"I live in Paradise: sunny, room temp. nearly every" Solana Beach by DNaturalist

If you could live anywhere, I would suggest Solana Beach or any of the other charming coastal towns in San Diego County, such as Del Mar, Encinitas, and Cardiff-by-the-Sea (where I've lived also). This area is relaxed, and beautiful. It's getting expensive here, but not compared to New York City, where I have also lived. People complain about the traffic, but they are just spoiled, there's nothing else to complain about. If you don't need to commute, then traffic doesn't affect you much.

You can easily take a weekend trip to include the desert/mountains/ocean. Plus, San Diego is booming -- it's a biotech and wireless capital, along with jobs in tourism and in every sector associated with a large, growing population.

If you surf, this is the place to live or visit. Encinitas was just ranked at one of the top 10 places to ride the waves in the U.S.