How would you describe Wisconsin? (Milwaukee, Madison: transplants, rent, home)

[Milwaukee Ronnie]

Originally Posted by yo vanilla

Well I saw Spamalot at the Performing Arts Center. Terrific show, but as I feared, I definitely had the nicest suit I saw (which isn't THAT nice). Very little "evening wear".

When I was in NYC and saw a show on Broadway, I figured I should at least wear a tie. Turns out I was the only bloke with a tie on in the whole place. Most everyone else was wearin' jeans and sweatshirts.

[karfar]

Originally Posted by Milwaukee Ronnie

When I was in NYC and saw a show on Broadway, I figured I should at least wear a tie. Turns out I was the only bloke with a tie on in the whole place. Most everyone else was wearin' jeans and sweatshirts.

I don't get the whole being worried about dressing up. If you want to dress up, then dress up! If you don't, then don't. People aren't going to look at you weird if you're dressed up, seriously! People here do actually understand the concept of fashion. This is not a rant to you Milwaukee Ronnie, it's to others who are obsessing about the dressing up aspect of Milwaukee.

[Steve-o]

Originally Posted by Milwaukee Ronnie

Yeah! The whole state sucks, the people suck, everything sucks about it, top to bottom, everything in Wisconsin is sucky, just sucks, sucks, sucks. Everything sucks here. The schools suck, the economy sucks, my life sucks, the culture sucks and the taxes suck, maybe I should go to a place that doesn't suck then my life wouldn't suck so much. It sucks!

LMBO

You sound like the perfect candidate to move to the sunbelt.

[EnjoyEP]

Originally Posted by yo vanilla

Back to winter, I get terrible cabin fever and every February I start seriously thinking about moving. The problem is that I haven't found a warm place that mirrors the good amenities of my home. Recently I read up on Sarasota, FL (turns out theres lots of crime), Naples, FL (gang problems in old foagie Napels, really??), Henderson, NV (I hear it's a dump), Flagstaf, AZ (whoops, it's cold there and there's an illegal immigrant problem), Raleigh, NC (everyone moved there so developers turned it into a sprawling mess)... Back to Wisconsin. It's a great safe place to raise my kids. Excluding the freeway. So I don't know what else to say. Unless Utopia pops up, I'm staying here by default.

Originally Posted by yo vanilla

Nope, Austin isn't on my list of potentials. I'll give it a peek though.

With due respect vanilla, because I have read through many of your posts (not just these) and you seem like a good guy, a well thought-out fellow, etc., but I think you are falling into the same prey of "judging" erroneously areas that you would be annoyed at if folks were judging portions of Wisconsin as.

Sarasota, FL, a city I have been to more than once, has a laughable "crime problem" compared to even a Milwaukee. Seriously, if that is a *spot* for you - honestly - for you to turn it down over a *crime* problem is silly (not saying *you* are silly, but saying turning down the city over it would be silly).

Sarasota is surely bigger than Appleton. So - like each and every bigger-ish city in the US, will there be pockets of less-than-desirable / crime-ridden areas? Of course. But honestly, you'll have in Sarasota more issues with jostling through the snowbird/retiree traffic than dealing with its "crime".

So much of issues like "crime" are just thrown out there. Each and every bigger-ish cities in the US (and the world) will have an element of crime: Portland, Omaha, Atlanta, Columbia SC, Norfolk, Syracuse, Grand Rapids MI, Boise, etc., etc., etc., - they will *all* have crime. But no, honestly if Sarasota would be *your* city except for this perceived crime issue, then I think you are really just buying into some ill-conceived illogical scare tactics that don't meet reality.

Same for Naples. I mean, why then is Naples on your consideration list if you are just going to write it off for a "gang problem." I mean, seriously, the Appleton has a "gang problem" as does many cities/towns in WI. But does it have a big enough "gang problem" to prohibit folks from relocating there? Please. If you had used "Detroit" for your city, then maybe I could buy it (and even then, most of the suburbs and even small slices of Detroit itself are relatively gang-free and very safe), but Naples? No. ]

Henderson - "you hear its a dump" - so why then were you considering it? Henderson is not a "dump". That would be as valid as someone hearing that "Appleton, WI is a dump"...never having been there, never having experienced it for themselves, just taking someone's (ill advised) judgement for themselves as the gosepl truth.

Flagstaff?? Of course it is cold there. It is 7500 feet in altitude. Why not consider a place lower in altitude if you want warm? As for illegal immigration's concerns, couldn't you brandish almost any town in the US currently with those concerns? Actually Flagstaff wouldn't be tremendously high on my list as a town "overrun" with concerns of impacts by illegal immigration.

Raleigh? A "sprawling mess"? Ummm...

Anyway, vanilla, my purpose of posting here isn't to try to "take you on" or to "beat you up" or to debate Appleton or WI v. one of these cities / towns.

Again, I think you seem like a very intelligent, quality fellow and a good poster.

I guess what chaps my hide is when folks label ANY area with just "word of mouth" ill-conceived generalizations and then just write them off. And this seems to apply so very commonly to Wisconsinites, almost like WI-ites are afraid of really exploring / finding out "what's out there" and prefer to kind of glom on to erroneous half-truths about other areas to convince themselves "how bad" the "outside world" is, and to convince themselves why bundling up into the safety net of WI is the prudent thing to do.

I guess what I am saying...if those cites/towns/areas REALLY ones that appeal to you, and ones that you LEGITIMATELY are interested in considering / looking into for relocation, seriously take a flight or two out to these towns and check them out for yourself, rather than just taking some ill-founded word-of-mouth half-truths to form a negative / judgmental opinion.

I think that is only fair both ways. Frankly, people in WI (Milwaukee, Madison, Green Bay/Appleton - WI in general) would be aghast often if they knew of the erroneous judgments / half-truths people nationally profess about their areas. They make Milwaukee (if they even know about it), sound like either a drunken haven of nothing else, or a crime-ridden pit of hades that would make Detroit blush (neither of which are close to true), or, an area so cold/snowy that it would make Fairbanks, Alaska look like Honolulu. Furthermore, they make the Green Bay area (which would include Appleton) seem poverty-laden throughout and ice-covered 365 days of the year, again, so far off from the truth.

If Wisconsinites don't want those adages erroneously spewed about them, they (we) shouldn't do it about others.

Again, I have been to the vast majority of the cities/towns on your list, and most of them are quite nice, don't at all live up to your written-off write offs. Am I saying you should move to them? Quite not. That is a personal preference / choice (frankly, I think Appleton is quite nice too). But I don't think you should write them off - any of them, actually - for the reasons you presented.

So many Wisconsinites that are born, raised, lived, and die in WI just automatically write off particular areas that, in reality, just deep down, may be tempting for them to explore. However, to admit that to themselves is to verge onto exploring that great unknown, and *gasp*! - an area they might actually (shudder) prefer, at least temporarily for their life situation. So in ordre to turn off that temptation, they "write off" the area with some lame excuse.

Don't do that to yourself with these cities/towns. If you are interested in Sarasota, go see it and experience it for the better (which is many) and the worse (crime isn't so much the issue as is cost of living which is ridiculous) and then form judgments. I believe whether you love it or, not, you'll quickly conclude that crime would *not* be an overriding reason to not live there (unless you are just used to living in Nowhereville, USA, population of 500).

Originally Posted by yo vanilla

Wow, thanks for the comments. I thought for sure my rant would get some negative feedback (not that I was looking for that).

One of the (many) virtues of Wisconsin? Some very nice, decent, down-to-earth folks. You are right vanilla, your rant (and some of mine) would on other states / forums elicit angry or bitter replies. Not on the WI one. Why? WI has many good folks.

[yo vanilla]

enjoyep - I see your point and I will just say to take that part of my post with a grain of salt. It wasn't so much an automatic write-off as it was a tie-in to my point. No place is perfect!

[wiscOnsindOll]

okay "berries" do you live in Wisconsin becuase if you do I highly suggest you just move because people like you are a big reason why alcohalism is common in wisconsin. second of all if you think the schools in wisconsin are bad i'd like to see how you feel about being in a school in colorado or california where they don't give a rats ass about kids graduating or advancing in life in any way shape or form. also i don't know if you are even up to date about anything in wisconsin because you should feel lucky about the property taxes here and we are not in recession anymore than any other place is at this point in time. and of course our winters here are bad and if you don't like them pack up your stuff and head to FL nobody wants such a negitive person like you living here anyway.

[Alt Dach]

Wisconsin people are generally polite.orderly and law-abiding.
They are also prone to helping strangers in distress.

None of the above is to be confused with being friendly.
Most still have all their friends have 2nd grade and dozens of relatives within 15 miles. Human nature being whay it is, what need have they of you? Unless of course
you posees some outstanding attribute like riches or youth/good looks etc.

[brentington]

I am moving to La Crosse from California in a couple of weeks. The schools, I understand, and are much better in WI. But to set the record straight, the schools in Cali are not bad because they "don't give a rat's ass" about the kids. My kids have had many wonderful teachers in school here who were very caring. The problem in the schools in Cali is the overcrowding and the fact that the classes must move very slowly so as to keep pace with the large number of kids who are learning to speak English at the same time. That and budget cuts that take away programs and resources for the teachers.

[115db]

Originally Posted by berries

people drink to much and bum around to much. The schools are not nearly as good as is talked about and is used as a cruch to make people feel things are ok with the young ones. Property taxes are high, the weather is bad, and the economy is in a recession. other than that its ok

Can anyone think of any state where everything is perfect 100% of the time? This recession is hitting everywhere, not just in WI. Unemployment rates are at their all-time highs everywhere. There will be weather issues no matter where you live. Too hot, too cold, too smoggy, not enough rain, whatever. We have 2 options. Make the best of where we are for the time being or leave.
Personally, I loved the open land, the green grassy hills, the fact that theres more farmland than in some states, plenty of open spaces in so many more areas, and the people. But the only thing that kept me from moving there was it takes money to move, lots of it.

[justallex]

Love Wisconsin! Such a well kept secret. You have beautiful parks and rolling hills, lots of heritage, very cool cities like Milwaukee and Madison, arts and culture (large amount of Native American heritage here), gorgeous lakes, access to jobs, great school systems, etc.. What's great about this state is you're not far from anything. If you want big city life, go to Milwaukee. Just the same if you prefer countryside check out the Kettle Moraine area. Wisconsin's economy is doing well and very stable. Good luck!