People who moved from the Bay area-- do you miss it or is life truly better in PDX? (Portland: home, schools)

[Yankeemama]

Originally Posted by pdwpdx

Just stating the facts.

String together a few facts and make a point other than you are prejudiced and probably not living an honest life. If you were honest with yourself you would realize that finding scapegoats never really works for a society or for unhappy individuals. Just the real facts.

[thequeen1]

Originally Posted by girlieNfamily

Also, when I lived in Portland I saw tons of Washington and Idaho plates. Yet no one tells them to "go back to your home state." I just don't undersand. And it seems like most people I met up there have a connection somehow to CA, so I don't know why CA always gets singled out as the hated ones.

**raises hand** I know!!! folks from Washington and Idaho are mostly white just like folks here in pdx; don't let anybody tell you any different; pdx is a racist town; i'm married to a brother and have been for 36 years. met him here in 80 and moved to cali in 82. things have not changed. that's was CA is always smacked down.

[Yankeemama]

Originally Posted by thequeen1

**raises hand** I know!!! folks from Washington and Idaho are mostly white just like folks here in pdx; don't let anybody tell you any different; pdx is a racist town; i'm married to a brother and have been for 36 years. met him here in 80 and moved to cali in 82. things have not changed. that's was CA is always smacked down.

There are so many awesome Californians who live here and are thriving! Just live your life well, be thankful and let the crybabies keep whining. Life is good.

[LBCC420]

Ok, I just want to chime in that I am from California. I've been here three years and I have yet to have one person say a single negative thing to me about being from California. I even moved from Southern CA. The only place I see anti CA sentiment is on the internet. Everyone I've met has been totally cool about my past. And I've been all over the city, the suburbs, and even Oregon proper. Sooooo yeah. I don't know.

In the end it really doesn't matter where you live, it's how you live. I went to the Bay Area maybe twice, but compared to southern CA, it's easier to live here. Things are very close together; where I lived everything was a drive on a freeway. It is not as crowded here. Yeah, it costs more than living in BFE, Ohio.. but it's not more than you are probably paying now.

I DO NOT UNDERSTAND why people act like Portland is not diverse. This is one thing that drives me crazy and I swear is only on the internet. My kid almost went to an immersion school that was something like 80% Hispanic. Her preschool class had maybe 10 kids, only 2 were white (the rest were Indian, Arabic, Chinese). I worked in a place that was mostly Russian. Honestly? My experience in Portland was much more diverse than Southern CA.

The one bit of advice I didn't believe and is actually true: the friendliest people are the people who are actually from Oregon or midwestern/Californian transplants. The deep East Coasters or the people from Washington... eh.

[Yankeemama]

Originally Posted by LBCC420

Ok, I just want to chime in that I am from California. I've been here three years and I have yet to have one person say a single negative thing to me about being from California. I even moved from Southern CA. The only place I see anti CA sentiment is on the internet. Everyone I've met has been totally cool about my past. And I've been all over the city, the suburbs, and even Oregon proper. Sooooo yeah. I don't know.

In the end it really doesn't matter where you live, it's how you live. I went to the Bay Area maybe twice, but compared to southern CA, it's easier to live here. Things are very close together; where I lived everything was a drive on a freeway. It is not as crowded here. Yeah, it costs more than living in BFE, Ohio.. but it's not more than you are probably paying now.

I DO NOT UNDERSTAND why people act like Portland is not diverse. This is one thing that drives me crazy and I swear is only on the internet. My kid almost went to an immersion school that was something like 80% Hispanic. Her preschool class had maybe 10 kids, only 2 were white (the rest were Indian, Arabic, Chinese). I worked in a place that was mostly Russian. Honestly? My experience in Portland was much more diverse than Southern CA.

The one bit of advice I didn't believe and is actually true: the friendliest people are the people who are actually from Oregon or midwestern/Californian transplants. The deep East Coasters or the people from Washington... eh.

This just goes to show you how we are all individuals with our own experiences. My kid went to a public school in Portland with almost 80% white kids and less than 15% FRL. Portland is segregated by race and class as my son was in Spec Ed in a very diverse school with over 75% FRL. Main reason we moved to Beaverton where both our kids schools are more diverse in every way- race, socieoeconomics, ethnicity and religion and politics. The funny thing is the two friends I have from Portland are from the East and WA. So, I guess we have totally opposite experiences. Imagine that! BTW, my kids' awesome teachers over the years are mostly from Portland or somewhere in Oregon. The most wonderful people! I have been here over six and a half years and moved from NYC, though a born and bred Californian. And I have had horrible people say crap to my face about bring a Californian. It's not just the Internet.

[oregonwoodsmoke]

Originally Posted by girlieNfamily

Also, when I lived in Portland I saw tons of Washington and Idaho plates. Yet no one tells them to "go back to your home state." I just don't undersand. And it seems like most people I met up there have a connection somehow to CA, so I don't know why CA always gets singled out as the hated ones.

Do you really want to know? I'll tell you why. Because people from Washington and Idaho are from the Pacific Northwest and have a Pacific Northwest attitude and lifestyle. They don't move into Oregon and immediately do their best to turn Oregon into California. They don't gang together and vote to destroy the Oregon lifestyle.

[Minervah]

I was treated very badly by coworkers when I first moved to Portland back in the late 70's who made no bones about the fact it was because I was a transplant from Chicago. They said they felt all transplants took jobs away from Oregonians. One woman who was from California consoled me by saying, "At least you're not from Cali, they would be even more mean to you."

They were also at times critical of Washingtonians as well because they came over for jobs and caused traffic jams and wouldn't pay for bridges and took advantage of the better things Portland had to offer etc.

Coming from the friendly Midwest and being used to many transplants who came to the Big City and were not treated like this," I was really shocked. But I dug in and soon I had friends besides other transplants. The longer I lived in Portland, the more Oregon-born friends I made. But I have to admit, even up until the day I left Portland, which was two years ago, I heard my Portland-born friends blame Californians for "ruining" their city.

I used to argue with them when they said this in the past. People relocate from one city to another all the time. If there are enough of them from any region the city to which they relocate is bound to change. For me, I see more of an East Coast influence in Portland now. In later years, I met more people from the Eastern part of the country than ever before.

But it doesn't matter. Nothing is static. Things change. If some people think it isn't for the better, they should try to change the things they think are wrong. Like the rent increases. I rented in Portland all the time I lived there. My rents got increased by $100-$200 at a time in some places. Not one single building was owned by a Californian. Some were owned by foreigners outside the country, some by Midwesterners, and some believe it or not were owned by Portland born people.

People who continue to do the scapegoating need to stop it. Whether it's on the Internet or real time, it's not helping anything to blame just one set of people from another state moving to yours.

[Cliftonpdx]

Originally Posted by oregonwoodsmoke

Do you really want to know? I'll tell you why. Because people from Washington and Idaho are from the Pacific Northwest and have a Pacific Northwest attitude and lifestyle. They don't move into Oregon and immediately do their best to turn Oregon into California. They don't gang together and vote to destroy the Oregon lifestyle.

Well said, I don't mind people moving to the Northwest and taking on the lifestyle of the Northwest, I do however hate when people move here thinking this area needs to conform to being like where they came from.

I remember hearing someone from Jersey saying to his friend as he was complaining about Oregon drivers, and I wanted to say "no, it is you Jersey drivers that are the issue here. This isn't Jersey, so don't drive like it is."

[CanuckInPortland]

Originally Posted by oregonwoodsmoke

Do you really want to know? I'll tell you why. Because people from Washington and Idaho are from the Pacific Northwest and have a Pacific Northwest attitude and lifestyle. They don't move into Oregon and immediately do their best to turn Oregon into California. They don't gang together and vote to destroy the Oregon lifestyle.

Someone from Seattle who moves to Oregon most likely has way more in common with someone from the Bay Area than they do anyone in rural Washington or Oregon(or even the rest of the Willamette Valley outside of the Portland Metro). The divide in the Northwest is more rural/suburban/urban and that goes for all of the states(and also British Columbia). The people I meet who grew up middle-class in Portland are pretty close to the people I know who grew up middle-class in Vancouver BC or the Bay Area in terms of tastes and cultural leanings(at least among my general age group).

[Yankeemama]

Originally Posted by CanuckInPortland

Someone from Seattle who moves to Oregon most likely has way more in common with someone from the Bay Area than they do anyone in rural Washington or Oregon(or even the rest of the Willamette Valley outside of the Portland Metro). The divide in the Northwest is more rural/suburban/urban and that goes for all of the states(and also British Columbia).

So true. I go to Seattle for visits because I love the scenery, the "bigger city" vibe and it feels very much like my hometown, SF. I can feel like I am back home in some ways without family issues and I don't need to fly!. A lot of posters here have never even been to Los Angeles before 1980. Watch old tv shows that were filmed in LA area and check out how amazing Santa Monica was without any crowds. Los Angeles used to be very different 30-40 years ago yet the locals there don't seem as bitter as some on this forum. Read the LA City Data Forum and notice the difference of the posters and YES, many are multigenerational Californians who have seen unwanted change from transplants from EVERYWHERE!