I know the feeling. I had the dubious pleasure of returning to Phoenix to visit family about three weeks back, during the big heat wave. I got there to find the A/C at my mother's home was busted, and it took four days to get it fixed. Unpleasant to say the least. Great reminder of why I tried so hard to escape that city. 17 years of my early life there was more than enough for me.

Ugh, having no A/C must've been horrible. .__. I've lived in Mesa for all 19 years of my life, so I'd love to move somewhere like San Francisco, where A/C is barely even necessary. I'm tired of getting roasted by the heat.

Spent most of my time visiting friends who did have A/C, so it wasn't so bad. Just made sleeping a little difficult. I grew up in south Scottsdale but I've been away for almost 9 years, aside from about a month out of every year for the holidays, so I've all but lost my tolerance for heat. Moved up to Alaska, where the summers are pretty decent but the winters can be pretty harsh instead.

I have relatives in Ketchikan, but I've never visited Alaska myself. :0 I hope to someday -- the cold definitely appeals to me (AZ has pretty much ruined even mildly hot weather for me), and I'd love to explore the gorgeous scenery.

Scottsdale is a nice area, I've spent many a boring night driving around there with my friends. That's another problem with Arizona -- there's NOTHING to do after 9:00 PM because everything is closed. My friend has actually suggested walking around Walmart because we can't think of an alternative, besides driving around aimlessly. xD At least California has a night-life.

I'm living up in Fairbanks, so it gets a lot colder than Ketchikan. As low as 40 to 60 below zero during the coldest months (November through March, usually). Much like the summers in Phoenix, though, it's not all that bad as long as you stay in-doors as much as possible. The worst part for me is actually the hottest month or so of summer. Temperatures outside only get into the 80s, very rarely in the 90s, but there's no home A/C anywhere. Standard fans can only do so much, so the inside temperatures are just as high as outside, if not worse. XP

Northern Scottsdale is pretty nice. The southern areas not nearly as much, not until you actually cross over into Tempe. As far as night life goes, it's pretty dead up here that late too. Aside from a couple bars, which aren't really my thing anyways. But then, Fairbanks is a very small city by the standards of anywhere outside Alaska.

I remember doing a study of Fairbanks' weather in my geography class a few years ago -- definitely one of the coldest cities in the U.S. o__o I love cold weather, but I don't know if I'd be able to handle it being THAT cold. A big reason why I loved San Francisco so much is because the temperatures are so moderate -- it's 60 degrees and overcast in the middle of July, and its winter weather is barely any colder. Much better than Phoenix's scorching heat or Fairbanks' frostbite-inducing cold, in my opinion. xD

We usually drive through the neighborhoods just south of Camelback Mountain, where it's pretty obvious that money is abundant. All the houses and yards are lit up at 3:00 AM just because the owners have enough money to do so. As for bars... being 19 years old, I don't quite have that option yet. >__> Which is a shame, because alcohol opens up so many options for fun night-time activities, yet my friends and I are stuck contemplating walking around Walmart. xD

Hahah. I love cold weather too. The winters up here didn't bother me all that much for quite a while. I fount that, past a certain point, it stopped mattering how cold it was because it was just damn cold and getting any more so didn't really make it any worse from my perception. However, it has taken me 9 years, I am finally starting to get tired of the winters up here. I remember every fall thinking to myself something along the lines of "Bring on the cold! Bring on the snow! I'm ready for it!" only last winter, when it did hit, I immediately found myself thinking, "Fuck! Take is back! I wasn't ready!" XD Personally I'd rather end up somewhere in the north-east, somewhere in Washington or Oregon maybe, where I can still get the cold and snow of winter without it being quite this bad.

Ahh, all the way out there? Not a bad area, really, though I prefer the shopping districts up near Shea and the 101. I grew up in a few of the crappy apartments around the Hayden and Thomas area. South Scottsdale was the one area of that town that never seemed to be paved with money. As for alcohol... for me, being 19 just meant alcohol at a friend's house in the middle of the night, when there were no parents around or awake to stop me. >_> <_< >_> Not that I was ever that big into drinking. But being 21 does at least open up venues where alcohol is served, which is pretty much all there is that late at night aside from Denny's.

The Pacific northwest is definitely my desired area to live -- cool and cloudy all the time, quite a bit of rain, a little snow but not enough to be bothersome. It's the perfect compromise. :3 I can see how a snowy winter would get tiresome after a while. I feel the same way about Arizona's heat. Wake up one day, walk outside, immediately start sweating -- "Ew, not already! Make summer go awaaay. .__."

We usually explore that neighborhood because my friend's dad lives there, so he knows the area well. :P As for alcohol, the opportunity has popped up here and there (my friend loves drinking and he's invited me to a few parties at ASU), but being underage, I'm kinda nervous about getting caught. >__> And I'm not an incredibly social person either, so crazy dorm parties don't have much appeal to me. If I'm gonna drink, I'd rather do it with a few close friends and no risk of getting in trouble. But maybe once I turn 21, I'll be more open to the party scene.

Er... not quite sure why I said north-east. XD Chalk that up to grogginess of an "early morning" post (for me, anyways). Somewhere in the Seattle/Tacoma/Olympia area would be perfect. I love that kind of weather, the rain and clouds and snow and such. But unfortunately, it's mostly work that will decided where I end up after college.

Ahh, that makes sense. Harder to get lost when you know the area. ^_^ And I know the feeling, I've never been big on the party scene either (one of the reasons I avoided ASU like the plauge). Close circles of friends are the only social drinking I'm really all that comfortable with myself. If nothing else, it's a hell of a lot cheaper and you can generally trust your friends a lot more than strangers at a bar or party.

I know the feeling. I travel to Washington state every now and then and it is always a refreshing change from the blazing, humid heat of Georgia.

Ooh, I've always wanted to travel to Washington state. :3 Which area of the state do you usually visit? Seattle's pretty high on my list of cities I'd like to visit.

Seattle, actually! I'm in Seattle right now.

Aw, lucky. xD Wish I could spontaneously fly there or something.

Maybe someday!

dude you where in SF that's awesome come to San Diego some time!

-JFoxx

I've actually been to San Diego twice this summer already. x3 I love it there!

oh nice you should have told me D: XD

Where do you live? I already knew you're in southern California, but I didn't realize you're close enough to San Diego that we could meet up. x3

I live about an hour from the city part of SD I live in north county part of San Diego but yeah you should tell me next time you come bye ^^

Oh, okay. Sounds like a plan! :3 I'd have to make sure I can get away from whoever I'm with to meet up with you though. If I'm there with my dad, chances are I wouldn't be able to.

awwwww ok but yeah ^^

Hehe welcome back Fyrien ^^ I'm off over to Arizona this year XD

Awesome! Hopefully you don't melt during your stay. xD

well.. xD I'm not made of chocolate so I should be fine <<; I hope..