How Do You Like Living In Iowa? (Des Moines, Fort Dodge: college, income)

[faith64]

I've lived in Iowa for 20 years now. Can't say I know what Cactus Sam is talking about. Maybe he just lived in a clichish town (every state has those). I live in southeast Iowa and for the most part have only had good experiences with people here. I have witnessed some outsiders coming to Iowa for the quiteness, the quaintness, the small town lifestyle, only to try to change into something else. And yeah, you smell some pretty interesting smells in this part of the country and if you gave it any thought you would be thankful for them. The midwest is responsible for feeding a good portion of the world and now are developing and processing alternative fuels. So what you were smelling was food on your table and fuel in your gas tank!

Anyway, I love Iowa. I live in a small town close to Iowa City and to me that's the best of both worlds!!

[chevy_man1961]

I moved here from AZ (originally from Maine)...and I have to say....Where is the funspots?....still looking....I guess the corn harvesting is coming soon....I can't wait!?

[MarriedWithOutChildren]

Originally Posted by KT70

I was told that "Iowa" was an acronym for Idiots Outside Walking Around. I still considered moving there some day, but not after reading the posts here.

I am from Nebraska and I always heard, 'Idiots Out Wandering Around'. Same thing, tho right? I know, I know, I'm from NE, not much of a difference.

[zz4guy]

I was born and grew up here in Cedar Rapids my whole life. I agree it's a very nice place to live. No trafffic, low cost of living, things are easy to get to and cheap, people are friendly.

BUT I would never stay here if I didn't have a big group of friends here. I'm 27 years old and single and let me tell you - it sucks being a young person in this state! There are no big cities here (Des Moines is not a big city), no great lakes or oceans or mountains.

Just like every other state Iowa has its strong points. People try to classify a state as good or bad. It's not that simple. No state has it all. California and NYC are great for single people. But raising a kid would suck there.

If you are tired of the rat race and want to raise a family, then I dont see why you WOULDNT move to a place like Iowa. It would be perfect for that. But if you are a young person on the move looking for a fun, glitsy place to live, dont look here.

[mfrerkes]

Originally Posted by Indigopete

I just moved to Davenport, IA. Just a few observations about the QC

The traffic situation is a mess. It takes a great deal of time to travel on surface streets during the day. Take this into consideration when choosing an area to live in. Also, if you work across the river you will have to cross a bridge. The one I use is a drawbridge. It takes a while for barges to get under, so I have to leave about 25 min early to give myself time to cross on another bridge if needed.

Wow! Somebody from southern California who thinks Davenport traffic is a mess. Just when I thought I heard it all on these forums. True, sometimes it does take 30 minutes to drive one mile from downtown Davenport to downtown Rock Island...but it's because you're taking that God-awful Government Bridge. Try the Centennial instead. It's very uncongested, more scenic, and they finally removed those stupid 50-cent tolls!

[Packerman]

I have lived in Iowa for over 40 years. We moved to Florida 2 years ago and were amazed at the difference in crime, schools and unfriendliness of people. We are moving back to Iowa. I think the people in Iowa are very friendly. The winter is very cold and snowy December - March. The spring is beautiful, fall is wonderful and the summers are great because you may get hot weather but then you get a cool down here and there. I will never take Iowa for granite again!

[DreamworksSKG]

Heh try driving in Boston where I drive every day

-(grins)

-Jeff
Winchester, MA

GO SOX!/PATS----
RED SOX 2007 WORLD SERIES CHAMPIONS!

[El Rhino]

Originally Posted by zz4guy

BUT I would never stay here if I didn't have a big group of friends here. I'm 27 years old and single and let me tell you - it sucks being a young person in this state! There are no big cities here (Des Moines is not a big city), no great lakes or oceans or mountains.
.

I don't know, I'm 26 years old and having a good time living in Des Moines. There's plenty of things to do.

[zz4guy]

Originally Posted by El Rhino

I don't know, I'm 26 years old and having a good time living in Des Moines. There's plenty of things to do.

Such as....

[DSMGuy]

Jealousy and envy are such sorry traits. You only hurt yourself.