beans (good caf beans are easy, but quality decaf is very tough to find).
writerdd, I didn’t know you’d be so close! That’s excellent; I always like to have skepchicks handy. I live with two, in fact! I hadn’t heard any followup on the Longmont teacher. Do you have a link?
Everyone else: thanks! We’re excited about the move, though of course dreading the prep. And I should clear this up too: While Rohnert Park itself is boring, it’s surrounded by fantastic places. Armstrong woods, Bodega Bay, Sebastopol… and of course, San Francisco. I love that town, and I’ll miss it. But Denver is pretty nice too, and will be just as close.
April 13th, 2007 at 9:07 am
Congrats Phil on all…parts 1, 2, and 3! How exciting for you and your family to be able to choose where to lived based on nothing but your desire to live there. Very few people are lucky enough to do that!
And I dig your The Stand reference. Can you dig it?
April 13th, 2007 at 9:20 am
Yes. college towns. We moved from SoCal to Ann Arbor a couple of years ago, partly for the schools, partly for the seasons, partly to get out of SoCal, and love it. Boulder would have been a top 5 choice too, but I had unfinished business at the University of Michigan.
(About the sushi, Chip, last time I was in Telluride I was told that the Colorado health department requires that only flash frozen (or something) fish be served raw. I don’t recall the details, other than I was disappointed.)
April 13th, 2007 at 9:41 am
Welcome neighbor. As a Denver resident myself I highly enjoy all that Colorado has to offer. But I do not often tell other people that because I’m greedy & want to keep it all for myself. But now that Phil is moving here I think we could be looking at a new national trend since we know how much influence he has.
April 13th, 2007 at 10:12 am
Welcome to the People’s Republic of Boulder, the last bastion of liberalism in a sea of red. Ok, that’s not totally true, but kinda. I normally discourage people from moving to Colorado, since there is too much traffic and pollution already. “The winter’s are brutal! The scenery get’s real old after a couple of days. The thin air means you can’t even walk up stairs without 5 minute breaks. Being at such a high altitude means you can’t go outside or the Gamma Rays will get you.” But in this case, I’ll make an exception, welcome to Colorado!
April 13th, 2007 at 10:13 am
Welcome to Boulder! I’ve been living here for most of my life. Yes, it has changed a lot in the last 20 years. Too many damned Californians!! (present company excepted)
One very important question for BA…do you homebrew? Funny thing: all engineers eventually try to brew their own. Boulder is where it all started and we have several clubs in the area. I’d be very happy to introduce you to my club.
April 13th, 2007 at 10:15 am
The previous “Ed” is not me, by the way…but by his comments, he could be. That’s pretty much what I tell prospective “immigrants” as well.
April 13th, 2007 at 10:42 am
Good luck with your move, Phil. You’re going to have to write about some amusing moving stories.
April 13th, 2007 at 10:46 am
I dunno… To me, living someplace “boring” is the optimal condition.
To much of what is labeled “interesting” in this culture falls under the heading of “jackassery”. :-\
April 13th, 2007 at 10:54 am
What a boon for us! I’m really happy to hear you’re moving out to our neck of the woods. I’ve lived in Boulder since 1977, graduated from CU and have had a wonderful life here.
I really hope to be able to connect with you once you move out. You’re going to need to know where all the good observing spots are - those with dark skies and good seeing - because you’re not going to get it in Boulder proper.
I did a study at Summers-Bausch observatory when I was at CU over the course of one year and found trhe seeing in Boulder is almost never less than 5 arcseconds. But, there are places where one can go. I’d love a chance to do some observing with you.
To expand on Ed Myers’ point on Homebrew: one of the best things about living here is the beer. Colorado (and Boulder) have the best selection of quality mircrobrews you’ll find anywhere.
Welcome and I hope to connect one day!
April 13th, 2007 at 11:08 am
There seems to be a lot of us Coloradoans around on this post. I guess I have not checked the Location map in a while.
April 13th, 2007 at 11:19 am
Welcome to Colorado!
April 13th, 2007 at 11:27 am
Wow, what’s next? I feel like I’m watching “Green Acres” again, sorta.
But, come May, there is Death from the Skies, so what’s the point in moving.
April 13th, 2007 at 11:36 am
Congratulations on your career change and best luck on the move, Phil, but you’ll be missed here in California.
April 13th, 2007 at 11:46 am
The previous “Ed Meyers” is not me either, just as confirmation. I actually live in Fort Collins. And as I say in front of all my EWDHB (engineers who don’t home brew) meetings, “I’m an engineer, and I don’t home brew.”
April 13th, 2007 at 12:27 pm
I’m rather skeptical about this Steven King book… He family of Stephen King?
April 13th, 2007 at 12:43 pm
I don’t get it.
Who are you calling an eastward ho?
Anyway, I imagine this move might result in cheaper airline tickets for visiting family members.
April 13th, 2007 at 12:48 pm
Dude Phil we need to chat. I live right next to Boulder and while I agree it’s a great place, you should really move to somewhere like Superior, Broomfield, or Louisville. The cost of living is way lower, and all of the good Boulder schools have open enrollment so your kid(s) can go to whichever school they want no matter where they live. I live in superior and Fairview High School is about 10 minutes away (my wife is the dance coach there). Just a thought.
April 13th, 2007 at 1:48 pm
The mean in Boulder is no weirder than anyplace else in the country, it’s just that the standard deviation is so much greater. Where else in the world can you have Soldier of Fortune magazine and Celestial Seasoning Teas? Where else do the Rainbow Family cross the street to avoid the bookburning? (Can’t take credit for coming up with the idea, but it’s so very true.)
Phil, are you up to getting together for a beer or something with local fans once you’re settled in?
April 13th, 2007 at 2:48 pm
Phil:
Hope the move to CO will provide you with all the ingredients to write the second successful book.
As for the town you’re leaving: forty years ago, rural Santa Rosa and its environs was once a very bucolic place, unpopulated by city folks looking for cheap real estate or troubled by the gang activity which follows city people when they move like fleas follow hosts. I remember Lake Tahoe before the real estate orgy… I remember Seattle before the Californians moved there… And I remember Oregon before the Californians moved there… But most of all, I remember places in California and what they were like before this state became the last Western frontier for the rest of the dissatisfied, restless rest of the nation. We Californians always seem to be the target of abuse: “Don’t Californicate Oregon” was a rallying cry for the Oregonians a few years ago - and most of them were CA ex-pats (and usually from some other state before CA). So I hope you get a few years of solitude and stimulation at the same time. Just remember, though: what drove you away from CA (and what led you to CO) will surely bring others…
Goodbye,
Will. M.
April 13th, 2007 at 3:53 pm
Congrats on the move, I’m sure Boulder is cool.
OTOH, didn’t I see creationist headlines about the Boulder schools a little while back? I could be wrong (I usually am).
April 13th, 2007 at 4:49 pm
The CNN website has election 2004 stats. Kerry beats Bush by better than 2-1 in Boulder County. The State, however, went Bush, That state has a nasty reputation due to a surplus of fundie religious nutcakes spewing their hate and venom 24/7. While Northern Calif may not be the best of all possible worlds, it is a darn sight better than Colorado. Good luck–I have a feeling you are going to need it.
April 13th, 2007 at 5:39 pm
OK all you Boulder and Boulder area folks….lets be honest, its “The Republic of Boulder” and you know it. When I was a medic in Denver I was taught all the “odd” address where on the North and West side of the streets and well guess what Boulder is Northwest of Denver. Something to remember BA you can no longer burn your sofa, it was banned a few years ago. Congrats on the move and enjot the clear skies.
April 13th, 2007 at 6:35 pm
Dr. BA moving to Boulder! Although I wouldn’t pick it personally, it’s not a bad area. Couple of things of mention: 1) You’re much closer to RMSS (Colorado Spings), WUTS (SE Wyoming), Okie-Tex, and a few other annual star parties; 2) The mountains are beautiful; and 3) The mountains really mess with the upper atmosphere. Since you’ll be out this way, I’m sure some of the Denver Astro Society folks would love it if you came over to historic Chamerblin Observator or to one of their General meetings to speak!
April 13th, 2007 at 6:56 pm
http://strangemaps.wordpress.com/2007/04/03/97-%e2%80%93-where-and-how-evolution-is-taught-in-the-us/
Might want to keep track of the rugrat’s biology education, and make sure it’s up to snuff.
April 13th, 2007 at 6:58 pm
Ok this is funny. I have a feeling that Cadmansfriend is a buddy of mine that I both work with and observe with when weather here permits. He beat me to the exact comments I was going to make. What’s really funny is that this blog creates lots of great discussion material for us on breaks at work…this is too cool. What a small world.
In any case, I would love to meet ya BA and second Cadmansfriend’s comments. You would be more than welcome to observe with us at a secret dark sky location we use on the plains east of town. :o)
April 13th, 2007 at 7:40 pm
The League of Incidental Characters in Comic Books…
Dang, Jim Kakalios outranks us all. After I mentioned my oblique appearance in a comic book, he responded with a promise to verify his appearances, and he has come through…….
April 13th, 2007 at 8:33 pm
Wow, my parents are actually moving up to Boulder, CO. My first thought was, “Hey, The Stand is set there!”
April 14th, 2007 at 1:46 am
I thot I was the only Leon. Guess not. Hope you have a good move. Keep moving East and we might bump into each other in Central US. Great night skies where I live. (I hate moving).
April 14th, 2007 at 1:48 am
Good luck. Many changes in such a short time! I hope we will get some pictures of your new home and the surroundings! Sounds pretty nice!!
April 14th, 2007 at 2:54 am
Try and use the word God in the title, you will quadruple sales
April 14th, 2007 at 4:05 am
B.A. says: “We found one we loved, and we went back and forth on it, but we have settled on it. We put our house in California up for sale, and amazingly, it was sold immediately.”
You jammy bugger!
–
Sounds like The Fates are batting for you, O sceptic one!
April 14th, 2007 at 4:21 am
Somewhere, right now in this country, a geologist and his family are planning on moving to Jupiter, Florida
April 14th, 2007 at 7:03 am
Be very careful denying that you were lucky to hav met and married Mrs. BA.
April 14th, 2007 at 7:42 am
I feel abandoned. First you leave my alma mater, then you bail out of my home county (although I can easily understand getting out of Rodent Puke). We still all see the same stars. Now you’ll just be a bit closer. As KingNor said early on, though; no ocean. Happiness and success to the BA family. I’ll send you a pic of the sun setting over Bodega once in a while.
April 14th, 2007 at 10:59 am
Welcome to Boulder and Colorado!
I grew up there (on The Hill). Graduated from Boulder High School. Got my MBA from CU. My mother and much of my family live there. I even took piano lessons across the street from the famed “Mork and Mindy” house for many years - and yes, it’s still there. Boulder is indeed politically much farther to the left than the rest of Colorado. Hope you like prairie dogs! You can get fined big-time for disturbing these bubonic plague carrying rodents or their habitat (some politically powerful “lefties” apparently think they’re cute and somehow endangered - in reality they’re thriving everywhere. …Everywhere…). By the way, accidentally tripping over a prairie dog hole in a field and twisting your ankle can be construed as disturbing their habitat…
You’re also now going to pay an additional “Global Warming” tax to help less fortunate families reduce their carbon output. You get taxed even if you’re already buying compact flourescent lightbulbs and recycling, because you’re still apparently not doing your part. That tax, by the way, is actually going into the general fund, which means you can already guess how many poor families will actually benefit from it.
If you’re moving to The Hill, be sure to bring that extra couch for the front porch (inside joke in Colorado). Denver is a pretty good mix - perhaps somewhat left of center politically. The conservatives tend to be out in the country and down into Colorado Springs. Ironically, Boulder was historically also a last holdout for the KKK in Colorado.
Despite all of that, Boulder is still a really cool place to live and grow up!
We have 4 great Colorado seasons: Almost Winter, Winter, Still Winter, and Construction…
Seriously, it’s the only place where I have seen it snow every month of the year and also be over 60 degrees (Fahrenheit) every month. We call this time of year “Springtime in the Rockies” - Only here in April could it be 80 1 day, snow the next, and be 80 again two days later. I’ve mowed the lawn and shoveled the walk on the same day before.
Boulder has grown over the years - From another person’s post, it’s now big enough to be 50 square miles surrounded by reality…
I’m sure you’ll enjoy it, especially if you love sports (we have professional football, basketball, baseball, ice hockey, la cross, soccer, and indoor football teams), being outdoors summer and winter, great science (be sure to check out NCAR and the atomic clock at the National Bureau of Standards). By the way, the reason it’s named Baseline Road is it is exactly 40 degrees north. IIRC, 20th & Baseline is 40 degrees north and 138 degrees West.
…And despite what the left-coasters say, Colorado is way better than California.
Originally, California was going to be called Colorado. We got the better end of that deal. But it’s still considered West - New York is yet another 1600 miles to the East, along I-70 at that.
Cheers,
Chris W.
April 14th, 2007 at 12:56 pm
Hey, great news! Here in Colorado we seems to be moving in the wrong direction (from relative sanity to the insanity of James Dobson, Focus on the Family, etc). Luckily here in the northern part of the State (including Denver Metro, Fort Collins, Loveland, Boulder, various small towns, etc.) the irrationality has somewhat hit an end (though as someone pointed out there are cracks in the wall, (e.g., the Longmont Idiot teacher).
As for real winters? Sorry, doesn’t really happen. Occasionally we’ll get a blizzard that will drop some real snow (like this year with a 1m or so), but most winters any snow that does fall only lasts for a couple days. The eastern part of the state is mostly shielded from the brunt of nasty weather from the arctic by a ginormous wall of rock. You might have heard of it
The mountains and western areas do get significant bad weather though.
Colorado is one of the most sunny states (300+ sunny days a year). Of course it may be sunny but that doesn’t stop it from being even as low as -10F or so, heh. Also, prepare yourself for drastic changes in weather within 15 minutes, rain and even snow right along with sun and other peculiarities of weather in CO.
Now. I have to warn you about Boulder. Boulder (along with most of Northern Colorado) is a decent sort of place, but it has a somewhat well earned reputation for snobbery and isolationism. Many residents of Colorado refer to Boulder as “The Boulder Free State”. Of course, I am being stereotypical (bad me), but it’s a stereotype that has been earned.
Additionally, you can’t help but avoid a large youthful population. Northern Colorado is host to two large (20-40k student) universities: the University of Colorado (Boulder and Denver) and Colorado State University (Fort Collins) along with several smaller universities. There’s also a fairly substantial high tech industry. Many of the major IT, biomedical and defense contractor companies have substantial presences in the area.
As someone else pointed out, you will have to deal with plenty of inanity and irrationality. Look up Representative Musgrave, and Senator Allard. You’ll be horrified. On the plus side, we just elected a seemingly less insane (though largely unknown) person as our Governor. Oh, and you can legally make a U-turn anywhere you want unless otherwise posted, heh
Also, if anyone asks you about your thoughts water rights, you best be willing to cast your fellow Californians in a negative light. Water rights issues are huge in Colorado (Colorado being the source of most of the water used in the Western United States.) We’ve literally moved mountains and changed the course of rivers over the idea =)
April 14th, 2007 at 1:36 pm
California v. Colorado–no comparison. People vote with their feet. California–estimated population in 2007 at over 37 million has gained almost as many residents (over 3.5 mil) since the 2000 census as Colorado has in their entire Dobson infested state (4.6 mil). When the people vote with their feet, there is just no comparison.
April 14th, 2007 at 2:01 pm
You will love living in Colorado…Yes we have cold, but we also have 300 days of sunshine, you get a little of everything here. Allan is painting the state with a broad Dobson brush, he is thinking of Colorado Springs, Boulder is very far away from there geograpically as well as in mindset. Denver is also much further to the left than the springs, so don’t worry about it.
April 14th, 2007 at 2:33 pm
I Must say, I appreciate all this advice! However, I have spent quite a bit of time in Boulder, so I know what it’s like.
I just wish I could have been there for the Conference on World Affairs. I participated a few years back, but once I live there I can’t be a panelist.
But I’ll happily be on the committees!
April 14th, 2007 at 3:19 pm
Everyone needs a Mrs. BA.
The one thing I just don’t get is the Bads almost looking forward to a real winter. That’s just wrong. (gotta go now…time to start the snowblower AGAIN to obliterate a few more tons of ‘global warming’)
April 14th, 2007 at 4:09 pm
Everyone makes Boulder sound so great.
Maybe I should hitch a ride out there too.
Santa Rosa will miss you, BA.
April 15th, 2007 at 5:12 am
As cold as -10F? That’s a warm winter day by our standards. (Northern Sweden). Here we can get -40F, but more common are periods of low temperatures and stable air at around -25F. Not exactly accustomed to the fahrenheit scale but that should be pretty accurate. But we also get warm and sunny summers. Living at the Baltic coast, summers tend to have rather few rainy days. And of course the high latitudes gives us long summer nights and dark winter skies. And quite a lot of snow, which is great!
April 15th, 2007 at 12:12 pm
Hi Phil,
Here’s the follow up on the story about that Longmont teacher. It was in the local paper. Funny how follow ups like this never make it into the news, huh?
***
Publish Date: 3/27/2007
Debunking Darwin
Longmont teacher will spend retirement writing books on creationism
By Ben Ready
The Daily Times-Call
LONGMONT — A science teacher who’s spent 10 years with the St. Vrain Valley School District is retiring this spring to write more books on creationism and the dangers of Darwinism.
Ken Poppe, 58, made national news last week after his sixth-grade paleontology class debated global warming and decided humans aren’t causing it. A Daily Times-Call story on the debate was featured on Rush Limbaugh’s radio show Friday and appeared on The Drudge Report’s Web site.
Though his students were free to choose as they pleased, Poppe said he too disagrees with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which declared Feb. 2 that it’s 90 percent certain human-generated greenhouse gases are to blame for global warming.
Poppe said he’s received about 85 e-mails from around the country since his class’ debate, more than 95 percent of them thanking him for letting the kids come to their own conclusions. But science blog Web sites have attacked his views. One site even featured racist and derogatory comments falsely attributed to him.
Poppe’s true passion is deconstructing another widely accepted science: evolution. In September, a spiritual publisher called Harvest House released his first book, “Reclaiming Science from Darwinism.†His second, “The Myth of Accidental Human Existence,†comes out this fall. In August, he was featured in a movie with author Ann Coulter called “Darwin’s Deadly Legacy.â€
…. the rest is here: http://www.longmontfyi.com/Local-Story.asp?ID=15426
April 15th, 2007 at 2:26 pm
Hey, Phil, if there’s a moving stone in your fireplace, do not lift it up to see what’s under it. You could have Parker Lewis trying to kill you.
I hope you enjoy Boulder. Don’t worry about what other people think; it’s your likes and dislikes that matter. I moved from somewhere that has all the sun in the known universe to somewhere where it rains pretty much constantly, and I’ve never been happier. What do other people know?
April 15th, 2007 at 7:44 pm
Phil,
Welcome to Colorado. Having visited all 50 states (and most Canadian Provinces) and lived in 18 states (and no Canadian Provinces), I must state that Colorado is NOT the best place to live.
On the other hand, it beats the hell out of the east coast, the gulf [of Mexico] coast, and the southern California coast. Me, when I retire, I’m moving either to the Washington coast or back to Alaska (Gulf of Alaska Coast).
I applaud your bravery - and hope you will have a positive effect on the People’s Republic of Boulder all out of proportion to your numbers. (When I moved to the area it took me a very short time to eliminate Boulder from my list of potential living spaces. Way too many public nutcases up there… Churchill, anybody?)
Also, from *My* point of view, the quality of the schools is immaterial. Whatever the school lacks my wife and I more than make up for in “home schooling”. We assign Godzilla and Megalon extra homework - as a result, both boys know a lot more about the world as it *is* than most (if not all) their schoolmates. What my wife and I don’t dump on them, my friends and parents do (Dad’s a physicist with significant interest in astonomy and civil war history, Mom got her Master’s in history…friends are geeks and nerds and race car drivers…)
I’m on my soapbox again! darnit..
I meant this to be a nice, pleasant “welcome to this neck of the woods, come over for dinner some time” missive, and got all distracted.
So! Welcome to this neck of the woods, may the farce be with you. Come on over to Brighton and visit some time (or even down to Denver and visit me at the office)
Lurch
Hm.. this turned into a tirade, didn’t it? Bad Lurch!
April 16th, 2007 at 8:33 am
When I saw your title, I was worried that you were making the mistake of moving back to the east coast! I’m glad to see that’s not the case.
P.S. Isn’t light pollution pretty minimal high up in those mountains?
April 16th, 2007 at 9:41 am
When I lived in Boulder (loving every minute of the decade I spent there), the saying we used to toss around was “Boulder, nestedled between the mountains and reality.”
April 16th, 2007 at 9:55 am
congratulations! of course, i heard the news last week from andy & barbara…
and you’ll be helping out with the conference on world affairs once you get there, right?
April 16th, 2007 at 1:45 pm
Welcome to Colorado, Phil! I lived in Boulder for the last 5 years and recently made the move down to Denver. Boulder will always have part of my heart and a lot of my credit score.
Glad you’ll be here. We need all the skeptics we can get.
April 16th, 2007 at 11:32 pm
Good luck (synchronicity, random chances etc),
Will you still be blogging?
April 29th, 2007 at 10:53 am
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April 29th, 2007 at 11:54 am
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