Good places to retire? Sorry-long

North Carolina has been mentioned. Lived outside of Raleigh for over 20 years. If you're outside of city limits there's still plenty of "country" left but still within reason to get to town. 2.5 hours from the coast and a few hours from the mountains. Not a bad place to be if you like weekend getaways. The best attribute is Duke Medical. There are some leading medical facilities and doctors in the area.