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I'm responding to the orginal question asked and did'nt follow the thread thru, but in answer to "moved to Charolotte, what is it like"...We moved from the midwest for a job relocation, my husband got sick and his company fired him. It's important for people to know that you can be fired for anything in NC and have no retribution, esp if your company has less than 15 people employed in NC. Our attorney told us that yes, if someone looked at you and said that "I don't want you working for me because you are a woman, black, asian, old, gay, etc., they can legally do that. I guess it's called a "right to work" state.
So, if I had to move here again knowing that? no I wouldn't. Other than that I really like NC.
Our family relocated from Chicago and for the most part I like it.. I miss the "city" atmosphere like if you go to uptown (their downtown) its quiet and not really happening at least all of the times i've been i mean during the day m-f its all the hustle from business men/woman but if anyone has ever been to NYC or Chicago or lived there you'll know what i'm talking about..
I can say places are A LOT cheaper which is amazing.. Depending on where you go there are a lot of stuck up, desperate housewife types not to mention the "stepford wives" EVERYWHERE!
I dont know i'm not convinced just yet on Charlotte..
Something that is making me absolutely bonkers are the "palmetto bugs" AKA cockroaches i mean they are on steroids and this is coming from a severe OCD clean the house 3x times a day there is no stopping these damned things! That is something i've been trying to deal with but its that or 39849348 inches of snow *shrugs* the weather is beautiful i can admit -the summer & the humidity it gets insane
so all in all there are many pro's/cons so you gotta just take the good with the bad and compromise on certain aspects..
the nightlife primarily consists of college students.. there really isn't a hipster/ or whatever you'd call it area i'm thinking along the lines of (belmont/clark in chicago)
OHHHH &
Southern hospitality... where is it?! does it exist anymore?!
I keep hearing about these stepford wives but I have no idea where they are and I live 5 minutes from SouthPark Mall. Is it the rich wives who shop in the high end stores and drive the big SUV's with no one in them? If so, I thought every major city had them?
As far as Southern Hospitality goes... I think you just need to find an actual Southerner to get it... half of Charlotte is NJ, NY and Ohio... and they don't do the SH thing.
The only thing that I am having a hard time with is no ShopRite. Food is expensive but everthing else about being down here, is great.
Wouldn't go back
The only way you will be able to get close to ShopRite prices is if you goto multiple stores during the week like i do.
I goto Walmart for my staples each week and supplement that by going to Harris Teeter for e-vic items and other items on sale which I use...also I get the Observer for the circulars to help...
The only thing that I am having a hard time with is no ShopRite. Food is expensive but everthing else about being down here, is great.
Wouldn't go back
You must be shopping at Harris Teeter. Best price and quality I have found down here is Trader Joe's. Prices are cheaper than the Super Target on a lot of items.
I have heard a lot of folks say that now they can better afford a home in their former state - so it seems to me the adjustment on real estate prices was a necessary bubble to burst (I know that sounds awful to those who lost money - but real estate had just gotten waaaay over-inflated in most of this country). There are just never gonna be reasonable prices in some regions - b/c of demand, I would guess.
Sadly, I haven't been back in over three years. The first 5 years, we went back several times a year. My best friend lived there and she died of cancer . . . and after that . . . it just wasn't the same. It was really emotional going back . . . wanting to stay and yet knowing that even if I moved back, it would never be the same b/c my best friend (who was a mother figure, not just a dear friend) wouldn't be there.
We were judges for the state BBQ championship, so we miss that very much . . . but once we moved, we gave that up. Part of the joy was judging w/ longtime friends - you can't duplicate those relationships. And going back for the events as non-judges - well - it just wasn't the same at all, even tho it was fun. We just felt a sense of loss instead of nostalgia, if that makes sense. We were no longer part of the group . . . life had moved on without us and you can't just drop in for a few days and feel like you really "belong."
We used to get cheapie flights back for New Year's Eve and meet up with friends, but somewhere along the line . . . 2007 maybe? - we headed to warmth in Florida for New Year's Eve so that changed the pattern.
We stay in touch w/ friends and I still have clients there, but we are able to do everything long distance. I have been thinking it would be good to grab a cheap flight and drop in on clients, have lunch/dinner with friends . . . and visit "the boats," LOL. Miss those casinos!
I love Kansas City in the winter . . . all that snow is magical. I don't even mind the blizzards, as long as I am inside.
Would I move back? I don't think so. Too expensive to load up that truck, for one thing. And my family is here and I need to be close by for them. Next time we move, it will be to downsize. We will probably stay in the metro . . . maybe head up to Mooresville . . .
That's the thing about Charlotte. You don't have to live right in the city - there are many nice bedroom communities out there.
Nice post-thanks Ani
I wonder how many of the people who move back to where they came from have families ie kids at school?
And also whether their financial situation has changed significantly since they moved here eg they have more disposable income/have been able to pay off debt/save money etc.
Also if they're more likely to be self employed.
Would be interesting to know a little more about the demographics.
Personally, even if we wanted to, not sure we could move back to where we came from as our son is a junior and not sure how easy it would be for either of us to get jobs especially as I haven't worked now for around 3 years.
The there's the housing prices too and general cost of living and the cost of the actual move.
We would be hard pushed to buy a 3 bed small house in a decent area for what we could sell this house for at the moment.
I do have to keep it in mind as my parents aren'r getting amy younger and I'm an only child and not really an option for them to come here full time.
But-THE WEATHER there -aaagh
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A pound is slang for a handshake, get your mind out the gutter.
Moved here in June from NJ
