I knew this was the right place to ask!
And I don't know, Guy -- I kind of suspected you might be a tri-state guy. There is no doubt that yanking me out of New York (we live in Lower Westchester, about 30 mins from Manhattan) after almost 30 years and my husband (50 years) is a tough part of the decision. We love NYC and go downtown often, but I remain a westerner at heart (my father grew up in Phoenix) and these types of job offers are so rare that we had to take them very seriously.
The "hours to destinations" is a key parameter -- we used to have more time in the summers to hitch up our trailer and drag the kids and the dogs out west for 3-4 weeks, but that has been harder of late. Probably the first tip-off to the fact that we may not be "regular" New York City types is that we actually own an RV and a diesel pickup truck....
The ability to take off on a 4-day weekend and pick some of our favorite destinations is pretty enticing as compared to having to build our entire summer around getting the time off.
It's funny but the photographic opportunities are definitely part of the allure -- I have vascular problems that preclude photography for most of the Winter and part of the Fall in the east and while I know I don't want to go out seriously in the summer, it feels like I might get more photography in out in AZ.
The faculty at the U of A is "known" for it's collegiality, since most folks are transplants and don't have much family around. I find that appealing as I have never been fully comfortable with the "feel" of our NY town -- filled with very wealthy bankers and attorneys, I think the laid-back feel of Tucson might be nice. And yes, the politics, well, it's not like NY can really brag about our last 2 govs and our legislature is quite nutty. Supposedly Tucson is the most "blue" area in the state -- not saying much, but adding a couple of NY blue types can't hurt. We would be worried about the schools, BUT, this move is timed around our youngest's departure for college -- what freedom to not have to pay attention to school district!
That's cool that you had a house in AZ, Terry -- the living outdoors lifestyle that you mention is a plus for me, and mentioned by my U of A colleagues all of the time. This was one of the hardest things for me in raising children in the East -- they are always inside, totally different for me in growing up in LA. And it took me years in NY to learn to wear socks
. May have to unlearn that.
I was just looking back to when these negotiations started last summer - lots of emails with "no way I'm moving to Tucson from NY" -- the tide is slowly turning.
Feels like an adventure...
JT