Colorado transplants what is your opinion (Durango: job transfer, living, vs.)

[treedonkey]

Originally Posted by wanneroo

I have definitely noticed a change from my childhood spending time with family in Denver in the 1980's to now.

Denver used to be a bit friendlier and had a more small city feel. You even noticed the difference on the highway. It's now just one anonymous metropolitan area and once the Californians started to come in in the 80's it all went downhill. Californians are the worst thing that has ever happened to Colorado next to illegal aliens.

It's a shame but no use in complaining really as life moves on and the world changes.

Actually, I think that sighing and groaning over our loss of innocence, or simplicity, or whatever you want to call it, can be a valuable thing if it helps one have a realistic view of the state of this world. It's the daily grumblings and scapegoating of one area's problems onto people of a certain demographic that I have a problem with.

[formercalifornian]

I don't think the blame game gets us anywhere. If we're going to make positive changes, we have unite in the cause, and everybody has to buy in. When we alienate a certain demographic by placing blame, we effectively diminish their incentive to participate. "We" is the most powerful word in the English language.

[sterlinggirl]

Originally Posted by formercalifornian

Jazz, I'm getting the message here that you believe that anyone who lives in the urban/suburban corridor is unworthy of Colorado's natural beauty. Surely, you can't really believe that someone is incapable of appreciating Colorado by virtue of his mailing address! Maybe you just enjoy ruffling feathers?

Regardless, your posts seems to have adopted a theme of denigrating others who don't share your rural upbringing rather than inspiring those of us who haven't been as fortunate. I used to enjoy your posts. Now, I just find them disturbingly divisive. "We can" is one of our language's most important phrases. You seem to be incapable of using it, and that's a tragedy.

The start of another native bashing session begins...

Condescending attitudes and personal attacks like the ones above are a big reason for the division between rural and urban people, BTW.

[formercalifornian]

That was quite a leap, Sterling. This is not about native bashing, and I'm not at all sure how you got that from my post. This is about divisiveness and how incredibly frustrating it is to hear a continuing refrain of how transplants are ruining Colorado. I would dearly love to unite with Jazzlover in preventing the degradation of my adopted state's natural beauty, but there doesn't seem to be a "we" in Jazz's vocabulary, and I refuse to join in the anti-transplant chorus.

[Katiana]

Originally Posted by 55Spud

Well, here's the thing...all these things are true and accurate but it didn't used to be this way, and that's why so many of us Colorado natives have such disdain for people moving to Colorado.

We've seen it all - the New Yorker migration, the Texas migration, the California migration, you name it, we've seen it. With each little influx we see people who stay and a lot who leave. The ones who stay become "Coloradoans" and they represent us to the tourists and the ones who leave go tell their next neighbors how beautiful Colorado is and how unfriendly the people here are.

For the most part these aren't true Coloradoans people talk negatively about. This used to be a friendly state - and in some areas it still is. We used to be welcoming, but not so much anymore. Folks in some of our neighboring states - Wyoming, for instance - look at us with disgust when we pass through because they've been exposed to a lot of cars with Colorado license plates, driven by people who haven't been in the state for more than a few years or months. They drive like I-25 is their personal autobahn and in so many cases, if you look beyond the "Respect Life" plate on the bumper, you'll see a dealer sticker from Santa Monica or Burbank or some like place.

If I hear, "It wasn't this way where we lived in in California" just once more, I'm going to vomit.

Yeah, we're jerks and not so down to earth anymore. In fact, I can't even stand us. If it wouldn't make me a hypocrite I'd move to another state.

Way to go, blaming unfriendliness on the outsiders, not on the parochial attitudes of some natives.

I have NEVER heard anyone say "it wasn't this way where we lived in in (sic) California", and I know a lot of Californians.

Originally Posted by treedonkey

The main difference between most 'native' Coloradans and people from states like CA, NY and TX is that the CO folks seem to think that they're uniquely challenged in seeing a significant influx of people from other places, wheras people from TX, NY and CA just figure it's life and don't carry on about it incessantly.

There's no drawbridge on the migration highway. Even if there were, what makes you think that it should have gone up after you or your family arrived?

Amen!

I'd add, it's hard to be proud of Colorado when hearing all this anti-transplant, anti-city people talk from "natives" who supposedly have the best interests of this state at heart (at least in their own minds).

[CosmicWizard]

formercalifornian wrote:

I don't think the blame game gets us anywhere.

Right on the money! Playing the blame game is an utterly useless waste of time and energy. It's only value lies in exposing the futility and powerlessness felt by the person who plays such a childish game. But then again, people who play the blame game are generally not the type of people who would ever admit to feeling powerless, so it is indeed a complete waste of time and energy.

[Mike from back east]

Originally Posted by bgcty1

I am from the south side of Chicago, moved to Florida, and am ready to move my family out of here, after six hurricanes, too many pretty people, and uneducated rednecks. I want to hear from the transplants in Colorado, what is it like to live in Colorado, how are the native people, is it a good state to raise kids, the Midwest is dying, there are not that many thriving communities left anymore, and if I am going to have to work two jobs to survive, I want to be in near the mountains. So give me you opinions, and native Colorado folks, give me your input as well, about how to successfully integrate into your state. Thanks so much.....

Let's TRY to get back on topic....

Having been here 4.5 years, my opinion is that living in Colorado is superb in every respect and to successfully integrate here all you have to do is be yourself and be friendly.

[Micktooth]

We moved to Louisville a few years ago. Best Places to Live 2009 - Top 100: City details: Louisville, CO - from MONEY Magazine We only knew 2 people. Now we have so many friends. Our kids who are now 16 and 14 have also done well making friends in their new schools. This is by far the friendliest place I've ever lived (NY,MI,TX,LA & CO)!

[COflower]

It's all about your own attitude. Where you live, how you choose to live there, how you view it, be it in Colorado or Washington state or Maine, it is what you make it.

If your view on life is generally negative, you will find all the negatives and by-pass all the good. Financial, family and work/school issues aside, how you view life in general will make or break your own experience living in Colorado.

I was born and raised in Colorado Springs so perhaps my view of "outsiders" is vastly different compared to some natives and some old timers because of the military here. I am generally a nice person to those I don't know because if I am unfriendly, it doesn't help my day at all. Yeah, I slip when the butthead cuts me off in traffic or the old blue hair has his/her cart in the middle of a grocery isle and I can't get around because they forgot their hearing aid. (HAHA)

But I honestly believe that if you come here (or anywhere) with too high or too low expectations you will meet in the middle somewhere and your own personal attitude will carry you through your experience.

Stereotypes don't apply here because in a nation that is constantly on the move things become a bit blurred.

The things you wont find in Colorado is big city life. If you want that, look to San Fran, NYC, Chicago. We don't have beaches but for the seasonal lakes and reservoirs...if you want that, look to coastal states.

But if you act or give off vibes that you aren't happy, people will pick up on that and some will return it. Heck, I'm one of those (and I did) who will strike up a conversation at a lab to take a pee test for employment. I learned about a young woman who was a waitress in a bar and was taking her urine test for a physical therapy center; she learned I was going for a job at a local dog kennel/dog day care place. It wasn't saving a homeless person from the cold but it made my day and took a situation that nobody wants to be in and made it much more doable.

Is that because I am a native Coloradoan? No. It's because it's the person I was raised to be.

[Katiana]

^^^That's a wonderful post! There is an anti-westerner conversation going on over on the Pittsburgh forum right now. I have half a notion to repost this over there.