Former Wisconsinites...where did you move to and how do you like it in comparison to WI? (Owen: neighborhood, income)
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Some people do not like rules. I am kind of cynical about certain rules, but I do like a place that is clean and orderly. I don't mind having separate recycling bins. It would help to cut down on littering because I personally hate it when people litter. If Wisconsin is a clean place, then that would be an attribute to bring people to Wisconsin. I live in a place that is allegedly "nice", but I see litter on the side of the road alot. I have taken it upon myself to pick up the litter and put it where it belongs...in the trash(there are no recycling bins close to where I live).
I live in Arizona now after moving from Washington, DC. I have spent less and less time in Wisconsin because the winter was so awful and I've been traveling elsewhere almost every weekend since then.
Comparatively, I find the cost of living very similar in Phoenix and Milwaukee, both quite a bit less than DC. Be cautious of "Wisconsin Is Cheaper Than Anywhere(TM)" posts that you find. The cost of living, people, and even the weather, vary greatly from place to place.
Also note that I'm comparing similar areas. A lot of people recklessly throw around statistics that they really don't understand, when comparing cost of living, real estate values, and property taxes. Since I live in both WI and AZ (although WI may fall off the list in the next year or two), I can draw a very good comparison. Many people dig for statistics without comparing similar areas, and of course those comparisons are going to be favorably skewed in the direction of that individual's perception or opinion. Essentially, it's a sales pitch.
Stop at a Wisconsin rest area on the interstate and count how many separate recycling receptacles there are. You don't even have to live there for a while to observe that.
When I lived in Michigan, and visited my sister in Wisconsin, she'd make me go out and help shovel her snow, first thing in the morning, when there was an inch or two overnight, right down to the pavement, and right to the edge of the grass, I remarked that the difference between Wi and MI is that in WI everybody shovels their show, while in MI, everyone just drives through it. She acted like I was talking about Bangladesh. I looked up and down the street, and everyone was doing the same thing, as if they are afraid of some secret police or something. Or officious neighbors, which is worse. Then she said you have to carry each shovelful onto your lawn, because you're not allowed to push the snow into the street, even though it's fine for the showplows to shove it all into your driveway. I'd like to hear the supreme court rule on that law, but people in WI just take it. I was remarking to my nephew about these kinds of things, and he said Yes, Wisconsin is the most nazi state in the US. And he grew up in Germany.
When my WI relatives drive to the mall, they think you are "not allowed" to pull through a parkng space so you are pointing out through the facing one. "Not allowed to" is the phrase I hear most frequently when hanging out with my family there. Wisconsin people have a very keen awareness of what you're "not allowed" to do. It's like a sixth sense.
These are not opinions, they are observations. Ive lived in 15 other states, and I see what I see.
As far as ridiculous posts are concerned, this one belongs in the Hall of Fame.
As far as ridiculous posts are concerned, this one belongs in the Hall of Fame.
Well, no better person to write about ridiculous posts. Weren't you the one that understated the median sale price of homes in River Hills, WI by 780%, then continued to embarrass yourself by regarding the ZIP code 53209 as "affluent", and then using those massively flawed figures to draw a 'cost of living' comparison between Milwaukee and another city?
Quote:
Originally Posted by jjacobeclark
I just compared Phoenix's Ahwatukee neighborhood (85044) to Milwaukee's River Hills neighborhood (53209). The median home price in 85044 is $347,775. The median home price in 53209 is $113,732. Both neighborhoods are affluent. Both neighborhoods have approximately 50,000 residents. Both neighborhoods are within their respective principal cities. If you don't think that's a fair comparison I also researched 53217, the zip code shared by Bayside, Whitefish Bay, Glendale, and Fox Point. The median home price in 53217 is $297,512, which is still less than your Phoenix neighborhood.
There is a lesson here that is quite relevant to the OP's question. The upper Midwest has some very stubborn people. I noticed that a lot of people in this area talk about things that they want to be true, as if they are true. I haven't run into that as much living elsewhere, and I've lived across the country from one side to the other. (There are exceptions, New England being one.)
This also fosters idiotic rivalries, like the three year old idiots who troll the Wisconsin or Illinois boards ripping on everything that comes into view in the neighboring state. Or my all time favorite, people who grew up in Milwaukee, but now tear it to pieces because they don't live there anymore. If nothing else, it's entertaining. This happens out on the East Coast also. People will argue that their dump is the best dump, if only because they said so.
Last edited by 43north87west; 07-08-2009 at 10:07 AM..
Well, no better person to write about ridiculous posts. Weren't you the one that understated the median sale price of homes in River Hills, WI by 780%, then continued to embarrass yourself by regarding the ZIP code 53209 as "affluent", and then using those massively flawed figures to draw a 'cost of living' comparison between Milwaukee and another city?
There is a lesson here that is quite relevant to the OP's question. The upper Midwest has some very stubborn people. I noticed that a lot of people in this area talk about things that they want to be true, as if they are true. I haven't run into that as much living elsewhere, and I've lived across the country from one side to the other. (There are exceptions, New England being one.)
This also fosters idiotic rivalries, like the three year old idiots who troll the Wisconsin or Illinois boards ripping on everything that comes into view in the neighboring state. Or my all time favorite, people who grew up in Milwaukee, but now tear it to pieces because they don't live there anymore. If nothing else, it's entertaining. This happens out on the East Coast also. People will argue that their dump is the best dump, if only because they said so.
Wow. I can't believe you're bringing up a post from over 6 months ago. The Village of River Hills actually does overlap with the 53209 zip code, it just doesn't comprise the majority of it. And the 53217 (North Shore) zip code still had a lower median home price than your Ahwatukee neighborhood in Phoenix by $50,000. Which was my original point that Milwaukee had a lower COL than Phoenix, which you seemed hellbent on disputing for some strange reason.
Did you even read the other guy's post? He thinks people in Wisconsin are sheep because they take time to separate their recyclables, they shovel their sidewalks when it snows, and they don't just push their snow into the middle of the road. That's ridiculous.
Well, no better person to write about ridiculous posts. Weren't you the one that understated the median sale price of homes in River Hills, WI by 780%, then continued to embarrass yourself by regarding the ZIP code 53209 as "affluent", and then using those massively flawed figures to draw a 'cost of living' comparison between Milwaukee and another city?
There is a lesson here that is quite relevant to the OP's question. The upper Midwest has some very stubborn people. I noticed that a lot of people in this area talk about things that they want to be true, as if they are true. I haven't run into that as much living elsewhere, and I've lived across the country from one side to the other. (There are exceptions, New England being one.)
This also fosters idiotic rivalries, like the three year old idiots who troll the Wisconsin or Illinois boards ripping on everything that comes into view in the neighboring state. Or my all time favorite, people who grew up in Milwaukee, but now tear it to pieces because they don't live there anymore. If nothing else, it's entertaining. This happens out on the East Coast also. People will argue that their dump is the best dump, if only because they said so.
I can be very stubborn sometimes, and my father is from Wisconsin. I guess that is something I inherited.
Stop at a Wisconsin rest area on the interstate and count how many separate recycling receptacles there are. You don't even have to live there for a while to observe that.
When I lived in Michigan, and visited my sister in Wisconsin, she'd make me go out and help shovel her snow, first thing in the morning, when there was an inch or two overnight, right down to the pavement, and right to the edge of the grass, I remarked that the difference between Wi and MI is that in WI everybody shovels their show, while in MI, everyone just drives through it. She acted like I was talking about Bangladesh. I looked up and down the street, and everyone was doing the same thing, as if they are afraid of some secret police or something. Or officious neighbors, which is worse. Then she said you have to carry each shovelful onto your lawn, because you're not allowed to push the snow into the street, even though it's fine for the showplows to shove it all into your driveway. I'd like to hear the supreme court rule on that law, but people in WI just take it. I was remarking to my nephew about these kinds of things, and he said Yes, Wisconsin is the most nazi state in the US. And he grew up in Germany.
When my WI relatives drive to the mall, they think you are "not allowed" to pull through a parkng space so you are pointing out through the facing one. "Not allowed to" is the phrase I hear most frequently when hanging out with my family there. Wisconsin people have a very keen awareness of what you're "not allowed" to do. It's like a sixth sense.
These are not opinions, they are observations. Ive lived in 15 other states, and I see what I see.
This is the second time I've seen you complain that people shovel their sidewalks, which is about the most bizarre complaint I've ever seen. Many places have ordinances requiring them to do it (yeah, I know, oppressive rules and conformity and all that), but even if there were no such ordinances, most people just consider it common courtesy to keep the sidewalks shoveled.
As for just driving on snow... yeah, that's pretty cool and all, until the snow gets compressed into ice. Then it's not so fun any more.
Actaully I kind of miss the nice sidewalk shoveling (yes it is courteous) that I always found in WI towns.
We now live in a pretty decent town near Chicago but the sidewalk shoveling here is pretty pathetic. It is annoying. These people have plenty of $$ to hire Mexicans to mow their little city yards in the summer, but somehow can't hire the same guys to shovel the walks in the winter - weird.
Maybe the Mexicans leave town for the winter- I don't know
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