Most of New York is rural farmland or wild forest. Other than New York City, there are only four cities with populations of 100,000 or more, and they're separated by hundreds of miles. We also have no shortage of mountains or beaches, if those things are what you're into, as well as excellent hunting and some of the best trout fishing in the world.
We also have an excellent State University system; and most of the K-12 public schools outside the urban centers don't suck.
If you want food, we have every kind of food in the food-eating world. I personally detest eating out, but for those who enjoy it, there's no shortage of all manner of cuisine from the mundane to the bizarre.
As for the weather, it is what it is. The snow falls, we move it, and life goes on. Even New York City, which used to be paralyzed by even minor snowstorms, has figured it out. When I was a kid, an inch of snow would snarl the city. Nowadays, snowfalls measured in feet are usually cleared in a day at the most. They've made a lot of progress in that area. The state as a whole has finally come to grips with snow.
Except for Andy Cuomo, that is. He still has this annoying (and yet also comical) impulse to react to every report of a snowflake fluttering toward the earth by donning his mask and cape to save the rest of us from the fluffy white menace, invariably snarling traffic across the entire Northeastern United States and parts of Canada in the process. Fortunately, NYSDOT and NYSTA seem to have mastered the art of distracting Andy long enough for them to get their work done.
Left to their own, NYSDOT's and NYSTA's snow-removal is actually pretty impressive to watch. It's like a ballet, but with snow plows instead of dancers wearing tights and tutus. NYSDOT usually uses one plow per lane in tight formation. NYSTA usually uses "trailer plows" that clear two or three lanes, with another plow bringing up the rear to push it all onto the shoulder. But both agencies will use either method. They move along at quite a clip, too.
The Upstate snow also sustains life in New York City because it's the spring thaw that fills their reservoirs. A winter with scant snow Upstate makes Downstate officials very, very nervous.
All in all, New York State isn't a bad place to live if you avoid the cities; and even as cities go, none of them are as horrible as some I've been to elsewhere in the United States or overseas. Some, like Syracuse, are almost pleasant.
We do, however, have ridiculously high taxes and annoying, nanny-state laws and regulations. The nanny-state stuff is worse in the cities than the rural areas, but the taxes are high statewide.
Rich
