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Very interesting. Care to share what gave you that "get out!" feeling in Phoenix?
In my case, if I had to pick a physical trait, it'd be the general flatness of the city. By "flat", I mean buildings, not land. LA felt overwhelmingly suburban: huge expressways, one-story buildings in a sea of parking lots, lack of that historic look and feel, and a gridlocked traffic jam. Although the biggest contributor was still non-physical: me "knowing" that I'd never fit in there. Like a kale-eating, bike-riding, latte-sipping hipster in a Texas small town.
I remember feeling so out of place, like I was on another planet. It was so incredibly different from where I'm from (Western NY) from the geography to the weather to the people. And the day after day after day of blue skies and sunshine got to me after 3 months, I remember looking out the window in the morning hoping so badly to see a damn cloud!
I also just didn't like the 'vibe' of the place, it felt very uneasy to me. Hard to explain why...
I felt out of place in Gulfport, Mississippi coming from Central and South Florida. Stupid flight was delayed so I had to spend one night there at some okay hotel picked by the airline. Argument started at the airport that one person said they wanted out of this backwoods state (rude) and Mississippi new resident saying people dont speak English in Florida. Tried to small talk with residents near by at the hotel bar. I just came from New Orleans and asked if they visit the city. The local side they never been there. I was in shock being that it was only an hour from New Orleans and this person was not young. Petty, but I just wanted a quick flight back to Florida.
Have I ever NOT felt extremely out of place in any city or state? 30+ years in NYC, never felt comfortable because I wasn't rich, wasn't cool. The San Francisco Bay Area? I liked my time there, but everyone was so extreme, so political, so angry, so much the opposite of what they claim to be. Tel Aviv? I was welcomed, but it's not a place for loners. Washington DC? Eww, just eww. What a mistake moving there was. I'm still trying to was the smell off.
Colorado? It's a pretty generic place. I feel out of place because I don't absolutely love it here, and I don't do any of the outdoors activities that draw people here. I'm planning on leaving in the near future so that I can go and not fit in somewhere else.
Have I ever NOT felt extremely out of place in any city or state? 30+ years in NYC, never felt comfortable because I wasn't rich, wasn't cool. The San Francisco Bay Area? I liked my time there, but everyone was so extreme, so political, so angry, so much the opposite of what they claim to be. Tel Aviv? I was welcomed, but it's not a place for loners. Washington DC? Eww, just eww. What a mistake moving there was. I'm still trying to was the smell off.
Colorado? It's a pretty generic place. I feel out of place because I don't absolutely love it here, and I don't do any of the outdoors activities that draw people here. I'm planning on leaving in the near future so that I can go and not fit in somewhere else.
Sometimes it's about a look in the mirror when the results are always the same.
Don't care for the weather, the clubs, the materialism, the music scene, the architecture..
Really the beach was it. When I was at the beach or in the ocean, I was in my zone. Otherwise, nope.
I lived in Fort Lauderdale for one year and worked by MIA (Miami Airport) for 6 months. I was not happy there. I am from rural Arizona and could not handle the congestion. I am also Native American, so I felt out-of-place culturally with the Latin American/Caribbean focus of Miami. I also don't like the beach. The only fun I had was running the route from Alice Wainwright Park to Key Biscayne or the basketball games at the "U". I went to many of them. This video about Miami sums it up in my experience. The area has many economic disparities and is not ideal for young college graduates.
But Tallahassee was even worse. It's a "southern" city and a "college town" (very rigid focus on ages 18-22). Tallahassee has an extreme social focus on the undergraduate age group. Even recent college graduates of age 24-26 start to feel out-of-place in Tallahassee. I just moved back to Arizona and love it in Phoenix. I still get technical recruiters trying to get me to move back to Florida, but I made it clear I am home.
To be fair to FL, the best place for a career and cultural flexibility is the I-4 corridor along Tampa/Orlando. I almost moved there in March but unexpectedly got a job in Arizona. So I moved back. I would like to go back for a family vacation and get on the "Hulk" coaster at Universal or "Everest" ride at Disney.
To be fair to FL, the best place for a career and cultural flexibility is the I-4 corridor along Tampa/Orlando/QUOTE]
That's not saying a whole lot given the lack of a professional community in general or the **** poor salaries comparatively speaking. Besides that Jacksonville might have a say in that, especially given the diversity of it's economy versus Orlando in particular.
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