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Phoenix is just one example that I used since you mentioned it. You spoke of a vast area of the USA, not just Phoenix... I was responding to your post that I thought said that your quality of life was significantly worse and that living in any of the vast non-coastal USA is/was a big waste of years of your life.
RE education: Just google search the percentage of Millenials with a college degree by metro area, or adults as a whole to find what you're asking for. There's a NY Times webpage ranking every metro by % of adults with a degree. And this site for Millenials https://www.brookings.edu/blog/the-a...lennials-live/
Statistically LA doesn't show any significant career advantage when looking at unemployment rates or comparative salaries adjusted by CoL. Software developers for example come out far ahead in Phoenix - the example city you mention as being much worse than LA for your career - when looking at average salary & COL.
I'm one of the first people to jump on the bandwagon and hate on Phoenix, but I agree with a lot of what you said. Wages in LA are usually very low compared to COL. Especially when you consider that housing in LA is not THAT much lower than in NYC, but NYC often earns more and people in NYC don't have a single dollar related to car ownership. Think about the money people spend on car payments, insurance, gas, repairs, maintenance, parking, possibly garage parking at home, etc. That adds up significantly and could easily bring LA over NYC for COL depending on one's individual situation.
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Regarding global presence, I still don't understand. I've never heard a psychologist say that living in a cosmopolitan place has any significant benefits for long term well-being, unless you're talking about a very particular situation such as being an immigrant looking to be near relatives & your own culture. Regarding dining, there's plenty of great mom & pop dining to be found all over flyover country, both large cities and small. RE chain resturants: I have relatives in small towns who never eat at chain restaurants either, and have access to authentic ethnic dining. The best Thai food I've ever had was in a city of 20,000 people in a micropolitan area. My point is I don't think for most people LA's cosmopolitan advantage has enough significance for day to day life as to make a real difference in a person's well-being. Certainly not enough to cause a person's life to feel relatively wasted.
This is LA's strong point IMO. I can't handle a place that lacks diversity. I thrive off diversity and local restaurants and I enjoy experiencing cultural/dining diversity in ethnic neighborhoods. One of my favorite examples was here in NYC during Yom Kippur. I was fasting, but I ordered a challah from a Mexican bakery because it was apple cinnamon challah and none of my friends/family are religious enough to care and we all thought it sounded amazing. Well I got there, and the challah was not ready, so they offered me a free snack and I couldn't eat it. Instantly, the Latina bakery owner knew I was fasting and apologized for making it worse as we both laughed about it. The fact that a Mexican bakery made a special challah for Yom Kippur and the owner even knew about Yom Kippur fasting made it one of the many reasons I absolutely love the cultural and religious diversity of a place like NYC, and LA also. Only in a city as diverse as these do all the cultures understand each other in this way.
Also, there's nothing like going to Chinatown for authentic dim sum, then to Little Tokyo for Japanese food, Koreatown for Korean food, etc. You can find those restaurants in other cities, but the vibe is just so different. You constantly meet people who speak a second/third/fourth/etc language who you'd never expect to, but they grew up in such a culturally diverse place, it led them to be interested in these other cultures and languages enough.
There aren't many places like LA in terms of cultural, religious, linguistic, etc. diversity and for many people, that does matter. I couldn't stand the lack of cultural diversity in Louisville and KY as a whole. I missed being surrounded by so many diverse people who understand cultural differences.
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I agree that the LGBT situation in LA is better than most places but again there are places all over flyover country that are fairly similar. Using isolated anecdotes involving single people in areas of millions of people doesn't say much. I've talked to many LGBT people in flyover country, and despite facing difficulties, overall are able to live their lives without discrimination being a serious enough of a problem to significantly reduce their well-being. Not to say that there aren't little differences between LA and other places.. I agree that LGBT tolerance in liberal cities is overstated and still a serious problem. But not enough to make a significant QOL difference for most people.
Being in a liberal city in a conservative state has some benefits, but the LGBT populations still are not as protected there as they are in LA. Also, it depends on industry. Some more conservative professions like accounting and law create problems for openly out LGBT members, wherein the older generations doing the hiring are not fond of hiring LGBT people. Being LGBT is fine in almost any major city in the country, but it's easier in some cities like LA.
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RE summer heat. Phoenix is much hotter than almost anywhere in the USA except areas near the Gulf of Mexico. Most of flyover country is much cooler. I know LA residents tend to hate cold temps but geographical comparisons of life satisfaction and other evidence show that cold winter doesn't make life suck for most people. If a person visits a cold place from LA, they're most likely not acclimatized and not know how to dress properly so understandably it will feel very uncomfortable and they'll think cold weather is horrible. But acclimatization and dressing properly allows a person to enjoy the outdoors all year round in most of flyover country. I've enjoyed the outdoors at 100F and at 0F and I'm a wimp who complains about the weather. LA's climate is not necessary to enjoy the outdoors all year round. Anyone who says otherwise I have to ask if you've tried going outside in cold weather after being acclimatized for it and dressing properly enough to be warm from head to finger to toe. Lots of people do it in Minnesota, Kansas, Pennsylvania, Colorado, Texas, Tennessee, etc.. And in the summers of most of the US, heat acclimatization and proper scheduling is enough to enjoy July in most places. Going out at 9AM and 9PM in July instead of the mid-day heat isn't too hard for most people.
Angelenos do need to get over their weather obsession. People live in cities much hotter/colder/rainier/snowier for their entire lives and live just as active, healthy, productive, happy lives. I don't love the Phoenix heat, but I'm also not going to whine and cry and ruin my life over a temperature above 85 or below 55. The weather in LA is fine or outdoor activity, but people are outdoors all over the world in varying weather. Also, not everyone enjoys the outdoors the same way. I like a hot summer day at the beach with warm water. LA does not have warm water and most days are not that warm to sit out comfortably at the beach. I don't like the cold nights of LA year round. I also enjoy bundling up in winter so I don't like LA's lack of cold temperatures. But I'm a city boy and don't go camping/hiking/fishing/boating/surfing year round. I also know how to dress properly for the seasons, unlike people in LA who think high top Vans are good enough for a winter storm.
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I agree that LA has a lot to offer. I'm listening to you. I still am not understanding how flyover country makes a person's life suck compared to LA though for most Americans. The differences are far too subtle to be significant enough when considering how human psychology works, from what I can tell. Maybe my guess is wrong though... I'm just not understanding the details fully enough.
It doesn't suck in flyover country. But for some people, there are aspects of LA that are needed for their happiness. I didn't like my temporary stay in flyover country and ended up moving to NYC which I love. I don't love LA, I'm glad I left, but I will definitely push back on the fact that LA's cultural diversity and LGBT inclusiveness are rarely matched. I love NYC for the public transit and change of seasons that LA doesn't have, but I love it for many similar reasons of LA--diversity, LGBT equality, food quality, international relations, plethora of options for anything, etc.
I'll never move back to LA. But it's hard to deny that diversity and human rights equality are major factors when people choose where to live...especially if one is a LGBT member AND religious/ethnic minority. Being a gay black man is much more traumatizing, ostracizing, difficult, etc. in smaller metros of flyover than it is in LA.
I'm one of the first people to jump on the bandwagon and hate on Phoenix, but I agree with a lot of what you said. Wages in LA are usually very low compared to COL. Especially when you consider that housing in LA is not THAT much lower than in NYC, but NYC often earns more and people in NYC don't have a single dollar related to car ownership. Think about the money people spend on car payments, insurance, gas, repairs, maintenance, parking, possibly garage parking at home, etc. That adds up significantly and could easily bring LA over NYC for COL depending on one's individual situation.
This is LA's strong point IMO. I can't handle a place that lacks diversity. I thrive off diversity and local restaurants and I enjoy experiencing cultural/dining diversity in ethnic neighborhoods. One of my favorite examples was here in NYC during Yom Kippur. I was fasting, but I ordered a challah from a Mexican bakery because it was apple cinnamon challah and none of my friends/family are religious enough to care and we all thought it sounded amazing. Well I got there, and the challah was not ready, so they offered me a free snack and I couldn't eat it. Instantly, the Latina bakery owner knew I was fasting and apologized for making it worse as we both laughed about it. The fact that a Mexican bakery made a special challah for Yom Kippur and the owner even knew about Yom Kippur fasting made it one of the many reasons I absolutely love the cultural and religious diversity of a place like NYC, and LA also. Only in a city as diverse as these do all the cultures understand each other in this way.
Also, there's nothing like going to Chinatown for authentic dim sum, then to Little Tokyo for Japanese food, Koreatown for Korean food, etc. You can find those restaurants in other cities, but the vibe is just so different. You constantly meet people who speak a second/third/fourth/etc language who you'd never expect to, but they grew up in such a culturally diverse place, it led them to be interested in these other cultures and languages enough.
There aren't many places like LA in terms of cultural, religious, linguistic, etc. diversity and for many people, that does matter. I couldn't stand the lack of cultural diversity in Louisville and KY as a whole. I missed being surrounded by so many diverse people who understand cultural differences.
Being in a liberal city in a conservative state has some benefits, but the LGBT populations still are not as protected there as they are in LA. Also, it depends on industry. Some more conservative professions like accounting and law create problems for openly out LGBT members, wherein the older generations doing the hiring are not fond of hiring LGBT people. Being LGBT is fine in almost any major city in the country, but it's easier in some cities like LA.
Angelenos do need to get over their weather obsession. People live in cities much hotter/colder/rainier/snowier for their entire lives and live just as active, healthy, productive, happy lives. I don't love the Phoenix heat, but I'm also not going to whine and cry and ruin my life over a temperature above 85 or below 55. The weather in LA is fine or outdoor activity, but people are outdoors all over the world in varying weather. Also, not everyone enjoys the outdoors the same way. I like a hot summer day at the beach with warm water. LA does not have warm water and most days are not that warm to sit out comfortably at the beach. I don't like the cold nights of LA year round. I also enjoy bundling up in winter so I don't like LA's lack of cold temperatures. But I'm a city boy and don't go camping/hiking/fishing/boating/surfing year round. I also know how to dress properly for the seasons, unlike people in LA who think high top Vans are good enough for a winter storm.
It doesn't suck in flyover country. But for some people, there are aspects of LA that are needed for their happiness. I didn't like my temporary stay in flyover country and ended up moving to NYC which I love. I don't love LA, I'm glad I left, but I will definitely push back on the fact that LA's cultural diversity and LGBT inclusiveness are rarely matched. I love NYC for the public transit and change of seasons that LA doesn't have, but I love it for many similar reasons of LA--diversity, LGBT equality, food quality, international relations, plethora of options for anything, etc.
I'll never move back to LA. But it's hard to deny that diversity and human rights equality are major factors when people choose where to live...especially if one is a LGBT member AND religious/ethnic minority. Being a gay black man is much more traumatizing, ostracizing, difficult, etc. in smaller metros of flyover than it is in LA.
I do enjoy living here, and I find it a bit confusing about all these naysayers, namely because I don't know what they expect in other cities should they decide to leave California one day, especially the last two conservative cities I had the horror of living in, OKC and Phoenix. I could write an essay on both, but I won't get into it; all these gripes people have about LA do happen elsewhere as well as a large number of other problems that don't happen here, such as OKC's embarrassing inability to respond to and handle its wonderful weather, or the increasing number of summertime in Phoenix blackouts, which made triple-digit heat after midnight much more fun to try to sleep in.
I don't know what kinds of jobs these people work who complain about the cost of living. It's certainly more expensive than many cities, but personally I saw my rent increase in LA (compared to my last apartment in Phoenix) by about $400 (and I have more space now than I did there, and also make more than $1000 more per month than I did there). I moved here about when that lease was up, and now I pay about $200 more than what that apartment went up to when they showed me the lease renewal, so it was about $1000 for a studio... yes, in Phoenix, Arizona. No, that city is not worth that price. Likewise, a place I would actually want to buy and live in long-term is not affordable there, so there really isn't much change in that for me living in LA. I did live in Oklahoma City, and probably could have bought something there... but really, who would want to?
If I could move back to either city AND keep my current pay, I would certainly be better off financially. That's the only area of my life that would improve though. Despite the higher costs and taxes, my financial situation has actually improved here. On top of that, my job opportunities in OKC and Phoenix were much more limited, and in the latter the pay was abysmal despite needing a college degree. If I choose to move on and find a new job, there are many more opportunities in LA. Based on what family and friends have told me, my personality has shifted more to my more normal self, in that I don't feel angry and in a bad mood all the time. My diet and exercise routine haven't changed much, yet my physical health has improved, including lower blood pressure and better levels all over. Overall I feel a lot better too, and though my schedule is even more tied up now, I have a lot more energy.
If LA could magically have a more extensive rail network overnight and wetter weather, I think it would be much closer to an ideal. Aside from that, if you consider those last two flyover dead-ends I wasted too much of my life in, I wanted a more educated population, a more global presence and representation, indoor and outdoor activities, a variety of entertainment and cultural amenities, a large and diverse dining and nightlife scene, more job opportunities and room for career growth, greater urban aesthetic, large LGBT community, and place for me to really reach my potential. I feel like my life is far too precious and valuable to throw away in those slag heaps I suffered through while I worked my way up, and I don't feel so little of myself that I need to resort to living in one of them and pretend that was my plan all along.
I'm glad I made the move and I feel like life is moving forward at long last, after several years of stagnation.
I moved here 25 years ago from Nashville, TN. I was in my mid-30s at the time. I immediately got a good job - then an even better job - with much better benefits and salary than anything I'd had or been offered in Nashville. Rent was higher but I still came out way ahead. I was able to rise in the ranks at my job, learned new skills and my pay rose accordingly - way bigger raises and bonuses than I'd had before. Now, I'm a financial administrator - a great job with a great company where I've been for over 10 years.
Since I've been out here Nashville has taken off. COL - especially housing - is going through the roof. But the only people really making salaries comparable to LA are the one being relocated there by CA, NY, etc., states/cities who are getting to maintain the salaries they had in those higher COL areas. The Nashville natives haven't seen these pay increases - to the point that many who work in the city are having to move to adjacent counties to afford housing. I say this since TN is a flyover state and I wanted to offer a comparision that I know well.
There are things I really love about LA. The thing I hate most is the traffic (but Nashville traffic is now out of control as well with hour long commutes becoming the norm). Lots of cities have bad traffic (look at Atlanta). I love that we have so many distinctive communities - places that range from Santa Monica to Pasadena. And I find the geograpahy really appealing - the hills, beaches, nearby mountains and desert - so much variety so close. That is very hard to find.
And I do love the weather. Nashville freezes in the winter and is so hot and humid in the summer that when you walk out of the airport terminal into the heat, your sunglasses immediately fog up. Ugg. More bugs/insects too that go along with that kind of weather. Don't miss that at all.
Would I move back home if I could keep my present salary? I don't know. I did go back for all of 2012 for family reasons and worked remotely and flew in a few times (with my current employer). Realized very quickly that the freezing winter and the summer with record breaking temps was something I wasn't used to anymore and didn't care for. Even weirder - so many of the new developments there looked just like the ones here. Old places that gave the city character were being replaced by "I could be anywhere" architecture. And, of course, there is the politics/religion/education, etc., differences. I'm pretty live and let live. I hate politics and don't care about your religion. Sadly, I have many loved ones that are just the opposite. On a regular basis - being there might be too close for comfort. I don't know if I'll stay in LA or even California when I retire in a few years - but I don't know that I'll go back to Nashville either.
For now, LA is fine. Plenty do to all of the time, a variety of everything you could possibly want. Excellent medical care. Not far from a lot of great vacation destinations. But I'm older, divorced and no kids. Totally subjective - depends on each person's situation and desires. That's my two cents.
Last edited by Spikett; 01-15-2019 at 10:05 PM..
Reason: correct typos
Location: The edge of the world and all of Western civilization
984 posts, read 1,191,283 times
Reputation: 1691
Quote:
Originally Posted by Madisonisahome
Phoenix is just one example that I used since you mentioned it. You spoke of a vast area of the USA, not just Phoenix... I was responding to your post that I thought said that your quality of life was significantly worse and that living in any of the vast non-coastal USA is/was a big waste of years of your life.
Sure fooled me, because you fixated on Phoenix though I mentioned two cities (I use that term very loosely) in particular.
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Originally Posted by Madisonisahome
RE education: Just google search the percentage of Millenials with a college degree by metro area, or adults as a whole to find what you're asking for. There's a NY Times webpage ranking every metro by % of adults with a degree. And this site for Millenials https://www.brookings.edu/blog/the-a...lennials-live/
Don't back-pedal. You're now suddenly specifying a generation, which you didn't initially do.
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Originally Posted by Madisonisahome
Statistically LA doesn't show any significant career advantage when looking at unemployment rates or comparative salaries adjusted by CoL. Software developers for example come out far ahead in Phoenix - the example city you mention as being much worse than LA for your career - when looking at average salary & COL.
Wrong, wrong, wrong. I'm not a software developer and gave no indication to you I was, thus it's odd you even brought that up, so whatever they make in LA vs. Phoenix, Anchorage, Little Rock, Boston, or anywhere else has absolutely no bearing on MY career. I emboldened that part in your response because you seem to be applying a pretty asinine blanket statement. If I really wanted to be in oil and gas, and wanted to do well financially and reach a greater potential, I would opt for Houston over LA; if I were into civil service and wanted more opportunities, I would say Washington is probably much better; if I wanted to do well and progress in meteorology, Oklahoma City is a much better place to be than LA. Get it now? Not all these places are equal. You isolated a single profession in Phoenix, though a common complaint in that town is how bad the pay is in general. For me in particular, I can't do well in that town and the opportunities are extraordinarily limited. Entertainment industry aside, you have many, many, many more opportunities in LA in finance, legal, transportation, and so many other professions than Phoenix can provide.
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Originally Posted by Madisonisahome
Regarding global presence, I still don't understand. I've never heard a psychologist say that living in a cosmopolitan place has any significant benefits for long term well-being, unless you're talking about a very particular situation such as being an immigrant looking to be near relatives & your own culture. Regarding dining, there's plenty of great mom & pop dining to be found all over flyover country, both large cities and small. RE chain resturants: I have relatives in small towns who never eat at chain restaurants either, and have access to authentic ethnic dining. The best Thai food I've ever had was in a city of 20,000 people in a micropolitan area. My point is I don't think for most people LA's cosmopolitan advantage has enough significance for day to day life as to make a real difference in a person's well-being. Certainly not enough to cause a person's life to feel relatively wasted.
So you need a psychologist to validate your existence for you? To each his own, but some of us enjoy what the global presence has to offer. I'm going to guess by authentic you're embellishing a tad, and don't really know from personal experience. My impression of LA in regards to cuisine is that people won't put up with crappy quality of food. I like trying different cuisines, and in flyover country I've gone to places people claim are good, but in comparison to what you get in LA it's usually not at the same standards. Furthermore, you lack the variety that LA has, which I've mentioned at least twice now, but you can't seem to get it (weren't you harping on education earlier?). There's also a lot to be gained by living around people with a lot of different perspectives and backgrounds, and if you really need the validation, it's been proven that living in proximity to people of different cultures does have a lot of benefits, including in the creative sphere, global awareness, understanding different perspectives, etc. Many of these are transferable skills to professions.
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Originally Posted by Madisonisahome
I agree that the LGBT situation in LA is better than most places but again there are places all over flyover country that are fairly similar. Using isolated anecdotes involving single people in areas of millions of people doesn't say much. I've talked to many LGBT people in flyover country, and despite facing difficulties, overall are able to live their lives without discrimination being a serious enough of a problem to significantly reduce their well-being. Not to say that there aren't little differences between LA and other places.. I agree that LGBT tolerance in liberal cities is overstated and still a serious problem. But not enough to make a significant QOL difference for most people.
Well good, I'm glad you've talked to people and now can completely empathize what it's like to live as an LGBT person in various places. You know issues facing our community, our feelings, concerns, problems, etc. and are an official expert. "Little differences" suggests that things are more or less the same as where you live... but I have a feeling my neighborhood has more people than your town has LGBT people (and three of those letters aren't my type in dating). Perhaps you should actually ask those people why they stay where they do. Believe it or not, LGBT people do have a variety of reasons for living where they do, including attachments in/fear of leaving their hometown. And maybe, just maybe, they didn't tell you every little thing that's happened to them. By the way, if you're ever in town you should go to your local gayborhood right before your visit, then take a stroll on Santa Monica through WeHo... THEN get back to me and tell me there's no major difference (especially if you go on Halloween).
Quote:
Originally Posted by Madisonisahome
RE summer heat. Phoenix is much hotter than almost anywhere in the USA except areas near the Gulf of Mexico. Most of flyover country is much cooler. I know LA residents tend to hate cold temps but geographical comparisons of life satisfaction and other evidence show that cold winter doesn't make life suck for most people. If a person visits a cold place from LA, they're most likely not acclimatized and not know how to dress properly so understandably it will feel very uncomfortable and they'll think cold weather is horrible. But acclimatization and dressing properly allows a person to enjoy the outdoors all year round in most of flyover country. I've enjoyed the outdoors at 100F and at 0F and I'm a wimp who complains about the weather. LA's climate is not necessary to enjoy the outdoors all year round. Anyone who says otherwise I have to ask if you've tried going outside in cold weather after being acclimatized for it and dressing properly enough to be warm from head to finger to toe. Lots of people do it in Minnesota, Kansas, Pennsylvania, Colorado, Texas, Tennessee, etc.. And in the summers of most of the US, heat acclimatization and proper scheduling is enough to enjoy July in most places. Going out at 9AM and 9PM in July instead of the mid-day heat isn't too hard for most people.
Back-pedaling again. You mentioned the great outdoor opportunities in Phoenix, to which I replied that it's prohibitively hot a good chunk of the year. Sure, you can go hiking in December in the sunshine, but in July you run the risk of heat stroke.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Madisonisahome
I agree that LA has a lot to offer. I'm listening to you. I still am not understanding how flyover country makes a person's life suck compared to LA though for most Americans. The differences are far too subtle to be significant enough when considering how human psychology works, from what I can tell. Maybe my guess is wrong though... I'm just not understanding the details fully enough.
Your guess is wrong. I specifically wrote that if you don't need all the bells and whistles that LA offers, and you're content with a simpler existence, then you can do just fine. In both Phoenix and OKC I felt like a lot of people were just coasting through life and didn't really want to try. Some even said they were intimidated by the idea of LA, whether it's the cost of living, traffic, crowds, or whatever else gives them anxiety. I expect more out of my life than resigning myself to a place like those towns. And if you haven't lived in a variety of places, it's really hard for you to relate.
Location: The edge of the world and all of Western civilization
984 posts, read 1,191,283 times
Reputation: 1691
Quote:
Originally Posted by Spikett
I moved here 25 years ago from Nashville, TN. I was in my mid-30s at the time. I immediately got a good job - then an even better job - with much better benefits and salary than anything I'd had or been offered in Nashville. Rent was higher but I still came out way ahead. I was able to rise in the ranks at my job, learned new skills and my pay rose accordingly - way bigger raises and bonuses than I'd had before. Now, I'm a financial administrator - a great job with a great company where I've been for over 10 years.
Would I move back home if I could keep my present salary? I don't know. I did go back for all of 2012 for family reasons and worked remotely and flew in a few times (with my current employer). Realized very quickly that the freezing winter and the summer with record breaking temps was something I wasn't used to anymore and didn't care for. Even weirder - so many of the new developments there looked just like the ones here. Old places that gave the city character were being replaced by "I could be anywhere" architecture. And, of course, there is the politics/religion/education, etc., differences. I'm pretty live and let live. I hate politics and don't care about your religion. Sadly, I have many loved ones that are just the opposite. On a regular basis - being there might be too close for comfort. I don't know if I'll stay in LA or even California when I retire in a few years - but I don't know that I'll go back to Nashville either.
For now, LA is fine. Plenty do to all of the time, a variety of everything you could possibly want. Excellent medical care. Not far from a lot of great vacation destinations. But I'm older, divorced and no kids. Totally subjective - depends on each person's situation and desires. That's my two cents.
I noticed in Phoenix most of the higher salaries were because of transfers from more expensive areas. If I were to move back there (purely speculative, wouldn't ever) I wouldn't have the option to transfer and would need to find a new job, which would mean taking a huge pay cut. The cost of living there is getting ridiculous too, and I didn't see any benefit I was getting out of that place. OKC is much different in that the cost of living seems to be fairly stable, and proportionately pay is much higher. I also wouldn't move back there again, despite my family living there. I wouldn't even consider Dallas.
I just talked to my dad about money/career and my job in Oklahoma came up. Had I stayed, I probably would've been in upper management by now and would have been making a lot more money, even compared to what I make now. Still, I feel I made the right decision. I think there's only so much money you can make before you plateau, and it felt like no amount would have made me happy there. In my experience, if you have doubts now, you probably shouldn't go back. When I accepted the job to move to Phoenix I had a nagging voice to not accept it, not quit, and the whole drive there I really felt like I was making a huge mistake. Things eventually worked out, but it really was a mistake and I wish I could take it back... but then again, had I not taken it, I have no idea what chain of events would have happened instead.
if you are living there or have lived there, do you or did you enjoy it? Why or why not?
Both enjoyed and didn't enjoy.
Enjoy: Jobs, plenty of shopping, great weather, sports teams, universities, sporting venues (Coliseum, Dodger Stadium, Rose Bowl), Griffith Park, Peterson Auto Museum, and when I was younger clubs with new and upcoming bands.
No enjoy: traffic, housing prices, typical mid 20th century lack of planning, most schools full of low performing kids, smog (but not as bad as it used to be), many ugly streetscapes,
Now live just outside Los Angeles where there are jobs but it's more spread out and planned.
Yeah, I know where Reno is. While affirmative action can create issues for white people finding work, we have a long history of marginalization and racism against POC to account for and this is one way it happens. You'll never hear me say or see me write that "affirmative action is reverse racism" because it isn't, and that kind of thinking only serves to further marginalize POC.
Your white guilt is holding you back. Affirmative action is government-mandated discrimination against white people. To claim otherwise is disingenuous.
If you are born, raised, acclimated to, or can flat out afford the immediate coastal areas of L.A/SoCal, then it's quite the place. If you're struggling in L.A., living Inland, a 909'er, a beer guzzling Midwest transplant, etc etc than Phoenix is the better choice. And I genuinely mean that no sarcasm. Decades of experience in many cities in and around L.A.
Not enough career options in the large metropolitan 'flyover' areas of the US? No large LGBT community?
.
LOL I come from a medium sized city in East TN. I worked in Beverly Hills restaurant for a little while for the fun and the people of course asked the "what's it like to be gay in Tennessee" and I responded that at the last restaurant I worked at in Knoxville there were 7 gay guys, and just two (including me) at that Beverly Hills place. Haha. They were like "oh."
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