Where do tree hugging, vegetarian liberals belong in north Chicago? (Evanston: renting, month to)

[SloopyJ]

Sorry your realtor isn't helping you understand Evanston. It would be interesting to hear where she lives, though. I moved to Evanston a couple months ago, very close to the Central Street (Foodstuffs) area you were in. (As an aside, I have seen a few signs on homes for rent in that area; it's worth walking around to see what's available. We love the neighborhood.) One thing that has surprised me is the differing perceptions people have of Evanston depending on where they're from. Many folks from farther up the north shore (Kenilworth, Winnetka, HP, Lake Forest) think of Evanston as lower class, crime-ridden, dirty, etc., etc. I have seen people on this board call it the armpit of the north shore, which may be a step up from the people who don't even deem it worthy of inclusion in the list of actual North Shore towns.

People from the city, and south and west suburbs, however, frequently surprise me by assuming that Evanston is old-money rich, and draw on associations with the North Shore, Northwestern University, and the vibrant downtown. A west suburbanite friend just this weekend asked if there were many kids in Evanston. When I told her there were (ETHS has, what, 3000 kids?), she said she just always thought of Evanston as a place for older rich people (??) That's a little extreme, but I can say for certain that Evanston's image is far better as you get away from the north shore.

In any case, crime is a non-issue in most of north and east Evanston, as mentioned before.

[Lookout Kid]

Originally Posted by chet everett

Lookout Kid --

It is all about YOUR intentions, though, isn't it? You said it was your desire to "become part of the community" -- and the suggestion is that in the 'very conservative towns' that you lived in the Republican primary was a major part of that. Well out by where I live MOST of the local elections have no formal affiliation with the national parties and I would qualify them as quite conservative in terms of national political leanings. If I want to run for local office on a ticket of "no tax dollars for weed killers" or "pristine parks through modern chemical control" it is UP TO ME to find enough folks to sign a petition FOR THAT and there is nothing that Rahm Emmanuel or Trent Lott is going to do to help me!

I can happily answer questions about which towns in Eastern DuPage would be accepting what kind of person interested in running for local political office, but I have no way to answer a vague question about what towns have a high number of folks eating tofu for breakfast. One is a rather visible public act, the other happens in organic hemp pajamas at 4:17 AM while greeting the new day...

It definitely IS NOT about NUMBERS, it is about INCLINATION -- a vocal minority of ONE can get elected to a Library Board by keeping her 'secret intentions' hidden until she is seated then engaging on a four year reign of banning books with "two mommies".
There may have been some Cardinal or Tiger fans at the Cell last night and nobody was 'cast out' unless they were hitting the Margaritas so hard the yellow jacketed security goons got fed up with 'em...

I'm not sure your sports fan metaphor is working for me... Personally, I would never feel comfortable in many parts of the South or in conservative towns filled with Evangelical Mega-Churches like Colorado Springs or Grand Rapids. Like it or not, politics and religion are a large part of what makes a community. I think most Chicago suburbs are sort of middle-of-the-road when it comes to these issues, but when you look at places that lean strongly one way or the other it can become an issue if you don't fit in. And if you are a "tree-hugging vegetarian liberal" (which to me sounds like someone a bit further to the left than your typical Democrat), you may wan to find a place where there are at least a few other people who share your beliefs--and not just in the local high school!

I like to think that most Chicago suburbs are cosmopolitan enough to accomodate people from many walks of life, but some are more conservative than others. And there are definitely communities all over Chicagoland that are dominated by one ethnic group, religious group, or political group. If you were moving from California to Chicago and didn't know anyone at all, wouldn't you want to increase your chances of finding some like-minded people who live in your community?

[Anthera]

The perception of Evanston is pretty funny. Some people do think its gritty, some see it as a bastion of old money. Many NS residents attended NU and get warm fuzzy feelings when they think of Evanston.

In my part of the North Shore, anyone from Evanston instantly gets credit for being cooler and more interesting than your usual boring suburbanite.

[Calidreemer]

Sloopy those are the stereotypes I have heard all my life growing up in Evanston and living in different communities on the NS. It is funny that the farther North you go the more people think Evanston is not a NS community and they definitely turn their nose up to it. I saw the "arm pit" reference and I say to each his or her own.

I am sure that where ever they reside I would probably not feel comfortable with my liberal, animal loving, diversity embracing self! I've had a lot of fun challenging those views tho - I just can't help myself. I especially love it when it all gets boiled down to hearsay and speculation. Why is it those with closed minds always have open mouths? I say stay in Stepford because Evanston doesn't really like sheep.

[Anthera]

[quote=Calidreemer;4286840
Why is it those with closed minds always have open mouths? [/quote]


Wide lawns and narrow minds

[Calidreemer]

Okay - how do you put the quotes around a quote on this forum? I can't get it to work either. I want to do it the way Lookout Kid has it.

"Wide lawns and narrow minds" - Cute

[Anthera]

Its Hemingway. He's referring to a different suburb, but I think it fits.

[jaynetarzana]

Originally Posted by Anthera

Some people are terrified of Evanston Township HS, some prefer it to New Trier.

Okay, I need to do some major backstepping here. We drove down to Evanston today and my husband decided to drive in the "No" and "Meh" areas from the map someone contributed on this forum. I had been doing the driving before and always steered clear of those areas since I didn't know how rough they were and we had the girls with us. But my husband decided that we had better see those areas as well if we are seriously considering Evanston and I agreed completely. I did my best to stay super positive as we drove through SW Evanston and past the high school, but the shift in our comfort levels was significant. After seeing the high school, we looked at each other and said "So, Lake Bluff huh?" I'm not proud of it, but Evanston High absolutely terrified us. I guess we're not ready for a place like Evanston.

So we went back up to Lake Bluff determined to talk to the locals. We went to a park and chatted up some parents who had nothing but wonderful things to say about the area. They all seemed very friendly and welcoming. One thing was obvious and that was that family comes first in Lake Bluff which is one value I can get on board with. It is tough to say whether or not they are the open minded types who parent that way we do, but no one seemed ultra conservative. It certainly doesn't have diversity, but it sure did feel safe and comfortable to both of us. Perhaps we can take the train down to Evanston and the city in order to get our dose of culture on the weekends, not to mention yummy vegetarian food.

Part of me feels ashamed for not being comfortable in the type of urban environment liberals are supposed to be comfortable in. My husband and I talked about how we wouldn't have had any concerns before kids, but everything is different now that we have little ones to think about. That being said, we are terrified of New Trier as well, but for completely different reasons. In a strange way, it makes me feel a little more balanced if that makes any sense at all.

[Lookout Kid]

Originally Posted by Calidreemer

Okay - how do you put the quotes around a quote on this forum? I can't get it to work either. I want to do it the way Lookout Kid has it.

"Wide lawns and narrow minds" - Cute

You go to the message you want to quote and hit the "quote" button at the lower-left part of the message. It will automatically open a reply window for you with the proper HTML code. You can delete as much of the text as you want to if the quote is just too long.

[Lookout Kid]

Originally Posted by jaynetarzana

Okay, I need to do some major backstepping here. We drove down to Evanston today and my husband decided to drive in the "No" and "Meh" areas from the map someone contributed on this forum. I had been doing the driving before and always steered clear of those areas since I didn't know how rough they were and we had the girls with us. But my husband decided that we had better see those areas as well if we are seriously considering Evanston and I agreed completely. I did my best to stay super positive as we drove through SW Evanston and past the high school, but the shift in our comfort levels was significant. After seeing the high school, we looked at each other and said "So, Lake Bluff huh?" I'm not proud of it, but Evanston High absolutely terrified us. I guess we're not ready for a place like Evanston.

So we went back up to Lake Bluff determined to talk to the locals. We went to a park and chatted up some parents who had nothing but wonderful things to say about the area. They all seemed very friendly and welcoming. One thing was obvious and that was that family comes first in Lake Bluff which is one value I can get on board with. It is tough to say whether or not they are the open minded types who parent that way we do, but no one seemed ultra conservative. It certainly doesn't have diversity, but it sure did feel safe and comfortable to both of us. Perhaps we can take the train down to Evanston and the city in order to get our dose of culture on the weekends, not to mention yummy vegetarian food.

Part of me feels ashamed for not being comfortable in the type of urban environment liberals are supposed to be comfortable in. My husband and I talked about how we wouldn't have had any concerns before kids, but everything is different now that we have little ones to think about. That being said, we are terrified of New Trier as well, but for completely different reasons. In a strange way, it makes me feel a little more balanced if that makes any sense at all.

What was wrong with the high school? Were you reacting to the massive size of the high school, or the neighborhood around it? It's not as bad as it looks near the high school, but I guess we all have different comfort levels. I think the Southwestern part of Evanston is worse, and it kind of blends into a rough part of the Rogers Park neighborhood in Chicago. I personally wouldn't live in either area, and would pay close attention to the school district boundaries if I were moving to Evanston.

By the way, "Mean Girls" was on TV tonight--which was filmed at Evanston Township High School, but is more based on New Trier. Tina Fey is a North Shore gal who has some interesting insight into the New Trier culture (even though it's a teeny bopper movie).

Lake Bluff is REALLY far north from the city. I would call it ex-urban. It may seem like you're escaping some urban ills up there, but Waukegan and North Chicago have areas twice as gritty and nasty as anything in Evanston.