Do you sometimes think of moving out of Chicago? (Paris: rent, living)

[FractalSphere]

Hi all - I'm going to make waves here by introducing myself as a new person on the forums. ;-)

First off, I'm a native Chicagoan - born and raised in Rogers Park (Devon and Western, before it became Little India - but I do love the food!) and now have lived at various places between LSD/Montrose to Addison and Pulaski where I have a condo now.

Normally I haven't considered moving out of Chicago too often. If some awesome job came along, I'd likely go, especially these days, but in general I like my city, despite (as others have mentioned) the political BS going on in the form of parking meters, the destruction of Meigs Field, the possible water metering, taxes, the Olympic spending debacle, and other things.

However, there is a lot to love about Chicago. The best selection and quality of food, in my opinion, fests in the summer, a decent public transportation system (I refer to the quantity of lines, tho maybe not the best service..) The general attitude of folks (yes, there are a**holes everywhere, it happens) has always been good, and in the winter months I've had some positive experiences in getting un-stuck from snow and helping a few other folks along the way.

OK I'll stop going on now - but I found a thread I had an opinion on and didn't specifically see an intro thread to say HI on.

[Mathguy]

Originally Posted by surlycue

Really?

White 41.0% Black 1.05% Hispanic 30.2% Asian 26.1% Other 1.63%

Thankyou for correcting me. I had a bad-link and my information was incorrect.

[Mathguy]

Originally Posted by Drover

The 2000 census showed that Bridgeport wasn't even majority white, much less >98% white. Also, I'm not equating anything with anything. I responded specifically to your implication that black people can't even go into Bridgeport without getting beat down or harassed by the cops.

I don't know how long it's been since you lived here or if you ever even spent any time in Bridgeport when you did. But you really need to re-evaluate what you think you know about the place.

You and others here have made some good, logical points.
I'm going to do something shocking for the forums here and actually admit that some of my earlier comments may have been hasty and out of date. (Perhaps even wrong! )

Appreciate your input.

[FractalSphere]

Originally Posted by Mathguy

I'm going to do something shocking for the forums here and actually admit that some of my earlier comments may have been hasty and out of date. (Perhaps even wrong! )

That, sir, is a rare precedent in the history of the Internets. ;-)

[Drover]

"You must spread some reputation around before giving it to Mathguy again."

Oh well.

[ImaloneJill]

This is going to sound ignorant, but I didn't realize there were reputation comments until about two weeks ago. I feel bad that I never addressed the people who sent them to me and don't know how to give it.
Can someone direct me?

[Drover]

You can give it one of two ways: the first is to click on the little "scale" thingy in the upper right-hand corner of someone's post. This option allows you to leave a comment. The other is to click on "Rate this post positively" at the bottom of someone's post. This is athe "quick reputation" option that just gives them points without leaving a comment.

[ImaloneJill]

Thank you!

[Basekamp]

Here are real cities. Where you can have a real modern amenity filled city life, if THAT is what you want. As in, .5 miles to virtually everything you need no matter where you are at all within at least a mile of downtown. That means within .5 miles of wherever you are you can hook up with all kind of international cuisine (not just Mexican food and Italian food like Houston) and nightlife and shopping. See there are lots of international cuisines in downtown Houston. But in Chicago you can stand virtually anywhere within a mile of the center of the city, and be .5 miles from a dozen different international cuisine restaurants, a dozen pubs and nightclubs, and all kinds of artistic and educational entertainment. Houston simply does not have the density or the range. So thus I am not generalizing I am putting it in very specific terms. By this measure I would rate world cities I have spent time in as follows:

1) New York City
2) London
3) Paris
4) Rome
5) Tokyo
6) Hong Kong
7) San Fransisco
8... tied) Boston
8... tied) Chicago
8... tied) San Diego
9) Miami
10) Seattle


Let me also provide you with a list of other world cities that beat out houston:

Beijing
Singapore
Shanghai
Mumbai
Dubai
Dublin
Berlin
Johannesburg
Moscow
Madrid
Milan
New Orleans
Toronto
Santiago, Chile

I could keep writing and writing. I am just saying don't go to the top of the list and say, "Houston is better than Chicago." Start with Santiago Chile, which is beautiful and on an ocean backed by mountains, and debate whether one might live in Chile or Houston. For that matter start closer to home with New Orleans or La Fayette, AR.

Originally Posted by Tao111

Classic inferiority complex.

[Scaredy_Squirrel]

Originally Posted by Jesse69

Do you sometimes think of moving out of Chicago? This city is degenerating under Mayor Daley. Soon parking meters will be too expensive. CTA is getting way expensive. Shopping at Jewel's and Dominick's is expensive. What else is expensive?

Sometimes I think I should just move to Houston or another US city. Chicago's attractions to me is that I live in a great location in Wicker Park and that LSD is great to workout in. But shopping, groceries, and restaurants are better in Houston.

And I'm getting tired of applying to the same Chicago companies that don't even hire me. Maybe I'm not gonna last in Chicago...

I got through 6 pages of this thread before I had to grab 2 Advils.

Has the original poster ever come back into this thread or has it turned into debates among posters? Just curious. If I were to think about writing a post such as the O.P., I'd already have my bags packed and plane ticket purchased for a city I felt more comfortable living in.