Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
This is really a good discussion question, erinavery
So let'see, I'll get us started...
My hometown
Conservative, tradition-minded, loaded with historic charm. Strong ties to Appalachia (actually located on the edge of it). Life moves at a comfortable, slower pace. People are friendly and wave to strangers. Agriculture is alive and well. Boy Scouts, the American Legion and 4-H are thriving. Country music is very popular (along with '80s hair-metal) You're not considered weird for going to church; most everyone does. Hard work doesn't scare anybody. Even the Episcopalians are conservative! Norman Rockwell would feel quite at home
Where I am now
Detached anonymity, frantic pace of life. Claustrophobia-inducing density. Traffic is a total nightmare; seems I spend ½ my waking hours sitting in friggin' traffic. People are mostly rude and irritable; everyone is stressed out. Lots of noise, pollution and crime (mostly petty/property-related near my location, more violent stuff elsewhere in the city). High cost of living, outrageously high taxes. My network of friends are mostly spread all across town, so I must drive somewhere to hang out w/anyone. Living here is very draining, and sops up most of my energy.
What do I miss about my hometown?
Darn near everything.
Why am I here instead of there?
W-O-R-K! Job opportunities in general. Plus as a single person, there's the notion (myth?) that I've got to remain in a big city for now 'cuz this is where the single women are
Hometown: Small, country living, north of my parents house turning into a suburban sprawl NIGHTMARE.
Now: Chicago
Why did I move to Chicago: needed a big city, and driving 45 minutes to Nashville occasionally wasn't doing it for me. i fell in love with Chicago the moment I arrived.
I do not miss my hometown one single bit. Nothing. In fact, I was miserable when I went back for Thanksgiving. That's why my Christmas "vacation" is lasting for about 2.5 days. I'm basically going to drop off gifts.
Loved it, absolutely loved it. Of course this was many, many years ago when the town was flourishing. It was a great place to be a kid--you'd have a school Christmas concert and everyone in town would come. You'd see all your neighbors at the high school football game.
I had teachers who encouraged me (although like many girls I fell victim to the assumption that girls don't do well in math and so I shouldn't worry about trying hard. I didn't sign up for the advanced class because "everyone knew" only boys took that. Who knew I would someday need math for college... after all, "everyone knew" I would never go to college. College was for whites.)
Then we moved to Miami Springs, Florida Lots of things to like about this town, but the high school was overcrowded and teachers were too busy trying to deal with the mass immigration of Cuban refugees. Lots of pregnant girls in my high school--there was a popular idea that if you had a baby in America nobody you didn't have to worry about being shipped back to Cuba. Drugs were easy to come by (yes, we had drugs even back then). I did my share, but basically kept my nose clean. As far as the town went, I enjoyed walking around, looking at the art deco architecture in Miami Beach and the CBS houses everywhere else.
I liked how it was so different from Cleveland, and I think that gave me a lifelong taste for seeing different cities. I also liked walking around Miami Springs, which is a pretty town with very nice parks. There was an old Cuban man at the golf course who cared for a flock of flamingoes. He trained them to run in formation. I liked to walk over there to talk to him--and that gave me a lifelong appreciation of taking long walks and looking at neighborhoods.
Later we moved to a progression of poorer neighborhoods in Miami. My family hit hard times. Our new neighborhoods were not as pleasant as Miami Springs, not as beautiful, not as interesting. I never wanted to take a long walk in Liberty City. I learned very early that city living isn't glamorous or fun unless you have a lot of money. So maybe that gave me my appreciation of the suburbs.
I moved out at the age of 17. Reason: family hit really hard times, it wasn't a good place to be anymore. Became a hippie chick, like everyone else at the time. Took off to see America, landed in Houston, Texas.
Tihs post is getting long, so I'll stop. The bottom line: every place I've lived has been completely different from the place before. Part of that is that I've always insisted on living a slightly different life. I've loved them all, even the bad places had interesting moments.
Hometown: Palo Alto, CA (SF Bay Area). Very academic, well-educated, white-collar, yuppie, left-coast liberal, affluent city that is reasonably walkable and has a high population density. The cradle of Silicon Valley, embedded in a mostly well-heeled and liberal metro area that has been at the forefront of the New Economy. Very high cost of living, lots of traffic, Mediterranean climate. Racially/ethnically diverse: Caucasians and Asians predominate, though there are some Hispanics and a few Blacks.
Current Home: Mequon, WI (Milwaukee metro area): Reasonably well-educated, white-collar, affluent city that is mostly politically conservative and appeals greatly to business execs. Not very walkable in most parts, and the population density is low. An outer-ring suburb of a moderately liberal Great Lakes city (Milwaukee) that was important for the Old (manufacturing) Economy. Relatively low cost of living, relatively manageable traffic, Snow Belt climate. Racially/ethnically homogeneous in Mequon (mostly Caucasian); racially/ethnically segregated in the metro (mostly Caucasian, many Blacks, significant Hispanic presence, few Asians).
My career (academic) has led me to where I am now....
Hometown:Chicago-Grew up there in the 60s and 70s. Great place to live. Walked to the lake to swim in the summer. Tons of parks, so we ice skated in the winter, played softball and basketball all summer. Took the el to the Cubs games, cost about $3 to spend the day at Wrigley. Took the bus to the zoo or museums. Safe place, walked everywhere. Grew up in Rogers Park which was largely either Jewish or Catholic. Easy transportation, great family atmosphere.
Current Home: Kronenwetter WI- great small town. Very safe and friendly. We have been here 20 years and we moved because the homes were cheap and it is still a place where we never lock our doors or take the keys out of the cars. You do need 2 cars to live here. And you have to be able to embrace winter. I do miss the diversity of restaurants we had in Chicago.
This is really a good discussion question, erinavery
So let'see, I'll get us started...
My hometown
Conservative, tradition-minded, loaded with historic charm. Strong ties to Appalachia (actually located on the edge of it). Life moves at a comfortable, slower pace. People are friendly and wave to strangers. Agriculture is alive and well. Boy Scouts, the American Legion and 4-H are thriving. Country music is very popular (along with '80s hair-metal) You're not considered weird for going to church; most everyone does. Hard work doesn't scare anybody. Even the Episcopalians are conservative! Norman Rockwell would feel quite at home
Where I am now
Detached anonymity, frantic pace of life. Claustrophobia-inducing density. Traffic is a total nightmare; seems I spend ½ my waking hours sitting in friggin' traffic. People are mostly rude and irritable; everyone is stressed out. Lots of noise, pollution and crime (mostly petty/property-related near my location, more violent stuff elsewhere in the city). High cost of living, outrageously high taxes. My network of friends are mostly spread all across town, so I must drive somewhere to hang out w/anyone. Living here is very
... Your info says that you live in Colombus. I've never known Colombus, Ohio to have claustrophobia-inducing density, so perhaps you're referring to NYC?
I grew up in the 'burbs of Chicago and then moved to NYC for a career, and then moved back here. The Chicago of my childhood (where our parents grounded us for braving downtown alone) and the Chicago of my adulthood (where the poor are being shoved out of the city, skyscraper construction is unmatched in North America and it's never been safer) are two vastly different places.
I was born and raised in a small town in Eastern South Dakota. I now live in a small town in North Central Wyoming. difference? I have mountains here to play in. But the people are pretty much the same. A little quieter here, but not much.
Your info says that you live in Columbus. I've never known Columbus, Ohio to have claustrophobia-inducing density, so perhaps you're referring to NYC?
LOL! I reckon it's all a matter of perspective. To me, any housing unit where walls are shared with another unit induces claustrophobia. Getting stuck in traffic the moment I pull out onto a city street? Claustrophobia!
I would never be able to tolerate a place like NYC I could never sleep there, for fear someone would break in. No stars in the night sky. No cornfields to bear the fresh cloak of morning's dew. Sirens, gridlock, standing in endless lines, no eye contact with anyone, and putting up with bad attitudes all day. That whole existence would drive me nuts!
To me, a comfortable "urban" neighborhood is one where houses are detached (preferably built pre-1940), in a town no bigger than an average county seat, where you personally know every neighbor on your block
Even better yet is a neighborhood where properties average 80+ acres, your neighbors are all about a half-mile apart, yet you all know & treat each other like family—which, in some cases, you actually are!
NYC? ««shudder»» Not on a bet!
Quote:
Originally Posted by coldwine
The Chicago of my childhood ... the Chicago of my adulthood
Ok, being a Midwesterner, I do have to offer a nice hat-tip to Chicago! It's a pretty cool place (...to visit) No seriously, it's a fun town with lots to offer. I even used to date a gal from near there. Question for you: when comparing the "Chicagos" of your childhood & adulthood, which one is closer to the setting of all those fun/cute/hilarious John Hughes movies from the 1980s?
Originally Posted by coldwine
Your info says that you live in Columbus. I've never known Columbus, Ohio to have claustrophobia-inducing density, so perhaps you're referring to NYC?
I live in Columbus and Lancaster native's definition of density does not describe Columbus, i am guessing that he means to say that is his personal defintion of density
Lancasternative said:
Quote:
LOL! I reckon it's all a matter of perspective. To me, any housing unit where walls are shared with another unit induces claustrophobia. Getting stuck in traffic the moment I pull out onto a city street? Claustrophobia!
I would never be able to tolerate a place like NYC I could never sleep there, for fear someone would break in. No stars in the night sky. No cornfields to bear the fresh cloak of morning's dew. Sirens, gridlock, standing in endless lines, no eye contact with anyone, and putting up with bad attitudes all day. That whole existence would drive me nuts!
To me, a comfortable "urban" neighborhood is one where houses are detached (preferably built pre-1940), in a town no bigger than an average county seat, where you personally know every neighbor on your block
Even better yet is a neighborhood where properties average 80+ acres, your neighbors are all about a half-mile apart, yet you all know & treat each other like family—which, in some cases, you actually are!
Now Columbus is not as dense as NYC or Chicago, but Columbus does have a strong urban core that is made of midrises, highrises, rowhomes, doubles, and single houses on small or medium sized lots. It's not Columbus is suburban or a small or medium sized town. I suppose someone who is affraid of a city could feel that same "panic" without being in NYC, they could just as easily feel in downtown Columbus, Pittsburgh, or Chicago.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
) You're not considered weird for going to church; most everyone does. Hard work doesn't scare anybody. Even the Episcopalians are conservative! Norman Rockwell would feel quite at home 
I could never sleep there, for fear someone would break in. No stars in the night sky. No cornfields to bear the fresh cloak of morning's dew. Sirens, gridlock, standing in endless lines, no eye contact with anyone, and putting up with bad attitudes all day. That whole existence would drive me nuts! 
