Any transplants here from NH (Columbia, Charleston: home, college, living)

[xraydude]

I was wondering if anyone here was a transplant from New Hampshire. If so how was your transformation on moving down there? Did you find any big surprises? If so what were they. Thanks for letting me know.

[wildwoodflower]

not nh, but northern vermont

i miss it like crazy. maybe one day i will get back but we shall see. maybe the blue ridge mountains instead.

my biggest surprises are mostly little things that drive me nuts, things i did not even think of before arriving, like how people park on other people's lawns, talk on the cell phone and drive, no one signals, every place uses stryrofoam, customer service is sloooooow, the grass is not as soft and green (different type), the traffic is alot sometimes, and the air pollution is worse then i knew about (especially for those with asthma). fire ants are everywhere. things i did not realize until i was already here. but so far people in general do seem to be kind, and of course it is wonderful to be able to appreciate the ocean on a daily basis. it is defiantly different. but good and bad. but this also depends on if you are talking rural new hampshire or strip mall city nh. which area are you coming from?

[Sportygal21]

Hi Wildwoodflower,

I feel your pain, New England is beautiful. I think being a snowbird would be ideal.

where do live in Charleston? are some areas better than others for pollution?

thanks Happy new Year!!
I am off to run The Hangover Classic 10k in Salisbury, mass, no ocean plunge for me

[wildwoodflower]

good luck with your 10K!

i think alot of it is i prefer living rurally, and have been for m any years. a twist of fate brought us here, but i am sure it will be short term. i thought i could deal better with it then i actually can for a few years. i miss the mountains like crazy. now i'm just to enjoy the ocean and coast as much as i can and try to find home again. maybe i will find the best of both worlds some day.

but many do like it here, just not me, lol. not trying to start a debate. the city is rich in history and does have alot of positive things to offer. ... but it is not for everyone. to me it seems like too much compromise. to each is own. like i said, i did not persue coming here, i would not have...just trying to make the best of my time here.

oh, and air pollution. I honestly had no idea how bad it was. It is mostly due to the busy port and lack of regulations for the ships they allow to enter like other port cities in the USA do. Lack of enviornmental standards for the all mighty buck. Here is a good site Charleston Clean Air

charleston recently recieved an "F" from the American Ling Associaion since the air is so dirty. I actually can really tell the difference since I have pretty bad asthma. I have been struggling alot with it since arriving, and did not realize it was so bad until I was already here. One of the biggest reasons I do not intend on staying. It bothers me on too many levels.

But who knows, maybe some day the city will impliment better clean up measures to help the situation. I hope so....

oh, and i live on james island.. which i prefer to alot of the other areas down here. i don't think i could ever live on daniel island or mount pleasant...but again...many people like those areas for their own reasons.

[xraydude]

I will be coming from the upper valley area right on the VT/NH line. I consider this rural living since I came here from near Saratoga Springs,-Albany, NY area. So I can live just about anywhere. I like being near the city for convenience but I don't really want to live in the city.

[wildwoodflower]

i know exactly where that is, i know there area well..woodstock, quechee, lebanon not exactly rural, but defiantly more rural then charleston! i really like the upper valley, but there is no diversity. beautiful area though!

[xraydude]

I agree. The other fact is that it is lacking more for employment, and the jobs here are limited due to only having a couple hospitals in the area.

[wildwoodflower]

yes i know. the local economy is not good anywhere in VT and toward the border of NH. there is little work for the locals, and all the wealth there is old family money and people who have made their money in the city and came there with it to enjoy the country life, especially woodstock (but great farmers market in woodstock, lol)! ). there is not money to be made there. part of the reason we had to leave VT for awhile. but dartmouth is a great hospital in the area. is that where you are employed? we lived about an hour and half away from there. but we would go to the area once in a while to take the kids to the monshire and such. i really miss it.

[Captain Ed]

Originally Posted by wildwoodflower

i really like the upper valley, but there is no diversity. beautiful area though!

No diversity in the Upper Valley? I suppose diversity is a relative term as New Hampshire and Vermont are respectively 95.8% and 96.7% white. However, Dartmouth College and DHMC attract students and professionals from all over the world.

I'm afraid I must take exception with your assessment of Charleston's air quality as well. First, I searched for the American Lung Association's "F" rating for Charleston and found nothing. The only reference I found was from the Charleston Clean Air link that you provided, and that offered no citation. Also, nearly all of the information on that site refers to the Port of Los Angeles, the busiest in the nation (and a city that is home to nearly 4 million people).

While I agree the emissions from shipping need to be curtailed, I don't think Charleston's air quality is as bad as you state. The Post and Courier says, "Charleston's air quality is better than Columbia's or Greenville's, according to state and federal environmental agencies. Unlike port cities in California, Charleston meets EPA goals for particulates, the small particles in diesel emissions that are blamed for lung disease and asthma. "We are an attainment area, so we don't have some of the issues they have on the West Coast," Miller [S.C. State Ports Authority] said".

Finally, here is some comparative air quality data between Burlington, VT and Charleston, SC. Sure, the air here won't be as clean as that on a Vermont mountaintop, but the Charleston tri-county is home to well over 200,000 people.

Burlington, VT
Percentage of days with good air quality: 87
Percentage of days with moderate air quality: 13
Percentage of days with unhealthful air quality: 0

Charleston, SC
Percentage of days with good air quality: 70
Percentage of days with moderate air quality: 30
Percentage of days with unhealthful air quality: 0

That being said, I would choose the Seacoast of New Hampshire over Charleston any day!

[wildwoodflower]

i am not really up for the debate. but here is a link about the air aqulity, i am sure there are others if you choose to look. someone refered me to the site i mentioned from another board where the same issue was brought to my attention when we encountered some breathing problems since arriving here.

here are some more:
Pollution from ships big worry

Charleston's Dirty Little Secret - Don't breathe deep — there are killers afloat - News - Cover Story - Charleston City Paper - Charleston

About Your Community

so far, i have heard alot of the locals discussing this also. there seemed to be alot of individuals here who are trying to get the issue addressed and clean up the port. it seems to be a hot topic on lots of charleston email groups.

oh, and about the upper valley, i have spent alot of time there and i am aware of the lack of racial diversity, but i mostly meant the lack of economic diversity. it is a very very affluent area. the locals to vt recognize it universally as so. especially woodstock and quechee. and yes, Dartmouth is a wonderful college and DHMC is a wonderful hospital.