Lake Merritt (San Francisco, Oakland: bankrupt, good schools, university)

[gizmo980]

No more personal attacks and bickering, please, or I'll have to close the thread for good...

[daepro]

Thank you Gizmo for putting a stop to this silly, pointless arguement it has gone on too long.

[Nomadic9460678748]

I miss Oakland. A lot. I'm trying really hard to work out a move back home to Oakland from Austin, Texas (where I grew up). I can't STAND IT HERE IN TEXAS!!! Especially Austin. Austinites have this tremendous ego trip about their town (which they often try and compare to cities like New York San Francisco, and Los Angeles). Anyway, I just wanted to say that I miss Oakland.

I Hella <3 Oakland!!

[Bcastgrrl]

The Laney college area is still a bit shady. Always has been. Its just fine during the day, but don't be tempted to park there at night to go to a neighboring Chinese restaurant.

[Gentoo]

Originally Posted by Nomadic9460678748

I miss Oakland. A lot. I'm trying really hard to work out a move back home to Oakland from Austin, Texas (where I grew up). I can't STAND IT HERE IN TEXAS!!! Especially Austin. Austinites have this tremendous ego trip about their town (which they often try and compare to cities like New York San Francisco, and Los Angeles). Anyway, I just wanted to say that I miss Oakland.

I Hella <3 Oakland!!

I've heard people from Austin think they're on that level lol.

Aren't all Texans like that though? They seem to think they're all big and bad anyway. Hope you make it back to the bay. Sounds like you feels the same way about Austin like I feel about San Diego lol.

[Gentoo]

Originally Posted by Bcastgrrl

The Laney college area is still a bit shady. Always has been. Its just fine during the day, but don't be tempted to park there at night to go to a neighboring Chinese restaurant.

I could see that. That side of the lake is the gateway to the E numbered streets, E 14th in particular. It's that area on southward that gives Oakland it's negative stereotype. Never understood why they call it east Oakland when it's more south.

[Ultrarunner]

Originally Posted by Gentoo

Never understood why they call it east Oakland when it's more south.

I've raised that point too...

[18Montclair]

Originally Posted by Nomadic9460678748

I miss Oakland. A lot. I'm trying really hard to work out a move back home to Oakland from Austin, Texas (where I grew up). I can't STAND IT HERE IN TEXAS!!! Especially Austin. Austinites have this tremendous ego trip about their town (which they often try and compare to cities like New York San Francisco, and Los Angeles). Anyway, I just wanted to say that I miss Oakland.

I Hella <3 Oakland!!

I missed Oakland so much that I moved back from Tiburon. Don't get me wrong, Marin is beautiful and opulent and those who live there for the most part are very lucky-but its just not me.

[Nomadic9460678748]

Originally Posted by Gentoo

I've heard people from Austin think they're on that level lol.

Aren't all Texans like that though? They seem to think they're all big and bad anyway. Hope you make it back to the bay. Sounds like you feels the same way about Austin like I feel about San Diego lol.

I'm not your typical Texan. I can't see getting all excited about a big, hot, flat, state with sprawly, architecturally uninspiring cities and no real claim to fame. Let's face it, the last two presidents which came from this state don't exactly have the most admirable of track records now do they? Statistically-speaking Texas usually ranks last in things such as insured, care for the mentally fragile, graduation rates, etc., it speaks volumes about this state's priorities. But if you point out that helping people isn't a crime Texans will point West (to California) for proof that "liberal" policies are the death knell for a state's fiscal strength. Of course, most will do this without having any intimate knowledge of how California found itself in a fiscal abyss, they'll just say, "Well, at least we're not California!" I still think I'd rather live in a broke, diverse, geographically-alluring forward thinking state which has been a fine incubator for ideas and commerce. I have no state pride and have actually been very embarrassed of late to be from this place. The whole TEA party thing and now the governor's willingness to suppress information regarding this state's liberal use of the death penalty.

And Austinites are a very, VERY egotistical bunch in that they think that since they're the closest Texas has to a progressive enclave that it somehow makes it utopia. People say very inhospitable things about people who've moved to Austin from other states (especially Californians) and then blame all of the problems which exist on transplants, as though Austin didn't have problems prior to the population influx.

I'm taking a trip soon to spend a week in Oakland and see my friend dance in a performance. I CANNOT WAIT! I'm really looking forward to going to the Farmer's Market on the lake, having some great food, and then taking a walk around the lake. I'll probably stop somewhere on Lake Merritt with my book and just bask in the glory of being outside of the Lone Chump State.

Originally Posted by 18Montclair

I missed Oakland so much that I moved back from Tiburon. Don't get me wrong, Marin is beautiful and opulent and those who live there for the most part are very lucky-but its just not me.

Yeah, I'm not much for opulence. I can appreciate that people have a taste for certain locales, but I'm a simple kinda gal. Oakland just always felt like home to me. I worked in The City but always felt that San Francisco was more of a convenient playscape (museums, shows, restauraunts, etc), but Oakland was a place you could live, even with all of its ongoing problems. Every person I've ever met who was born and raised in Oakland had a fierce devotion to trying to make it a better place for everyone to live. I admired that so much.

For what it's worth, Oakland will always get much love from me and if I can't ever make it back to stay (*croses fingers REALLY tight*), I'll always have people there to visit and a very large part of my heart remains there.

Yup.

[sav858]

Originally Posted by Nomadic9460678748

And Austinites are a very, VERY egotistical bunch in that they think that since they're the closest Texas has to a progressive enclave that it somehow makes it utopia. People say very inhospitable things about people who've moved to Austin from other states.

That's a pretty ironic thing to say considering you'll find a very similar attitude among some people in the Bay Area