How much can you share about Chicago? (Alpha, Union: condo, unemployed)

[Mephistopheles]

Originally Posted by chirack

Poverty and crime go hand and hand. I grew up in one of the areas you could be assigned to. In general with Chicago you can get robbed or raped anywhere. However with low income areas comes the additional danger of getting caught in drive by shootings, gang shootings, ect. If you fear crime then what you are doing is a bad fit in any city and street sense goes a very long way.

This is true, but I can always get out if things get hairy. It's not like being in the military where you get boxed into a lifestyle where you're absolutely miserable, and there's no way out. I've been there and done that. This is only a one-year commitment rather than a four-year one. Like I said, nobody told me I had to live in that particular area, either. If all I have to do is work there eight hours a day, that's a small price to pay. It's not like being stuck with people whose heads you want to bash 24/7 like it is in the military. A large chunk of my student loans get forgiven as well which is what enticed me to go in the first place. Not to mention, jobs are hard to come by in this economy as a recent college graduate.

[Mephistopheles]

Originally Posted by ole69

Maybe you should look into Milwaukee

What is the job market like in Milwaukee? Keep in mind I'm looking at the big picture. In other words, I'm formulating a plan in the interim what I'll do after I'm done with AmeriCorps. How good is the job market in Milwaukee compared to that of Chicago considering the fact that it's only about one-fifth the size?

[ole69]

I can't say, honestly. It would be worth researching, though. The smaller size might be the thing that would make it a good fit for what you're looking for. Maybe check out their forum on this site.

[Mephistopheles]

Originally Posted by izzystradlin

Do you think you can hop on a Greyhound and check the city out first?

If I had the money, I might. Big cites and gangs are nothing new to me. They're all over the place in Houston. In fact, my next door neighbor was a low-level crack dealer who got gunned down at Mardi Gras one year in Galveston. Last year, the were over 500 murders there. I don't know about Illinois, but gun control laws in Texas are pretty thin. Our genius Governor thinks it's cool for everyone to walk around carrying concealed handguns. One thing I promised myself was if he got re-elected for a third term last November, I was moving out of Texas. Sure enough, he did. He's an even bigger disgrace to our state than George W. Bush was.

You know, I may have been born and raised here, but I'm sure as hell not going to die here. Had I graduated from college seven years ago rather then the middle of the worst recession since the Great Depression, I would've left by now. Unfortunately, it's hard to find a job anywhere as a recent college graduate. Struggle creates strength, and sometimes you have to go through hell to get to heaven. Once I'm finished with AmeriCorps, I'll have gained the experience and broken the cycle of not being able to get a job without experience and vice versa.

This deal with AmeriCorps is a way in to get out. In other words, it's a short circuit and a building block for me to start over elsewhere rather than having to live here for another four or five years until the economy comes back full swing assuming Barack Obama gets re-elected and keeps up the good work he's doing. I'm tired of watching life pass me by, and I'm ready to start living (in a blue state that is.) Once I'm done with AmeriCorps, perhaps I can live on the North Side of Chicago or a nicer area and have a real job with experience. Until then, I'm playing the cards I've been dealt.

[ole69]

what about Austin?

[Mephistopheles]

Originally Posted by ole69

what about Austin?

What about Austin? This place is boring as sin. It's way overrated. I thought it was cool when I moved here back in 1996, but I've outgrown it. Plus, there isn't much to do here compared to other big cities. It's bloody stinking hot here, and it's in the middle of one of the reddest states in the Union. I'm ready to leave Texas, and start over. The economy in California is in dire straits, and the unemployment level out there is in double digits. Also, I did some research on the dating pools in Austin and Chicago. The population here is 118 men for every 107 females. In Chicago, it's 107 females for every 94 males.

[ole69]

fair enough. I was transplanted from Chicago to Oklahoma growing up, and a lot of my friends went to UT Austin and loved it (and considered it a liberal oasis), but that was a long time ago

[Mephistopheles]

Originally Posted by ole69

fair enough. I was transplanted from Chicago to Oklahoma growing up, and a lot of my friends went to UT Austin and loved it (and considered it a liberal oasis), but that was a long time ago

The mindset of the people in the locale makes all the difference in the world. The reason I hate the East Coast (in particular New York) is because the folks back there were mean and nasty. Also, I lived there for awhile with an abusive father.

He thinks he's more sophisticated than everyone else now because he worked in Lower Manhattan for 17 years. That's one of the key things that has driven a wedge in our relationship. To make a long story short, I have too much family drama here in Austin, and I'm ready to start over elsewhere.

A large number of people I've met from that East Coast corridor were so damn uptight, that if you were to shove lumps of coal up their rectums, two weeks later you'd get diamonds. It was like that when I went to school in Philadelphia. That whole provincial mindset was quite unbecoming to say the least.

I'm afraid if I were to work back there again with AmeriCorps, not only would I feel like an outsider and be reminded of the bad memories I have from before. I fear I'll have to take truck loads of laxatives for all the men and Midol for the women.

The majority of the guys and gals I met in the service that were complete jerks to me were either those hard-nut Easterners with water-tight sphincters, or they were redneck pieces of garbage from the South. To put it bluntly, they all turned me off from living anywhere Back East or Down South permanently.

When I lived in California, a large chunk of the people in L.A. were very shallow, narcissistic, and egotistical. They wouldn't acknowledge your existence unless you drove a BMW, a Lexus, or a Mercedes. People like that you can always go around as opposed to obnoxious New Yorkers getting in your face.

Most of the people that were nice to me were from the Midwest or from the other Western states outside California. So I'm asking would you consider Chicago a friendly city, and are the locals there for the most part welcoming towards people from elsewhere? Or will I find myself asking for another assignment because I'm not one of them or because I don't make a certain amount of income?

[ole69]

I don't know if I'd say it's friendly, but you won't be looked down upon for being from elsewhere.

[Mephistopheles]

Originally Posted by ole69

I don't know if I'd say it's friendly, but you won't be looked down upon for being from elsewhere.

Is it at least friendlier than L.A. or as amenable towards outsiders as San Francisco?