Tallahassee or Birmingham (Trussville, Guntersville, Southside: apartments, house, transfer)

[mackenzie4me]

I currently live in the north Tampa area and need to relocate to either Tallahassee or Birmingham for work. Any insight as to which one would be better? I have a wife and 2.5 year old daughter; we are in our early 40's; we love sports and our lives pretty much revolve around our daughter, our work and friends we make in our community.

[cpg35223]

I don't know much about Tallahassee except that it is considerably smaller than Birmingham. If you're like to have some of the same amenities you'd find in Tampa (With the obvious exception of professional sports franchises), then Birmingham will probably offer a wider array. After all the metro area is about 1.1 million people.

Personally, having moved here from elsewhere, I can say with conviction that the swath of suburbs directly to the South of Birmingham are practically heaven on earth for sheer convenience and graciousness.

[mackenzie4me]

I would agree; the area south of Birmingham is beautiful and full of amenities. Thanks for the feedback!

[bamajely]

I lived in Tampa and moved north of Birmingham. My best friend got transfered from Tampa with her job. She works in Birmingham. She wanted to live in a community were she would feel safe. She picked the area of Trussville. You might want to check out that area.

[whytelotus]

Originally Posted by cpg35223

I don't know much about Tallahassee except that it is considerably smaller than Birmingham. If you're like to have some of the same amenities you'd find in Tampa (With the obvious exception of professional sports franchises), then Birmingham will probably offer a wider array. After all the metro area is about 1.1 million people.

Personally, having moved here from elsewhere, I can say with conviction that the swath of suburbs directly to the South of Birmingham are practically heaven on earth for sheer convenience and graciousness.

Where exactly did you find graciousness and how can I get it? I have been in Kenley Way just off the 280 for a month now and it is far from gracious.
My age range is 35+, I own my own business and I only moved here because my boyfriend was relocated... With the sheer amount of rude people here I'm ready to give up... I can't take this! where is the southern hospitality??? Where can a cultured woman from Canada get a break???
The culture shock is very heavy...

[cpg35223]

Originally Posted by whytelotus

Where exactly did you find graciousness and how can I get it? I have been in Kenley Way just off the 280 for a month now and it is far from gracious.
My age range is 35+, I own my own business and I only moved here because my boyfriend was relocated... With the sheer amount of rude people here I'm ready to give up... I can't take this! where is the southern hospitality??? Where can a cultured woman from Canada get a break???
The culture shock is very heavy...

You're kidding. People have been rude to you? That's the exact opposite of our experiences here, and we're transplanted Yankees who have been here 16 years now.

Now part of that may be where you live. Apartments on 280 are not exactly a kind of place where people put down roots. In fact, that stretch of 280 is, to me, the least attractive part of town, particularly for someone with cultured sensibilities. It's transient living for people who aren't exactly looking to make lasting friends. Perhaps that's part of the issue. Meanwhile, we had the good fortune to land in a part of town where there's a great deal of diversity in people, the Southside/Forest Park section of town. There, you'll find a little bit of everything in a much more convivial setting. The other problem you might be encountering is that June/July/August is when the town typically empties out for weekends at the beach or the lake, so you're probably not encountering many like-minded people. Come mid- to late-August, there's a lot more going on with people you'll probably enjoy being around.

As far as the arts and culture are concerned, we have really enjoyed the offerings here, for there are any number of great venues and companies. No, I wouldn't compare these to a major city as Chicago (Where we came from), but it's not a cultural wasteland by any stretch of the imagination. I would suggest picking up a copy of Black & White or going to activeculture.info and start looking for groups that really share the same interests as you do. There are hundreds of them around town, I promise you.

Now, a note about Southerners. They are a welcoming breed of people. If Southerners take you under their wing, they're extraordinarily generous and accommodating people. As a result, we now have dozens and dozens of friends from all walks of life. But you have to understand that, coming in, there are cultural differences from where you came. Yes, they have the same retail stores and they speak the same language as what you're used to (Well, somewhat. Sometimes, the Southern dialect still throws me), but they also have cultural differences as well, just the same as if you moved to Bogota or Munich. People who move here and understand that typically do well and enjoy the experience, people who move here and expect people to think and behave exactly the way people did in Cleveland are going to have a much more difficult time. We know several Canadian families who love living here, so I'm pretty sure that Alabamians are not hostile to people from the Great White North. In fact, that's probably an advantage in your favor, for at least you're not a Northerner.

First thing, right off the bat. Southerners dislike directness in all ways, shapes and forms. Instead, they are all about tact. I had to really learn how to be much more diplomatic when talking to Southerners. That doesn't mean you don't have to lie. It just means that you have to garb criticism in a way that doesn't reflect personally on the one you're giving it to.

Second, Southerners really hate it when somebody moves here and then starts criticizing everything. NEVER DO THIS. Mind you, this isn't the same thing as mindless conformity. But I learned, over time, that Southerners have really gotten tired of being the butt of jokes, being depicted as backwards hillbillies, and the what not. Now, I inwardly cringe every time some comedian kind of uses Alabama as shorthand for something negative.

Third, you need to step outside your own comfort zone when it comes to meeting people and introducing yourself. Remember that a large percentage of people in Birmingham have been here a few generations, so they tend to associate with familiar people. That's not to say that they don't include new residents (We're proof of that).

So don't give up on a city that we've come to love. Take a new look at it through fresh eyes, maybe try some different things, and give the place a second chance.

[LazyT]

Originally Posted by mackenzie4me

I currently live in the north Tampa area and need to relocate to either Tallahassee or Birmingham for work.

Unless you live for the Toma Hawk Chop, you should definitely check out B'ham, especially South or NE B'ham as others have suggested. It's large enough to offer numerous amenities and cultural opportunities, but not too large to have quite as many problems as Atlanta- where I live now.

[Guntersville Boomer]

I lived in Tallahassee for 18 years and raised my daughter there. She went to Birmingham Southern College on partial scholarship and stills lives in Birmingham so I am very familar with both. If you want to live in a real city with all the cultural opportunities and experiences Birmingham is the place, weather wise both are similar, you do have a change of seasons in Tallahassee too. I do have to say Tallahassee was a great place to raise my daughter but we did choose to enroll her in Maclay, a really good private school there. I found Tallahassee to be very limiting as to things to do and it is really off the beaten path so you have a pretty good drive to get to a real city, even a 2 hour drive to the beach too. But if you want a slower pace, Tallahassee is a good option. Hope this helps, I don't think you can go wrong with either location.

[mackenzie4me]

Guntersville; that's great information. I've visited both numerous times and I am strongly leaning towards Birmingham although my wife would prefer Florida. Thanks again.

[Pudelmom]

I would run, not walk, away from Jefferson County (Birmingham). I realize some will take issue with this, but I've lived there, and now it has just gotten so bad -- the county commission, the water board, people seemingly always being indicted. It's on the news every night. They're on the brink of laying off basic employees, like about 150 deputies. I hope it doesn't happen. Just do some googling about it. I have relatives who have been trying to sell their house off and on for years!

I've only visited Tallahassee, so I can't advise you about that.

The rude people, I can absolutely believe -- My SIL (from Birmingham) and I were visiting a lovely little town in northwestern TN and we just could not get over the difference in the people. So nice!