Best town to live in near sierras

[Billy Ray]

Problem with Mammoth is it's too expensive… and too many crazed L.A. people there. billy

[Ralph Burgess]

L.A.? Do you mean Los Alamos?

[Dave T]

Yes, I could see living there. Love that town, and talk about being well-placed for the High Sierra. Just have to find work – there are some government offices there which would be where I would be looking.

[Jerry Adams]

what about some place in Nevada? just about as close but not subject to California fiscal issues

[Alex Wallace]

"I'm from San Jose. (SF Bay Area) I'm in the network security field and may be able to work from home if this were to become a reality." If you can convince your employer to let you work from home, stay put. Working from home while living near the coast in a good city is pretty hard to beat. The climate alone makes coastal locales worth it. Not to mention the jobs, culture, schools, amenities, etc. available nearby. Also, west side entry to Yosemite can be done in under four hours, which isn't bad at all. SEKI (Road's End) can be driven in under 5. I totally understand where you're coming from though. I too looked at moving my family to be closer to the mountains, but I just couldn't find all of the same requirements you're also looking for (who isn't?). Turns out what I really needed was less time at work and more time with my family. In the end, I was able to strike a compromise with my employer that allows more time with my family and playin' up there in the hills. Good luck.

[Dave @ Oware]

If you do move, you will have to learn to call it the Sierra. Sierra Nevada is already plural.

[Michael L]

David, Maybe you can take the grammar correction to the Bernie's Millions thread in Chaff? I'm sure it will fit right in there!

[Billy Ray]

"If you do move, you will have to learn to call it the Sierra. Sierra Nevada is already plural." Indeed. And it's not a grammar lesson; rather, it's just showing a place (and the people who live there) the respect of getting it's name right. People from San Francisco don't like to hear it called 'Frisco' and people who live in the Sierra don't like it called the Sierras or (worse) the Sierra's. Show some respect for a place you claim to enjoy and get it's name right. billy

[Dave @ Oware]

Whatever you say, Micky. — I have friends in Bishop and some who have lived in Bishop and Tom's place. Most loved the outdoors, especially the climber/skier/horsey(muley) people. Those who didn't do such activities felt isolated tho. Truckee is very nice but expensive (but not compared to the Bay Area, you might be able to trade up in houses). Reno is booming again. Crazy jump in house prices, but still much better than CA and still close to the Northern Sierra with lots less snow to shovel. You really need to do your homework on choosing schools. Hard to tell from media how things are going in a district and if your kids needs will be met in each.

[Michael L]

You guys would fit right in Chaff. This is nothing but a grammar lesson. Respect? Laughable. Usage and names change over time. Languages evolve. Get over yourselves. I guess you two are taking over where Bob left off? +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ I'd suggest Nevada. There are a few nice towns south of Carson City before you hit California and high taxes.

[Ken Thompson]

You are entertaining

[Jerry Adams]

"I'd suggest Nevada" Oh no, I'm agreeing with Michael again It is weird how California has an income tax about as big as Oregon, plus a sales tax about as big as Washington, but Oregon has no sales tax and Washington has no income tax. I've only driven those areas like Carson City. I bet they're hot in the summer. Do they have a drinking water shortage?

[Ralph Burgess]

"Show some respect for a place you claim to enjoy and get it's name right." Not trying to stir things up, but just an observation… Paris (and, conversely "Londres") Rome, Milan and endless other examples… I think with regard to personal names, I'd certainly agree that it's correct to address people the way they choose to be addressed, and disrespectful to do otherwise, even if their pronunciation is unusual. But place names? I'm not so sure. "The Sierras" is common and widely understood usage – and plurals don't always follow the etymology with precision, so it's not even "wrong" grammatically – and I think it's a bit of a stretch to call it disrespectful to use it. I have always said "The Sierras" and frankly I thought that was common local usage too – certainly nobody has ever corrected me or objected in many years of hiking there. ETA: the fact that none of the locals felt strongly enough about it to edit Wikipedia tends to support the accepted usage, I think. Wiki – "Nickname: the Sierra, the High Sierra, the Sierras, Range of Light."

[Michael L]

"I've only driven those areas like Carson City. I bet they're hot in the summer." This has come up before. The question that is. I like that climate personally. You can swim in the summer and still be up in the mountains in no time to cool off. You don't get the smog of CA or the taxes. You can still get to Mammoth or Tahoe to ski. Pretty good imo if the jobs and schools hold up. Not sure on that. But if a school is even mediocre, you can have a hand in your kids' education and make up the difference. Of course I worked with a lady from Bishop. She really liked growing up there. Ken, I try. You do have to do some head scratching with two active threads critiquing grammar/usage going at once.

[Ralph Burgess]

But it has been an education – I always wondered why the local marmots kept giving me the evil eye when I hiked through "The Sierras".

[Dave T]

Sorry, "Sierras" is wrong. Just plain wrong. It's an insult to Spanish speakers, California history, the mountains themselves, etc. So don't do it. Or you will have to answer to Francis P. Farquhar. Of course, "the data is…" is also wrong, but I can't seem to get anyone around me to say "the data are…" Maybe stupid wins in the end! The arc of the universe is long, and it bends towards poor grammar. p.s. Move to Bishop (or Tom's Place or Aspendell or one of those nearby places)!

[Ralph Burgess]

David, all I can say is that you'll have a much less stressful life if you can accept that language doesn't work the way you seem to want it to. It's a glorious, rich, evolving tapestry, not a set of rigid rules that are steadlily decaying because stupid people won't follow them. If you love language, try "The Language Instinct" by Stephen Pinker – it's a really fun book. One of the highlights is the discussion of the evolution of pidgins into creoles. And, of course, "Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo". It's a while since I've read it, but I think it's also the book that has a good chapter called "The Language Mavens" (or it may be in one of his others) that critiques "prescriptivism" (what you're doing) vs "descriptivism" (the empirical approach to understanding language).

[Dave T]

Thanks for the education! Here I was thinking that English hasn't changed since Beowulf. Wow, the stress really flows away once you realize it. Thanks buddy!

[Ralph Burgess]

Fair enough, I tried to be good humored about your pompous ignorance, but I guess I'm wasting my time. ETA: apparently I misunderstood that this was a parody of pompous ignorance, rather than actual pompous ignorance…. for which I hang my head in shame, and have apologized profusely below.

[Dave T]

You should reread my post and see if you think I was being serious. I mean, how could you actually answer to Fahrquhar? (Unless you knew he was upset about your rampant use of "Sierras" way back in the early 1970s.) Your life will be way less stressful if you don't take everything so seriously. Or… to celebrate the rich, fluid tapestry… Chillaxout bra, uR strssN and yRu h8n?

[Anonymous]

"Get over yourselves. I guess you two are taking over where Bob left off?" And you presume to take over where Mr. Jordan left off? Maybe get over yourself before admonishing others? ;0)

[Ken Thompson]

Moderator. Move this to Chaff. lol.

[Anonymous]

"and plurals don't always follow the etymology with precision, so it's not even "wrong" grammatically -". Perhaps, but you'd think that the plural would agree with the context. I mean, when you juxtapose "Range(singular) of Light" With Sierras(plural) it does seem a bit odd to my untrained ear. Not that I give a sh!t. Just sayin', and maybe stirring the pot a little. ;0)) Basically, I think there may be a bit of miscommunication here between those who like to hike in the Sierra and those who hold it in reverence. Secular vs. religious perspective, or something akin to that…. Carry on.

[brian H]

Go rent for a year in Bishop, where schools may not pass, Mammoth Lakes, where the el Aliens have driven up cost o living (and which I hear can be a lonely quiet ghost town certain times o year), or Reno / Carson City / Minden, where schools may be best among these. Mammoth is probably the only option to escape signif summer heat. After the last couple summers, Fire would scare me away from the west slope. Yours truly, a Cali native, who left the Bay Area madness in 1999 for Orygun, singular, [best move I ever made,] {sorry but there's only 1 "Bay Area" W of the Missi] and who daydreams of trying Bishop for a year or so and i know another guy, qualified by having hiked the JMT 8 or 9 times, who used 2 have a major beef with the word 'alpenglow', thinking it was muir-ish hogwash LOL More Chaff for the mill…

[Michael L]

"And you presume to take over where Mr. Jordan left off? Maybe get over yourself before admonishing others? ;0" I'm not the one lecturing people on grammar on the internet. But somebody needs to take over for Jordan. He has been in the wind for years. So I will I guess. Thanks for the vote of confidence.

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