Moved to South Carolina - HUGE MISTAKE (Columbia, Summerville: employment, school districts)

[donnaraeb]

I am looking to move to Columbia and this post freaked me out....anyone have some good things about Columbia??

[GoCubs]

No, the State capitol is in a bowl of land surrounding it and it is severely hot in summer with little or no breeze and high humidity. And, the summers are very long...about 7 months or more. Even though it is a Uni. town, culture and great food are lacking. If you like the frenzy of gamecocks on the loose, perhaps this is the place for you.

[mpaquette]

Originally Posted by GoCubs

No, the State capitol is in a bowl of land surrounding it and it is severely hot in summer with little or no breeze and high humidity. And, the summers are very long...about 7 months or more. Even though it is a Uni. town, culture and great food are lacking. If you like the frenzy of gamecocks on the loose, perhaps this is the place for you.

Lack of great food and culture compared to what, Chicago, New York, Atlanta?? I think that statement is a bit of an exaggeration. And give me the name of a city in SC that isn't on the coast and actually has a breeze or low humidity in the summer?

donnaraeb, spend a few minutes and read this article from one of Columbia's weekly newspapers: Free-Times Columbia Article.

Here's a link to a growing area of downtown Columbia called the Vista: Columbia Vista

I'm pretty new to the area, but can try to answer any specific questions you have about Columbia.

[advneturouspatti]

Originally Posted by chitownguy

I moved to the Summerville area 2 years ago from Illinois (Northern suburbs of Chicago) - and can't wait to get out of here!! In the process of listing the house. My wife & I had thought that moving someplace w/ a lower cost of living would be a GREAT idea. Boy, were we wrong, because along w/ a lower cost of living comes LOWER PAYCHECKS!

Both my neighbors on either side of my house are from out of state, one from Michigan, one from Florida. They are BOTH looking to get out, too! It appears that many ppl move here from other areas for a couple of years, like it for a while, and then realize South Carolina isn't what they imagined!! The schools are the worst, crime is rampant, and the weather isn't that much better. This past summer was H-O-T. The winter is bitter and cold (and I'm from Illinois!). Not only that, but everyone around here is still STUCK in the Civil War. What's up w/ THAT???

South Carolina is a GREAT place to vacation, see the sights, go to the beach. Living here.....not so great. We are sooooo outta here!!!!

Hi, my seniments ALMOST exactly, but not quite, as I do LOVE South Carolina, but I do agree they are stuck in the 1950-1970's.......they are 30-40 years or MORE behind the times. Baptist Church on every corner and folks tend to be very judgemental................being from Canada, we see inside a person and not color...BUT not here................what happened to "love thy neighbour as thy self" it does not say love thy neighbour if the same color as you, or do not love thy neighbour if he was married 12 times before...who cares!!!! just as long as he is nice to you, does not steal, etc.etc.....it is for GOD to judge NOT US, BUT not so in South Carolina.......people pretend to be religious.....but they use what suits them out of the bible............it is correct to call the South "the Bible thumpin' capital" of the world........UNREAL! Heck, they still have the Confederate Flag up here in Columbia!!!! AND I agree high crime rate, and educational system so below average that it is disgusting. AND wage pay........so low, I agree.....spoke with some gals who work at Chili's restaurant.........get this, they are paid $2.31 per hr. plus tips.........how does one live on that? Now, I know that working at Chili's is not a high paying job, but in Canada these young kids get $9.50 per hour PLUS tips.....makes sense to me. South Carolina has educated people.............BROUGHT in from other countries....India, Scotland, England and the "Yankees" so they call the others from the GREAT USA......................I will reiterate I LOVE the South, in particular Mt. Pleasant area near Charleston. Good luck with your move back to the "normal" part of the STATES.
An e-mail GAL who understands your frustration with the South!

ME

[mpaquette]

I'm not even going to touch the religious thing. Live and let live is my motto and it has served me well. I don't understand the confederate flag thing either, but I'm not from here. I've heard sensible arguments on both sides of that one. Here's a news break for you......... 99% of ALL food chains pay there wait staff $2-$3 in the U.S. When you wait tables, you survive on tips not your hourly pay. This is not unique to SC or the south. So the only educated people in SC are the ones from other countries?

I don't post here much, but have spent quite a bit of time reading posts and yours has to be the saddest one I have had the misfortune of reading. Perhaps the 50% tax rate and government sponsored everything in Canada suits your tastes better than what we have in the U.S.?

[Nausikaa]

I am from the UK, and I know thousands of people from England, Scotland, Wales, India, etc go to Canada for a better life.

Trouble is when they get there, they can't get a job because jobs "must go to Canadians first." The cost of living is very very high, especially housing. Vancouver is ultra expensive. Most of the British immigrants soon become disillusioned with Canada, and move back to the UK, etc. They find Canada boring, with no soul. Very discriminatory concerning jobs. The healthcare system about to collapse. Freezing cold winters, stuck in snow all winter.

Oh well, enjoy. I'm staying in SC, I love it here.

[bmack120]

HHHmmmm, we too are thinking of moving from the north, RI, to SC, possibly the Lake Wylie, or Tega Cay area. I am wondering about how cool it gets. My husband is a truck driver, so pay will be just about the same as it would be in RI. I am tired of snowy winters...........not really worried about schools because we will wait until dau graduates. Thanks for any input.

[mpaquette]

A handy tool that I used to check weather averages can be found at http://www.wunderground.com. Just enter a zipcode or city/state and then scroll down to the almanac section. Here is the info for where I live, Columbia.

As a transplant from Michigan that moved to Columbia in November of 2006, I can tell you from personal experience that this past winter was a pleasure compared to what I was used to. Unlike Michigan, the sun typically shines in Columbia, even in the winter. And although it may get below freezing at night, it typically warms up into the 40's/50's during the day. Those kinds of conditions are what January and February were like. Things start to warm up in March. Another thing that I noticed is the sun is much more intense in the winter down here compared to Michigan. So even though it might only get up to 45 during the day, it feels warmer with the sun shining. Hope this helps.

[Akhenaton06]

being from Canada, we see inside a person and not color...BUT not here

This is hilarious. Are Canadians a distinct species, having evolved X-ray vision of some sort?

This would tell me different.

[njkate]

Don't any of you people do any research before you pull up stakes and move hundreds of miles away??

South Carolina is not Chicago or NY Or Cali....

There was no Civil War in the South....it was the War of Northern Aggression