Love for oc lost (Los Angeles, Irvine: crime, townhome, neighborhood)

[chgodon]

I was born and raised in a Chicago Suburb. The Wonder Years type
neighborhood. At 28, I moved to orange county.
Loved everything orange county had to offer. I've been here 20 years and learned a lot. Here are my conclusions after 20 years:

- Unless you're still in your twenties, night life sucks.
- Breast implants for a girl's HS graduation gift.
- Newport women who have cloned themselves. Say stepford wives?
- Older women competing with twenty something girls in the dating scene.
- Traffic sucks. 45 min on the 57 from Brea to the crush
- Housing costs. Brea 500 sq' junior apt for $1,100
- Everybody is in a freakin rush to get some place. Then they turn around and start all over.
- The weather is like ground hog day
- I have a few friends, but strangers in public are so rude.
- Most of south county residents are materialistic.
- Neighbors are afraid to talk to each other
- Protesting if one sneezes the wrong way.

There are a few exceptions to the above, but it takes a long time to find those genuine people. I plan on returning to the midwest. Things are more laid back, strangers are more friendlier and it's not all about what you drive. Yes, it gets cold, but who wants to go out when it's 95 to 110 degrees. Great area for vacation, but not to live

[Charles]

Originally Posted by chgodon

At 28, I moved to orange county.
Loved everything orange county had to offer.

So what do you think changed more? Orange County, or you? A lot of the negatives today are positives to a person 20 years younger, right?

[BRinSM]

to each their own.

[Coldjensens]

Both posts are mostly correct. We moved to OC for 18 years then returned to the midwest, but still spend about 15 weeks a year in OC. A lot of the tihngs set out in the OP are pretty accurate as far as generalizations go. However they only apply to about 60% of the people in OC at the most. There are a lot of terrific people in OC. However there is a prevailing atmosphere of pretentense and selfishness. It is not overwhelming, but it is there. We were glad to get our children away from it. Maybe they can return for a while after they have some solidly rooted midwestern values and a good work ethic.

I do not agree about people being unfriendly. I found people to be very friendly, but many are very shallow. It is easy to make friendly aquaintances, somewhat more difficult to make true friends. However we terribly miss a lot of dear frineds.

Until you are in your middle 30s or your children are over 5, Orange County is still one of the best places in the world to live. People just need to stop trying to hang on to their youth and move away making room for more youthful persons who want to live in OC. We did our part (except that our house has sat empty since we sold it three years ago). Your turn - go for it.

[brianguy]

OC (like much of California) is not getting better, that's for sure... it will only stay the same or get worse. and about 95% of what you say about it is exactly true.

[Coldjensens]

BTW the best thing about our move was getting away from the constant rush here and then rush off someowhere else. When everyone is in a rush, they often forget to be polite.

[brianguy]

Originally Posted by Coldjensens

Until you are in your middle 30s or your children are over 5, Orange County is still one of the best places in the world to live.

though my above post was mostly negative (and agreeing with the OP), I wonder how you came up with the above. isn't Irvine supposed to be one of the best places to raise a family? there are a few others communities in OC that come to mind which are similar.

but one of the knocks against OC is that it's relatively "boring" meaning not enough nightlife, which is why people here go out of their way to head to LA or Vegas for a little more excitement. so if you're 25-30 or even younger, how is that ideal

[Coldjensens]

Originally Posted by brianguy

though my above post was mostly negative (and agreeing with the OP), I wonder how you came up with the above. isn't Irvine supposed to be one of the best places to raise a family? there are a few others communities in OC that come to mind which are similar.

but one of the knocks against OC is that it's relatively "boring" meaning not enough nightlife, which is why people here go out of their way to head to LA or Vegas for a little more excitement. so if you're 25-30 or even younger, how is that ideal

I had never heard Irvine touted as a best place to raise a family. You Piqued my curiosity so I did some internet searches. I found a lot of lists. None included Irvine. One article wisely stated that it depends on what is important to you. The lists varied wildly. One list even included Los Angeles (but not irvine - now I woudl certianly think Irvine woudl be a better place to raise a family than LA).

Where is the best place to raise a family depends on what factors are considered. You can come out with very differnet results if you weigh factors differently or exclue some factors while including others not included. Do you want the most pediatricians per capita? Most dollars spent per studen in schools? Best test scores on the SAT or ACT? Most playgrounds or parks per capita? Most skateboard parks? Lowest crime rate? Affordable housing?

We did nto find anywhere in OC to be a good place to raise a family. You can raise good kids there (we did) but it takes more work on the parents part than in other places.

The moral atmosphere in CA is generally terrible. Too many chilren are raised with no principals and no work ethic. Many are handed anything they could want with no effort to earn anything and they look with disdain on others who have lesser brand clothing, cars, etc. Sexual morality is almost non-existient. UNderage sex is actually encouraged by a large number of parents. Girls dress like hookers and guys dress like gangbangers in many schools, including the "good" schools (actually many of the lesser ranked schools have a uniform policy). Even the "good" schools are not that great in national comparisons (again depending on which factors are considered). The kids are indoctrinated in social viewpoints as much as they are taught what they need for college. the lifestyle is unwholesome Everything is rush rush rush and many of the schools are insanley competitive. Most of the kids are stressed out. The schools are too large and the kids recieve little personal attention.

Many of these problems exist everywhere to some extent, but to a much greater extent in OC than in amny other places. Certainly a lot of places are worse.

Frankly, I would not want to raise kids in any crowded place. We did raise our kids most of the way in OC then moved. For their sake, I wish that we had moved sooner, but I sure enjoyed living in OC.

[chgodon]

I'll to comment on view questions. Yes, I did change from my 28 yr old lifestyle. Now I pay more attention to housing costs. 300,000 to 400,000 for a townhome? I can get a 4 bedroom single home on 1 acre of land in a a midwestern suburb for 200,000. I pay more attention to over population/traffic. I pay more attention to values.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not bashing ALL of the OC. You're right. My original post applies to 60% of the people. I'm sure there are many down to earth, good people. My post reflected on an over view of the OC lifestyle. A lifestyle that I do NOT see going back to the Midwest once a year.

I live in Brea which has a midwestern feel to it. I love my job. I've worked for the county for 19 yrs and drive out in the fieldl. I have 19 years experience working in our 19 contracted cities. I promote entertainment in restaurants, so I'm up on pop culture and social events. Yes, people in the oc are shallow. Yes, young girls are walking around like hookers and soccer moms acting like they're still in college. I'm sorry....getting a little tired of contacting retail clerks and they either can't speak english or they ignore I'm at the register.

If your young attending college or into the club scene, OC is great. I can't remember when someone held the door for me at the mall. Don't even get me started when people just walk in front of you and cut you off in the mall. Visit South Coast and tell me the clientele hasn't changed.

I have hundreds of aquaintances. I can count how many friends on one hand. Brea fires came two blocks from my apt...not one call from CA to see how I was doing. All my calls were from friends in Chicago. Of course, OC friends call when they want VIP in Vegas or in Newport.

Irvine is not the best place to raise a family. Irvine was voted the "safest" place per the FBI.

I appreciate all the input from posters. Just posted my reasons to wanting the most housing for my money, a slower pace lifestyle where people don't ignore you.

[chgodon]

Another thing about being shallow. In the Midwest, if a guy is a janitor or plumber, puts food on the table and respects his wife, it doesn't matter if he's fat, bald etc...

Here in OC, it's what you drive or where you work. I believe people deserve the best, but don't judge me because of what I drive.