It always makes me laugh that Denver and Portland OR are always mentioned as "dream cities" to live in. I have spent lots of time in both and you couldn't pay me to live in either.
Do you realize that Denver is in the desert? Not a lot of trees and grass. And dust/dirt everywhere. There are some cool areas, but overall not a pretty city. It is just an hour drive to the mountains, but realistically still a weekend getaway rather than a day trip. I would rather live in Kansas City, which is only a days drive to the Rockies and, believe it or not, a much nicer city with friendly, down-to-earth, pragmatic people! People in Denver are laid back, but also very weird. Actually, the families we know that live there are quite competitive, especially when it comes to kids' sports.
Portland. bleh. Sure, it's really nice in the summer. Weather is refreshing and it's beautiful. But you have to realize that their summer is quite short. The rest of the time it's gloomy and miserable. When you can't do the outdoor stuff (and because of the weather, you usually can't), there really isn't much to do! Seriously, if you tend to get winter blues or have SAD (seasonal affective disorder) at all, you should not move there! I will say that the food is awesome, but probably too good, and the portions are huge! So you can gain 10 pounds just from looking at Portland on a map!

Oh, and lots of weirdos there too.