Regret moving? (Rutherford: crime, hotel, schools)

[septimus]

yallwantham-
My daughter was at a secular private school. She mentioned Richard Dawkins in class one day and suffered unrelenting classmates constantly telling her they were "praying she'd find Jesus".

I was raised episcopalian. I was taught to keep religion close to the vest. I find the overt profession of christianity suspect due to my upbringing and it is everywhere here. I find it odd when people tell me to have a "blessed day". I'm definitely hyperp-sensitive to it.

[CountryGirl2b=]

Moved from Connecticut two years ago. No regrets. We DO miss Mohegan Sun Casino (really, it's stunning) and lobster, but that's about it.

Have seen flights to BDL which is in Springfield RT on Southwest more in the $325 range . . . when I was looking at houses it was $140 RT!!! Something happened to airfares! But it's not THAT far from Boston and an easier drive?

[N.Cal]

I've only been here one month but I'd move back to California right now if it wouldn't be a huge financial penalty to me. Pretty much everything Aaronmidnight and septmus said.

[El Passeaux]

Originally Posted by septimus

yallwantham-
My daughter was at a secular private school. She mentioned Richard Dawkins in class one day and suffered unrelenting classmates constantly telling her they were "praying she'd find Jesus".

I was raised episcopalian. I was taught to keep religion close to the vest. I find the overt profession of christianity suspect due to my upbringing and it is everywhere here. I find it odd when people tell me to have a "blessed day". I'm definitely hyperp-sensitive to it.

I grew up in Massachusetts as well, in the western suburbs. I have said this many times on this chat that the biggest adjustment moving down here is the openness about religion and how it plays a central theme in most peoples lives. In the Northeast, its very private and religion is not talked about. Here its one of the main topics. If you dont learn to embrace it or say at least appreciate peoples outwardness of religion, you are never going to feel comfortable in the South.

With that said, I love Nashville. Everytime I go home, I say I could never live in Massachusetts again.

[BirdieBelle]

Originally Posted by N.Cal

I've only been here one month but I'd move back to California right now if it wouldn't be a huge financial penalty to me. Pretty much everything Aaronmidnight and septmus said.

As I recall, we did try to warn you, as did your friend who lives here.

[sucrose]

Originally Posted by YallWantHam

I have a question for people who complain about religion... What is it that bothers you exactly?

I guess you're used to it because it's so familiar? Like the nutty aunt that freaks out your friends but you're immune because she's your nutty aunt. If you were raised in a culture where religion is questioned/doubted, it just feels very Stepford-ish. I guess some of us are more creeped out than others.

[N.Cal]

Originally Posted by Wmsn4Life

As I recall, we did try to warn you, as did your friend who lives here.

True. And he's out of here.. To California. I only have 11 months left.

[ariesjow]

Originally Posted by YallWantHam

I have a question for people who complain about religion... What is it that bothers you exactly? I've lived in Tennessee my whole life, mostly in Nashville. I have never been religious, have been to church less than 10-15 times in my entire life, and have told numerous people that I am not religious when they start talking to me about religion. I have never once had any kind of bad/hostile reaction after telling someone this, the most common being "that's alright/live a good life" etc. The worst I've had is people ask me why, I tell them it's just not for me, and that's the end of it. I have no issue with people who are religious, or businesses that advertise they are religious. I feel that some people like to be bothered by things just so they can complain about it, or think that people who don't share their opinions are wrong (when the matter is subjective anyway). So my question is: what exactly bothers you about religion? Do people make you feel ostracized because you aren't religious, or is there some other reason?

It's possibly just because you've lived here your whole life and are used to it. I'm a native Nashvillian as well and also agnostic. The strong religiosity in the South tends to not bother me as much as it bothers others I know who are from other regions that are more secular (including Christians from other regions). Much like you, I rarely encounter people who make a big deal out of my beliefs (I can't think of any, tbh). However, I rarely find religion to be an appropriate topic of discussion in most of my daily encounters with others.

This is not to say that I do not understand where others are coming from when they complain about the hyper-religiosity in the South. It is undoubtedly just that: hyper. I'm just more bothered about the sometimes subtle but rather persistent manner in which some of our state leaders choose to push their personal beliefs onto others. I thought we were stepping back in time with some of the bills coming out of the TN legislature this past session. Thankfully, most of that craziness wasn't proposed by legislators from the Nashville metro.

We do have our own recent blemishes for me. The mosque situation was incredibly embarrassing for our metro and not at all consistent with the "live and let live" spirit I am greeted with from most Nashvillians. Those sort of things bother me exponentially more than the occasional "have a blessed day" which I manage to find somewhat endearing. There are certainly worse things people could say to me.

[southernsmoke]

Originally Posted by ariesjow

I'm just more bothered about the sometimes subtle but rather persistent manner in which some of our state leaders choose to push their personal beliefs onto others.

To be fair, all politicians (and voting citizens) try to "push their personal beliefs onto others," not just the politicians who disagree with you. I suspect it doesn't bother you if the beliefs being pushed happen to be your beliefs.

So to put your statement in more objective terms, you are more bothered by being a political minority in the state than by being surrounded by "religious" folks.

[Sorry--it really bothers me when one side indignantly claims that the other side is "pushing their beliefs on everyone," as if the other side couldn't say the exact same thing. I just feel like our dialogue could be healthier if we all just acknowledged that reality.]

[ariesjow]

Originally Posted by southernsmoke

So to put your statement in more objective terms, you are more bothered by being a political minority in the state than by being surrounded by "religious" folks.

I am bothered by politicians trying to legislate their personal religious beliefs. That is it. Perhaps I chose my words poorly and should have stated just that in my previous post. Trust me, I'm not bothered about living in a "red state." If I had a problem being a "political" minority, I most certainly wouldn't have chosen to move back to Tennessee. But here I am voluntarily, loving it and not leaving anytime soon.

That said, I am quite bothered by some of the bills that both passed and failed this past session for a whole myriad of reasons not suited for this thread. I am also bothered that some people can be so fervent about their own faith and fearful of others that they try to suppress people of different faiths e.g., the recent mosque controversy.