Happy to be leaving California! (Des Moines, Stuart: hotel, work, house)

[IowaOrBust]

Hi all! I am very excited that I am FINALLY leaving California!

My Boyfriend will be leaving in June and I in October.

I guess I want to know if anyone is familiar with the Stuart area. My boyfriend was born in Menlo and I know these are both fairly small towns and being from Los Angeles, I am a bit nervous about a small town.

I have visited many times and I love the lifestyle there. LA is so hectic and SO expensive! I need some peace and quiet!

I am kinda a homebody, I do a lot of cooking. I am hoping to start my own home based catering company when I am there.
Any info about Iowa and small towns would be appreciated. Anyone familiar with Stuart would be great too!

Besides the state fair (which I LOVE) what other fun things are there/ Is there a renaissance fair anywhere? I love those too!

tee ~

[summer grace]

I guess then that you have been to Stuart and Menlo? Well, if you have or haven't these are my impressions of both from seeing them last summer.( I don't live in that area of Iowa).They are very very small although Stuart is right by the interstate, very close to Des Moines. I saw Stuart last summer. There isn't much there now, especially in town- everything is out of town right by the interstate.

But it is a very interesting town, because it seemed to me like some sort of time capsule had preserved it from the turn of the century, when you see the old abandoned Hotel right by where the train used to come through. And the buildings although not used it seems to me in the downtown are historic even if not kept up. T

hen, the remains of the burned down Catholic church are amazing. It made me wish it hadn't been burned down. It doesn't give you the impression of a run down town, although there is nothing there. It gives you the impression of a beautiful state of decay, one where you can see what an AMAZING town it must have been once. I liked it, to put it that way, although when I say there is nothing there now, there isn't.

As for the people, I don't know much. I do know though, that some people I know from there even very briefly were quite nice. I'm from Iowa, but not that part. Menlo, there isn't much there either and it is harder to see what it must have once been in comparison to Stuart. It is a quite Iowa town. It seemed rather run down to me, but no worse than others. Stuart in my opinion is something to see, and I enjoyed it, seeing what it must have been once, and it still something to see today because of that.

[IowaOrBust]

Well, I don't know how long it's been since you visited. But I do know that they are starting to fix things up there. Some guy that made a bunch of money came back (he was from there) and starting buying a bunch of places and renovating and it's still going on.

We just want to be part of that renovation. It's a very friendly little town that just needs some TLC and some contemporary places and looks. So we are really looking forward to it.

Menlo, that's definitely small, and mostly just farms. Boyfriends family is there, dad is a retired farmer, brother still farms. Definitely to small.. but very peaceful. There are still a lot of old people there, but the young ones are doing the farming.

I guess my biggest problem is that it a very religious state, and I am not... that worries me sometimes. But I am a quiet person who keeps to herself, so I am hoping it's not so obvious when the new girl in town doesn't go to church.. lol

Thanks for you input
tee ~

[artichoke63]

Originally Posted by IowaOrBust

Hi all! I am very excited that I am FINALLY leaving California!

My Boyfriend will be leaving in June and I in October.

I guess I want to know if anyone is familiar with the Stuart area. My boyfriend was born in Menlo and I know these are both fairly small towns and being from Los Angeles, I am a bit nervous about a small town.

I have visited many times and I love the lifestyle there. LA is so hectic and SO expensive! I need some peace and quiet!

I am kinda a homebody, I do a lot of cooking. I am hoping to start my own home based catering company when I am there.
Any info about Iowa and small towns would be appreciated. Anyone familiar with Stuart would be great too!

Besides the state fair (which I LOVE) what other fun things are there/ Is there a renaissance fair anywhere? I love those too!

tee ~

IowaOrBust,

I'm so glad to hear someone is getting out of here! Iowa is going to be an adjustment for you. Give yourself time to get used to the change. People are going to be different, but keep to yourself and be accepting. Don't try and change anybody. Just enjoy nature and cooking and spending time with family.

All the best,

Artie

[IowaOrBust]

artichoke6,
LOL!

It's a change for people to LEAVE California since there are so many getting here all the time. Los Angeles is way over crowded for my taste!

I have been to Iowa several times, have stayed for weeks at a time, and I always love what I see. It's just so clean, and calm, and there is no traffic!! I love it. (altho some Iowans complain about traffic) This always makes me laugh. I say, stay in LA for a week, then you will know true traffic! LOL

Thanks for the best wishes! I am an accepting person and open minded to new experiences, so I am very happy! vbmenu_register("postmenu_515497", true) LOL

[summer grace]

Well, Stuart Iowa has got to be better than California. I was only in Stuart for two days, and one night. That might not be long enough to get an accurate impression of the place. I did like the town though, it seemed quiet and nice and the people were the same. I just think the town has a very historic feel- maybe that's just me. I like it much much better than most Iowa towns.

[fertile myrtle]

Hi, I've been reading posts about my beloved land and decided to become a poster and defend her. Contrary to what many posts say, people will be delighted with the excitement and newness of having a cuban/american californian moving to their town. There are always a few crusty farmers that will seem unfriendly and even some that will be rude. I can't explain why they are that way but ignore them. Many people will come across as square and well, slow, but they will be accepting and you will find other fun, more open minded people too. You will be left alone to do your own thing. People like to have fun but it's not "party all the time". Minneapolis has a phenomenal month long Renaissance fair in October. There are other smaller ones around the state. Good luck with your catering business. I just attended a small dinner party at a friend's house this weekend and the caterer was an Italian woman from New York City who moved to small town Iowa 11 years ago. It was a yummy, pleasant night. Hope that you make it here, you sound like a wonderful person.

[LostDog]

I moved from Calif. to Iowa 6 years ago and have never, NEVER wanted to move back, or regretted my decision. I wanted OUT of the rat race! It IS a much slower life-style in a small town, but that was pretty much what I was looking for. My experience is that I will never feel like I belong in this small town, I will always be that "new" lady from California, but I have accepted that for what it is....the truth! I AM the newbie from Ca. I do regret not living closer to a "real" city, with stores, movies, restaurants, etc., but I was able to buy a wonderful house, and I feel totally safe here. So I have to drive an hour to the big city....heck, in Calif., I had to drive an hour and 1/2 every day just to get to work...and that was only 22 miles away! I still feel I made a good trade...even the winters aren't as bad as I imagined they would be.
Good Luck IowaOrBust... From what I read in your post, I think you will not regret it!

[Hawkeye48]

You will love the traffic. Or lack of it I should say. No traffic jams. Very little road rage at all. And homes are so much cheaper than they are in California. And the schools are so much better as well. Very little crime as well.

[summer grace]

Originally Posted by LostDog

I moved from Calif. to Iowa 6 years ago and have never, NEVER wanted to move back, or regretted my decision. I wanted OUT of the rat race! It IS a much slower life-style in a small town, but that was pretty much what I was looking for. My experience is that I will never feel like I belong in this small town, I will always be that "new" lady from California, but I have accepted that for what it is....the truth! I AM the newbie from Ca. I do regret not living closer to a "real" city, with stores, movies, restaurants, etc., but I was able to buy a wonderful house, and I feel totally safe here. So I have to drive an hour to the big city....heck, in Calif., I had to drive an hour and 1/2 every day just to get to work...and that was only 22 miles away! I still feel I made a good trade...even the winters aren't as bad as I imagined they would be.
Good Luck IowaOrBust... From what I read in your post, I think you will not regret it!

Yes, that's the right attitude to have if you move here. If you are looking for the same thing you'll love it. This post is quite accurate.