Must one be mormon to be happy in SLC? (taxes, law) - Salt Lake City area - Utah (UT) -Salt Lake County - Davis County - Weber County - Page 6 - City-Data Forum

cinnabon · 08-19-2008, 12:01 AM

All I can say after only being here very briefly is that all the friendliness is blowing me away. The issue of religion has not come up in any interaction I have had with anyone.

Everyone from my LDS landlord, my neighbors, the clerks in the local convenience store, the grocery store, and even Bed Bath & Beyond (even though they were trying to close and I was holding them up a bit). In NJ I would have been kicked right out. These 2 young girls in the grocery store today were being so nice and helpful that I didn't even know how to react & must have been acting bewildered. I finally had to tell them I just moved here from NJ and it's a bit different there! People actually will go out of their way to be helpful. I feel like I've landed on another planet.

I'm pretty sure you don't have to be Mormon, not only to be happy here, but also to be accepted.

coolcats · 08-19-2008, 09:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cinnabon

All I can say after only being here very briefly is that all the friendliness is blowing me away. The issue of religion has not come up in any interaction I have had with anyone.

Everyone from my LDS landlord, my neighbors, the clerks in the local convenience store, the grocery store, and even Bed Bath & Beyond (even though they were trying to close and I was holding them up a bit). In NJ I would have been kicked right out. These 2 young girls in the grocery store today were being so nice and helpful that I didn't even know how to react & must have been acting bewildered. I finally had to tell them I just moved here from NJ and it's a bit different there! People actually will go out of their way to be helpful. I feel like I've landed on another planet.

I'm pretty sure you don't have to be Mormon, not only to be happy here, but also to be accepted.

I would agree with that. So don't let the vocal few (who I get the sense would have a hard time fitting in many places), skew your view.

wamamma · 08-19-2008, 11:06 AM

Anywhere you go where there is a predominant religion, you will find spillover into daily conversations and social settings. That certainly does not need to dictate your personal contentment or happiness. I would guess if you go to Rome or Vatican City, you're going to run into a lot of Catholics. The conversations might often include religious issues, it doesn't mean you need to be Catholic to live happily in Rome.

I lived in Arkansas and Tennesee for awhile and my husband is from Alabama. It definately is the "Bible Belt". Whenever I am there, I am often asked if I have been "saved" and we get invited to many Southern Baptist churches. We are not interested in converting to another religion, however, we have lived quite happily in those areas.

You'd be hard pressed to live in Utah and not hear about religion and LDS social and cultural issues, just as living in other areas would include religious influences of another kind. I don't see why that would mean you couldn't be happy living in SLC.

cinnabon · 08-19-2008, 06:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by coolcats

So don't let the vocal few (who I get the sense would have a hard time fitting in many places), skew your view.

I hear you on that one! I formulate my own opinions, and I've expected even before I got here that the predominance of Mormons would not be an issue for me. I would much rather deal with this than with many of the issues I was dealing with in NJ!

seattlekev · 01-04-2010, 10:16 PM

So, my wife & I are gonna get outta the rain after our daughter graduates next year and we've been looking at SG/Cedar City area, because of the outdoor activities and the plentiful sunshine.

We're a bit on the wild side. I spend a lot of my time on 2 wheels, street bikes, dirt bikes, mountain bicycles, and many other adrenaline producing machines. This has led to a bit more wild lifestyle, including the garb to go with it. My tats stand out in Seattle, let alone Utah, and I'm a bit too pierced up for my Mom's liking. This being said, I've been in business for over 25 years up here, so I know how to clean up pretty well too! LOL

Some of my biz travels have taken me to SLC and I've always enjoyed myself there. My work is mosty with mechanics and other fix-it types, so I've found them to be rather accepting. It's the cops and government that has me a bit on edge, as far as moving down that way. I've heard that a lot of the elected folks are LDS and that many of the rules are based on LDS morals.

Anyway, any comments would be welcome and if anybody knows of any more Southern UT forums that I can't find on Google, I'd love a tip or 2. Thanx in advance!