Sounds like you are definitely coming here. I would suggest considering the Mid-West or Western States as opposed to the East Coast megalopolis that stretches from Boston to D.C. almost contiguously. The megalopolis is extremely overpopulated and can be very stressful, as I'm sure you have experienced in NY.

As far as cars go, I have had both a diesel VW Jetta automatic 2002 and a Dodge three quarter ton extended cab diesel pickup 1999 with the six cylinder Cummins engine; both bought brand new. I'm done with diesels. I now have a Dodge three quarter ton four door gas pickup 2005 with the hemi V8 gas hog extremely fun engine and it tows my big thirty foot camping trailer WAY better than the diesel did and gets almost exactly the same mileage.

Diesel fuel costs about twenty cents more a gallon more around here. The best mileage I ever got with my high geared rear differential diesel pickup, designed for better mileage, was 17 miles per gallon: I get 15 miles per gallon, average with my hemi V8. The diesel had a five speed manual transmission and my hemi has the Mercedes five speed automatic that is a superior transmission - the best automatic I have ever had.

The VW Jetta got 50 miles per gallon on trips and in the high fourties around town, plus it handled extremely well and the ride was precise and excellent; however, the car was junk: the windows fell down inside the doors, the upscale stereo had to be replaced twice and still didn't work correctly after only a short time, and the air conditioning system failed immediately the first summer and I had it in over six times and still didn't get it fixed until I filed a "lemon law" claim, after which it was fixed the next day with no explanation as to what was required to fix it; plus I received a 1800 dollar lemon law settlement. Shortly after getting the settlement the check engine light started coming on. No problems were found and shortly thereafter the automatic transmission totally destructed and froze up never to move again. I thought I was in BIG trouble because I thought I was out of the warranty. I found out that it had a 50K drivetrain warranty and it had 45K actual miles on the odometer. I immediately got it fixed, which required a completely new factory transmission. Immediately upon getting the car back the check engine light started coming on again. I immediately decided to trade it in for a 2004 Honda Accord upscale four cylinder, brand new that I didn't even want to test drive. I knew I was getting a great car because I had three other Honda's before it. The salesman insisted, saying that he never sold a new car to anyone without them test driving it - so I drove it and it was super nice, as I knew it would be. Getting rid of that Jetta was a MAJOR relief. Mine was admittedly a lemon and I have seen people that have seemingly nice ones. The best handling Honda Accord I had was a manual transmission, as was my hatchback Honda Civic that got 47 mpg on trips and about 40 around town.

As far as I know you can buy VW diesel cars as well as Mercedes. Ford, Chevy, and Dodge have excellent heavy duty thre quarter and one ton pickups, but not half tons, or small pickups. None of the people I know that have diesel pickups get good mileage - only a couple miles more per gallon than my hemi.

There are quite a few vehicles under 2 liters that are available and some of them are excellent quality vehicles. We have a Mercury
Sable that has the big three liter V6 and it got 30 miles per gallon on my trip over the last two weeks to South Florida and back, fully overloaded with camping gear, two bikes, and everything else including strat and small amp. We keep this car in great shape and have put a lot of money into its maintenance. We need a car that is up to long trips because we go to places like the Carolinas, Nashville, and Chicago, regularly. This is a fairly big car by today's standards and it has more useable room than many SUV's. A lot of the mini vans get thirty mpg and have a lot of room in them.

For 10K or so you would be able to purchase a really decent used vehicle of your choice. If you spend 20K you can get a relatively low mileage BMW 7 series with a six year 100 thousand mile warranty, if bought from a BMW dealer. I should have bought one of those I was looking at instead of the new Jetta. A VW is not a BMW, needless to say. You can get a 5 series BMW also for the same price in great shape with a manual transmission. One of Charity's daughters in law has a nice Compressor Mercedes, about 2006 that is an awesome car that she bought used for less than 20K with low mileage.

I'm sure you will be able to find a great vehicle in your price range.

Just like with most things important, you are wise to take your time and think out where you want to live. Some places have an extremely high quality of living - such as cities out in the Western States, such as Idaho, Wyoming, and so forth. Even Denver is quite nice, as well as Colorado Springs or Fort Collins. These places are not bad places to live at all and quite different from Back East. Some of the less populated states like Idaho or Wyoming may not have the magnitude of employment opportunities, but often they are trying to attract professionals, especially medical professionals, and the quality of life is outstanding and the environment is totally beautiful; and surprisingly the climate is not nearly as bitter cold as you might think, because of the micro environmental factors that have a warming effect. It might be fifteen below F one day and fifty above the next day. If you live high in the mountains it might be bitter cold most of the Winter, without question, but a lower altitudes you often get the "banana belt" effect. Another thing about these more remote and rural states is that people and employers seem to appreciate you more than in the megalopolis and metropolitan areas. It is a different lifestyle and attitude. These less populated states also have a keen desire to have excellence in their medical institutions.

I went to the Univ. of Colorado in Boulder and was a student teacher in Lander, Wyoming, a very remote and rural place. I travelled extensively in the Western States and can say that in my opinion they are supremely beautiful places and that there are some unbelievable opportunities for people who are willing to live there. Denver isn't quite the same and doesn't have the same atmosphere because it is a very large city, with all the associated problems, but is a far nicer place to live than the big cities Back East, in my experience. It is a Cow Town that got big, REAL big and sprawling.

I moved out of the megalopolis, where I lived in Connecticut, to rural North Central Pennsylvania to get away from the BIG CITY atmosphere and attitude. Around here it is like living twenty years in the past, which I like, and it was a great place to raise my son. Traffic jams are non-existent. Employment opportunities for medical professionals are very excellent. Having been raised in rural and lightly populated areas, I really enjoy the relaxed atmosphere in this rural area. During rush hour today I drove all around doing things and didn't get in any traffic jams whatsoever. I can dig this type of thing. If I want to go to NYC or Philly they are only a couple hours away, but the difference between here and those places is like crossing into the twilight zone.

Out in the Western States, short of the West Coast, you are not going to find any places to go to that are anything like NYC. But then again, there is only one NYC and I have never been anywhere that has the vibe of there.

If you are going to be moving here, it's a big place and you will have a lot of places to think about; lots of different climate zones and culture zones. The East is older and dug in, both physically and culturally; the West is younger and more wide open. I didn't mention the desert Southwestern States, but the desert can be very beautiful and seem almost like you are living on another planet. The Southwest is also very beautiful and there are many opportunites there as well, especially in the medical professions - partly because of the skew in the population demographic brought about by the influx of many older retired people relocating to the warm and healthy climate; and often lower cost of living compared to the places Up North that they tend to originate from.

You are definitely going to have your hands more than full picking a destination to live and work in. There are so many different and beautiful places. But there are also those places into which you may not wish to fall. You are very wise to check things out real good before you make your move.

My perspective is only one view on things, but I hope it is useful to you in thinking the whole thing over. A lot of people here have been around quite a bit and can tell you a lot about the experiences they have had all over the place. There's more stories than there are people on the Fret, that's for sure.

I like that autosave function by the way.