Why is making friends in Miami so DIFFICULT?? (house, closing)

[Rock Newman]

Originally Posted by popcorn247

So very true.....esp. #12. I've lived here 37 years and can hardly wait to be moving out of Florida.

Why move out of Florida .... just move out of South Florida or even Dade County .... we have friends ( native Miamians ) who moved three years ago to the Stuart / Hutchinson Island area about 140 miles North and they love it ... we also have friends that moved to the west coast just north of Naples and are very happy .... we live in Parkland , previously Weston and love both places ... only get down to Miami to have some fun or to fly out of the airport .. but then we leave .

You should not censor the entire state of Florida which is huge over the sins of Miami .. go up to the panhandle .. Panama City , Destin .. check out the NW , Jacksonville , Ponte Vedra , St . Augustine .. West Coast .. Sarasota , Tampa .. Dunedin ... all great places with terrific people and nothing like Miami in any way .. different culture , even weather ... I think Miami is a great place to party , people watch and vacation .. but quality of life is another story and I really beleive that you do not have to leave Florida to find it .

[popcorn247]

I have visited other parts of Florida and they are lovely, beautiful, much more my style, but another thing.....I want to move out of hurricane-land. I was here (Homestead) during Hurricane Andrew,, here in 2005 when we were hit by 4 hurricanes in one summer - I am bothered by the stress of it all. I visited Port St. Joe last summer - a beautiful, quiet spot on the "forgotten coast". You are absolutely right, Rock Newman, you don't have to leave Florida to find a wonderful place to live.

[Rock Newman]

Originally Posted by popcorn247

I have visited other parts of Florida and they are lovely, beautiful, much more my style, but another thing.....I want to move out of hurricane-land. I was here (Homestead) during Hurricane Andrew,, here in 2005 when we were hit by 4 hurricanes in one summer - I am bothered by the stress of it all. I visited Port St. Joe last summer - a beautiful, quiet spot on the "forgotten coast". You are absolutely right, Rock Newman, you don't have to leave Florida to find a wonderful place to live.

Agree with you 100% .... but in reality just about all places in our great country have some sort of natural disaster possibility ... be they earthquakes , flash fires , flooding or snow storms ... as bad as hurricanes are .. you can always prepare for them and then leave ... I used to live in Valencia , California ... a great area but the possibility of fire and earthquakes was always present and the latter you cannot prepare for .. by the way for some reason NE Fla seems to be hurricane immune .. I do not recall one hitting the Jacksonville , Ponte Vedra , St. Augustine or Daytona areas in at least forty years ?

Good luck to you

[Bjorn_Ironside32]

Unfortunately that's how it is in this country.

[Glasvegas]

I agree. Not all of Florida is like Miami. Drive 60 miles north and it's different.

[jasper12]

I have lived here for three years now- no hurricanes yet! Not a lot of friends either, but I am busy with work, school, yoga. I don't go out to bars and clubs much-- I don't know how anyone can afford to go out drinking here except for a beer once in awhile. Maybe everyone here has more money than me. It seems like it...I know people who live in fancy places, have nice new cars, go to the spa, buy new clothes all the time, and want to go out to the bars on the weekends. I just don't get it. My luxury is my gym membership. That is it.

[Ninjasoul]

I think it's more difficult for woman, especially women in MIA.....I'm a nursing student, grew up here, lived in Miami Beach last 7 years....and it doesn't get any easier, i find myself google-ing " find friends" more often these days....my man has his crew, same crew since "back in da day", same with my ex and boyfriends of other girls I've asked around.....I hope I don't come off as a lezbian (no offense) but I wish I could find at least one chic in this f#$king town that isn't some bar fly, cocaine driven, fake-ass, superficial loser....I'm looking for a smart, motivated, chill girl to kick it with from time to time, like my highschool days, just watching movies, going out for a beer or burger, maybe even actually find a chic that surfs too and is into water sports and skateboards, like me.....any way i guess what i'm trying to say is, I feel you girl, right now my dog really IS my best friend

[cixcell]

Originally Posted by Ninjasoul

I think it's more difficult for woman, especially women in MIA.....I'm a nursing student, grew up here, lived in Miami Beach last 7 years....and it doesn't get any easier, i find myself google-ing " find friends" more often these days....my man has his crew, same crew since "back in da day", same with my ex and boyfriends of other girls I've asked around.....I hope I don't come off as a lezbian (no offense) but I wish I could find at least one chic in this f#$king town that isn't some bar fly, cocaine driven, fake-ass, superficial loser....I'm looking for a smart, motivated, chill girl to kick it with from time to time, like my highschool days, just watching movies, going out for a beer or burger, maybe even actually find a chic that surfs too and is into water sports and skateboards, like me.....any way i guess what i'm trying to say is, I feel you girl, right now my dog really IS my best friend

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[catt6]

after reading this forum for a couple months now, i'm observing that people constantly miss one of the most pertinent points about the main parts of Miami ..... it's a transient, tourism area.

the fact is that ANY community that's a heavy tourist area, means it will be a transient community, and therefore, less likely than 'traditional' america, to have people with 'roots' in the area - this dynamic is the same in Waikiki, Atlantic City, Martha's Vineyard, Vegas -- any city where tourism is a major factor is going to be more of a transient community.... those who have lived there all their lives will have strong community ties, a crew they've known forever, and will generally tend to stick to those - they're not taking chances with the droves of newcomers who stay a short while and don't become a real part of their community. therefore, newcomers will have to work harder and be there longer, to make real friends and feel like they're putting down roots in the area. the general population in ANY tourism-related community is so fly-by-night, it's just not a dynamic conducive to making true friends the way it is in traditional american cities - where there is not the constant influx/outflux of visitors and all the transient types of jobs that go along with serving those visitors.... people think they want to move there, so they go, and take, say, a bartending or waiter job for 6 months, and then decide to move on. the result of this is that local people become much more guarded about whom THEY accept into their circle of friends - cause in their experience, people they make friends with often just up and leave. so they're gonna be less open to all new people - that's neither good or bad - it's just how human behavior works. when i moved to Hawaii i was advised of this dynamic; tourists there are welcomed with open arms, but MOVE there and you get the cold shoulder for a good year - until local folks can trust that you're gonna stay and be a real part of the community... as opposed to just sucking up what they got and moving on. but because i was given fair warning, i was able to relax and not take it personally, knowing that it was just a matter of time til i was fully accepted into the community... and eventually I was; i spent 10 years there and loved it.

so if ppl could realize and understand how tourism affects a community over the long term, i think they'd be a lot less distressed when they get that this is so NOT about "miami" specifically - it's the nature of the beast in ANY heavily-touristed area. Either stick it out until you're well accepted, or move outside of the most heavily tourist part, where there's a lot more opportunities for 'real' jobs, friendships, and relationships.

[WINTERFRONT]

U r talking about Miami Beach, the rest of the county is not touristic at all.