Leaving Indy. What I'll miss and what I will not... (Carmel: transplants, sales)

[jcamber]

It's hard to believe I have been here 10 years. I truly enjoyed my time in Indy but sometimes opportunities pass in front of you and you have to take them. As I move down to the DFW area I'm sure I will find things that are better and worse than Indy but didn't want to leave without mentioning those for which I will always remember this town.

1. Going to the DOME, wearing blue and cheering for the Colts (specially if they are playing NE!)
2. Going biking on the monon, stopping for shaved ice at Broadripple and see my daughter get a big smile
3. The Yuletide celebration and all the shows at the Hilbert
4. The relatively traffic-free freeways
5. 3 hours to Chicago if I ever get hungry for big city.
6. All the variety of restaurants, shopping and people (getting more diverse every day!)
7. Summer concerts at verizon wireless
8. The state fair and the dairy bar. Deep fried oreos!
9. Going down to Edinburgh, Nashville and Brown County in the Fall
10. Our nice, clean, safe and fun Downtown.
11. 4th of July fireworks at Lion's park in Zionsville

Things that I will not miss

1. The loooong COLD winters and its associated high gas bills.
2. Treeboy
3. The job market and less than competitive salaries

[bookworm2768]

So right!
I've left Indy and am already in Dallas and you won't believe what I miss - The WINTER!!
I miss the snow and the leaves turning and the cold air that really wakes you up in the morning
I miss the warm Hoosier hospitality and the courteous drivers who actually slow down when you are trying to merge or change lanes! I miss the Colts and I refuse to cheer for the Cowboys!
So come on down to DFW jcamber. Its a great town but before you leave Indy make sure you get some snow to remember what winters should be like .

[merigold307]

I lived there in 95-96 and hated it at first, but came to love "My Favorite Muffin and Bagel Shop," Castleton's Borders and the movie, the diversity, ethnic foods, especially Indian and Moroccan in Broadripple. Also loved the ease of getting into and out of downtown, even when the snow was 2' deep! I'm from the deep South, so I do not miss the howling wind and -40 degrees wind chill!
All in all, I came to love Indy and miss the things I listed above.

[ImGibby]

Indy is not a bad place to be...I always say, there are a lot worse places to be. I left here in 94 for a tour of duty in the military and vowed I would never return...but after my military career, job opportunites brought me back. I've since grown to appreciate more for what it is, and in some aspects, for what it is NOT.

Just look at the current mortgage / housing crisis...yeah we are competitive on forlosure rates, and property values have fallen slightly, but not compared to some other places that people always think are some much better than here. And when things do rebound, it wont take long for the market to recover locally. So if nothing else, I feel good to live in a place that is economically sound, for the most part. Especially if you are an Entrepenuer, there are plenty of opportunities to make your own ticket in this town.

[sweetana3]

Like: Diversity with many ethnic restaurants, cultural events, stores
Garage sales, estate sales, used stores
Layout with easy to find addresses
Access to fancy things if I want them but not in your face
Plenty of available and reasonable crafting items including great quilt stores
Lots of Guilds for quilting, etc.
FACE spay neuter clinic
Reasonably priced housing
Historic areas
Vet, doctor, dentist
Reasonable utilities
Good hospitals


Dont like: Wet snow and dampness. newspaper declining quality.

[socrates1234]

Originally Posted by jcamber

It's hard to believe I have been here 10 years. I truly enjoyed my time in Indy but sometimes opportunities pass in front of you and you have to take them. As I move down to the DFW area I'm sure I will find things that are better and worse than Indy but didn't want to leave without mentioning those for which I will always remember this town.

1. Going to the DOME, wearing blue and cheering for the Colts (specially if they are playing NE!)
2. Going biking on the monon, stopping for shaved ice at Broadripple and see my daughter get a big smile
3. The Yuletide celebration and all the shows at the Hilbert
4. The relatively traffic-free freeways
5. 3 hours to Chicago if I ever get hungry for big city.
6. All the variety of restaurants, shopping and people (getting more diverse every day!)
7. Summer concerts at verizon wireless
8. The state fair and the dairy bar. Deep fried oreos!
9. Going down to Edinburgh, Nashville and Brown County in the Fall
10. Our nice, clean, safe and fun Downtown.
11. 4th of July fireworks at Lion's park in Zionsville

Things that I will not miss

1. The loooong COLD winters and its associated high gas bills.
2. Treeboy
3. The job market and less than competitive salaries

I think you will miss INDY more than you believe. I've lived in both, and you cannot compare the two. DFW has a far higher crime rate, far less museums per capita, no bike trails to compare to MONON, a DT(dallas) that is empty on evenings and week-ends, a plugged-ugly landscape compared to Nashville/Brown County, a really bad library system(carmel-clay is better than anything in Dallas, and its 19 times the population), and not very friendly people, really into the whole materialistic thing, lacking true neighborly sense. I would NEVER move to Texas just based on salary issues alone. You will find that quality-of-life issues simply cannot compare with salary. We tried the DFW thing, and moved back to INDY within a year..........hopefully you will find it a far better place than I did. Maybe it was just me. Best of luck!

PS. Have fun dealing with all the relocated Californians...you'll recognize them as the people that try to drive you off the
road, and flip you the finger at every available opportunity!

[bookworm2768]

Originally Posted by socrates1234

I think you will miss INDY more than you believe. I've lived in both, and you cannot compare the two. DFW has a far higher crime rate, far less museums per capita, no bike trails to compare to MONON, a DT(dallas) that is empty on evenings and week-ends, a plugged-ugly landscape compared to Nashville/Brown County, a really bad library system(carmel-clay is better than anything in Dallas, and its 19 times the population), and not very friendly people, really into the whole materialistic thing, lacking true neighborly sense. I would NEVER move to Texas just based on salary issues alone. You will find that quality-of-life issues simply cannot compare with salary. We tried the DFW thing, and moved back to INDY within a year..........hopefully you will find it a far better place than I did. Maybe it was just me. Best of luck!

PS. Have fun dealing with all the relocated Californians...you'll recognize them as the people that try to drive you off the
road, and flip you the finger at every available opportunity!

Oh is that who the bad drivers are? I assumed it was a Texas thing

I totally forgot the library system. Yes - another thing that stinks here. The library is absolutely pathetic. the collection is barebones compared to IMCPL or Carmel (I've belonged to both), they have NO computer software for kids or adults and kids programming is minimal at best. Also, if you like to go to the library book sales either at carmel or the bimonthly ones for IMCPL downtown, there is NOTHING like that here. I'm seriously thinking of flying back to Indy for the books sales since my son's reading habits will soon bankrupt me here!

That being said, you can find anything you need in DFW. There are ethnic food stores on every corner. Restaurants galore with every kind of cuisine. Indian restaurants around where we are (Carrollton / Plano) are wonderful and you won't have any problem finding a good place to eat. I'm excited about the children's museum and the zoo. And you have IKEA up the street (well far up the street ) for all the cheapo shopping your home may need.

Watch out for the ramps merging onto and off highways here. Somethimes they are super short and sometimes there's a yield where you would not expect it at all. And if you mess up the honks and flips are everywhere. Just ignore them.

I have not encountered any famous southern hospitality or manners. But then DFW is a city of 'transplants' from all over the country so perhaps Texas is not to blame for that.

And - big warning here - watch out for Fire Ants! These suckers are everywhere and their mounds look like a small pile of dirt or like a cow patty in a field. Step in one and they will be up to your neck before you know it!

[bookworm2768]

oh oh oh just thought of something else, Property taxes on your home and sign up charges for utilities.
I have never seen the ridiculously high sign up charges that all the utility companies have. The phone company we used (Verizon) for our home phone, cell and internet connection charged us the installation charges, activation charges and miscellaneous other charges and then charged us for two months at a time! The first bill we got (without going over minutes or any add ons to the land line) was $548!

And sales calls!! It takes them six months to add you to the do not call list and until then every sales caller and his grandma will be calling you.

But the weather is great

[MikiJayne]

Yikes, I was in Alabama for a while, and I am soooo happy to be away from those darn fire ants. I grew up in IN, and was used to running around outside in the yard with my shoes off. Don't dare do that if you have fire ants anywhere nearby!! OUCH!

[Zig'sbird]

I also learned a hard leason about fire ants. Growing up in IN, I never knew that ants could bite you.



I think that I might still have one scar from when I ran into some fire ants.