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Old 01-24-2012, 07:53 PM
 
14,798 posts, read 17,680,532 times
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Many people have friends, family, coworkers and acquaintences that live in the chicagoland area. Many people are able visit, drive around, observe the happenings in communities other than the one in which they live.

There are also people who think it is 1974 and the world doesn't change.
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Old 01-24-2012, 08:12 PM
 
Location: Land of debt and Corruption
7,545 posts, read 8,325,406 times
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I think I would lean more towards Elmhurst given your desires. Both are great towns, but I think there is a little less homogeneity in Elmhurst than GE. Another town you may want to consider is LaGrange. It's nice, but not presumptuous. There is a wide diversity of wealth but overall tends to lean more upscale.
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Old 01-24-2012, 08:14 PM
 
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The OP asked for advice, I would assume that they can make their own observations. So sad that your "friends, family, coworkers and acquaintances" are so looked down by you...

Elmhurst and Glen Ellyn as well as Chicago have changed significantly in the decades since the 1970s. In fact I would say that in the 1970s the general level of stratification in Chicago was greater than in the suburbs where largely due to the extreme imbalance based on race. The movement of lower income folks to suburbs, especially Elmhurst is at least as powerful a force as the clusters of EXTREME wealth in Lincoln Park and other neighborhoods that in the 1970s were rather unremarkable.
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Old 01-24-2012, 09:35 PM
 
1,002 posts, read 1,785,625 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by chet everett View Post

Frankly I think that many parts of Chicago have come to exhibit an awful lot of conformity even if that means that the "uniform" is not the chinos of suburbia but the hipster outfits of low rise tight ankle jeans. There are similarly blocks in Lincoln Park where the odds of folks driving other than a German auto / British SUV are vanishinlgly small unless you are hired help...
I think you are mistaking "fashion" for "conformity" here. "low rise tight ankle jeans" are fashionable with a lot of young people at the moment, not just hipsters. You could make the argument that "fashion" is "conformity", but the kind of "conformity" people typically talk about regarding certain rich snobby suburbs is the type where you are judged if you don't live life the same way "they" do, with the same material things, with the same social habits, and social beliefs... not just Chino pants and golf shirts...

I'll give you Lincoln Park.
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Old 01-26-2012, 04:12 PM
 
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If you want a true down to earth Western Suburb experience might I recommend Downers Grove. This is an objective opinion as I was not born in this area, I only moved out to the Western Subs. 3 years ago. Additionallly, I dont even live in DG, but I have come to know the people and the area. The town has life and character, and has alot of hidden wealth! I know more successful people in life with higher emotional intelligence levels that attended Downers grove North, as opposed to Glen Ellyn! I cant comment on Elmhurst Ive only heard good things. Sometimes when I get home from work early Ill take my son to play areas, and listening to the women in this town(Glen Ellyn) makes me want to vomit. They talk behind each others backs, seem to have noconcept of reality, and complain about how bad their husbands and in-laws are all day! If i was you Id limit your search to Elmhurst and Downers Grove. Also if you can swing it Oakbrook is an old money town! Even though there is far more wealth in Oakbrook than Glen Ellyn, it is a far more unassuming, casual endeavor imo.
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Old 01-26-2012, 05:55 PM
 
Location: D.C.
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We lived in Glen Ellyn for 2 1/2 years. Moved there from North Carolina. Recently moved back to the mid Atlantic in the VA burns of DC. While Glen Ellyn is pretty and attractive with its curb appeal, we came to hate the place within 90 days of arriving. Very "cliquish" community. My wife was a full time mom to our little kids. In 2 1/2 years, we met nobody, except for one neighbor who happened to be the outcasts due to not having a very fancy house. We liked those folks. Never got to know any of our neighbors, and they didn't care to know us either. We found the people to be extremely snotty and quite rude. In fact, some of the rudest people I have ever met in my well traveled life, live in Glen Ellyn. Do yourself a favor. Dont move to Glen Ellyn if you're looking for a fun environment.

On the morning we woke up this past October to get in the car and drive to VA to meet the movers, my wife and I actually cried tears of joy when we crossed into Indiana for the last time. We were so excited to get out of Glen Ellyn! Oh...and the train! It's so loud there, you can't escape it either! One of the busiest tracks in town for freight trains at all hours of the night. I'm serious, it's horrible! They lay on the horns like crazy too...
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Old 01-26-2012, 05:57 PM
 
Location: D.C.
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..and we were living in a $700k+ home as well!
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Old 01-26-2012, 06:49 PM
 
Location: San Leandro
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My dad had a house in south glen ellyn, on the "wrong side" of roosevelt. Definately not a north shore vibe there at all. Very middle class.
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Old 12-02-2013, 03:05 PM
 
11,975 posts, read 31,786,761 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NC211 View Post
We lived in Glen Ellyn for 2 1/2 years. Moved there from North Carolina. Recently moved back to the mid Atlantic in the VA burns of DC. While Glen Ellyn is pretty and attractive with its curb appeal, we came to hate the place within 90 days of arriving. Very "cliquish" community. My wife was a full time mom to our little kids. In 2 1/2 years, we met nobody, except for one neighbor who happened to be the outcasts due to not having a very fancy house. We liked those folks. Never got to know any of our neighbors, and they didn't care to know us either. We found the people to be extremely snotty and quite rude. In fact, some of the rudest people I have ever met in my well traveled life, live in Glen Ellyn. Do yourself a favor. Dont move to Glen Ellyn if you're looking for a fun environment.

On the morning we woke up this past October to get in the car and drive to VA to meet the movers, my wife and I actually cried tears of joy when we crossed into Indiana for the last time. We were so excited to get out of Glen Ellyn! Oh...and the train! It's so loud there, you can't escape it either! One of the busiest tracks in town for freight trains at all hours of the night. I'm serious, it's horrible! They lay on the horns like crazy too...
I've been going back through some of the Glen Ellyn threads since moving here this past year, and this NC211 poster has to be describing a different town. It is just so opposite of our experience since moving here. We had neighbors stopping by and introducing themselves the minute the ramp was pulled up from the moving truck. Many neighbors stopped by bringing food, and others dropped notes in mailboxes with invites for us and the kids. I can't imagine a more welcoming neighborhood than this one. Kids run around in packs playing up and down the street. Neighbors stop and chat while walking their dogs. We have definitely felt welcome, and have met LOTS of people, even though we moved here without knowing more than two or three people living within the Glen Ellyn village limits. There is a very strong sense of community, and people are somewhat down to earth compared to other "affluent" suburbs I have had experience with in Chicagoland.
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Old 12-02-2013, 03:14 PM
 
11,975 posts, read 31,786,761 times
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Originally Posted by chitownperson View Post
I have a friend in Glen Ellen, says she's the only women she knows that works, and has found it hard to fit in with all the stay at home moms that have little else to do all day but gossip and talk about all their new pricey purchases. This is just her experience, but it certainly set a strange vibe for the place. She gets invited to these day time get togethers, and the other wives can't understand why she can't come... CAUSE SHE WORKS!
It sounds to me like your friend has experience with the Glen Ellyn Newcomers, which in spite of it's name is a women's club with many members who have been in it for years. It is definitely a bit more geared towards stay-at-home moms, and has more daytime events as a result. However, most of the women I've met in Glen Ellyn do work outside the home. There is not some strange bubble of non-working women here compared to the rest of Chicagoland.
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