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I've found plenty of threads completely related to this but really just need to share my story!!!
Like many of you, the hometown I grew up in (mine happened to be NoVA!) had such a boom happen that it left a heck of a lot of hard working middle class people saying....ummm....excuse me....is all you're building now is $600,000 homes....where are the middle class neighborhoods??? Well, they are not being built in Northern Virginia. Resale townhomes were $400,000.... Small 2 bedroom townhomes were $300,000.
Okay, so I can afford a $200,000 home!!! I have 3 kids!!! It was a dead end in Nova!!!
Before you ask how did I get myself into this pickle... ) We had bought a home in Centreville, VA in '97 for $135,000 started pro-creating, after 2 kids the 2 bedroom 1 bath was small, when 3 was on the way, the real estate boom was on, and under advice, we sold the home for a profit, banked the cash and sat and waited for the bubble to burst.....
We were living with my dad at the time, which was awesome for a while, (that man is sitting on a 3000sq ft 5 acre GOLDMINE in Fairfax County) but being an adult, you never want to be living at your "folks". Although, looking back, nobody seemed to care...in that market....it was understandable...
Anyway, almost 2 years at dad's and the real estate bubble never burst....!! Home prices in Nova just got astronomical!!! (We paid every living expense at dad's house, plus I made him great dinners....every night!!!)
So, our move to Charlotte all started on the computer. My husband works for a national company....there was an open position, we made 4 trips down to look around....anyway, in 2005 we were officially NC residents...in Union County....because of the low taxes ya know... :O)
As for getting used to the area...it's a goofy story....I was gung ho like didn't even have a clue I wouldn't fit in because my mother is from Surry, NC... but found out quickly...it's gonna be a fight...Neighbors immediately came over and introduced themselves....we all spent the whole summer together.... and I mean every day. My next door neighbor would come over and tell me the time of day I opened my blinds, when I went shopping, where I went shopping (from the bags, I know she wasn't following me...) Every time my husband and I came out, they were there, wanting to run down with us every move they saw us make....
Anyway, that made our move here bad. But I nipped that in the bud...I just had to get to the point where I throw my hand up to wave and turn away and get real busy....(I should mention, we're in RURAL Union County....don't get discouraged!!! Union County is a gem)
Then throughout all this with the neighbors my first year here, I turn on local talk radio and all I hear is caller after southern drawl caller talk about all the f**kin' yankees moving down here.
I sign my kid up for local sports/clubs....I say I'm from VA and the room just looks at me and of course someone says...you're from (choke) Virginia....
I spent the first year here trying to get accepted through my heritage...Ya, but my mother was born here!!! I promise....
Over the next 6 months I was called f*ing yankee directly 3 times until one night at the company Christmas party some fellow VA transplants were sitting with us and a guy looked at our table and said that's where the yankees sit.
To which this gal, with the aid of 3 glasses of wine said...do you even know where the Mason-Dixon line is or where the capital of the Confederacy was? It was Richmond, VIRGINIA.....so if you're unhappy with us moving here, figure out a better insult.
I actually felt bad for that guy when she got done with him.
Anyway, I was really happy about moving into an affordable area. I moved here happy then because of unfriendly people got quite blue, almost let down..But am getting over it because I'm realizing it's my home now. And the moment I started not giving a poo whether the locals liked me or not is when they actually warmed up to me.
The moment I chilled and just realized I could just be nice and break through the general disdain NC has for it's sudden growth....I'd be okay...and finally, I'm looking around here after 2 years I see I moved into a gorgeous place.
The people are taking some time to warm up to, but it is well worth it....except of course for the nosy neighbors!!! They make me wonder if 'southern hospitality' isn't a code word for "just being plain nosy".... )
Funny...I moved to Waynesboro, Virginia from North Carolina a few years ago and experienced the same rude non acceptance from the natives there. It's not just NC people, it's ignorant people everywhere.
I am hoping that when we come down it will all be fine. I live here in Hampton Roads Virginia, at my work, which employs about 12-15 people, the divide seems to be racial. I sit with whoever is there at the time. But the office is trying to overpower tight now, and not be equals. Some things are not good there. I wil be happy to leave, other than missing my friends. It seems as though the divide in this area when you are at a party or whatever is mostly just the groups of people you know, the amt of money you make(UGH), or race. THAT is why I teach my kids that the Lord created all people EQUAL.
I've found plenty of threads completely related to this but really just need to share my story!!!
Like many of you, the hometown I grew up in (mine happened to be NoVA!) had such a boom happen that it left a heck of a lot of hard working middle class people saying....ummm....excuse me....is all you're building now is $600,000 homes....where are the middle class neighborhoods??? Well, they are not being built in Northern Virginia. Resale townhomes were $400,000.... Small 2 bedroom townhomes were $300,000.
Okay, so I can afford a $200,000 home!!! I have 3 kids!!! It was a dead end in Nova!!!
Before you ask how did I get myself into this pickle... ) We had bought a home in Centreville, VA in '97 for $135,000 started pro-creating, after 2 kids the 2 bedroom 1 bath was small, when 3 was on the way, the real estate boom was on, and under advice, we sold the home for a profit, banked the cash and sat and waited for the bubble to burst.....
We were living with my dad at the time, which was awesome for a while, (that man is sitting on a 3000sq ft 5 acre GOLDMINE in Fairfax County) but being an adult, you never want to be living at your "folks". Although, looking back, nobody seemed to care...in that market....it was understandable...
Anyway, almost 2 years at dad's and the real estate bubble never burst....!! Home prices in Nova just got astronomical!!! (We paid every living expense at dad's house, plus I made him great dinners....every night!!!)
So, our move to Charlotte all started on the computer. My husband works for a national company....there was an open position, we made 4 trips down to look around....anyway, in 2005 we were officially NC residents...in Union County....because of the low taxes ya know... :O)
As for getting used to the area...it's a goofy story....I was gung ho like didn't even have a clue I wouldn't fit in because my mother is from Surry, NC... but found out quickly...it's gonna be a fight...Neighbors immediately came over and introduced themselves....we all spent the whole summer together.... and I mean every day. My next door neighbor would come over and tell me the time of day I opened my blinds, when I went shopping, where I went shopping (from the bags, I know she wasn't following me...) Every time my husband and I came out, they were there, wanting to run down with us every move they saw us make....
Anyway, that made our move here bad. But I nipped that in the bud...I just had to get to the point where I throw my hand up to wave and turn away and get real busy....(I should mention, we're in RURAL Union County....don't get discouraged!!! Union County is a gem)
Then throughout all this with the neighbors my first year here, I turn on local talk radio and all I hear is caller after southern drawl caller talk about all the f**kin' yankees moving down here.
I sign my kid up for local sports/clubs....I say I'm from VA and the room just looks at me and of course someone says...you're from (choke) Virginia....
I spent the first year here trying to get accepted through my heritage...Ya, but my mother was born here!!! I promise....
Over the next 6 months I was called f*ing yankee directly 3 times until one night at the company Christmas party some fellow VA transplants were sitting with us and a guy looked at our table and said that's where the yankees sit.
To which this gal, with the aid of 3 glasses of wine said...do you even know where the Mason-Dixon line is or where the capital of the Confederacy was? It was Richmond, VIRGINIA.....so if you're unhappy with us moving here, figure out a better insult.
I actually felt bad for that guy when she got done with him.
Anyway, I was really happy about moving into an affordable area. I moved here happy then because of unfriendly people got quite blue, almost let down..But am getting over it because I'm realizing it's my home now. And the moment I started not giving a poo whether the locals liked me or not is when they actually warmed up to me.
The moment I chilled and just realized I could just be nice and break through the general disdain NC has for it's sudden growth....I'd be okay...and finally, I'm looking around here after 2 years I see I moved into a gorgeous place.
The people are taking some time to warm up to, but it is well worth it....except of course for the nosy neighbors!!! They make me wonder if 'southern hospitality' isn't a code word for "just being plain nosy".... )
I am originally from Western NY, and have lived in several areas in NC and FL. I have learned you either love me or hate me, it doesn't matter where I'm from or where I've been. I guess I don't notice these things much anymore or blow them off because I moved from NY to NC to FL and back to NC for my husband's work, and I've been gone about 9 years. If some want to call me a "half-back", I don't care. We follow construction work, so if we're half-backs, we're half-backs, if we're yankees, we're yankees. I treat everyone with respect until they warrant otherwise, and I don't care where they are from or what kind of accent they have. I treat people the way I want to be treated, and I try my best not to judge and label others. I believe in giving others a chance and if they can't give me a chance, they've lost out on getting to know a great person. That's their loss, not mine, because I don't need people like that in my life. This is my home and I like it here, I'm staying as long as I can...
I am originally from Western NY, and have lived in several areas in NC and FL. I have learned you either love me or hate me, it doesn't matter where I'm from or where I've been. I guess I don't notice these things much anymore or blow them off because I moved from NY to NC to FL and back to NC for my husband's work, and I've been gone about 9 years. If some want to call me a "half-back", I don't care. We follow construction work, so if we're half-backs, we're half-backs, if we're yankees, we're yankees. I treat everyone with respect until they warrant otherwise, and I don't care where they are from or what kind of accent they have. I treat people the way I want to be treated, and I try my best not to judge and label others. I believe in giving others a chance and if they can't give me a chance, they've lost out on getting to know a great person. That's their loss, not mine, because I don't need people like that in my life. This is my home and I like it here, I'm staying as long as I can...
Thank you for your post. I wish I just could figure out how to express my opinion without dragging a post on....and on....and....on....
I'm working on it!!! Shorter posts getting to the point!!! That's my goal.
Anyway, I guess since this is the city forum for Charlotte I really want to say that I do not regret moving here. It is gorgeous country and the area allows many freedoms that I did not have previously.
There are some fine people here and there are some not so fine people...but when you really think about it....you get same mix of folks everywhere...
In fact, I have a hard time finding folks who are actually FROM NC! DH works with almost all transplants. My immediate neighbors are from Florida, California, Virginia and Indiana. None are from here. We are from California.
I have never even heard anyone called a Yankee since I moved here!
After reading your note I am wondering how the people around NC/SC would accept European people (French). We have lived in NOVA for many many years but our house is now much too big, our property tax is much too high etc .. Does anyone has an opinion?
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