Tucson vs. Vitamix?

I've been filling up my psychic space with trivial decisions. I've been missing certain things from Seattle, and have been trying to obtain the equivalencies here. I have missed having a good blender for making sauces and smoothies. Smoothies taste great when it's hot out. Our old blender here in Tucson just doesn't perform like our Vita-mix in Seattle. I started my shopping for a new blender with the energy I used to put into writing a research paper for school. Now the difference is that I have the internet available with many, many resources. There is quite a thread on-line on Vita-mix vs. Blendtec, with no clear winner that I could see. My favorite place to buy appliances and most non consumables is Costco. So, naturally, I started looking at what Costco had. The first day I looked at our local warehouse, they did not have a super blender, meaning a Vita-mix or Blendtec. I went home and did some research about road shows for both brands and found that Blendtec was going to be at the Tucson Costco starting Nov. 5. I went there expecting to watch a demonstration and found that they had both blenders for the same price. I decided to try the Blendtec and have been happily making smoothies and soup ever since. Time will tell which blender I'll prefer.

This experience of Vita-mix vs. Blendtec makes me think of Tucson vs. Seattle. We are slowly trying to evaluate whether we want to live in one place or the other or continue as snowbirds. We won't make such a decision for at least a couple of years, but are doing our research. We have nice, but modest homes in both places. In fact, the square footage is equivalent. Both neighborhoods are walkable, although Wallingford is a little more urban. Shopping is easy. There are good recreational opportunities in both places. Seattle has Greenlake to walk around. Tucson has Sabino Canyon. Seattle has more restaurants that interest me, but Tucson has some that make us happy. Seattle's opera house is much nicer than Tucson's venue for opera,but Tucson does have a respectable opera season. Both places have good opportunities for volunteer work. Both have ASG and bridge clubs. One has lots of sunshine, the other has 4 seasons with fairly moderate temperatures. Seattle has our old friends and family. Tucson has potential for new friends and our family members and friends often come to visit. I'm glad that Larry and I are in agreement that we don't have to make any decisions about living arrangements any time soon!