There and Back (Boston, Lexington: rental, low crime, homes)
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Anyone move out of Mass and then move back here?
Where and why did you move? Why did you move back? Did you like your new location or were you homesick?
Anyone move out of Mass and then move back here?
Where and why did you move? Why did you move back? Did you like your new location or were you homesick?
Very good question. We moved from California to Virginia in 2003...stayed there long enough to realize that I didn't enjoy the terrible humidity and public smoking and moved to Lexington Ma. after a two day visit. We lived there for a year and loved it except for the mosquitos. During a visit back in Los Angeles, my son and I had a lapse in judgement and wanted to move back to be near our family which we did two month later. We moved back where my son was born and where I started my married life in Westlake Village,Ca. It is a lovely area but very superficial and kind of far from anything interesting which makes us feel claustraphobic. We found you really can't go back and recapture what once was and really missed New England. We felt more at home there than our own home town. Maybe that has to do with not originally being from California but transplanted East Coasters when we were little. All I know is we liked the honesty and character of Boston not to mention never feeling for the lack of something to do or see and then there is Pizza Regina's! I find myself trying to find movies that have been filmed in New England just to transport myself there temporarily.
I was amazed while living in Boston how few people had ever been to California as if that was a destination everyone should take,not. People leave here everyday..they come and go like the weather looking for their dreams here only to find a nightmare.
We are originally from SoCal, but lived for almost 5 years in MA after my husband finished his MBA in CA (we moved to MA for a job). Then we moved to Dallas. We were in TX for 2 years and although we are not MA natives, we were homesick. I totally get what Puffle is saying. I mainly missed the down to earth people, the clean air, the trees, big yards, the history, the interesting architecture, good public schools, low crime (not everywhere in MA, I know)and the general "live and let live" attitude out here. Oh, and Dunkin Donuts. Boy did I miss Dunkin Donuts.
So many times I find myself missing my friends and family back in CA, and we have tossed around going back many times, But....the quality of life I can provide my kids here is beyond what I ever had in CA, and certainly what kind of life they could ever have now.
Very good question. We moved from California to Virginia in 2003...stayed there long enough to realize that I didn't enjoy the terrible humidity and public smoking and moved to Lexington Ma. after a two day visit. We lived there for a year and loved it except for the mosquitos. During a visit back in Los Angeles, my son and I had a lapse in judgement and wanted to move back to be near our family which we did two month later. We moved back where my son was born and where I started my married life in Westlake Village,Ca. It is a lovely area but very superficial and kind of far from anything interesting which makes us feel claustraphobic. We found you really can't go back and recapture what once was and really missed New England. We felt more at home there than our own home town. Maybe that has to do with not originally being from California but transplanted East Coasters when we were little. All I know is we liked the honesty and character of Boston not to mention never feeling for the lack of something to do or see and then there is Pizza Regina's! I find myself trying to find movies that have been filmed in New England just to transport myself there temporarily.
I was amazed while living in Boston how few people had ever been to California as if that was a destination everyone should take,not. People leave here everyday..they come and go like the weather looking for their dreams here only to find a nightmare.
Puffle,
Your comments on CA vs Boston living caught my attention. I'm in Boston but currently considering taking a job in Thousand Oaks which is right next to Westlake Village. I certainly would not want to live in there if it's as what you had described! I just don't know much about the area. I'd love to hear more from you on TO surrounding areas. I'm trying to decide whether to live in between LA and TO since I will need to drive in to LA on weekends, or live more toward Camirillo or Oxnard where temerature is not as hot relatively (i was told)?
Thank You!!
Puffle,
Your comments on CA vs Boston living caught my attention. I'm in Boston but currently considering taking a job in Thousand Oaks which is right next to Westlake Village. I certainly would not want to live in there if it's as what you had described! I just don't know much about the area. I'd love to hear more from you on TO surrounding areas. I'm trying to decide whether to live in between LA and TO since I will need to drive in to LA on weekends, or live more toward Camirillo or Oxnard where temerature is not as hot relatively (i was told)?
Thank You!!
I guess it matters what is most important to you. If you have kids it is a double edged sword....best public schools vs. extreme keep up with the Jones'. It is also very expensive here to rent and buy. The average home to buy in a nice area would be around $700k and up. A two bedroom rental will run about $1800 and up. If you will be working in Thousand Oaks than I would stay close by since traffic is a nightmare, nothing like Boston! Camarillo is cooler but dead and highly Latino as is Oxnard. Parts of Ventura are very charming and probably less than T.O but again very Latino, both good and bad. We are only 20 minutes to the beach without going on the freeway which connects you to Malibu and Zuma Beach and the Pacific Coast Hwy. Again, if you have school age kids, I would stick to T.O.,Westlake Village or Oak Park but just know that it is superficial. Let me know if I can help more.
Very Perceptive. I moved to California, from Massachusetts, 2 years ago because something inside me was eager to find out if the promise of the Golden West was true. I wanted to have more sunshine, a beautiful home, near a real ocean, wild desert, the Sierras and other scenic beauty within reasonable distance. I also desired friendlier people than were found in NewEngland. I had been headhunted by a corporation in the Sacramento region to pay for it all.
I spent a year in California, living in a big stucco house, squeezed into a tiny lot with a swimming pool, a gym, and a theatre room, (not getting out much because of the heat). When I did get out, I squeezed into the evilest of traffic jams because everything nice about California was being discovered by millions of other people at the same time. Lots of traffic. And driving hours in incredible traffic to experience nature was the only way to get away from the tiny yards and extreme heat of the valley. California is only fun if you have a lot of money because everything costs a lot there! People are cool, know how to dress and really are beautiful, but its true that they are superficial.
I came back to where things are more natural and accessible and nobody pretends to be anything other than what they are (unless they are salesmen, of course). I learned that Massachusetts is more set-up to accomodate the human spirit than most other places. By this I mean that its a state full of educated people and a tried and true infrastructure. And we do have bigger yards, too.
I'm glad that I experienced California. Next time I go back, I will know what to expect. But I am settled in Massachusetts for now.
Very Perceptive. I moved to California, from Massachusetts, 2 years ago because something inside me was eager to find out if the promise of the Golden West was true. I wanted to have more sunshine, a beautiful home, near a real ocean, wild desert, the Sierras and other scenic beauty within reasonable distance. I also desired friendlier people than were found in NewEngland. I had been headhunted by a corporation in the Sacramento region to pay for it all.
I spent a year in California, living in a big stucco house, squeezed into a tiny lot with a swimming pool, a gym, and a theatre room, (not getting out much because of the heat). When I did get out, I squeezed into the evilest of traffic jams because everything nice about California was being discovered by millions of other people at the same time. Lots of traffic. And driving hours in incredible traffic to experience nature was the only way to get away from the tiny yards and extreme heat of the valley. California is only fun if you have a lot of money because everything costs a lot there! People are cool, know how to dress and really are beautiful, but its true that they are superficial.
I came back to where things are more natural and accessible and nobody pretends to be anything other than what they are (unless they are salesmen, of course). I learned that Massachusetts is more set-up to accomodate the human spirit than most other places. By this I mean that its a state full of educated people and a tried and true infrastructure. And we do have bigger yards, too.
I'm glad that I experienced California. Next time I go back, I will know what to expect. But I am settled in Massachusetts for now.
After trying to get out of Westlake Village, the bubble, to go to a museum, we go stuck in the usual traffic for nothing. No accidents, no one pulled over, just too many people in La. I can't tell you how many times this happens on a weekend. We try to escape to culture? and get stuck on the freeway and finally turn around. This happens going north to Santa Barbara and south to connect to another frwy to find life. My husband and I laugh when we read posts from Virginia and Ma. because you all think your traffic jams are something. Ha!! When I was younger you never had traffic on the frwys on weekends which make get aways easy,but not now. Can't wait to go back to Boston and have public transportation again!
Wow! Wow! Wow! THANK YOU all so much for sharing your experience. I now feel I have some idea of the population demographics, how bad the traffic is and how hot the valley area gets in summer. I will keep you posted if i move forward with my plan to relocate to CA ....
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There and Back
