[SouthFloridaNative]

[quote=Songbird42;647733]Believe me, I've tried to leave this g-dforsaken place three different times, could never get the money for my house that I spent for it, brand new homes were always cheaper to build........anyway, in the twenty some odd years here, everyone on my block, either moved or died. The people that moved in
stayed in there homes, you'd see them get in there cars, leave, return and back into there homes, no hello's, waves, nothing.

A good example of what I am talking about. Where we live now there are only 4 homes on our street but we are all friends. We do more than wave at each other. We are all very social. And when we drive around the area people do still wave at you on the roads. And I do have to take back my comment about the "invaders" b/c one of the ladies on our street is from Maine and she is one of the nicest people I have met.

[FedUpInFtMyers]

As you can see by my screen name, I am also less than pleased with Fort Myers as well; however, I have been in Florida (from outside of Chicago originally) for 8-1/2 years with only 3-1/2 of those years being spent in Ft. Myers.

I made the mistake of moving from another FL city to here - - thinking it would be just the same in Ft. Myers as it was in my former MUCH BELOVED city of Florida (St. Petersburg). Even though I've had a HORRIBLE time in Ft. Myers and encounter much of the same ridiculous and inappropriate behaviors in Lehigh, Cape Coral, and even witnessed it as far as LaBelle while working at a job there, I must say that NOT ALL OF FLORIDA is just like Ft. Myers. Ft. Myers is a VERY POOR REPRESENTATIVE for the State of Florida, believe me.

Anyone thinking of relocating to Florida from wherever you may be, please do not let what is written about Ft. Myers, Cape Coral, Lehigh areas change your mind. Take a look at the Tampa Bay area. I still continue to visit there at least weekly in an effort to preserve my mental health, and it is NOTHING, NOTHING, NOTHING like being here. Anything south of Venice on the west coast should require a person to pass through Customs, so to speak. That is how very different it is between there and here. And since a great deal of the complaints here resemble that of the Miami Forum, I must in good conscience recommend that any wanna-be Floridians just steer clear of all of South Florida (unless perhaps you are a retiree and can cocoon yourself from mainstream society here). I wholeheartedly recommend the Tampa Bay area for its ease in commuting (no ridiculous traffic gridlock like here as Tampa Bay actually master-planned their roads); less of a "season" population change (which translates into less inconvenience to those residing there full-time); jobs that actually pay (Ft. Myers is offering what I made right out of high school some 20+ years ago); ease of getting to all beach areas (when in Pinellas County, just head west); stability of people; established neighborhoods; professional workplace; people who are socially appropriate in public (those who make eye contact, smile, say "please", "thank you", "excuse me" when they bump into you, who never yell at strangers or pick fights with them at the grocery store, etc.); much more affordable housing; lower crime rate (even though they have more people); and overall quality of life. It will be nice to be able to go out in public once more on a daily basis without witnessing some crazy behavior or being assaulted in some way. It will be such a relief to be able to jog in public once more without cars slowing down to see if they can purchase drugs from me or pick me up for a "date". We specifically purchased in this area because it is a "desirable" neighborhood. I can see a golf course from my windows. We are not in the ghetto. We are very simply in Ft. Myers. Right now, we only experience normalcy during weekly visits to Tampa Bay which is why we are headed back . . . and willing to return there even when it means paying the mortgage here and running a second household up there. That is how bad it really is here, folks. Tampa Bay offers ten times better lifestyle with at least half of the cost and NONE of the b.s.

Good luck to everyone!

[121804]

Originally Posted by FedUpInFtMyers

I must say that NOT ALL OF FLORIDA is just like Ft. Myers. Ft. Myers is a VERY POOR REPRESENTATIVE for the State of Florida, believe me.

We had little choice in relocating to SW FL; we didn't want FL b/c all our family is in the NE states, but it was how everything worked out. DHs job is in FT Myers. It is a good job. But it only took us a few hrs to figure FT Myers was not the place for us Traffic & cost of living. No one said we HAD to live in FT Myers, so we didn't b/c we know we'd be complaining & unhappy.

We did our homework & lots of research & found Punta Gorda & Port Charlotte.

It's nice up here. Traffic is more than tolerable. Sure, it's hot & humid. SO?? We expected that much.

It's expensive here. Yep, so are about 1/2 of the areas in the US if you want to live around people. We aren't into the country-life. If we were, we'd find a job that suited that lifestyle & a place that suited that lifestyle.

We're making the best of it here. Why not?

We miss our native homes (Ohio & Mass), but we know we'll be back one day.

Until then, just enjoying what we've been given. Grass IS NOT always greener & one's ATTITUDE can make or break ANY situation.

My dh got back from a yr long deployment in Iraq last Dec. Finished out his obligation to the Army & was blessed to find a job w/ benefits. We are happy he came back w/ all 10 fingers & toes.

I'll stay in the AC during the afternoon w/ my son. So be it. Coming from an Army base in central TX, it's all one can do there from sunup to sundown.

There are nice areas in FL & there are nice people in FL.

Maybe smile at someone one day. See what happens

[markdalton]

People say that the natives are the mean ones. Well I think the whole time I lived there (8 years) I maybe met 10 natives. Everyone knows Florida that your average Floridian is not from Florida originally. Even in the panhandle, people are from somewhere else. I am not from Florida originally, but that does tick me off--others blaming things on the natives. The few natives I met were very nice.

[FedUpInFtMyers]

Maybe smile at someone one day. See what happens [/quote]

Funny that you mention that . . . I just replied to a PM from someone living here locally who feels as I do. Just told her that I am also so taken aback by all of the people that you smile at or say "hello" to only to be stared at and looked RIGHT THROUGH as though you were invisible. How awkward is that? !
Just one of the many, many "strange" and common ways of Fort Myers. Also, as far as attitude goes, I additionally told this CD member that I learned a real hard lesson here: That the only thing I can control is me and what goes on in my home. No amount of positive attitude overcomes the daily horrors of here.

None of my complaints have anything to do with money or cost of living here nor do I have complaints about the heat. My complaints are limited to the societal norms and cultures here, but yes, it is an insult to spend this much to have such a poor quality of life. My only mention of how much it costs is that for some strange reason, where we have experienced so much better conditions, it was less expensive. I'd be happy to pay what we pay here and EVEN MORE to have all that we had in St. Petersburg. There was NEVER a day that I had up there in 5 years where I encountered anyone who didn't smile or say "hello" in response to my smile or "hello", and that is about the most minor occurrence that I've experienced here. So, thank you for the suggestion, but I think I won't smile at someone someday to see what happens because I've too many times seen what happened, and it wasn't good. If someone smiles or says "hello" to me, I'll be happy to reciprocate. Thrilled, in fact.

I also agree with a former poster. No problems with the few natives I've actually met. They were very kind. They feel much the way that I do and have been hurt most by the changes taking place in their hometown.

Glad to hear that your dh is back home safe and sound after a year in Iraq ! I'll bet you are also glad that he has fulfilled his obligation to the military. What a relief and blessing that is for you and your family. Best wishes.

[beesee8]

bitburgsarah, bit a bit. I have been here since 1999 and believe me when I say...I wanna go back to upstate ny. This is definately the twilight zone. Rude, arrogant, selfcentered obnoxious, and downright to hell with you and praise me attitude people. They all belong here and we don,t. Run away while you still can! I,m waiting for house prices to raise then i,m otta here hever ever to return. And to think they call this paradise? Just remember... the farther south you go, ...the closer to hell you get!

[FedUpInFtMyers]

Originally Posted by beesee8

bitburgsarah, bit a bit. I have been here since 1999 and believe me when I say...I wanna go back to upstate ny. This is definately the twilight zone. Rude, arrogant, selfcentered obnoxious, and downright to hell with you and praise me attitude people. They all belong here and we don,t. Run away while you still can! I,m waiting for house prices to raise then i,m otta here hever ever to return. And to think they call this paradise? Just remember... the farther south you go, ...the closer to hell you get!

I've said the very same thing. Was it this bad in 1999 also, or has it changed over the past couple of years?

[beesee8]

It wasn,t bad in 1999 because it wasn,t developed as much then. But over the years it got unbearable. I want out real bad.

[FedUpInFtMyers]

Originally Posted by beesee8

It wasn,t bad in 1999 because it wasn,t developed as much then. But over the years it got unbearable. I want out real bad.

Thanks for answering the question. We thought that we had noticed a very rapid and adverse change just in the few short years that we've been here, and it is good to have some facts.

[hiknapster]

I lived in Fort Myers from 1998 to 2005, and it was horrible for me, too.

I've said before that my theory is that mid-westerners are a difficult bunch to live with, but I'm not sure about that. FEDUPINFORTMYERS is from Chicago, I think, and so is my husband. All of his family is from Chicago and is now in Lee County.

I think mid-westerners, that are NOT retirees, are very nice people.

I lived in New England for 34 years, and they are not known for their friendliness. Still, they are downright jolly next to the Fort Myers bunch.

And yes, the southwest NATIVE Floridians are wonderful people.

The ONLY thing I can come up with is this...

There are a lot of retired union workers in Lee County. Maybe they are just use to being pushy and getting their own way? My Dad is retired union. He'll cut you off in traffic and will make a waitress run for a quarter.

I don't know, I'm grasping at straws here.

Why would this ONE segment of the country be so nasty and rude? I had a little old lady call me an ___hole because I was driving too SLOW in a parking lot. This was in front of my FIVE-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER. She screamed it at the top of her lungs.

Gee, lady, I was taking care to not run anyone over. Was it really that important to get into Ace Hardware ONE minute earlier?

I've had a little old man lean on his horn and give me the finger, while HE was in the wrong lane. This was also in FRONT OF MY DAUGHTER.

These were not isolated incidents. This happened EVERYDAY.

I lived in Orlando, briefly, and although there was a lot of crime there, it is expected for a large city, but the people were very nice.

I've said it before, I'll say it again, Fort Myers, Florida is like something straight out of a Stephen King novel.