MOVING BEYOND STRESS
Couple trade hectic careers, million-dollar Bay Area home for quieter life in Paso Robles
For the missus, life is sweet in her yellow convertible Mustang, U2’s “Beautiful Day” at concert volume, the grapevines ticking by as she hugs the curves on Highway 46 headed to the California coast.
For the mister, nirvana is found on two wheels, dirt flying as he crests the elevated back roads of Paso Robles, an ocean view to his right, and rolling farmland on his left.
Meet the post-bay Area Buttons, John and Debbie, high school sweethearts who now, at 53, are just beginning to let themselves be kids again. They could have stayed in their milliondollar home in Danville and worked longer, traveled less and continued to be careful with money into their old age.
But they both have a fun streak. And worrying about finances is definitely not fun.
“We were ready for a different pace, without the stress,” John Button said.
So they cashed out in 2007 and moved to Paso Robles, buying a new four-bedroom, two-bath, 2,500square-foot home with loft ceilings at half the price of their Bay Area home.
The Paso place is on a larger lot than the one they had in Danville, and with the money they saved they were able to landscape the yard with rustic pavers and add benches, drought-tolerant plants and a hot tub. “We’re thinking of putting a cantilevered roof here,” said John, pointing to a patio with an outdoor dining table.
They also bought a chocolate shop in the center of town so they would have something interesting to keep themselves engaged with their new community. They paid for everything in cash.
“We are more flexible about doing what we choose now, more comfortable now there’s enough money in the bank,” said John Button, whose career in high tech began with designing the manufacturing facilities for IBM’s first mainframes.
The Buttons aren’t fully retired; John still helps develop and sell hightech companies. But only when he feels like it, and when he is excited by the business. Gone are the 18-hour workdays, the middle-of-the-night
“We were ready for a different pace, without the stress.”
John Button
business calls to Asia. Sometimes he’ll take two entire months off at a stretch.
Debbie, who was a beloved cafeteria manager at San Ramon Valley High School, takes a few shifts at Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory, making 30 varieties of caramel apples and dipping pretzel sticks, Red Vines and Twinkies in chocolate. The Buttons’ whimsy with candy helped turn a failing business into a moneymaker. Merlot Raspberry Truffle ice cream is a popular seller.
“I still have an outlet to talk to people and feed them, but instead of high schoolers I meet tourists from all over,” Debbie said.
They spent a year looking for their retirement home, both in the Sierra and on the Central Coast. They were familiar with Paso Robles, a convenient and pretty town halfway between Los Angeles and San Francisco, from their days organizing weekend motorcycle rides for the Motorcycle Sport Touring Association. All the Buttons, including their son and daughter, ride dirt and touring bikes.
They almost bought a home in Blue Lake Springs, east of Arnold in Calaveras County, but Debbie nixed the idea, reminding John that they would have to combat cold and snow as seniors, in a mountain town far from care services.
Paso Robles seemed to fit their list of needs: great roads for driving and motorcycling, a slower pace of life, proximity to the beach, and an emphasis on good food and wine.
Still, the more relaxed pace in Paso Robles was hard to get used to at first. The Buttons missed how easy it was to get to an airport or go shopping in the Bay Area. How they could eat a meal from anywhere in the world in minutes.
“I miss Union Square at Christmas, the cable cars, all the plays, all the culture concentrated in one place,” John said.
But on a good day with clear traffic, they can reach the city in less than four hours.
Their son and daughter, both in their 20s, have relocated to Paso Robles to be closer to their parents. The daughter, Briana Dickey, has two sons, so the Buttons spend a lot of time playing with toy cars, video games and water guns.
Dickey misses the cosmopolitan life the most, but also feels some relief being away from it.
“There are no malls here,” she sighed, “but you don’t feel this fashion competition here — you don’t have to always be wearing the latest brands.”
The Buttons saw their daily cost of living drop in Paso Robles. Commuting, parking and bridge toll costs evaporated. Homeowner association fees — gone. Every weekend the city park hosts an event — wine tastings, concerts, olive festivals and pajama party movie nights — and most of them are free.
“Every dinner party we go to is full of Bay Area expats,” John Button said. “Everyone is drinking fine wine, and comparing their new and old lives. It’s the favorite party activity in Paso. And everyone seems so … happy.”