Officially Scared Now! LOL! (Phoenix, Mesa: houses, neighborhoods, schools)

[Finger Laker]

unless for spring training - watching the brewers @ maryvale is a hidden gem - great little park

[w1ngzer0]

Originally Posted by mtc81usa

Howdy!
Is that the proper way to greet Phoenicians? Or do I have you mixed up with Oklahoma Citians? LOL! (My wife and I spent a lifetime there back in the 80's)

Anyhoodles, you guys are scaring the hell out of me, and I haven't even reached your fair city yet. My wife and I will be relocating from Metro Detroit to Phoenix fairly soon, and I'd like to give you posters an idea of what an outsider feels like when he/she reads these threads. Here are a few observations ;-)

There's a lot of CRIME in Phoenix!!!

It's freakin' HOT! (Please notice there is NO smiley face or "LOL" here)

"Stay away from MARYVALE!" (Hey, this would make a good t-shirt) LOL!

Let's go around the horn, shall we?
You got your basic:

1) Snobsdale

2) Older, established, green, unPhoenix-like, artsy-fartsy, ecclectic, Mom-and-Pop, if you got the balls to live there, Central Phoenix to North Central Phoenix

3) Ghetto(LOL) West Valley

4) Big-Money(they need it to pay for gas, plus wear-and-tear) North Peoria crowd. Kudos to the school system, if you've got the money for the home alarm.

5) Can't get there from here: Surprise (But, somehow, people do anyways)

6) Charming, standard-issue, "F-18 vapor trail communities" of Litchfield Park, etc., complete with the SUN in your eyes commute to and from work, on I-10 where traffic really doesn't move, but somehow you get where you're going. LOL!

7) Don't get caught living in Avondale or Goodyear(We'll leave Buckeye and Estrella out of it, because they are just that - OUT OF IT), because, well, Avondale and Goodyear are just not places worth living in. Fear of crime, heavy industry, various demographic issues, I-10 commute(see above)

8) Uh, that area to the South, I think it's called Laveen? Forget about it! Too close to the Buckeye Road industrial area and South Central Phoenix.
Plus, there's nothing out there but new homes and scorpions. Nice view of the South Mountains, though. LOL!

9) The Tempe College Crowd, Happenin', Pricey, Occasional SHOOTING in West Mesa, Hard to commute to East Valley. Sure, South Chandler, South Gilbert, and Queen Creek are nice, but how do you get there?

10) And of course there's always the ever-present, well-established, over-populated, nothing-exciting-ever-happens-in Mesa(except, see above)

I guess that just about covers it from my end. I'm still trying to sift through the rubble in the hopes of finding somewhere to hang my hat after a long hard day in the Salt Mines.
Oh yeah, that BIG, YELLOW THING IN THE SKY sucks the life right out of you, so forget about keeping your fresh, funny, Midwestern sense of humor, because life as you know it - is OVER!

Did I miss something here? Paradise Valley? McDowell Ranch? Anthem?...

Suddenly, Metro Detroit is looking pretty freakin' good!!!
GO RED WINGS!!!
Somebody, PLEASE, set me straight.

bahahaha anyhoodles? hilarious. I wouldn't touch Detroit with a 10 ft pole.
United States cities by crime rate - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[Synergy38]

Phenomenal thread! The board goes overboard to the point that I now avoid the place.

One thing to keep in mind is that people that are happy are likely the ones to keep quiet, those that are unhappy are easy to bash anything really.

[aj661]

Originally Posted by twiggy

It's city-data forum, everyone exaggerates on here.

Twiggy, Twiggy, Twiggy....Everyone exaggerates??? I think you're exaggerating Ma'am.

[j760]

Originally Posted by aj661

Twiggy, Twiggy, Twiggy....Everyone exaggerates??? I think you're exaggerating Ma'am.

Now your just exaggerating.

[aj661]

Originally Posted by j760

Now your just exaggerating.

Who me? Never!

mtc81usa, Something else to keep in mind once you get here... Do not, under any circumstance, use your horn while driving. It could get you shot.

Do not greet Phoenicians with "howdy". In fact, do not greet them at all. We don't talk to strangers. Or our neighbors. You can smile and wave at them after you've been in the neighborhood for a year or so, but don't be surprised if you get a blank stare or no acknowledgement at all in return. They're not being rude, it's just that those that see you might not know what to make of such odd behavior and the others were avoiding eye contact and didn't see you.

[sberdrow]

Originally Posted by aj661

Who me? Never!

mtc81usa, Something else to keep in mind once you get here... Do not, under any circumstance, use your horn while driving. It could get you shot.

Do not greet Phoenicians with "howdy". In fact, do not greet them at all. We don't talk to strangers. Or our neighbors. You can smile and wave at them after you've been in the neighborhood for a year or so, but don't be surprised if you get a blank stare or no acknowledgement at all in return. They're not being rude, it's just that those that see you might not know what to make of such odd behavior and the others were avoiding eye contact and didn't see you.

I greet with "Howdy", My 6 year old son keeps telling me to stop it.

[Phoenix lady]

Originally Posted by aj661

Who me? Never!

mtc81usa, Something else to keep in mind once you get here... Do not, under any circumstance, use your horn while driving. It could get you shot.

Do not greet Phoenicians with "howdy". In fact, do not greet them at all. We don't talk to strangers. Or our neighbors. You can smile and wave at them after you've been in the neighborhood for a year or so, but don't be surprised if you get a blank stare or no acknowledgement at all in return. They're not being rude, it's just that those that see you might not know what to make of such odd behavior and the others were avoiding eye contact and didn't see you.

You are very funny. You got it right, it takes a good year to get a smile or hello, but God forbid, don't ask a "stranger" any personal questions like, "How are you today"? "Where are you from"? And, God forbid don't strike up a friendly conversation beyond that. You might be arrested and have to go visit Sheriff Joe for awhile.
I was in Detroit a month ago (not where I"m from, just a visit). My husband said, "It's so weird, everyone is saying 'Hi, how are you, where are you from, here for a visit?'" He didn't know how to react. I said this is normal behavior, remember??

[Ponderosa]

Where do you all live? People in my neighborhood, wave, say hello, and even do things together. We take their kids on vacation with ours and vice versa. We go to movies with our neighbors and have cul-de-sac parties. I know every one of my neighbors by first name, and even know all their dogs names as well. When we moved here, people came over to say hello, bring us brownies and cookies. I have to admit it was weird. We even wondered if we ought to eat them - maybe they were poisoned or something (we moved from the east side). But I think that was the difference. Someone said hello.

If you don't like the distance, why wait for the other person? So many post about how cold and distant people are in Phoenix. People are people everywhere. Make like a WalMart greeter. Say hello yourself and see what happens.

[Beena]

Ya know, moving here is optional.

Instead of listing all the reasons you fear moving here, you could just stay put.