Boston is without a doubt the worst place I have ever lived. (dangerous, buses)

[simplexsimon]

Originally Posted by msRB311

but it's not a terrible place to live by any means.

This might be the nicest thing I've seen you say about living here.

[GeePee]

Originally Posted by simplexsimon

This might be the nicest thing I've seen you say about living here.

the nicest thing "somebody who doesn't live here" has said about living here.

[redplum33]

msRB has lived (and worked) in Boston. She is more than qualified to offer her perspective and opinions.

[GeePee]

Originally Posted by redplum33

msRB has lived (and worked) in Boston. She is more than qualified to offer her perspective and opinions.

Very perspective, they are indeed.

[jcp123]

I sympathize with OP.

I moved to the Northeast last year (though not to Boston), and having been kind of a sunbelty guy my whole life, it does feel very foreign up here. It’s less a culture shock than a culture slap. And like OP, I came up here with a lot of reluctance for family reasons after delaying for a decade.

I share some of OP’s complaints including the winter (ugh, winter is the WORST), architecture, some of the layout, cuisine choices, lots of older buildings which do come across as dumpy by comparison. There are a few other things which are more localized to my corner of the northeast, but I can definitely understand why OP is not only in culture shock, but having a hard time getting motivated to try on that kind of flexibility to find what they love about the place. After a really good try last year, I had a mental breakdown (related to other things, mostly, but not entirely unrelated to the new place) my motivation evaporated and frankly I guess I just accept that I’ll merely be existing here for a while. It is what it is, and I do think some people underrate just how different an aura the northeast can carry if you’re from out west or many parts of the south.

[msRB311]

Originally Posted by GeePee

the nicest thing "somebody who doesn't live here" has said about living here.

I lived in Boston until 2020 and had been there for quite some time. Born in Boston, grew up just outside. Spent more time in Boston, dealing with Boston than many here. And yes my employer is based in Boston. I'm not someone who just flew in from LA or Dubai.

Anyhoo, I do think Boston is nice, the problem is that everyone else seems to think so too these days...which has made a lot of it not so nice anymore and just a hassle. Would I rather live here than other places? sure.

[NorthofHere]

I was born and raised in the suburbs of Boston. Left at about 36 yo. I go back pretty much every year. Though summers are indeed nice (mostly unless it rains all summer) I would not move back. Things I don't like: Drivers why do they honk their horns at red lights like they have their hands on the buzzer in a game show. Light turns green, honk and not a light tap but an all out anger blast. The light just changed for crying out loud, not even one second and they blast the horn. Horns everywhere, even on the highways. Chill out Massachusetts. As I get older noises seem to bother me much more, especially unnecessary ones like horns and screaming kids but I digress. Second housing. Too much money for something that needs work. Past that stage in life where I want to fix up a house. Third winter. Cannot stand the cold. In fact now if it drops below 65 I can't stand it. I will say the heat is getting me now but that is why we get out of town in the summer. Basically two to two and a half months travel somewhere else cooler.

The good. Lots of history and culture which ironically enough I only really saw after leaving town and becoming a "visitor". Easy walkable city. Family is still there though parents are gone now.

Neutral The cape. Unless you are from New England or someone who visits the cape every year most outsiders don't get it. Unlike most beaches on the east coast it is hard to access the water. You either need to be a resident or pay exorbitant prices at public beaches more so since you aren't a resident of the state. For the record I adore the cape in the summer.

That said I have been to LA , almost moved there ...never is not enough to say about that place. If I had to choose as in no other choice it would be Boston and I would deal with the cold and wear earplugs for the annoying horn blowers.

[newenglandgal123]

Originally Posted by NorthofHere

I was born and raised in the suburbs of Boston. Left at about 36 yo. I go back pretty much every year. Though summers are indeed nice (mostly unless it rains all summer) I would not move back. Things I don't like: Drivers why do they honk their horns at red lights like they have their hands on the buzzer in a game show. Light turns green, honk and not a light tap but an all out anger blast. The light just changed for crying out loud, not even one second and they blast the horn. Horns everywhere, even on the highways. Chill out Massachusetts. As I get older noises seem to bother me much more, especially unnecessary ones like horns and screaming kids but I digress. Second housing. Too much money for something that needs work. Past that stage in life where I want to fix up a house. Third winter. Cannot stand the cold. In fact now if it drops below 65 I can't stand it. I will say the heat is getting me now but that is why we get out of town in the summer. Basically two to two and a half months travel somewhere else cooler.

The good. Lots of history and culture which ironically enough I only really saw after leaving town and becoming a "visitor". Easy walkable city. Family is still there though parents are gone now.

Neutral The cape. Unless you are from New England or someone who visits the cape every year most outsiders don't get it. Unlike most beaches on the east coast it is hard to access the water. You either need to be a resident or pay exorbitant prices at public beaches more so since you aren't a resident of the state. For the record I adore the cape in the summer.

That said I have been to LA , almost moved there ...never is not enough to say about that place. If I had to choose as in no other choice it would be Boston and I would deal with the cold and wear earplugs for the annoying horn blowers.

I got honked at yesterday for stopping at a crosswalk b/c someone was waiting to cross...meanwhile the cars coming the opposite direction didn't stop for the woman so I honked at them b/c they could've killed her.


and because I'm on a roll with my rant on idiot drivers I encountered yesterday I'll share this one too....2 lane road that merges to one lane, 35 mph zone....jeep cherokee behind me starts to accelerate before it goes to one lane. I knew he was going to try to dangerously pass me at the last second. I also knew that I could just tap the gas and my car would easily prevent that move he was trying to do. Yep he was mad, bruised ego and he had to tailgate me the rest of the way until it was switching back to two lanes again...then he got in the left, gunned it and almost sideswiped the car in front of me that he was trying to pass before it changed back to one lane again.

[bostongymjunkie]

Honking comes from short green light duration and the already difficult time it is to get from one place to another. Crowded narrow roads and poorly designed intersections add to the madness. It's worse now due to so many drivers who fall asleep at the wheel looking at their phones and have zero consideration for people behind them.

I think lots of people have difficulty adjusting to life in regions they didn't grow up in. This becomes especially true with expansive moves crossing N-S, E-W demarcation points. People don't generally like change and that's what you get when you migrate from one area of the country to another. Nothing new, nothing unusual. Some people like their new culture and others just don't. People live where they feel at home. C-D is filled with threads from people with complaints about different regions. Some are natives lamenting changes in their states of origin, and others are newcomers. The country as a whole is changing dramatically due to globalization and tech. Regional identity is quickly eroding. Accents are fading away. Soon, one corporatized city will have a similar feel to many others, geographical factors notwithstanding.

[msRB311]

I was driving today on a main rd when cars came to a pretty sudden stop, then no one moved. I beeped. Then i saw a turkey emerge. So that was my bad. I guess maybe I can be trigger happy with the horn in situations like that, but I've been spending a lot of time dropping my kids off at camps, friends houses, so I've been driving around more often than usual. It didn't occur to me that the car had stopped to let an animal walk by, I couldn't see and I guess my initial response was annoyance that i had to slam on my breaks.