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I'm currently stuck living in my hometown and I really despise it. It's too small, conservative, cookie cutter, boring, ugly, three hours from a "real" city, etc, etc, etc. I also fight feeling like a failure because I still live here. I did get to spend three wonderful years in a mid-sized city on the east coast after college though and am very thankful for those years but moving back to my hometown was one of the worst things I ever did. Now I'm pretty much stuck because after you are established, it's extremely difficult to move unless you do something drastic. I wonder if people who tie their self-worth into cities grew up in places that are perceived as being backwaters?
What's cool and uncool is all relative. People in New Orleans consider Baton Rouge to be boring, dull and uncool. People from Baton Rouge look down on Monroe and Lake Charles. I am a native of the New Orleans area and now live in the Baton Rouge suburbs and am hoping for something more rural and small town but my job and my social networks keeps me here. Some of the best years of my life was when I lived outside Charleston, West Virginia which I'm sure you would consider un-hip. But I prefer drinking beers and playing shuffleboard in a honky tonk and shooting guns in the holler over fancy nightclubs and the opera. I think a cool vehicle would be a Ford F150 not a Tesla. And I voted for Trump and will vote for him again.
Generally speaking, I can see why some like to move. There are a variety of reasons. Job situations usually being the case. I've 53, was raised in the Charlotte area. Lived in the Orlando area for a year for a research project, a year in Columbus for a job, and a year and a half in the Boston/Cape Cod area to help care for my mother-in-law. We just recently moved back to the Charlotte area from Boston. We knew we would be coming back, so we kept out home in NC. We plan on never leaving Charlotte. Just love it here. Nearly all of my friends and family have stayed in the Charlotte area. I can totally see why some people stay where they were raised if they love it there. It's expensive to move out of boredom/the grass is greener syndrome/unrealistic fantasies/etc. For me at least, roots, stability, and family are extremely important. Our 4 young adult kids (23-27), extended family, and we (my wife and I) travel extensively, but we all love living here and don't want to live anywhere else. It's a personal decision each of us have to make, whether the decision is good or bad. Interesting thread
1. Some people may not have a need to move. They grow up surrounded by friends and family and are able to get a job close to home that they're satisfied with. Helps if your local area happens to have a healthy economy. Here in Baton Rouge, LA we have a diverse economy with well paying jobs for people of all educational backgrounds ranging from white collar work associated with LSU and related fields to the oil/gas industry.
2. Some places are more pleasant to live in than others. I grew up in South Louisiana and most people here are quite content (with the possible exception of Lake Charles) and don't really feel a desire to move. In fact many are extremely proud to be from here and say there's no place else they'd rather live. A lot of West Virginia people are like this too. People may look down on WV and urban people may say there's "nothing to do" there but if you the outdoors, rural life, small town living it really is "almost heaven". Many people who DO leave WV for work try to go back as soon as they can. While I personally don't want to live in California, and while there's an exodus from that state, there are also many California natives who swear California is the best place on Earth and they would never move. Particularly people from San Diego and Orange County.
When I lived in Baltimore, everyone around me was constantly talking about how Baltimore and Maryland sucked and how they all wanted to leave.
3. Many people WOULD NOT be comfortable moving someplace where they don't already know someone. I personally am like this. I did move back to Louisiana for more work opportunities but it was also only because I already have a wide network of friends here, though to be honest I've made some great new friends since coming back too.
4. Certain areas are very close knit. For example in WV its quite common for someone's entire family and extended family to live in the same town or at least within 2 or 3 hours. Many people there value things like this over careers and money and there's nothing wrong with that.
5. Some cities are so unique that natives find it hard to fit in anywhere else. New Orleans and NYC immediately come to mind. Many people from the heart of Appalachian WV and Kentucky and from deep in Louisiana Cajun Country are this way as well. I know Mexicans from Laredo, Texas who will never leave South Texas because they're used to living in a Hispanic area and would not be comfortable someplace too "gringo" in their own words. I personally also have to live in an area where Southern and/or regular American culture predominates.
I would say that West Virginia and Louisiana are among the most "deeply rooted" states where people stay for family and cultural reasons. California, Texas and Florida have a lot of people who are satisfied with what they consider the good life. Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Ohio seem to have a lot of people who want to leave.
A lot of NYers leave ... not bc they want to but bc they cant afford it. NewYork is a big state & is not just NYC & is one of the most highly taxed states. Specifically ppl from Long Island look to leave bc most of them are families & simply just cannot make it financially.
The interesting thing about NYC is that as a native I find I’m in the minority. Everyone I know in NY moved here from elsewhere.
Then of course as I alluded to before, you have ppl who leave. It’s mostly the native LIers trying to find cheaper living (& usually against their will)
There’s something about NYC that makes ppl flock to it & not want to leave. Been here my whole life ... magical
a lot of nyers leave ... Not bc they want to but bc they cant afford it. Newyork is a big state & is not just nyc & is one of the most highly taxed states. Specifically ppl from long island look to leave bc most of them are families & simply just cannot make it financially.
I was going to use a specific area, but then figured everyone would have pros or cons. Why (or why not) did you stay in the same city, what was it and where?
well i have lived virtually my whole life in Midland, Texas because I have had not any real chances of moving.I stayed here for college and I guess im here because Midland is one of the top cities for my industry(oil and gas) but i want to move someday.Also it would be hard for me to move away from family.
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