Are you glad you moved back to Pittsburgh? (Oakland, Mexico: apartment, hotel)

[burghgirl]

I know there are a lot of people, like me and my husband, who are trying to move back to Pittsburgh after several years living in another city. For those of you who have moved back to the Burgh, are you happy with the decision to move back? What do you love about being back in the Pittsburgh area?

Was it worth the move, or do you wish you had stayed where you were?

Just curious...and thanks for your responses.

[PeterRabbit]

Not glad to be back. It's almost always been better elsewhere. I'm here and make the best of it. I'm pro Pittsburgh but personally I'll keep most of my thoughts about it to myself.

[raubre]

Yesterday, I met someone in my volunteer group that has moved back to Pittsburgh from LA after being there for 15 years. He hated it there and is glad to be back.

[alleghenyman]

I lived in NYC for four years and upstate NY for 3 and I moved back here 2 years ago. People I went to law school with who went to NYC thought I was nuts or felt bad for me but I feel the same about them.

I missed the quality of life and just all the little things like the beauty of the area, the low cost of living, laid back people, all the outdoor recreation, a vibrant city with a sense of history. I feel that most people who moved away from here for awhile appreciate it more than the people who never left.

I liked NYC and Ithaca in their own ways - NYC had good nightlife but the cost of living and quality of life were terrible and I never felt part of any community despite having many friends. Ithaca was in a pretty area and the cost of living was low, and it was fun for a small town, but the economy was terrible.

Ultimately, there are people who would be happier living in Florida or NYC or even Cleveland (don't laugh, I know someone like this) but if you know there are things about this area that you like, then there aren't a lot of negatives to detract from that.

[ExPit]

I'd say it depends on two things, your personality type and where you would be moving from.

Years ago on a whim (which is consistent with my personality type), I sold or gave away all my furniture, packed what clothes I regularly wore, got on the 10 East and drove...

It was a winter month so I kept on the Southern route across the country to avoid the weather, and got real lucky in that regard, not a drop of rain or any precipitation smudged my windshield.

I made overnight stops in New Mexico, Texas and Missouri, (I had left some valuables in the Texas hotel and since I'd given them a real address of an aunt in Pittsburgh, they sent them to me, (nice gesture I thought, had to be a good omen).

Pulled into Pittsburgh on a Sunday night, my first mistake, and though I'd had a bad feeling once I hit the woods of West Virginia, I figured as soon as I hit the city I'd be ok. Not so. The deadness that I had forgotten is a part of my hometown hit me right in the face from my first night in an Oakland hotel and stayed with me until I left. Deadness= lack of a pulse.

I got an apartment downtown, (true pioneer that I was), a nice apartment with a skyline view that I thought would cheer me up, but it didn't. This was my second mistake ... make a long story short, I knew from the time I crossed the Fort Pitt Bridge that I had made a mistake by going home, which was my first, only mistake, and spent the next six months trying to undo it...

[cupatea4me]

I grew up here in the sub of pit. I lived in New Mexico for 6 years, and 1 year in Mississippi in my twentys. It was a military thing. You tell them where you want to go and they put you on the other side of the country.
Misssippi is sticky and the bugs are big enough to carry away a small dog. NM was better. I love the dry heat (yea there really is a big differance). The open road, the skyline, the TUMBLEWEED!!! But coming back here was like my soul coming home again. Yea the traffic and the snow. But there is nothing like the Burg and the community feeling.

[londonbarcelona]

Originally Posted by PeterRabbit

Not glad to be back. It's almost always been better elsewhere. I'm here and make the best of it. I'm pro Pittsburgh but personally I'll keep most of my thoughts about it to myself.

I regret moving here. It's very backward and behind the times. If this was where I grew up I suppose it would be fine. Most people feel best and most comfortable in familiar surroundings.

After having lived in so many other places, I'd say this and Richmond, VA are the only two places I really dislike.

[BrianTH]

I didn't grow up in Pittsburgh, have lived several different places and spent significant time in several more, and had the option to go elsewhere recently but chose to make Pittsburgh my permanent home anyway. So, it turns out not to be the case that Pittsburgh only appeals to people who grew up here.

[londonbarcelona]

Originally Posted by BrianTH

I didn't grow up in Pittsburgh, have lived several different places and spent significant time in several more, and had the option to go elsewhere recently but chose to make Pittsburgh my permanent home anyway. So, it turns out not to be the case that Pittsburgh only appeals to people who grew up here.

I never said, "Pittsburgh only appeals to people who grew up here." Please quit twisting my words, it's very unbecoming for a professional.

[pman]

Originally Posted by londonbarcelona

I never said, "Pittsburgh only appeals to people who grew up here." Please quit twisting my words, it's very unbecoming for a professional.

either that or you meant that only people who are backward and behind the times would enjoy it. what is so backward and behind the times about it? can you be a little more specific?