Should I live in Redmond, OR or Bloomington, IN?

Never been to Oregon but have been to Bloomington. Loved Bloomington, Indianapolis was cool but was not impressed with the rest of Indiana. We pretty much traveled throughout Indiana twice and meh. I hear so many good things about Oregon and have friends living there who just love it so much. Looks so much prettier than Indiana. But again, Bloomington was really nice, really comfortable and friendly, nice neighborhoods, great feel.

Redmon's okay, from what I remember, though I haven't been there since childhood. It's very small, maybe 20k people or so, and I don't believe I've ever known anyone who's lived there or was from there. It's pretty close to Bend and the Sisters, which if you're super into outdoorsy stuff, that's one of the better areas in the country for climbing enthusiasts. You're maybe a two-hour drive from Eugene and the University area there, maybe three hours from Portland, which isn't too terribly far for weekend excursions into city life. I couldn't tell you anything about the educational/school situation in central Oregon, if that's a concern for you. The climate is m/l high desert and it's basically desert in every direction for 50 miles or so, so if that's not appealing to you be sure to take that into account.

I am a Hoosier born and am telling you to go to OR.

central OR is lovely but yeah like ppl said it's not nearly as green as you might imagine. i wonder where winter is harsher, maybe comparable?
i liked bloomington the day i spent there in its college town way, but your options nearby (3-8 hours) are just so much more exciting in the PNW. imo.
i bet the schools are better in OR.

lxy: "if you loved the movie breaking away, move to bloomington. otherwise, oregon."

Thank you, great advice so far. I have been leaning toward OR (opportunity is better) but ILX is wise and just, so I put my future in your hands.

Even just as a random visitor I'd say Oregon.

I grew up in central and southern Indiana. Bloomington has its charms, plenty for a visit. But not enough for a lifetime.

If the opportunity is better in OR, then OR by a landslide. Don't give another thought to IN--and I'm a Colts fan!

Redmond is one of a cluster of small cities in central Oregon consisting of Bend, Redmond, Prineville and Madras, with perhaps the touristy hamlet of Sisters thrown in for good measure. Of these, only Bend has grown to a point where it offers much in the way of 'culture', as defined by music festivals, modestly decent restaurants, craft breweries and the like. It has plenty of malls, retirees from CA, and trust-fund kids who like outdoor sports. Think of a low-rent Aspen or Jackson Hole.

The primary attraction of all these cities is proximity to outdoor activities, such as hiking, camping, skiing, mountain climbing, and bicycling. The climate is fairly mild and definitely dry (it is high desert). The surroundings are very volcanic, with plenty of cvolcanic peaks, lava flows, old cinder cones, and a lot of pines and juniper trees. The scenery is pretty amazing, beautiful, spectacular. To get to a city of any real size, you need to drive to Portland or Eugene. Bend and Redmond were huge boomtowns in the housing bubble. Not exactly cheap, but not so ballooned that they're totally crazy out of reach.

Do some more research. Hard to say what your psychic/career needs are or how Redmond would fit them.

Whenever I think of central Oregon, I think of Gordon Cole in Twin Peaks. His oblique references to Bend, OR made it sound like something really interesting was going on there. I think if I move there I will find at least one time per week to say BEND, OREGON in a really loud voice.

Not sure how satisfying that will be in terms of life/happiness/etc, but it's something. Also, thanks for the tips, Aimless.

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thank you, I will take this under consideration!

the poll's binding, you know that right?