Transplants , why did you leave AZ if you aren't still here?

[Tall Traveler]

Originally Posted by dvxhd

On a whim, I came on this site (rare anymore) and saw this thread in the main room. I relocated from Phoenix to Los Angeles, and while I can say in life there are things I shouldn't have done or wish I'd done differently, I feel that leaving Phoenix was one of the best decisions I ever made.

First and foremost, the cost of living in Phoenix is far too high for what it's actually worth. The cost of living in LA is higher, but I can definitely see where my money is going. Second, I would slap down that "lower cost of living" BS Phoenix people like to toss around; some of my expenses did go up, such as taxes, rent, and gas, yet somehow I actually have MORE money at the end of the month than I did in Phoenix. For me, I was able to give myself a substantial raise moving to California than I could ever make in Phoenix (based on market rates) and I'm doing better financially than I ever would had I stayed in Phoenix. Frankly, living in Phoenix isn't worth the struggle, when I was living paycheck-to-paycheck. Oh gosh...people don't factor all that in when they fixate on "lower taxes!" and "cheap housing!" My career in LA is going great and I've never been better off financially. It's almost a weird sensation to me that I don't need to work overtime or holidays to get by, as I did in Phoenix. I should add that I do have a Master's and plenty of work experience, so struggling to get by in a city I loathe is absolute BS.

I'm not going to touch the climate, because that's really not a reason I'd choose a place, though admittedly the climate in LA is much more pleasant. I'm able to walk to places and use public transit more viably now as an alternative because the city is just more urban than Phoenix ever will be. On occasion I come online, but I've found there's much, MUCH more to do in LA than vent frustrations here (I'm expressing myself now only from experience). My personality has returned more to normal, in that I'm not constantly agitated and irritable, except for when the occasion warrants it.

I feel like anything you read on these Phoenix forums is a fat load too, especially the tired old "it's a different kind of conservative" and it's "live and let live." Neither one of those are even remotely true in my experience, but seem to be some mantra Phoenicians spew without any actual understanding. As an example, two of the three of my previous Halloween costumes were in Phoenix, and I caught some flak for them. The third and most recent, in Los Angeles, had people running up to have their picture taken with me. I feel like you can be more expressive in LA without the churchy judgment you get in Phoenix.

Overall, it was a variety of factors that made me want to get out of Phoenix, and I'm not going to write an essay on it tonight. I still feel like Phoenix should brand itself as "Hospice City" as it's a place you go when you've given up and are ready to die, and because that's just not my personality I chose to leave. I really do feel like LA is a constant defibrillator, and even when I get tired, it pumps life back into me, whereas Phoenix I feel was sending me to an early death.

Like your RHCP location.

I can see a lot of advantages of LA over Phoneix as you state but I think your experience of more income after factoring cost of living is unusual. My neice moved to LA and loves it but her standard of living has gone way down there due to the cost of living.

[Hal Roach]

Originally Posted by NDak15

Your point is?

Just answering YOUR question. So, most of the world does not pay 680 per month with a 7500 dollar deductible from something called a "marketplace," that only has one seller. Maybe you could recommend a good headset to the others, for your call center jobs, as opposed to making uneducated remarks.