Rank Pittsburgh's Quality-of-Life (Austin, Portland: mortgages, student loans, unemployment)

[EveKendall]

I definitely vote it 'very good'. We have lived here since 2007 and it has gotten better and better since then. The restauarant scene, in particular, is pretty good now. I love my neighborhood and that we could afford a nice house in a walkable area on a smaller budget. I don't mind the winters and I appreciate that the weather is changeable. I have made some great friends here and my kids are thriving in our local public school. The things that keep the city from an 'excellent' for me are the public transportation system (the buses are not great, the whole 'paying as you exit' thing is ridiculous, and the drivers are the surliest I have ever encountered--even in Philly), the crazy driving (do not get me started about the 'Pittsburgh left'), and the summers, which I would prefer to be less hot and humid. I guess you cannot have everything, though.

[szug-bot]

Originally Posted by pghdude28

I would describe quality of life here as somewhat "Poor." I do have a decent job, however I voted "Poor." There's no need to reiterate what I have posted extensively about in the past. I think most are familiar with my perspective on this region. All one has to do is look outside their windows, drive around, interact with the locals, speak with young professionals, etc. to see what I'm talking about. If you don't notice it, I can't help you. This region has no real path to anywhere and lacks vision for the future. It's not worth rambling about. As the saying goes, "You can't fix stupid."

i for one am not familiar with your perspective. i dont recall posts of yours that come to mind or have established, to me, that you are unhappy here.

c' est le vie. i understand that our realities are all different. some people love it here, some are ok, others dont like it. every opinion is a valid one.

This region has no real path to anywhere and lacks vision for the future. It's not worth rambling about. As the saying goes, "You can't fix stupid.

what are some of the visions of the future that other cities have? i would tend to disagree with this. i remember (before i moved away) this concept for rehabilitating Penn Avenue downtown, and to bring high culture to it. i thought that sounded like the most boring thing ive ever heard of. voila...the Cultural District - ok, not London's West End (yet?) but compared to what it was just 20 years ago....

thats one example. east liberty - another where 'vision's are coming to fruition.

plus, there are other 'visions' you must may not know about, pghdude. few things are presented to the public unless they are deemed to be feasible in the first place.

[gg]

Originally Posted by pghdude28

I …

From reading a few of your posts, I suspect you would feel this way no matter where you live. You seem pretty depressed and probably should focus on yourself and not your surroundings. I am saying this out of kindness in hopes you get help. You never say anything positive and that would be about impossible in any region. Heck even people living in Bagdad would probably be able to find some positives. Your glass isn't even 1/8th full, it is totally empty. Just get some help. Life is too short.

[szug-bot]

Originally Posted by h_curtis

From reading a few of your posts, I suspect you would feel this way no matter where you live. You seem pretty depressed and probably should focus on yourself and not your surroundings. I am saying this out of kindness in hopes you get help. You never say anything positive and that would be about impossible in any region. Heck even people living in Bagdad would probably be able to find some positives. Your glass isn't even 1/8th full, it is totally empty. Just get some help. Life is too short.

i was thinking the same thing - but i thought "if i voice that in a post, it will sound condescending and snippy", and i dont want it to be construed in that manner.

pghdude - it could be possible you have social anxiety. look, i grew up in surroundings of negativism, racism, xenophobia (to some extent), and with that somewhat typical blue collar hatred of other drivers. it took me years to realize i was just a d* - i minimized that when i realized i was acting the same way as those i judged.

i think (like a lot of guys) i developed some social anxiety because of that. i just hated people - i thought there was no way they could possibly know more than me. they were rich because they inherited it without working. they were poor because they were just dumb and on drugs. everyone was a horrendous driver (well, that is true).

i just worked hard to get out of that way of thinking. over time, ive improved my outlook. (some days i want to strangle someone, no doubt). perhaps your perspective of where you live in general is warped because of your feelings about your life. youre probably in your 20s - an awkward time - too old to be a kid, too young to be old. you just have to let your guard down and meet people and involve yourself with them somehow.

last night on WQED i saw some show about people planting trees, as volunteers. that saved the city $6,000 (unpaid volunteers). the volunteer girl was saying they get people from all different backgrounds. years ago i was doing something like "Habitat for Humanity" (different organization, though). it was neat - there were people of all ages and backgrounds.

something like that kind of gets someone out of a narrow mindset of what they know. maybe you can try something challenging that you never really considered - rock climbing, auditioning for a play, etc....

or...maybe you just hate pittsburgh, which is fine, too.

[_Buster]

Originally Posted by h_curtis

From reading a few of your posts, I suspect you would feel this way no matter where you live. You seem pretty depressed and probably should focus on yourself and not your surroundings. I am saying this out of kindness in hopes you get help. You never say anything positive and that would be about impossible in any region. Heck even people living in Bagdad would probably be able to find some positives. Your glass isn't even 1/8th full, it is totally empty. Just get some help. Life is too short.

There seems to be a figurative (and literal!) dark cloud that follows certain people around. I think most people here are pretty receptive to valid criticisms of the region, but some see all positive posts as vapid cheerleading because of this dark cloud.

[Goodjules]

Originally Posted by _Buster

There seems to be a figurative (and literal!) dark cloud that follows certain people around. I think most people here are pretty receptive to valid criticisms of the region, but some see all positive posts as vapid cheerleading because of this dark cloud.

You and the previous two posters said what I've been thinking too. I didn't like the small town in southern New Mexico where my mom retired. It was too darn hot and too darn small for me. However, I could see how someone else might like it (even though I could construe liking that place as a form of masochism ). I like it here in Pittsburgh, but I'm not so much of a Pollyanna that I can't see its drawbacks or how someone else might not like it as much as I do. I do wonder about a person's mindset when they are living in a place that they clearly dislike so strongly. If I was that unhappy here I'd be doing everything possible to leave or maybe getting therapy to find out why I was so unhappy.

[LIRefugee]

Originally Posted by h_curtis

Heck even people living in Bagdad would probably be able to find some positives.

Pittsburgh can't hold a candle to Baghdad in terms of the richness of its history. Pittsburgh has more Super Bowl wins, though.

[szug-bot]

and, thankfully, will still have more than san francisco for at least one more year *whew*

[Boomchee]

I voted good...Great cost of living. What kept me from voting higher was poor infrastructure, crappy weather, and the need for improved mass transit. In my 15 yrs here the city has definitely made some strides for the better. One thing I will say is PGH will always hold a special place in my heart as I really learned how to make it here. At the end of the summer/fall I will be relocating back out to Portland. There are some really solid people here.

[szug-bot]

sorry to see ya go..... but i hear a lot of good things about Portland....lucky you, on the beautiful west coast.

best wishes!