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Other than the Twin Cities, Chicago is probably the only other city in the Midwest that I could live in. I could handle the climate/weather and I would like to live in a larger metro than where I live now. So...
(1) Phoenix. Increasing air quality issues, oven-like temperatures, sprawl. I think the desert around it is beautiful though.
(2) Houston. Humidity, sprawl, humidity, sprawl. And the massive insects.
(3) Salt Lake City. I would definitely not fit in there due to the Mormon influence.
(4) NYC. When I balance the factors, what that city has to offer is outweighed by the expense, rudeness of people who live there, and general dirtiness. It is just too big and too fast-paced. Not for me.
(5) Miami. See Houston.
Top 5 Cities I Would Live in
(1) Chicago. People say it's a wannabe New York. I see it as a cleaner, friendlier, smaller, and more livable New York without all the hype.
(2) San Francisco. If I could afford it. I generally like dense cities with public transportation, and the natural beauty of the area makes it even more desirable.
(3) Seattle. I'll take rain over living in an oven or a sauna anyday. And it's also in a very beautiful natural setting.
(4) Portland. See Seattle.
(5) San Diego. Sprawl is a problem but air quality isn't, expensive but also extremely beautiful. And the weather is about as good as it gets.
1. Detroit = Dangerous
2. San Francisco = Too liberal. I know stupid thing to say, but I would never fit in there.
3. Los Angeles = Hollywood? No thanks bruh I'm good.
4. Berekley = I'm Pro-America. enough said.
5. Oakland = See Detroit.
Well, I live in Michigan now, basically because I was born and raised in this part of the country and my family are all here, but after this winter, we've finally had it and we are planning a move to one of the extreme outlying suburbs of Atlanta as soon as our son gets out of college. I know it gets hot, and I know that people bash the area for various reasons, but what we are looking forward to is being less than five hours from: the Gulf Coast, the Atlantic Ocean, the mountains, and Nashville (my dh LOVES Nashville). Atlanta itself has so much to do and is so rich in history, which is what I love. Everybody needs to be where they are happiest.
Thanks for understanding that I wasn't bashing Chicago. I have visited there a couple of times and was blown away by the museums, shopping, and architecture, but the first time we went it was in early December and the temp was 5 degrees (extreme for that time of year, I realize, but it still gets plenty cold there), and the wind off of the lake-the wind chill had to be way below zero- and the blowing snow was unreal. I couldn't do that every year, I just couldn't. Plus, the cost of living here is so low that we're spoiled. I know that cities like Chicago that attract large numbers of people for various reasons can have a high cost of living just because they are considered so desirable, but I need to live somewhere where my standard of living could be the same or close to what it is here, and that wouldn't be the case in Chicago.
Well, the negative degree windchills are usually very short lived in Chicago. As a matter of fact the highs average around 35 degrees on the coldest day of the year. Like the summer, the winter has its moments; but in
Chicago the bad winters and summers are limited to just weeks in the year.
forty degree weather is very comfortable because the seasons help people adjust to the changes.
It's the excessive heat or cold that will get you every time. The south and southwest have an excessive amount of heat, while the far far north have excessive winters (Canada, but some years will include a few norther US states).
The winter of 2009-2010 was a freak winter that is only seen once in a generation and it was bad enough to where states like Oklahoma, Arkansas, Tennessee etc saw winters normally only seen in the far north.
Good touristy for me is people that come from all over the world to enjoy the cityscape, architecture, cultural institutions, etc.
Bad toursity is people who come for gimmicks (Disneyworld, Islands of Adventure), homogenous (most people that go there are families) and that aren't really there to see the city, rather an outside destination.
I work at a restaurant in downtown Orlando and you would be surprised how many people I meet who are visiting from around the world on a daily basis, and most aren't families. Millions of people visit the theme parks every year but that's not all they do while in town.
Happiness comes from within. You can find happiness anywhere if you allow yourself to be happy. On the other hand many people who are fundamentally miserable blame their misery on the place where they live when the real source lies elsewhere.
I grew up in a town that was a horrible fit for me. It was a tiny homogeneous town while I prefer larger cosmopolitan cities, it's culture ran counter to my outlook on life, it's politics were the opposite of mine, but still I had friends and for the most part had a good life there. Every place you could live is a potential adventure and life experience.
New York City is provincial in it's own weird sort of way, people there think it is so amazing that they close themselves off to the things that other parts of the country have to offer. I think a city is better off if it's inhabitants don't think it is the greatest thing ever.
Never ever:
Charlotte, NC- No point to the city, polluted, don't like Southern culture, cookie cutter city; nothing unique
Raleigh, NC- See Charlotte
Los Angeles- I like all four seasons, including snow. Sprawl.
Miami- I don't like FL, it's too hot, and doesn't have winter the way I like it.
Houston- Humidity and sprawl. Culture
Don't really like Southern cities in general
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