State Your States (Washington: cities, place, near)

[normie]

Originally Posted by slduvall

And don't forget many of us have lived overseas..Germany England, and Italy for me.

No kidding. If we tallied up all the countries we've lived in the list would go off the page.

Overseas stints make this whole list tricky. The question becomes... Do those count as places we've lived or places we've visited?

For example, back in the 80s my husband's job sent us to a few countries, but those assignments were usually 6-9 months. It's hard to tell where you draw the line between living in a place and visiting it.

IMO, I think we lived in those places. We rented homes and cars, got our mail there, bought groceries, paid taxes, enrolled the kids in school, and became experts on the local restaurants. Sounds like residency to me. (And BTW, eating out back then was the best. Restaurants were at their prime back in the 80s.) But would I count them for this list? Hmmmm, I'm not sure.

Anyway, one thing's for sure... if all you did was go to summer camp, you can't claim that as an out-of-state living experience.

[oneasterisk]

You can cross Guam off the list. I lived there right before coming to Virginia. I lived there from 84-89

[Fallout Zone]

Minnesotan here. Also California, North Dakota, and Illinois, with a <1 year stretch in Wisconsin.

[Tish Thompson]

New York, Virginia

[South Jersey Styx]

Originally Posted by normie

Holy cow! And I thought I had a crazy list!

Oops sorry! I read too fast and thought you were asking about states we visited. Okay, please change my response to these states where I have actually lived (over 1 year):

Oklahoma, California, Georgia, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, VA, MD, District of Columbia

Thanks!

[leighland]

Originally Posted by Caladium

When you've lived in a bunch of different states you start to realize you can't blame a city for most of your problems.

True, but I also have developed a well honed preference for what I like and want in a city. And those amenities definitely make me happier in the city of my choice.

I could move to NYC next, for example, and make friends and all but I would not be happy there for sure. Not my style at all!

[GreenGene]

All the states I've lived in, even those I lived in while at college or in the military, have already been listed.

But I also lived in Washington, DC. I don't know if anyone has mentioned D.C., but I don't see it on the list.

[normie]

Originally Posted by GreenGene

All the states I've lived in, even those I lived in while at college or in the military, have already been listed.

But I also lived in Washington, DC. I don't know if anyone has mentioned D.C., but I don't see it on the list.

You know, that's a good point. I lived in DC too back when I was about Scran's age. I lived right by Eastern Market. Consider it added!

[normie]

Originally Posted by leighland

True, but I also have developed a well honed preference for what I like and want in a city. And those amenities definitely make me happier in the city of my choice.

I definitely agree. I also think as you move from place to place you learn what sort of neighborhood you'll be happy in. So the good news is, as the years go by you like the places you live more and more because you learn how to pick 'em.

GreenGene just reminded me that I once lived over by Eastern Market when I was in my mid 20's. I hated it. Doesn't mean there's anything wrong with the neighborhood, it just meant it wasn't the type of place that appealed to me. I don't happen to enjoy city living, but that doesn't mean there's anything wrong with the city.

Same for the slum-like neighborhood I lived in in Denver. I learned my preference is to spend a little more money on a place to live and to avoid run down Victorian buildings. I learned the hard way that cool architectural details on a building's exterior do not always make it a good place to live. But that doesn't mean Denver sucked, just that I needed to hone my preferences.

I'd list Nova as my favorite of all the places I've lived, but to be fair I haven't lived in 99.99% of Nova. I happen to like my little corner of the world, and so I think Nova is great. But really all it means is I finally learned how to pick a neighborhood I like.

[DiderotsGhost]

I have nothing new to add to the list, but I've lived in:

Tennessee
Georgia
North Carolina
Maryland
Virginia

Not sure what will come next. but I have the Southern Mid-Atlantic region conquered