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Old 04-01-2010, 11:36 AM
 
Location: The place where the road & the sky collide
23,809 posts, read 34,505,004 times
Reputation: 10256

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Quote:
Originally Posted by southbound_295 View Post
While you're still in Fort Wayne, deciding where to go, here's some things for you to do. Welcome to Fort Wayne | Visit Fort Wayne .

It's also not far for you to go to a Lake Michigan beach.
Also, I forgot about this when I wrote that, but I was researching family members who were in the 30th Indiana in the Civil War & there was a website for a reenactor group in Ft Wayne. I can not find their website, but ask around. They sponsored events in the spring & summer. It would probably interest your son.

Good luck with your decision.
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Old 04-01-2010, 01:37 PM
 
15,546 posts, read 11,947,653 times
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1. Thankfully, I don't have too many problems with allergies. Although my boyfriend's allergies have been horrible since we moved here from San Francisco over a year ago. And yes, pollen does cover everything! I've never seen it like that anywhere else that I've lived, I remember even asking my boyfriend last year what it was that was covering everything on our porch, and even got onto stuff we had put up in Rubbermaid containers... Of course he just laughed at me for asking such a thing.

2. Durham is over two hours away. I guess that can be considered close, but if we're going that far of a radius, then yeah Charlotte is country. But if we are talking about Charlotte by itself then its not. Uptown is a decent size, and even the surrounding suburbs are nice. You'd have to get a good ways out of the city (kings mountain area?) before I would consider it to be country.

3. Its a Southern city. People are more about enjoying life down here, and definitely are not into the whole rush, rush, rush mindset.

4. I've never thought of UNCC as ghetto. Its a decent school. It was ranked number 9 by U.S. News & World Report as one of the Nation's Top up and Coming Universities. They continue to add on to the main campus, and have plenty of new buildings. They have a wide variety of courses to choose from, so as long as they offer what you want to study their is nothing wrong with UNCC. There has been some crime on campus, but that happens everywhere so its just a matter of knowing your surrounding and being cautious.

5. It really depends on the Apartment on whether or not there is a washer and dryer, but I would think most at least have hookups. Just do a search on one of the apartment sites, and you'll be able to search by apartments that have w/d or just hookups. Cost of living isn't bad here, of course I came from California so comparing costs of living between Charlotte and San Francisco is like comparing apples to pickles.

6. The whole country is in a recession, Charlotte has not been excluded from this. Any job is hard to find. I interviewed for a part time job at the mall the other week and was competing with people who had bachelors in fashion design and who had internships with Louis Vitton and Burberry in New York. I really just wanted to scream "COME ON PEOPLE! Who goes from a year internship in New York to wanting a part time job to Northlake? Part time at the mall should be entry level jobs!" I refuse to go to school for 4+ years just so that I'm eligible for a mall job!

7. Charlotte has plenty to do to keep busy. There are museums, pro Basketball and Football games, Nascar events, there's a drag racing track, a dirt racing track, Minor league hockey and baseball, plenty of parks and lakes, and yes we also have the chain restaurants (a few good ones), and lots of movie theatres, as well as production theatres that get the Broadway tours, and small community theatres. And if you get bored with all that then the beach is a nice weekend getaway, or you can go to the mountains and go sking in the winter, hiking in the summer. Ashville is also a nice getaway, Savannah is only 4 hrs away, Atlanta isn't too far either, and there are plenty of other great places to see in between.

8. There is racism to a degree, yes. But its not running rampant through the streets.

9. Religion is big in Charlotte, and just about everywhere in the South. People do talk a lot more about religion here then I've heard anywhere else. I have met people who are extreme in there religion, and feel like if your not as crazy as them then you're a satanist. But those types are in the minority here when it comes to religion. But people do have their beliefs on display here more then anywhere else I've ever lived. In fact I saw a truck yesterday that had painted on the side "I don't need your Socialist health care, I have God as my health insurance!" It made me giggle, which I'm sure was not the reaction the trucker was wanting. Now I have nothing against religion, I do go to church sometimes, I went to a Christian school from kindergarten up through high school, and I definitely wasn't bothered by the truckers message, I just thought it was silly to paint that on the side of your truck, or to think that because you believe in God you're immune from sickness or injury.

Hope this answered some of your questions! And I would agree with Sunny that for sever allergy problems somewhere in the Southwest might be your best bet. The dry desert climate really helps out! Just research some different places to see what works best for your needs. Google places, and then google places that are in those places, and so on and so on until you think you've found all the information you need.
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Old 04-01-2010, 02:06 PM
 
777 posts, read 2,558,266 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by pbcookie View Post
Sigh. Wow. I'm glad I asked. Pollen that covers cars and decks? That's awful. Thanks for all the replies. I really appreciate you all's honesty.

Sunny Kayak,
Thanks! Have you ever lived in Phoenix? How do you know this is a better choice (allergies)?

It all depends on what "pollen" you are allergic to. Not all pollen is the same. I had TERRIBLE allergies in Pennsylvania, but when I moved to Charlotte...nothing. I was mainly allergic to ragweed but we have very little of that in Charlotte. Now my "allergy days" equail about 2 days a year in the spring.
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Old 04-01-2010, 03:42 PM
 
1,110 posts, read 1,964,931 times
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I don't think Charlotte is Paradise nor is it a Disaster, it is what you make of it! That's all I have to say!
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Old 04-01-2010, 03:59 PM
 
1,343 posts, read 3,324,052 times
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I have lived in Huntersville for 2 years now (yes, time flies!!) and pollen is bad but no worse than New Jersey. My town in NJ had many large oak trees that covered the ground with tumbleweed stuff and everything with a thick layer of green pollen. Then they showered acorns all over the place doing hail-like damage to cars!

UNCC is not a very selective school, ie it is easy to get into, so some of the students maybe aren't totally brilliant, but there are plenty of good students there by choice. Also, many students spend 2 years at CC before transferring to UNCC. I believe UNCC as a higher percentage of cc transfers than other universities in the UNC system. This also means that some are not the most gifted students, while others go this route to save money.

I am not religious, and not even Christian, but have participated with religious groups who seem more interested in people than preaching (or proselytizing)

Most people I meet have come from somewhere (although there are some who have been here forever) so you can meet all kinds of people here.
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Old 04-02-2010, 06:58 AM
 
Location: Fort LAME, IN
66 posts, read 201,599 times
Reputation: 38
Thank you so much. I have been talking to people over the phone that live in Charlotte and from what I can tell already, I LOVE the people there. Everyone is so friendly and it's genuine. Whereas here and other places I've lived, people are friendly, but the majority of it is fake friendliness just to get along. I am really looking forward to living there.

And that's great to hear about UNCC. I planned to do just that, Central Piedmont first then transfer in to UNCC. So I guess what I was reading was just general complaining.

I looked into that area (SW), but the move would be far and I didn't really find what I was looking for. I'm going to have my son allergy tested today and then see if that's the same kind of pollen found in Charlotte. If realistically, it would be a major problem with his allergies, I guess the SW would be my only choice - or moving further up north and settling for a little more cold. Speaking of which - does anyone know of any places that are very sunny year-round (or close) even though it snows? Usually snow goes hand in hand with many gray days, and S.A.D/Winter Blues are very bad for me.

Thank you everyone for your time and input. It is greatly appreciated.
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Old 04-02-2010, 06:59 AM
 
Location: Fort LAME, IN
66 posts, read 201,599 times
Reputation: 38
Default Cool

Quote:
Originally Posted by southbound_295 View Post
Also, I forgot about this when I wrote that, but I was researching family members who were in the 30th Indiana in the Civil War & there was a website for a reenactor group in Ft Wayne. I can not find their website, but ask around. They sponsored events in the spring & summer. It would probably interest your son.

Good luck with your decision.

Thanks. I've heard of that too! I've thought about going now and then, but never did.
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Old 04-02-2010, 07:12 AM
 
Location: Charlotte Area
530 posts, read 1,178,409 times
Reputation: 234
Quote:
Originally Posted by SunnyKayak View Post
Charlotte has about the same trees & flowers as Virginia in a few
weeks Ill take picture of the visible tree pollen as it gets thick
turns cars & decks yellow. Up to 1/4 inch in spots.
If it was me and I really cared about
my kids well being I would not choose North Carolina but a state
like Arizona, Phoenix perhaps where the Spring season isnt as
vibrant as it is here.
Just my opinion
We do get a lot of pollen here but 1/4" thick is an EXTREME exaggeration

Last edited by GO PANTHERS!!; 04-02-2010 at 07:25 AM..
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Old 04-02-2010, 08:09 AM
 
Location: Charlotte, NC
554 posts, read 1,502,196 times
Reputation: 289
For the record Charlotte isn't slow paced. I came from NY and was scared of it being slow paced because thats what all my friends told me. It's not slow paced, after all most of the people who live here are transplants - mostly from NY, NJ, OH, CA and I really don't notice a bit of a difference.

Also, Charlotte is obese? HAHAHA. Sorry, that was really funny when I read that. No, its not obese...of course there are some obese people here but you will find obese people anywhere, its not out of the norm obese and quite frankly I've never seen so many people outside walking, running, biking, ect than I've ever seen anywhere else.

It's too bad about the pollen allergy because Charlotte does have a lot of pollen. I wake up with allergies all the time but as soon as I pop an allegra I feel better. It's so beautiful that it's worth it. IMO.
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Old 04-02-2010, 08:19 AM
 
Location: The Queen City
174 posts, read 402,576 times
Reputation: 207
As I posted in a link earlier, yes the pollen can be horrible. I grew up in Ohio and never had allergy problems until I moved here. But then again, it's only a short period of time, and, well.....it's well worth it in my opinion.

I absolutley love living here in Charlotte. It's a great melting pot of friendly people that have done exactly what you are looking to do...gain a fresh start. I have met more lifelong friends here in Charlotte than any other place I have lived.

Is it country? It can be if you want it to be. It can also be a thriving urban metropolitan area if you want it to be. It's great to have choices.

Is UNCC ghetto? Hardly. I would have NO problem sending my children there. NC has been spoiled by an abundance of some of the most highly regarded schools in the nation, i.e. Duke, UNC, Davidson, Wake, etc, that sometimes people tend to overlook the value of UNC-Charlotte. It's a fine institution.

The closest thing that the midwest has to Charlotte would be close to you, Indianapolis or Columbus, Ohio. In my opinion, Charlotte is the nicer version of both. And if you like natural beauty, IN and Oh can't even come close to NC. It's April 2, supposed to 87 degrees with little humidity - I'm heading to Hilton Head Island tonight and camping in the mountains next weekend.....ahhhhh....NC is hard to beat!
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