Bloomington Vs Chicagoland (Geneva area) (Aurora, Naperville: hotels, houses, neighborhood)

[jenrik2714]

My co-worker's son participates in the Special Olympics

[llama214]

No worries. I just didn't want you to think that I shared the same opinion as others here. I have been to Aurora many times and some parts are even nicer then Naperville. We downstate have been hearing for years about the great feud bewtween the two and I really think it is childish. It just comes back to people really do like money to seperate them. No matter what they say, they actually enjoy segregation among the classes.
Illinois State is really great!! About 22,000 students and every major possible. If she wants to become a teacher there is nothing better then ISU. I have already went through what Bloomington can offer, but overall it is good. If she is looking into engineering then I would not look into ISU at all. Stay with U of I or Bradley. ISU quad is beautiful and we are home the nations tallest dorms;Waterson Towers. They really are the only thing that comes close to a skyline in the area.

[Paxtonian]

Illinois State is a good school, I went there myself. They've got a top-notch accounting program, word has it the CIA recruits most of their number crunchers from there. Come down and have a look- and be sure to eat at Avantis on your visit. As for the bickering that's been happening on this posting, the whole thing was someone just wanted to know about B-N as opposed to Geneva. Naperville wasn't part of their concerns, nor B-N being as active a place as Chicago. They're interested in getting to Chicago once in a while- not living there. Honestly, some of you folks need to keep things in perspective.

[Paxtonian]

Really? I lived there for thirteen years, the only reason I left Bloomington-Normal was my ex-wife was stalking my second wife. We moved far enough over that she found it inconvenient to keep up the stalking. Anyway, I married twice there, divorced once there, was present for the births of four of my children there, worked a variety of jobs there, lived in a number of apartments, a mobile home and a rental house there. I also attended school at Lincoln College at Normal and Illinois State University. My understanding of the place is probably greater than many of the people who've lived there all their lives- I've done a wide variety of things in the Twin Cities. I've attended plays, parties of all kinds, weddings, baptisms, funerals, band concerts, ballets, lectures, church services at several churches, eaten in most of the restaurants there. Been questioned by the police there, was sued there several times there, and have literally spent untold hours shopping there. I even witnessed the deaths of several people there, when I did hospital work. How broad is your understanding of Naperville? If it's as broad as mine is of Bloomington-Normal, I salute you!

[Paxtonian]

Here's a bit of Bloomington trivia, if anyone wants to try to answer.
Who is Dorothy?
Why is she in Bloomington?
She received a generous gift in the past few years.
Who gave it to her and why?

I'll post the answers to this Friday evening.

[Drover]

To nather, the OP:

You're asking for an apples to tennis shoes comparison: they each serve their purpose and those purposes are very different. Consequently, what you're seeing here is the apple vendors and shoe store clerks bickering about which one of their products best fits your needs, pausing occasionally to lob apples and shoes at one another. The reason why is because you haven't clearly articulated what you're looking to get from the two rather disparate options you presented.

If you're trying to recreate what you have now - living in a suburb of a 24-hour world-class metropolis with relatively easy access to every conceivable cultural, dining, entertainment and nightlife option, then moving to Geneva or some other suburb with a similar small-town feel is going to be your best bet. Just know that, even though the Chicago area is quite a bit cheaper than the NYC area, it's still pricey; knowing what your housing price range is and what kind of home amenities you expect to get within your price range will help others provide you with better guidance. Also be aware that traffic is going to be an issue in the Chicago area.

If you've had all of your metropolitan itches scratched but want to live in a growing population center with a healthy job market and enough options to help keep you and the kids entertained now and then, Bloomington-Normal is going to be your better bet, or certainly your more cost-effective option.

A very similar option in terms of size, growth, amenities and proximity to Chicago is Champaign-Urbana.

If you're somewhere in the middle in terms of your "metropolitan" needs, I have yet a third recommendation for you: Madison Wisocnsin. It's about twice the size of Bloomington-Normal; it has an interesting/independent vibe, great schools, a strong sense of community, a reasonably urbane atmosphere, lower housing costs than NYC and the Chicago area (though higher than B-N), lots of job opportunities, manageable traffic, and access to Chicago in 2.5 hours for those "once in a while" trips to the big city, plus a 1.5 hour drive to Milwaukee for access to "the medium-big city."

Yet another step up metropolitan-wise from Madison and still convenient to the truly "big-city" atmosphere of Chicago (just under a 3-hour drive) is Indianapolis. That area is also growing like mad and the job market is healthy. Housing costs are much lower than NYC and Chicago, and probably even lower than Madison. It does not have quite the same independent vibe as Madison or similar major university cities.

I hope this helps clear up the clutter a little and gives you a couple more options to consider.

[llama214]

I would totally agree with Champaign-Urbana. It is very similar to Bloomington in many ways. There isn't as much to do, and the job market is far less. But everyone there seems to work at the university, or is currently attending the university, so like Bloomington, it is constantly young, and very educated. Everyone there has a degree in something and I would say it has a higher level of secoundary education than B-N. It is not that far from B-N, so I would give it a try.

[Paxtonian]

Seeing as how no one's decided to answer my Bloomington trivia questions, I'll just provide the answers.

Who is Dorothy?
Dorothy is, or more properly, was Dorothy Gage. She died at the age of five months in 1898.

Why is she in Bloomington?
Because she was born, lived, and died there. She was buried in Bloomington's Evergreen Cemetery.

She received a generous gift in the last few years.
Who gave it to her and why?
Mickey Carroll, a Saint Louis grave monument maker gave her a new grave marker, to replace the old one which had eroded away and was unreadable.
He did this to help pay back a debt of gratitude. Mr. Carroll used the money he earned in Hollywood acting a film involving said Dorothy to start his life-long business. Mickey Carroll was one of the Munchkins in the 1939 classic 'The Wizard of Oz'. Dorothy Gage was the neice of author L. Frank Baum. Mr. Baum's wife had always wanted a girl, when their neice died in infancy, she was inconsolable. SO, Mr. Baum memorialized Dorothy Gage in a children's book he was writing, changing her name slightly to Dorothy Gale.

http://www.beyondtherainbow2oz.com/dorothygage.html

As Paul Harvey always says, "Now you know the rest of the story...."

[llama214]

Wow! I had no idea that was what you were talking about. M*A*S*H, Wizard Of OZ, hey Bloomington is moving up in the world! lol!

Nather, you mentioned something about airports. The Central Illinois Regional Airport just bought a brand new, state of the art, scanning device for improved safety. I think they said that it was the only other one, outside of O'Hare, to have one in the state. Just watching the news and thought I'd share.

[j33]

Originally Posted by llama214

We downstate have been hearing for years about the great feud bewtween the two and I really think it is childish..

There is a feud between Aurora and Naperville? This is the first I've heard of that (but then again what do I know, I've never even been to Naperville). What sort of feud could they possibly be having? is it a high school football thing?