Climate, after living here in Central Florida since 2003 and in the Midwest most of my life, I am really wishing to be some place a lot less humid. Since I do not have an office job, it is getting old dealing with the humidity. So I am looking for a place with enough annual precipitation so there are trees that are green most of the year and that there is water falling on my roof enough times of year to collect rain-water if I choose or if the law's allow me to rain-harvest.
I know I am not looking for some place that gets cloudy and stays cloudy for days on end. I like a good rain storm as much, if not more then the next person. I have made my living for the last 14 years off of repairing hail damage on vehicles, so a good storm to me is like handing a new iPad to a Geek. However, I do not want the weather to get all gloomy and not rain. Plus, I need the sunshine for solar production!
With the less humid air means average daily temperatures do not matter as much to me. 75 to 90 degrees through the summer months is ideal, with the abnormal 100 degree days a couple of times in July and August is not going to be a problem. The winter months can be cold, but I would prefer the daily highs to not be below 10 to 15 degrees on a daily bases.
Snow fall will be welcomed since my theory on snow is, if it's going to snow, it better be enough to play in it! I enjoy a fresh white blanket of snow covering the ground and trees. Even better if it happens in time for a white Christmas. I can't believe I am talking about snow and Christmas in June while it's 85 degrees outside right now.
I am also looking for a change in the general scenery or topography. Again,living in Florida you do not get to see much change in the land or elevation. There's an area on I-75 towards the northen part of the state that reaches an elevation of around 500 feet if I remember correct. It's my favorite part of my drive north through the state. So I am looking at giving the bigger mountains a try. Since I enjoy Snowboarding, Skiing, Rock Climbing and I'm looking at exploring climbing some of the Colorado 14'ers in the near future, I think living in that type of environment will be a welcome change from the flat beaches of Florida.
A little about the local population and general proximity to the nearest town and stores. Since I will be building everything from the ground up, I will need to have some stores like a good lumberyard, hardware, or a Farm & Feed store within driving distance that doesn't take the whole day to go shopping. Also, having something like a Sam's Club or a Walmart handy will save on gas cost for buying the basic daily items. Since items from Sam's or Walmart would be purchased in bulk, their location does not need to be in the closes town, just close enough so it doesn't require an over-night stay to go shopping.
The size of the closest town for gas, and basic items I hope is not much bigger then around 25,000 +/- a few hundred people. Again, after living here in FL through the winter-time when all the tourist come down, I am not looking forward to any place with a lot of traffic. I'm looking for a place that has more Squirrels or Cattle then people!
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