Is Los Angeles Magical? (transplants, income, income tax)

[EscapeCalifornia]

Originally Posted by FromVAtoNC

But...but...but... LA is a big time, wonderful, palm tree filled, sub-tropical paradise with beaches and movie stars. At least that's how it seems to me.

Haiti has plenty of palm trees, beaches, and a warm climate too. So it must be even better than LA, right?

There's more to making a city a nice place to live than weather, trees, and beaches. And the movie stars don't make the 405 move.

[Caladium]

Originally Posted by EscapeCalifornia

Haiti has plenty of palm trees, beaches, and a warm climate too. So it must be even better than LA, right?

I wouldn't know, I've never been there.

Originally Posted by EscapeCalifornia

There's more to making a city a nice place to live than weather, trees, and beaches. And the movie stars don't make the 405 move.

No argument here. When I think of LA I think of the aerospace engineers and government contractors I deal with. The Manhattan Studios are down the street from my office, but I don't need to go there to see if I can find a movie star, I'm very happy knowing the regular ordinary joes over at Northrop Grumman.

But none of this keeps me from agreeing with another poster that LA is a big time, wonderful, palm tree filled, sub-tropical paradise with beaches and movie stars.

Although I gotta admit I don't think too much about the movie stars. Based on my LA experience, perhaps the statement should be: LA is a big time, wonderful, palm tree filled, sub-tropical paradise with beaches and aerospace engineers.

[motoman]

Originally Posted by FromVAtoNC

But...but...but... LA is a big time, wonderful, palm tree filled, sub-tropical paradise with beaches and movie stars. At least that's how it seems to me.

Interesting fact I learned not too long ago is that palm trees are not native to this region. They were transplanted decades ago when LA was first starting out as a way to lure people to move out here. Now that some of the trees are getting old and dying off, the city is debating whether or not to replace them because of budget constraints.

[EscapeCalifornia]

Originally Posted by motoman

Interesting fact I learned not too long ago is that palm trees are not native to this region. They were transplanted decades ago when LA was first starting out as a way to lure people to move out here. Now that some of the trees are getting old and dying off, the city is debating whether or not to replace them because of budget constraints.

There's many species of palm trees but the one below is native to SoCal.

Washingtonia - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Too bad it's the ugliest of them all and looks like a big weed to me.

[vdy1985]

Yeah, the Canary Island Palms are dying but the native Washingtonia filfera (California Fan Palm) and almost native Washingtonia Robusta (Mexican Fan Palm) are still thriving. But it really would be nice to see LA with more sycamore trees and oak trees that are really native to the city of Los Angeles. Lots of nice shade for hot days.

[Lira]

I been coming out here to L.A. for a year and a half and moved here 6 months ago from the Bay Area. I too, felt the magic here. You HAVE to love it to live here, plain and simple. People tell me, you either love it or hate it. If you love it, you have to realize it has its ups and downs just like any other place you live. You also have to have a lot of "HUEVOS" (excuse my language) to live here! Str8 up! In my case, to most people, it sounds crazy but i LOVE the traffic, I LOVE crowded places, EVERYTHING to do with the city I LOVE IT!!! But if you have kids, I wouldnt recommend it unless your living in a really nice neighborhood. I would recommend Pasadena, Glendale or even San Fernando Valley near Northridge or so. I lived there and its really quiet and peaceful and if you wanna go to the city, its closer than it seems.

[zenkonami]

Wait...quiet and peaceful in which of those locations? Pasadena? Glendale? Northridge? You clearly have a very different definition of quiet and peaceful than I do!

I think you're right. It is a love it or hate it city. I don't like it. It's a fascinating city with no end of things to do, but it'll chew you up and spit you out. Takes a lot of energy just to make ends meet here, and a lot of energy to keep the chin up sometimes when the going gets tough. I'd rather make my own entertainment in a place that isn't trying to beat me up every day.

So for me, there is nothing magical about L.A. It's just a big city.

[Billygoat the Kid]

Originally Posted by Userdavey

I have been guilty of slamming my place here in the Springs too though. I was born in Abq., NM and lived there for 30 years until I found that Colo Spgs was pretty attractive looking. Suddenly, Abq. was the last place on earth I wanted to be. I hated it more and more everyday. The silver lining? I LEFT. I didn't start to dislike it until I had planned on leaving, so I think the dislike was more of a transition tool for my mind or just to help me divest.

Dave, you're from Albuquerque too? So am I. I have been following your posts and have to chime in here. I currently live in Albuquerque. I’ve lived here most of my life. I have also lived in Las Vegas, NV and L.A., specifically Long Beach and Malibu. I don't hate ABQ, but I am not really in love with it either. I will say that after a recent trip to L.A. last month that I really love L.A. and miss it dearly. It has a pulse & vibrancy that you cannot duplicate here in ABQ. This town has no pulse. It just... is. IOW, it's too slow for me and nothing gets done. There is no excitement. But I do like ABQ as it has some great stuff going for it. It's just not me. I own a home here and am doing well, but I do miss that so. cal. lifestyle.

When I told people here that I was moving to Vegas, they thought I was stupid. "What's in Vegas that's not here? I had a friend who moved there and blah, blah, blah. The crime there is awful. It's too hot." That's what people told me. When I told people I was moving to L.A., people here told me I was stupid. "It's too big. Too many earthquakes. Too many fires. Too many people/gangs/illegals/weirdos. Too expensive. All the gold in CA is gone. Too much crime. Blah, blah, blah." I succeeded in both cities. I enjoyed myself in both cities, made great friends, held great jobs, and had a great time. I will admit that Vegas was not the place for me. But I do enjoy going there whenever I can.

One of the things I found very difficult to do in L.A. was find a place to live. At the time when I moved out there, L.A. had about a 98% occupancy rate. I found a place in Malibu that was right across the street from where I held a job – a job that I found about 1 week into living in L.A. How's that for convenience? L.A. has perfect weather. The job market is good and pays much more than ABQ. People want to succeed there and they get stuff done. There is no real “manana” mentality there, and at the same time, people are still very laid back. I will say that the majority of people I ran into there were extremely friendly. And if anyone thinks that L.A. is devoid of any religion or morals, then they have their head in the sand. I have met more religious and well-rounded people in L.A. that have their heads on their shoulders than I ever dreamed of meeting.

As for the economy... the same putzes that are whining about jobs, economy and housing today are the same baby whiners that cried about that stuff 10 years ago. They are basically uneducated, whining babies that have no grasp of how the economy works nor are they smart enough to save money for the necessities in life. They are not all located in L.A. Many of them are whining right here in ABQ. They claim housing is too expensive, things cost too much, the economy is bad. Well, have they set aside $ for the bad economy? Did they buy a house a few years ago when they were gaining equity - or, are they currently looking for a home now that the market is down? I did. Guess it sucks to be you. The way I see it, the economy is not going to always be in a bull market. You have to prepare for the worst. Failure to prepare is preparing to fail. It’s up to the individual to have enough common sense to plan for a bad economy, housing, gas, health care, kids, utilities, expendables and retirement. How this has gotten lost on the American people is a mystery to me.

I will say this for you: if you want to move to L.A. then do so. I did 10 years ago and I loved it. Hell, I may just do it again. L.A. has everything the world can offer you in one, big city. You have the beach, pro sports, wineries, Mexico to the south, Vegas to the east, San Diego to the south, San Fran and wine country to the north, Joshua Tree Monument, Mammoth Lakes, Yosemite, farmers markets, great shopping, great restaurants and more cultures than you can count. If that's your calling, answer it.

You only live once.

[JabbaJabba]

i guess.

[Quatermass]

"Supernatural" is a word that more closely defines L.A. The feeling I get when I'm on the 5 driving the hell away from it could certainly be described as magical, though.

When I want "magical" I go to Disneyland. And at 70 bucks a head it damn well better be magical.