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Looks like I'll probably land the job that I came down to Virginia to interview for. But the interviewer asked me twice. Are you sure you wanna come here from Ca? "Virginia summers are hot and humid"
1. How many average over 100 degree days do you have in a year?
2. How many average days of sunshine you have in a year?
3. How many inches of snow per year? What months snow?
4. When does it start to warm up = 70 degrees? after march?
Is summer really that bad? Hot, humid, sticky.. sometimes rainy.. tornado?
I dunno?
Personally, I don't think the weather is horrible, it's just not great. I'm from the northeast, and I hated the summers here at first, but I've gotten used to them over the years. The real issue is no longer the discomfort of the heat and humidity (it's usually only really bad in August), but the fact that you can't do much outside in that kind of weather. For example, outdoors activities are hard to keep up with for me in VA. I used to love running, hiking, boating, etc., but here it's too hot and humid and the air quality is not good on those days. There are even days when it's too hot for the swimming pool. Then winter comes and it's too cold and wet and icy for outdoors stuff. I don't know how all the runners do it, but I can't. So I think that's the biggest difference for me between here and CA - the lack of good weather year-round for outdoor activities. If you're not a super outdoor person, then I don't think you'll hate it so much. More likely, the lack of walkable areas to live, beautiful ocean views (or an ocean within easy driving distance), and the relatively conservative atmosphere will bother you more.
As for being laid back, it's not. Not at all. Many people have posted on here about how hard it is to make friends, and I think that's true. People here are very work and family-oriented compared to other places I've lived. The vibe is so different from the bay area that I can't even begin to explain it. People aren't unfriendly, just busy. And you will probably live in a fairly boring suburban area without any of the charm and beauty of the bay area.
I grew up in Santa Barbara, and ended up here for college and stuck around. I'm one of the Californians who has had a tough time acclimating to the mentality and weather of the area. I'm really a Californian at heart, but the jobs are here (and my husband is from here), so I'll be sticking around for a while. If California ever gets their economy back in order, we'll be heading back to the west coast.
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Originally Posted by vishnu111
I should rephrase the question.. so you have a lot of over 90 days.. how many would you guess? Someone said 90 deg with humidity feels like 110.
I don't know how many there are (though you could look it up), but in general at least 1-2 months of the year are "muggy" enough that I don't go outside unless there is water involved or the sun is going down. Otherwise it's like walking into a spray of pam. And then you're gross and sweaty, and the gnats and mosquitoes stick to you. Ew.
Actually, that's a major difference too. BUGS. Back "home" (I guess it's not really home anymore; I haven't lived there for 8 years), I never had to wear bug spray. Here, I go through multiple cans a summer just so I can walk my dog and light the barbecue without getting eaten alive. We bought one of those mosquito zappers for our little backyard last summer, and even that + bug spray didn't keep away mosquitoes when I'd walk across the grass.
Then there's winter. It doesn't really snow much (despite the past two years), but it usually hovers in that nasty mid-30's range for January/February. As long as there's no wind, it's not bad, but once the wind chill kicks in it gets really nasty. I didn't own a winter coat before I moved here. Now, I think I own 20 pairs of mittens (not gloves, mittens are warmer!), a zillion scarves, and the warmest jackets Lands End sells. And I still bribe my husband to be the one to walk the dog at night.
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And what about the UV index.. Are all these over 90 days filled with high UV index days. See you can have a hot day in Ca but sometimes the UV index might be low.
Again, I assume you can look this up. I'm fair haired/skinned, so I burn if I don't put sunscreen on every day in the summer. UV index is high enough for that, at least.
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Also, please comment on the vibe. When I went to the interview, everyone generally seemed to be nice. Laid back like Ca, I don't know.. but may be just a little wound up tight. You ex-californians should be able to chime in on this..cause you can make a really good comparison.
I know for me, I'd never describe my coworkers as "laid back" in any job I've had out here. I met more people who "live to work" than "work to live" when I was an IT consultant. My coworkers who transferred to projects in California said it was common to leave early on Fridays to hit the surf or go golfing, and that was unheard of in the office in NoVA. The only time we got to leave early was when we had to work on the weekends But then, they'd probably have had a mutiny if we had worked more than 80 hours multiple weeks in a row.
People here are highly structured and highly efficient. As an example, I struggled a lot here inviting coworkers or church friends to dinner. Growing up, my parents would call up friends Saturday morning and ask if they wanted to come over Saturday or Sunday evening for dinner. Here, I have to schedule dinner dates 2-3 weeks in advance to plan around peoples' busy lives.
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I get the feeling there is more hospitality there than in the bay area.
I don't know that I'd call either place particularly full of hospitality. People aren't deliberately cold or rude, they're just really busy for the most part. I lived in the same house for 2 years and never got to know a single neighbor's name (despite knocking on their doors and leaving them Christmas cookies and such).
We just moved into a new house and have met 1 neighbor...working on trying to meet the others!
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Is it true people are more chatty over there.. every time I got on a plane to go to virginia/dc area.. I've had someone sit next to me. (politician type or other people) and they want to know my life story. I mean.. I don't initiate conversation yet they want to talk and talk and talk and talk.. and want to know every personal piece of information about you.
If I tried to do that to someone in Ca, I'd get shutdown in 5 seconds.. seriously 5 seconds..
No, I don't think people are more chatty. I've rarely spoken to seat mates on planes, despite flying back and forth to California 2-3x a year. Maybe you just look especially friendly Or I look especially rude.
Re the hot weather -- from an August 1, 2011, Washington Post article:
"In 2010 and 2011, the District has experienced its warmest spring, two of the top three hottest Junes, the hottest June day, the hottest two Julys, the hottest summer, the earliest 100-degree reading in a day, the longest stretch of temperatures above 80 degrees, the longest uninterrupted stretch above 100, and the hottest days so early and so late in the season."
Are you serious? You go through that many cans of bug spray during the summer. I don't think I've seen many Mosquitos in Ca at all since I moved here from India when I was 6. The only time I see Mosquitos is when I go back to India.
So mosquito bite is a serious issue in Va then?
What other bugs do you have and when do they come out?
Thanks for all your help, I realize I can look up some of the stuff but
generally the information is not as accurate as information obtained
from personal experience. That's why I have to ask.
Ok, so I haven't posted on city-data for awhile but I had to chime in here. I live in Centreville, VA which is in Fairfax County, and I've lived here all of my life pretty much. At one point I was closer to DC in Arlington, VA then moved down here. I am in the process of getting things together to move to Spokane, WA. Why? Because I don't really like it here for pretty much the questions you listed.
The summers are too hot for me, and the previous poster nailed it when they said you don't want to go outside in the late summer unless there's water involved or its nighttime. Mosquitos are pretty bad, and you have gnats too which are just annoying. I don't mind heat, but over here even 85 can feel gross because it's sticky. I've spent some time in Los Angeles during both summers and falls, and I loved it. Florida and New Orleans are obviously a lot worse, so it just depends what you're comparing.
As far as people, the good thing about Northern VA is that it's right outside DC, and you have alot of transplants that came here for government or military work, which results in some friendliness. But born and raised Northern VA/DC folks are not the friendliest, not because they're rude or snobby but just busy and caught up in their own thing. You have to make an effort to get to know people, because there aren't alot of natives that will go out of there way to welcome you. Obviously this may also vary on the neighborhood you live in. Centreville has been much more welcoming to me than Arlington, even though I grew up in Arlington.
Like I said, I'm moving to WA state because I don't really enjoy it here, but everyone will have a different experience. Tornados are not often a huge concern, but yes we have warnings every spring or summer so its always possible, but none are huge. I have to head to my basement at least once every season, but its always ok.
Overall, the concerns you have are justified, but they are not unbearable. Its humid but not so thick you can't breathe, just uncomfortable at times if you don't like to be sticky. People will differ, but you will find some good, friendly people just as you'll find some not so friendly people. Bugs are an issue, but not like Florida or South Carolina. Overall, its pretty average in its issues, and one thing I like is that you don't really need to worry much about natural disasters. We don't typically have huge blizzards, mudslides, big earthquakes, strong tornados, fires, hurricanes, heatwaves, etc. But we do have small incidents of these, sometimes. Hope that helps.
Are you serious? You go through that many cans of bug spray during the summer. I don't think I've seen many Mosquitos in Ca at all since I moved here from India when I was 6. The only time I see Mosquitos is when I go back to India.
So mosquito bite is a serious issue in Va then?
What other bugs do you have and when do they come out?
Thanks for all your help, I realize I can look up some of the stuff but
generally the information is not as accurate as information obtained
from personal experience. That's why I have to ask.
Well, then, you won't be homesick at all. We have mosquitos around the clock, thanks to invasive Asian tiger mosquitos that come out during the day and our native species that come out at night. It seems to be worse if you live near woods, like I do, although I remember killing a tiger mosquito that wanted to feed on me in the concrete wasterlands of Reston Town Center. Swarms of tiny gnats are even worse; when I mow the lawn they rise up like RAF Spitfires meeting a German bombing raid over London. Basically you can count on mosquitos and gnats for five solid months, from the beginning of May through the end of September, which is why I try to do my heavy-duty gardening in March and April. Maybe if you live in a less wooded or more urban section it isn't so bad, but in this corner of Northern Virginia it certainly is.
Are you serious? You go through that many cans of bug spray during the summer. I don't think I've seen many Mosquitos in Ca at all since I moved here from India when I was 6. The only time I see Mosquitos is when I go back to India.
So mosquito bite is a serious issue in Va then?
What other bugs do you have and when do they come out?
Yeah, lots of bugs. I mean, not so bad that walking from your car to the office is going to result in dozens of mosquito bites, but any time I walk through grass in the summer I end up with zillions of bites on my legs. Skeeters and gnats are the worst offenders bug wise, thought we've had big issues with japanese beetles and stink bugs the past few years as well.
Oh, and TICKS. Ugh. I haven't gotten any myself (Thank goodness!!!) but my dog gets a dozen each fall when she likes to bounce through piles of leaves on our walks or run through bushes in my yard.
California is very spoiled in it's lack of bugginess and mugginess. Virginia has good qualities, but humidity and bugs are not on that list.
Ah yes..the ticks. Ticks are a problem, but only if you're someone who hikes or likes to go pick strawberries or something. I will say I have gotten ticks on both myself and my son in a park. That was once, then 2 other times, once hiking, once picking blackberries. Lyme disease is prevalent in the area. But that's the western area of Northern VA. If you're close to the city, its not so bad. Spending bill focuses on Lyme disease | LoudounTimes.com
I just moved to Fairfax county a year ago from southern ca, and honestly I really don't like it here. yes, it's beautiful here and there is a lot of stuff to do, but I am seriously dreading spring and summer. I hated all the tornado warnings we had last year. Scariest thing I have ever been through. I didn't have a basement to hide in either. Never even heard of tornado warnings before, this was pretty horrible for me. There was one pretty recently I think in September or October that was really close by. I am terrified to have to deal with that again every year. Summer was horrible. I am allergic to mosquitos. I get baseball sized welts that get infected. Yes, I have gotten over 10 bites in the time it takes me to walk to my car from the house. There are also wasp nests everywhere in the summer. They even come in the house. It's horrid. Also I am really missing the beach. We are going to try to go to VA beach this summer, but it's just not the same. So, if you can deal with all of that, then you will be fine. Oh and yes, my 6 year old daughter was bitten by a tick last summer too.
I guess some of you must be more "desirable" to mosquitoes. Years ago when I had roommates, one was the same way - I told him I'd heard that taking B Complex supplement helped (it changes the scent of your skin or something) - anyway, it did help him. I don't have a big problem w/the skeeters, especially in the last few yrs. There was a big problem w/them yrs. ago around here but not lately. And I sit out on the deck (nice weather), go out to smoke, etc. Guess we all have different levels of tolerance? I don't recall it as being a terrible yr. for warnings (in fact, I thought there were much fewer than usual).
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And I still bribe my husband to be the one to walk the dog at night.
But then, they'd probably have had a mutiny if we had worked more than 80 hours multiple weeks in a row.
Mosquitos?
