What's it like living in Palm Springs?

Anyone? Anyone? Any and all info is appreciated. I'd also like to know specifically: Are housing prices there still dropping? Do people actually live there during the summer or do they vacate? Am I justified in being a bit nervous about living ON the San Andreas fault line? What's the overall quality of life there? How are the people? PS seems like such a unique, quiet little city...I think I (or even my retired parents) would enjoy living there. Any insight?

• It's heaven. New and affordable soulmates keep arriving every day on the Greyhound bus from LA!

  Tom%20Bianchi

• You can still get an architecturally significant home there, an Alexander, a Krisel, possibly an Eichler, for $ 250,000- $350,000. (Ten years ago , these same houses were $ 500,00 -$700,000). Palm Springs has the largest concentration of mid-century modern homes, in the world.Gay couples have been scooping these properties up, as retirement homes, or if you live in San Fran, or especially L.A. , or San Diego, as weekend retreats. Whole neighborhoods have been taken over, with the result being that we , the 'creative' ones, have restored, and brought these homes back to glory.

• It's 110 degrees in the summer. If you like golf and tennis it's a good place.otherwise not much to do there... The area outside of palm springs proper is very very Hispanic. The pool water gets hot, and there are these really long, flying cockroaches at night. Or there used to be. Do you like dates?

• OP - Housing prices are still dropping slightly. People do stay all summer, but many get out of town in Aug. - up to the mountains, to Laguna, or LA. Don't worry about being on the fault . Nothing's tall in PS, so no buildings to fall on you. Lots of great restaurants, cafes,bars. Great hotels too. Easy living, with beautiful weather, large gay community,

• [quote]are these really long, flying cockroaches at night. Or there used to be. [quote]Do you like dates? I don't live in Palm Springs but we have those things here too and I cannot eat dates anymore because they bear a striking resemblance to those roaches. Now that winter is over we will be having lots of those flying suckers around. The year just wouldn't be right without groggily staggering to the shower only to be confronted by a dog wearing an insect costume sitting on the shower wall.

  thanks%20for%20the%20reminder%20R3

• What r2 said. I just had my offer on a house accepted yesterday. Prices are back to what they were ten years ago. I sold my house ten years ago for $390,000 and moved to a condo. Sold that about five years ago before everything crashed and moved back to the Chicago area to take care of my ailing parents. The person who bought the house sold it for $700,000 in 2006, and just sold it again in January for $390,000. Ouch. One thing to know are terms about property. Land is either fee land (you rent the land from the tribe) or fee simple, where you own the land. Something like every other square mile is either fee or fee simple land. Anyway, I love it here and thrilled to be moving back. Paradise most of the year, and I happen to like the summers as well.

  Poz%20meth%20geezer%20DL%20Palm%20Springs%20stereotype%2C%20

• I was loking into buying a condo in Palm Springs. A local real estate agent didn't have much encouraging to say though. He said the market is practically a seller's market again where only cash offers succeed. Is that right?

• I moved here last spring after being in La for 25 years. Coming from a big city, it's quite an adjustment. It's gorgeous here, but a bit dull at times. The pace is very slow, but that's something I was looking forward to after the rat race. I'm retired. so it seems to suit me. If you're young, you might be bored. LA is only and hour and 45 minutes away, though. We're right in the middle of Modernism week...so there are lots of people in town for tours and such. Fun. All I did today is hang by the pool and read. Bliss.

• You can have a lot of sex there, I hear.

• You have to drive everywhere. Otherwise I'd be there. I love to drive, just not all the time to get anywhere.

• RE 9 - Yes , there's something about the air there, and the heat, not only do you feel horny all the time, everyone looks great, tan and buff-cause you usually walk around with just a T-shirt, and shorts. I love it- but then I live in Chicago, and its 39 right now -75 in PS. Can't wait to go back. I would love to live there.

• isn't a lot of gay pron made there? lot of pron boys around at the gay bars? are there gay bars?

• There is a lot of pron filmed in the gay hotels. (There's a lot of gay hotels) There's a lot of bareback pron in Palm Springs. Remember, ladies, this is a retirement community. Other than tourism, there's very little industry here to support a healthy middle class, so most of the gays you see here will be the DL dreaded eldergays. And also the pron actors you see here will be the grizzled old poz actors you see in the hardcore pron. On weekends, when the tourists from LA, San Diego, SF etc show up, the bars get populated and the crowds get a little younger. Lots of gay bars, but they really only get packed on some weekends and holidays. Other nice things about Palm Springs...A GREAT little airport, look for the bust of Sonny Bono..A wonderful art museum, surprising for a city of this size...because of the all of the showbiz gays who retire there, there is a thriving arts community...The gay gym (Golds) will inspire you. There you will see hundreds of Tom Bianchis, 70 year olds with the bodies of porn stars...NO TRAFFIC EVER!!!...good shopping, very good restaurants. In the summer, if you are not used to 110 degrees plus days, you will never leave your house.

  Also%2C%20very%20near%20a%20Military%20base%21%21%21%20%20

• My favorite thing about it is the lovely smell of the desert and especially so after it rains.

• There is no there there.

• Um, r7. It's a BUYERS market. Your agent is a ninny. Get a different agent.

• It first goes over 100 degrees in April. It is over 100 every month thru October. In July/Aug/Sept it is over 110 and HUMID! It sucks. And yes, I've done it. For over 5 years. And I'm over it! And the average age is over 100 also.

• True -BUYERS market there now. So many amazing houses, almost all with pools. Look in south P.S. however - north is considered less fashionable, and the wind whips up there unbelieveably. North also gets the noise from jets taking off, at airport. And stores are much nicer in south P.S.

• RE 12 Are there gay bars there ? P.S. is like 75 % gay ! Toucans is fun-has strippers. Arenas Rd. has several bars in 1 blk. Hunter's is the best. And tons of gay hotel /motels. Many are clothing optional...at least around the pool.Good gay restaurants too - Trio, Tropicale, are 2. Friday & Sat., El Mirasol is packed - great margaritas. Also , depending on your budget, great shopping. Huge outlet mall, just outside of town, with all the high end brands. And Palm Desert has El Paseo - just like Rodeo Dr. , with luxe sores, and prices. Gucci, Cartier, Saks Fifth Ave., etc.

• I would imagine that if you're well off, you could live a very nice life in Palm Springs.

• [quote]A wonderful art museum, surprising for a city of this size. Gee, now I know where to head to first when I get to Palm Springs.

• I'm saving up my pennies, hoping to have enough to retire and spend my winters in PS, but my summers in P-town. I'm sick of living with so many heterosexuals. They assume that I give a shit about their children and their boring activities.

• May I suggest you rent first? It's not for everybody.

• Thanks for all the info so far...one other question: How is the air quality? Being east of LA, does all of their nasty air end up in PS? I could never live in LA because the air is caustic to my throat and eyes. Also, how rat-racey is it? Are the people snobby/elitist at all? I felt a hint of that when I visited but perhaps I'm wrong. I saw a lot of Ralph Lauren polo shirts and wealthy-looking older people.

  OP

• RE 4 You will have your share of 'attitude' , but many of them are from LA, and bring it with them. The people who live there are very friendly usually. Like anywhere, you have 'cliques' - old money gays live in Las Palmas area, younger hipper live in south PS (Deepwell, Twin Palms), and many who want a neighborhood almost exclusively gay, & a mid century modern home, live in Racquet Club Rd estates, & El Rancho Vista estates. You must remember, there are lots of people there with money, but there are lots there who choose it for the weather, the inexpensive housing, and yes, because of the large gay population.

• Lots of very old queens in PS. I would love to open a caftan shop out there. I bet I'd make a mint.

• But you can't make a profit if you're taking all the inventory home and wearing it, r26.

• Well the positives outweigh the negatives by a wide margin. Although it's easy enough to hook up for a sloppy bareback fisting session to move right over into the positive column.

• Born and raised in LA. My folks would often take us there for weekend get-aways. What kid would not love spending all day and night in the pool?! Fortunately, I have been able to keep the tradition alive. There is something about Palm Springs that is so absolutely relaxing. Maybe it the slow pace, the scenic mountains and the live and let live attitude. Even though it's a small town, the bars can be fun on weekends. Little attitude because everyone is there to have a good time. Living is very casual. Except for winter nights, Tshirts and shorts are appropriate everywhere. I'm not sure I want to live there full time, but housing prices are so low, I think I might be able to afford a condo as weekend and vacation place.

• Not true anymore, R18. The North Design District along Palm Canyon is now booming with high-end furniture stores and boutiques, and restaurants.

• can anyone suggest a good clothing optional resort with lots of daddies? I'm 28, but just now realizing the appeal/attraction is CCBC the place to go?

  anon

• There appears to be a cluster of towns in the area, each with its own culture and personality. There are Palms Springs, Palm Desert, Cathedral City, Rancho Mirage, Indian Wells, La Quinta...

• Love the Comeback episode shot there.

  Val's hubby's bare ass

• No need to be a smart arse R21. Whoever mentioned the art museum was right. It's a really excellent gallery and some of us like a bit if culture. OP - rent before you buy.

• Seniors Day at Walmart.

• [quote]And the average age is over 100 also. Funny. And true.

• RE 30 - We we speaking of the neighborhoods / houses - places to live. Yes, the north end of town is full of great furniture stores, mostly high priced mid -century / 60's-70's merchandise, some with real rare finds, and some excellent restaurants. (Still struggles a bit though. DWR , had a beautiful store there, with a large patio, and abruptly closed, several months ago). Anyway, anyone will tell you, the south end of town is much more coveted, for several reasons, including being wind free. North end has had lots of new cookie cutter subdivisions, higher crime, and jet noise, from being at the runway's end.

• And most of the gay resorts are clustered in the south part of town, in the Warm Sands neighborhood, as are The Ace, Horizon,Viceroy, & Parker Hotels - all considered the best in town.

• I'm thinking of a temporary (4-6 month) stay in Palm Springs. Does anyone have any advice on short term rentals? I'd like a small single family house with a pool and a fenced in (preferably walled-in) yard in a decent location. I know summer isn't the season people flock to PS; any ideas of the best place to look? Craigslist isn't producing much, mostly a bunch of shitty condos out in Indio or Cathedral City. Recommendations as to cool locations that aren't all oldster?

• I like this on in Palm Springs (araby cove)

  http://www.vacationpalmsprings.com/home_detail.php%3Fhome_name%3Dpalm-springs-modern-luxury-view-condo

• We keep a house in Old Las Palmas. We're there, all in all, about three and a half months every year. I don't think I'd want to be there year round, but it's great to slip to when we get tired of the cold in New York in late January and February, or for weekends when we're working in L.A. other times. You just have to find the right people, like everywhere. Regular visitors, as opposed to new tourists, are more fun, usually, except for the old-and-too-much-money types. We also like to mix it up with the old TV/movie people, and the year-rounders, because they have that whacko Palm Springs mentality and is part throw-back to the 50's jet set and part "We're just plain folks who like golf" types.

• RE 41 - Who are you ........Michael Feinstein ???

  Jerry%20Herman

• What is Rancho Mirage like? Is it livable if you're not an octogenarian? Any areas that should specifically be avoided?

• Most of Rancho Mirage is very nice- its the community past Palm Springs, and Catherdral City (where you don't want to live) - more adjacent to Palm Desert, which is an older community. If you don't mind the short commute to P.S., where all the action is, it's not bad.

• Isn't Palm Springs mostly for eldergays now?

• Is Cathedral City the really sketchy-seeming part?

• What about La Quinta?

• Sarah Silverman's dad tweets about life in I think it's Palm Springs, but maybe it's Boca. Probably applicable no matter what.

• RE - 46 Yes - car lots, and mini-malls. Its a place you drive thru, to get to R.M., and Palm Desert, and La Quinta.

• La Quinta is the last town, in the chain. Nice, but almost all eldergay golfers.

• I love Palm Springs- the cool hotels, the heat, the men. Sure there's lots of old queens there - but there are also alot of elder daddy's who , for their age, are in amazing shape. Think Tom Bianchi. I can only wish, when I get their age, to have the guns, and abs, they do. And the clothing optional places are another place to meet the younger hot guys. Something about the air, seems to make everybody sexed out.

• The Ace Hotel has a very cool vibe. Love their pool parties. Great mix of gay & gay friendly people there. And Koffi is right across the street- good place to meet guys in a.m. Palm Springs is fun. Someday, hope to be able to have a plce there.

• Love PS- going out in April to visit an X who lives there now- I love to play tennis and there are wonderful "clubs"/settings (Mission Hills Country Club is my favorite). Very gay friendly of course- yes a bit older- but always have been plenty of younger men around. There is something about the place, dessert, mountains, the artificiality of the irrigation, the dry air. I am very likely to have a place out there some day not too far off- or whenever I stop working full time.

  charlie

• Everyone is always tan there, which I love. You can take a corn-fed mid westerner, whos cute, but pale, and that tan transforms them into hotness . You notice it alot during week of the White Party- they show up on Monday, and by the time they leave , after the big weekend, they're buffed up, and bronzed. Something special about the sun there.

• Some people think the summer's there are just too hot - but if you're laying on a raft, in a pool all day, drinking several margaritas,. it's heaven. Never feels like 105-110. You just dunk in the water for a second, and you're refreshed. And yes, you get the most amazing tan there.

• It just seems like a boring cliche, where old gay geezers go to die. And nothing flatlines like being around a bunch of old gay men. Good lord.

• You can literally feel your T-Cells plummet as you enter the city limits.

• When it's 115 - 118 degrees which is can be in the summer, the pool water is too hot to even be refreshing. While more people do live there now year 'round, Palm Springs has always been seasonal. To be there in December for the parade, January or February is fun and exciting. In June, July August, like being in Sahara Desert. It can literally fry your brain just walking from air conditioned car across parking lot to air conditioned restaurant or home.

• RE 57 - I don't get your comment - please explain. Are you saying it's good, or bad ?

• RE 58 I've been in Miami, or for that matter, anywhere in Florida , in the summer, and I'd much prefer the dry desert heat, than the misery of that damn humidity down there. Plus the trashy peeps that gather there. Yuck- Florida, unless your on Star Island, is a sweaty cesspool.

• I moved to Palm Springs from Seattle and I'm ready to move back. ....miserasble from June till October. ...really not much to do here and it's 2-2 1/2 hours to LA, which is a long ass drive with noting in between to see.

• Nothing in between to see!? What about the world's largest roadside dinosaurs!?

• And the date orchard - where you can get a fresh date shake ! You also pass near Hemet, where Scientology built Tom Cruise an exclusive compound. Wonder if he ever slipped into P.S. for a little late night nude spa action, at one of the clothing optional resorts, in Warm Sands ?

• What are your electric bills like in the summer? Must be $400 month.

• Do they also have Drive-Thru skin cancer treatment centers?

• R61, What promted the move from Seattle to begin with? Living in L.A. I have thought about moving to Seattle. The biggest reason not to is the rain, fog and drizzle. I think it would be depressing. I know Seattle has high suicide rate also. That being said, there is no place in U.S.more beatiful than Seattle on a sunny day.

• So thats what, 3 or 4 days a year

  Mr.%20Sunshine

• Have to live somewhere with lots of sun - probably have SAD (seasonal affective disorder). If too many days go by, where it's overcast / cloudy, rainy, or snowy, get very depressed. It's like my body is craving sunshine, and blue skies. So Seattle, Portland, anyplace in mid-west, and most north-eastern cities, are out for me. Leaning towards L.A., San Diego, or Palm Springs area at this point. P.S. seems like you get more house for the money. Those mid-century , light filled homes look very tempting.

  No%20more%20SAD%27s%20

• Friends with money live there. That's what I always think of when I think of Palm Springs. I love those mid-century modern homes. But I could never live there. The desert creeps me out. I'll be visiting in a few weeks. Friends live in the Old Tennis Club area. They're in their early 50s. They love it there and stay year round. Like they say about NYC -- A nice place to visit, blah blah blah

• Palm Springs looks and feels great when it's not 110 degrees or 115 degrees or higher for weeks on end. Other issue is too far to get to beaches, other cities without being on freeways and not nice areas in between. It's the perfect L.A. get away with someone nice.

• Any sex parties?

  get the cameras rollin', get the action goin'

• R71, if you're looking for sex parties, try Malibu on the weekends.

• There is nothing worse for you than sunshine.

• For your skin - yes. But I have to have it to make me feel good. SADS is not a joke. It's been proven, scientifically, that light filled days will improve the condition. It's like being in a dark, depressing room, and suddenly the light is turned on, and you see the beauty of things.Doesn't mean you have to be outside baking in the sun.

• I moved from Seattle to Palm Springs in 1995 when it was pretty much a ghost town. My friends were convinced I was moving into a nursing home. But I knew things were going to change for the better, which turned out to be true. I truly love it there, and left in late 2005 to care for my dying father and elderly mother. He died about a year ago and so now am moving back in early April with my mother. My folks spent six months of the year there for about 20 years. She is thrilled to be going back. SAD is nothing to be dismissed. Maybe it's because I'm a Leo, but sunshine energizes me. As for being in the sun, I always baked when I was visiting but never did when I lived there. You get enough sun just going to the grocery store (providing you're generous with the sunscreen.) My only addiction was being in the pool as much as possible. My Sundays were spent submerged (like the noble manatee), clinging to the side of the pool reading the New York Times, the LA Times and perhaps a book. There was a tree that provided enough shade so I was like a little sundial, following the shade. As for the hi-larious geezeer, meth, poz jokesters, I'm pretty sure you're the ones who never left Warm Sands when you were visiting.

  I%27m%20not%20a%20paid%20spokesmodel%20for%20the%20the%20City%20but%20am%20willi

• RE 71 - or Almost any hotel/motel in Warm Sands area of P.S.

• Very racist. Like the 1950s.

• Who's racist ? What are you referring to ?

• Befriend people who have a condo/house down there. I did that, with an older couple, from LA, who had a weekend house there. Really stunning. Could use it whenever they weren't there - as long as I 'took care of it'.It was all good till I met some guys at a bar, and had them over for a mini party. One got really drunk, and sat , their vintage Van der Rohe Barcelona table. It shattered. They haven't invited me back since.

  Cute%2C%20but%20reckless

• Ouch. I love that table. Don't abuse friends kindness/generousity

• OMG, this thread is so inspiring to me. Do people smoke pot out there. I'd just love to sit out on the porch at night to the sound of the crickets, smoking pot. Floating round in the pool all day. Do people have westies in PS? Wouldn't they get too hot in that weather? That could be a problem. I'd love to breed dogs in my old age.

• r81, that's what air conditioning is for. We have a Westie (used to be two) here in Alaska and judging from the way our little guy will park himself three inches from any intense heat source (fireplaces, space heaters, the oven) I think they dislike cold more than heat. That said any dog would not live well without AC in Palm Springs' summer. I have a Pug I might move there, but not without constant access to A/C (not swamp cooler) and lots of shady spots in the yard.

• RE 81 It's like anywhre else. They smoke pot, drink,do drugs,have sex- only more so, and in pools, & more glamourous homes.

• [quote]it's 2-2 1/2 hours to LA, which is a long ass drive You must drive really slow. It never takes me much more than one hour 45 minutes to downtown.

• Me too - without much traffic, I just zip there in 1 & half hours , and I live in Westwood.

• Don't the rich gays have vacation homes in Laguna Beach or Santa Barbara?

• Did the Alexander Inn up on Soledad close down? That was a fantastic gay-operated little hotel.

• The man who broke my young heart lives there, used and abused me...left me a wreck for years. Stay away from tall, dark, handsome, federally-employed sociopaths with political ambitions.

• Some in Laguna, very few in SB.That requires big bucks P.S. is favored, I believe, because of the opportunity to buy affordable, architecturally significant homes, has a big gay population, and while it may be foggy, and cold, in LA, LB & SB , it is sunny, and 75-80 in P.S. That way, its speedo, or naked, all the time.

• The city gov't is mostly gay and mostly horrible and useless including the mayor/realtor. Until recently they employed a rabidly homophobic police chief who only left after being taped using "faggot" repeatedly in a gay vice sting. He retired with a humongous golden parachute courtesy of the gay citizens he so despised. The lame gay mayor and the useless lesbian councilwoman never spoke out against him. Truly a sad living-in-the-past little town. More about that (now) lesbian city councilwoman's 2 murder trials... [quote]Was Ginny Foat truly "innocent" in the 1965 bludgeoning death of an Argentine businessman visiting New Orleans or was she found "not guilty" simply because there was too much reasonable doubt in the minds of a sympathetic jury?

  http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/classics/ginny_foat/1_index.html

  out%20of%20there%20and%20happy%20to%20be

• Where do the SF gays own vacation homes?

• Russian River, R91.

• What the he'll does any of that have to do with anything ? All cities seem to have trouble with their council people / police chiefs / mayor. PS is no different . Sonny Bono used to be mayor, for God sake. I've lived there, and overall, think they do a good job keeping the city clean, gay friendly, and welcoming to all visitors. It's a better gay Mecca than San Fran., which is now filthy, with homeless people defacating everywhere, drug pushers ruling neighborhoods, and lousy weather, 300 days out of the year. Loved that city, but it's the place that has really lost it's way - the inmates have really taken over the asylum.

  Herb%20Caen

• If a gay city government that hires and defends a gay bashing police chief is something that you like R93 then you are in the right place. Congrats.

  R90%2C%20happily%20not%20there

• Plus, LA's only 100 miles from PS. San Fran is 600 . Flying from SF is best, but then you have to rent a car. LA. - PS is a breeze.......and if you have a convertable Beemer, like me, you get your base tan on the way down !

  Lovin%20life%20in%20LA%20-%20PS

• That police prick is gone. Cruising / sex in bushes & cars lives on !

• Have any of you seen Kyle, Mauricio or Kim Richards in Palm Springs?

• Or Suzanne Somers!? Is she a bitch IRL?

• [quote]We have a Westie (used to be two) here in Alaska and judging from the way our little guy will park himself three inches from any intense heat source (fireplaces, space heaters, the oven) I think they dislike cold more than heat. R82 your post is useless without pics. (Adorable) link, please.

  R81

• & talking of TWO westies...have you ever seen this? They couldn't have choreographed it better.

  http://www.youtube.com/watch%3Fv%3Dpby0YI8FdKc

  R81

• Ground Zero for Skin Cancer clinics?

• [quote] I'd love to breed dogs in my old age. Which brings us to the venerable "laugh or cry" question.

• There's no better place than Palm Springs.

  Vern and Margie Albright

• RE 97 They have a home in Palm Desert, which in many ways, is nicer than Palm Springs - has the Rodeo Dr. like El Paseo, with Saks, Gucci, etc. And though it doesn't have the history of P.S., it has better shops, restaurants, and south P.D. has some beautiful homes / estates.

• I am moving back to Palm Springs next month, after a dreary exile of six years in Minsk, Illinois. Can. Not. Wait!

• As R104 says Palm Desert does have some good shopping. It's a little more "white bread" in flavor to me, though. It's figuratively and literally in the middle of the Coachella Valley. Palm Springs has more charm, more gays. It seems to me after living here for two years that it attracts the more liberal citizens of the valley. If I wanted a country club sort of lifestyle I would pick Indian Wells or Rancho Mirage which to my mind are both more upscale than Palm Desert (especially Indian Wells). If you're gay you'll have more fun in PS.

• That's the truth ! Palm Springs has a funky vibe - S. Palm Desert, especially El Paseo, screams $$$. Have lunch along that street, and it's Bentleys, Jags, Mercedes, and lots of blonde haired older ladies, that look like John McCain's wife. N . Palm Desert, they all look like trashy Sarah Palin moms.

• Do gays live in Palm Desert, too?

• Yes, but certainly Palm Springs is where the majority live/visit. My partner, and I live in south P.D. , in a lovely home, on a 17,000 ft. lot. We have a joke that once our gay friends see how much more home /lot you get here, they'll discover this area, and begin buying. Our friends in P.S. have these little mini pools - we have 16 x 32 ft. beauty, and large front & backyards, and gardens. We visit P.S. all the time, but love our Palm Desert life, and home.

• Don't forget if you are going to Palm Springs and want to have some homosex, bring some condoms with you, because they don't seem to have any out there.

  Desert%20Knight

• R39 I have a friend that lives in LA but leases out her house in PS...really nice with pool and all the amenities

• RE 109 I have said for a long time, that the Palm Springs gays will expand eventually into Palm Desert. South P.D. does have big lots, and homes, for less than the (now desired) gay hoods in P.S., like Deepwell, and Twin Palms. The properties there can feel cramped. P.D. does offer those beautiful big lots , 13,000 - 20,000 sq. ft., with wider streets, and a more robust business district. We'll see what happens in the next 10 years.

• Is Big Horn in P.S., or P.D. ? Saw a TV show , where they visited producer Jerry Weintraub's house, and it was amazing ! Up on the side of a hill, with pool that came into his bedroom. They said it was in area called Big Horn.

  I%20want%20to%20live%20there

• Big Horn is in Palm Desert. Seriously insane money. I managed an art gallery on El Paseo, and it was not uncommon to have clients spend 12k or more for art in the powder room. I saw the Weintraub house on some show, and believe me, it's somewhat modest compared to some of the others. But what's mind bending is that these homes are second or third homes, almost like roughing it in the wild.

  Big%20Horn%20is%20the%20KOA%20for%20the%20rich.

• Having never been there, I'm confused. If Palm Springs is the place to be, why does everyone say Palm Desert has the great stores & shopping ? Are there no good stores in P.S ? I know I've read P.S. has good furniture stores, but HELLO, I'm a 25 year old gay man - I want clothes. Nice clothes. Where do I go ?

• It's a beautiful place but nothong can be done on foot.

• I was at a batthouse next to a palm tree grove in Palm Springs once. I was kinda toasted, sitting outside, looking up at the trees. I didn't really feel the six point earthquake but all of a sudden all these queens caming running through the doors stark naked, out into the courtyard. It was like The Running of the Twinks.

• To get an idea of Palm Springs, picture a little white maltese, with a desperate expression, flinging itself against the rear window of a hermetically-sealed, white-on-white Coupe de Ville, while the 95-year-old Eldergay behind the wheel rips across three lanes of traffic to get to an Early Bird Special.

• RE: and if you have a convertable Beemer, like me, you get your base tan on the way down ! MARY!

• On the other hand, two of my best friends live there and are totally cool people. They don't compete in the car Olympics, they're low-key athletic/artsy types with warm, fun personalities and a lot of old money in the bank. I just don't care for the desert, personally. I always wantto be near water, all my vacation are on or near water, etc. Palm Springs is very nice on a cool evening when they close down the Boulevard and you can take a stroll with friends. It's unique because usually you drive everywhere. If I lived there, I'd get a cool car to take out into the desert at night. Everything in SoCal is better at night, I think.

• It's guys like that who come in on the weekends, and say things like I heard last week , at El Mirasol " Where am I staying ? Honey, I have a second home here". Pre tensch ous !!!

• I always thought Wang's Friday Happy Hour was the pretty fun socially. What would be another night that compares?

• Wangs crowd is usually a bit older- but Fri. / Sat. is always a look-see crowd , as is El Mirasol, especially Fri. nights, when a lot of the LA'ers have driven in, and are dying for a margarita, food, and then sex later, after hitting more bars. Trio is a bit more expensive, but popular Fri./Sat. as is Tropicale, and Copleys - sit outside-lovely patio. A hunky waiter there used to do porno......you'll know him.

• Palm Springs sounds fun. Thinking about coming for a visit. Anyone stay at The Ace ? Looks trippy in the pics. Is it walking distance to bars, restaurants ?

  Chicago%20funster

• R13 nailed it. I have friends who've been there and they said how it's very hot all the time, their neighbors have nonstop parties, and if you don't have lots of money don't try to live there.

• I thought it was relatively chep to live there. Housing seems reasonable. Wheres the expense ?

• RE: Wheres the expense? Utility bills in summer and gas year round to go away to avoid heat or boredom of desert living. After visiting Palm Desert Mall and Paseo, walk down Palm Canyon, there is no there there.

• It is like anyplace - there are high end places, and cheap ones. There is snob appeal.' A' gays have restored mid - century homes, with authentic vintage furniture, less well off live in apartments, and gather around the common area pool. A gays usually live in south P.S , others in north end , or middle. A's eat at Copleys, Viceroy, Spencers, or Parker - others at El Mirasol, Ace, etc. Cause it's Cali , and so close to LA, your car Is important. Convertible anything, or if you want to appear cool, if you want to look like an 'A' gay, Benz, BMW, or Range Rover, are a must ! Don't be driving an old beat up Nissan around - it screams " I live here, but I'm a waiter". Sounds harsh, but that's the way we roll in the Springs.

  Pretentious%20%20Elder%20G%20/TV%20%20executive

• Lord wont you buy me a Mercedes Benz, my friends all drive Porsche's I must make ammends.

  Janis

• Have any of you run into Miss Bianchi there? What part of PS does his live in?

• Yes - Tom Bianchi lives in Warm Sands area, where all the clothes optional gay resorts are. Are you surprised ? He's 2 blocks from it all. Lives on Vista Oro.

• bump

• What about the Ace ? Good place to stay ?

• Ace is a hipster-ish mixed crowd. Tattoos are a major fashion statement. The pool area is a fun party place. Lots of hotties, often with girlfriends. Youngish crowd, painfully hip. Great people watching if you can stomach them. Dog friendly. Twenty-somethingish women with those low, loud droning voices. Titties.

• [quote]your car Is important. Convertible anything, or if you want to appear cool, if you want to look like an 'A' gay, Benz, BMW, or Range Rover, are a must ! Don't be driving an old beat up Nissan around - it screams " I live here, but I'm a waiter." This made me think about my wealthy friend who lives there. Even though he's the richest guy I know, he drives a 10 year old RAV-4, I think. But that's just not where his intersts lie, cars. Mine do, though. I would have the coolest car if I lived in Palm Springs. Something I could take out into the desert at night, put the top down, crank the stereo, and fly.

  http://www.google.com/imgres?q=1959 lincoln convertible&hl=en&biw=1093&bih=515&tbm=isch&tbnid=Zcqlmt2OjzCT7M:&imgrefurl=http://www.autosavant.com/2011/01/04/the-return-of-the-biodiesel-plug-in-hybrid-turbine-driven-1959-lincoln-continental-convertible/&do

• Do lesbians live in Palm Springs?

• Yes, lots of them. And on Dinah weekend every year, they take over the town.

• Shit. I was a neighbor and didn't know. Now I'm hurt that I wasn't a soulmate. I had everything except looks, charm and money. But it seems that money is not a prerequisite for soulmate.

  Still%2C%20it%20hurts%20my%20feelings.

• Huh ???

• I hear that like Hell's Kitchen, it's overrun with whores.

  I%20will%20NOT%20pay

• Of course darlin

  Crystal

• RE 140 The hustlers are more subtle there. When their used up date hits them in LA, they head to PS to be bartenders, waiters, AND to find a sugardaddy in the desert, the older, the better, who'll be their security, and leve their home, and cars. Then they age, and the cycle starts all over again.

• But it's a dry heat...

  I%20haven%27t%20been%20to%20PS%20since%20the%20rainy%20winter%20of%201993...

• RE 142 I think you meant " and leave them their home, and cars". To meet anyone, you'd have to leave your home, or car.

  Da

• How long to get to San Diego, from PS ? That's probably the closest beach, right ?

  Must%20be%20near%20ocean

• Remember, your in the desert- closest beaches are Oceanside, in San Diego, and Newport, in Orange County. Both about 1 hr., 45 min. away.Or go to Lake Arrowhead- only about an hour away.

• If the heat gets too much for you, you can take the tram up to Mount San Jacinto. The temperature drops 40 degrees as you travel up to 10,830 ft at the top.

  http://www.pstramway.com/

• I've done that before. It's like 80 in P.S. , you get on the tram, get to the top, and its all snowy. Beautiful. Pine trees, trails. A different world.

• I think the White Party is next week. Whats it like when you live in PS and the whoreds (don't correct sp) invade ? Always imagined it as an all boy version of " Where The Boys Are", in the desert .

• bump

• Isn't it carpet munching weekend?

• R146, it is: you're in the desert or you are in the the desert NOT 'your in the desert' you're is short for 'you are'

• If you're of retirement age or in the witness protection program, then Palm Springs is great. If you're young and still interested in having an active social life, clubbing, etc. then it's a fun place to visit but it's not time to move to Palm Springs.

  Anonymous

• I'm here now - the girls have been unleashed this weekend, Bikes, dykes,dykes with tykes. Moss munchers, Dinah dolls - I'm waiting for next week. The estrogen level is overwhelming now - need my big, butch,testosterone muscle heads to clear out the Lez factor, and have the town overtaken by MEN,MEN,MEN !!!

• They're on their way into town now - tomorrow night's the first parties, and they are decending on PS like flies. Big, muscular, tan flies ! Yippie !

  Tom%20Bianchi

• Just got back. Where do these queens get all that money? Stayed in the historic tennis district and some of these places are like something out of a fantasy. Nice place to visit. Very eldergay.

• White Party this weekend with Mary J headlining. I wonder how many stretched out holes there will be on Monday? Lots of clapping when walking around PS.

• Any suggestions for someone looking for a little house with a pool in the fenced backyard and allowing pets for a couple of months or so? PS seems like a good place to just reset yourself.

• Okay, I had a great time, I have to admit. I was saying I didn't like Palm Springs, could never live there, etc., but when I got out there I immediately relaxed and had a good time. The weather was perfect, my hosts magnificent, the atmosphere mellow. For a New Yorker, it's weird since everyone's in cars. But you can walk down Palm Canyon Drive and you'll see plenty of people around. I love the al fresco dining and the mountain hikes. I highly recommend it for a visit, just to check it out.

• Like a lot of places, there is a big difference between visiting there and living there. Palm Springs is a lovely place to visit, but a horrible, horrible place to live. I spent 18 months there for a work project. I just couldn't get over how bored I was whenever I wasn't working. There is NOTHING to do. I was 33 at the time, and the only people anywhere near my age were younger guys in their 20s who tended to be hustlers and tweaked out hot messes. I did have a couple of hot hookups with visitors (never a local), but they were too few and far between to make up for the long stretches of phenomenal boredom. The only thing it was good for was my workout routine. I had no life to speak of so I worked out pretty much every day. I got in shape in Palm Springs! I did enjoy being on the treadmill at Gold's Gym, with its gorgeous view of the valley and the mountains. By the way, I found the overpraised constant sun felt oppressive-- like if I was under interrogation lamps. I was so happy to end that project and get the hell out of there and back to New York.

• It's all a matter of choice. Some people love Vegas, some hate it. Same with P.S. It does have perfect weather 10 months of the year- some want seasonal change, some don't. I would never want to LIVE in NYC, but I sure like to visit. Same with P.S. i visit often, but don't think I'd like to live there, year round. Same with Chicago, or D.C. With it's close proximity to L.A. though, it's a great getaway, for a 2nd home, or weekends. I do think soon, it will be considered the gayest city, in the US.

• Are there any gay hotels that would charge me a fee to let me use the pool for a day without staying overnight?

• [quote]It does have perfect weather 10 months of the year- ROFLMFAO PS is hot as hell from May thru Sept. 110 degrees is not unusual. And it is humid also.

• Many of the gay resorts do Have day passes, R162. Ace Hotel is pretty mixed, but they definitely have the nicest pool for hanging out.

• What the hell is going on in Dowtown Palm Springs? I was there this last summer and the burnt out building and closed down shops made it feel like a ghetto.

• The far right-wing Palm Springs local newspaper just endorsed Rmoney for president and they are catching hell from their online commentors. How a town that is allegedly so gay can have such a nazi newspaper is baffling.

  http://www.mydesert.com/article/20121103/OPINION0101/311030027/Our-Voice-Mitt-Romney-s-one%3Fodyssey%3Dmod%7Cnewswell%7Ctext%7CFrontpage%7Cp%26gcheck%3D1%26nclick_check%3D1

• Allison Janney loses the William Holden estate to foreclosure: A sprawling two-story, multimillion-dollar steel-and-glass house designed by Modernist architect Hugh Kaptur appears to have been sold after Emmy-award-winning actress Allison Janney and a co-owner lost it to foreclosure. Since the nearly 8,000-square-foot, five-bedroom house at 2433 Southridge Drive was priced at $2.25 million, it has received multiple offers despite the need for considerable renovation, said Steve Enlow, broker associate with Keller Williams Realty in Rancho Mirage. “We’ve got a potential buyer, and an offer was accepted for them,” said Enlow, who handled the listing for the bank. “It’s just a beautiful home with unobstructed views.” At $2.2 million, the buyer will pay a little more than half of the $3.9 million price that Janney and restaurant consultant Gregg Rapp paid in 2006, according to Desert Area Multiple Listing Service records. Janney may be best known for her role as C.J. Cregg on the TV series “The West Wing,” but she has also appeared in many films such as “American Beauty,” “The Ice Storm” and “The Hours.” Architect Kaptur designed the house, which was built in 1977 for the late actor William Holden. The famed actor died just four years after the home was completed. The property has been listed, de-listed and re-listed several times over the past several years, with an asking price as high as $5.5 million in March 2010. The assessed value of the land and house was $3.6 million, according to the latest figures from the Riverside County assessor’s office. Louise Hampton, a broker associate who has handled many high-end homes in Palm Springs over the past three decades for Prudential California Realty, said homes in the prestigious Southridge Drive area in Palm Springs are known for offering some of the best views in the valley. Renowned architects such as William Cody and John Lautner are among those who’ve designed houses in the enclave. The house that Janney and Rapp owned for about six years before it was repossessed is on nearly four acres. There are some 19 estates there that have been home to celebrities such as Steve McQueen and Bob Hope, as well as famous businessmen such as Chicago inventor Stanley Goldberg. The house includes a spacious master suite with a two-way fireplace, 36-foot-long walk-in closet and dressing room, a large foyer leading to a living and dining room area and long expanses of floor-to-ceiling windows and sliders. It has a fully paneled library, a separate Balinese-themed media room, an eat-in kitchen and a gigantic lower level entertainment room with built-in wet bar.

  http://www.mydesert.com/article/20121126/BUSINESS04/311260013/-West-Wing-actress-foreclosed-house-sold%3Fodyssey%3Dtab%7Ctopnews%7Ctext%7CFrontpage%26nclick_check%3D1

• The golden years of Palm Springs is over, it's a dump now

• Dump? why do you say that?

• They made a big deal of the "design district" in the desolate north part of PS. Several of the high end stores that opened closed within a year. It is dead and dangerous in that windswept part of town and always will be.