Top 3 things you don't like about living in Huntsville? (Madison: rental, homes)

[HSVAeroEngineer]

I am hoping this can help newcomers that are considering moving to this area to at least consider some things before making that move.

After 2 months in Huntsville, I like living here but it has a lot to do with the fact that I am seeing living here in Alabama as an "unique" experience rather than something permanent- If I am not happy here in five years- I can move anywhere.

It is a daily struggle for me to sometimes understand things that do not make any logical or rational sense but I think the people being for the most part being friendly and genuinely nice makes up for the negatives in a way.

If I were to be brutally honest, this could be easily a top 20 but I am not going to knock this place because there are positive things:

Lack of infrastructure: It is mind blowing. This is the only place I have ever lived where at night, you may have to drive with your high beams on all the time. It is strange because in a lot of places like Colorado, Nevada, etc- you would probably get a ticket for driving with your high beams on, in most states in this country, this practice is not common at all but here it is a necessity- some places here are so dark at night that if you are vision is not all that great, you are going to struggle.

Lack of maintenance/care: I created an entire topic about this but now I am realizing that it goes beyond just lack of TLC with homes and buildings. I went to run some errands in Madison on Wednesday and 3 out 4 places I stopped in had either a system or a machine out of order- that is not normal at all in other parts of the country.

Litter/Trash: The amount of litter and trash I have seen in this area so far is unmatched- I have not seen anything like this not even in 3rd World countries like Mexico and Brazil. I think it has a lot to do with ignorance and a poor educational system if I had to guess.

I ask people why and most do not have an explanation as to why people do that here. My theory so far is that, it is a combination of laziness, ignorance, low self esteem and lack of pride.

When it is a business with a parking lot full of litter and trash- I post a nasty, one star review on Google and that seems to "wake people up"-I will continue to do this every time I go to a business that has a parking lot full of trash and litter- absolutely not normal in other parts of the country and it should never be accepted as "normal"

[MinivanDriver]

You know, I think this thread is going to be popcorn material.

[y8tiger]

Yep, more of the same flame bait.

[dijkstra]

Junior is on mommy's ipad again.

[Jakeweg]

You've only lived here for 2 months....? My trust in your sixth sense is unwavering.

[FatTails]

Anybody going to Oktoberfest on the Arsenal next weekend? I'm glad it's back. It was a lot of fun the last time I went.

[InlandWave]

Originally Posted by MinivanDriver

You know, I think this thread is going to be popcorn material.

The past few weeks have all been popcorn material

[dwhisent]

In the immortal words of our governor... Bless his heart!

[harry chickpea]

Originally Posted by dwhisent

In the immortal words of our governor... Bless his heart!

...and, lest you forget, "If you can't say anything nice - "

(drums fingers)

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[capoeira]

Originally Posted by HSVAeroEngineer

Lack of infrastructure: It is mind blowing. This is the only place I have ever lived where at night, you may have to drive with your high beams on all the time. It is strange because in a lot of places like Colorado, Nevada, etc- you would probably get a ticket for driving with your high beams on, in most states in this country, this practice is not common at all but here it is a necessity- some places here are so dark at night that if you are vision is not all that great, you are going to struggle.

When I moved to Georgia from California the hardest thing to adjust to was the very poor street lighting. I had a Ford with the average halogen lights.

The solution to this is to get a car with HID lights. I was amazed the first time I drove a Dodge Challenger rental with these lights on a very dark road. The regular setting was much brighter than my Ford with the high beams on.

Get a car with HID lights and you will not have to worry about the dark roads. I would also get an auto dimming rear view mirror so you will not to worry about the guy behind you with HID or LED lights.