Cost of Living...again (utilities, food, etc) (Beaverton, Tigard: apartment complex, to rent)

[psichick]

Originally Posted by Hopes

You'll be shocked by how nasty people are though. We had a car rental that had regular California plates. People would glare at me in parking lots. They'd stare at the plates while walking up to the car, and then glare at me as they were walking along side my car. Very aggressive. I felt like yelling, "I'm from Pennsylvania!!!!!!!!!"

Oh man, I hear ya. I got a rental yesterday; a Prius with CA plates. I thought to myself, "I'm trying to be discreet here and they give me a car with CA plates. Thanks Avis."

[psichick]

Originally Posted by sayulita

Hillsdale is a neighborhood, not a suburb, so it is smaller. The main point of interest is the Hillsdale Shopping Center on Capitol Hwy. With the exception of Starbucks, a UPS store and Subway, it's a varied mix of locally owned small businesses, a food co-op grocery store (open to all) and restaurants. There are some new food carts by the high school on the east end of the strip. Library, pharmacy, small post office, and liquor store all within the area. From May to October, there is a great little farmer's market at the east end. On the other side of Hillsdale is Multnomah Village, a small, charming two block stretch with art galleries, restaurants, antique shops, a couple of clothing stores and more. Also a Starbucks, but they're everywhere, aren't they?
Other than those two retail areas, it's a mix of houses and apartments, some older, some newer. It's also home to a large Jewish community, so there is a community center (open to all) and school and several Jewish small businesses and offices.
At the corner of Vermont and 45th is the Southwest Community Center and Gabriel park which has a leash free dog park in it. Also a few other small businesses nearby.
So it's got a little bit of everything, is not cookie cutter suburbia at all, but has all the grocery stores and large chainstores you might need within 5 miles.

Darn darn darn. I was so busy, I forgot!!! I'm going to check it out more online though. Sounds like a nice little neighborhood. Gotta love all the leash free dog parks too.

[psichick]

Originally Posted by Sondeera

Yeah, that's another reason I need to walk/bike more. In SoCal, the speed limit is the starting point. You'll get dirty looks for not going at least the limit. My husband, who drives like an absolute grandma here, looks like a madman in PDX. But, hey, hopefully it translates to safer roads. I mean, really, we should be obeying the traffic laws. They're there for a reason.

OMG, this was a worry of mine too. But y'know, I have to admit, once I get up there, I'm fine with going the speed limit or flow of traffic. Maybe it's because I'm more relaxed up there, not so "in a rush", or maybe it's because their freeways twist and turn and are only 3 lanes. I dunno.

I was on the freeway last night, after driving around in OR all day, and didn't realize it, but I was doing 65 in the fast lane. Thankfully, no one really going around me or on my tail, but oops. I finally just upped the speed back to CA minimum....80 right? LOL.

[Metlakatla]

Originally Posted by psichick

Here's a funny thing. I was up there yesterday securing an apartment. Got a rental car. Guess where the plates were from? California. Guess what month they were good until? May 2014. I guess even rental car agencies don't "update" their registration within 30-days (but then again, maybe they don't have to as I was told there's a lot from UT and CA rental cars).

Not exactly. Rental cars from national companies go back and forth from here to California and surrounding states all the time; you just happened to get one that was based in CA. Someone rented it in CA, drove it up, left it with the company. The next time someone's looking for a Prias to drive to California, that'll be it.

[psichick]

I am not in a good mood today. And this part of the thread is sooooo old. I'm over it. But I'll humor you.

Let's see. I have learned that OR people like to threaten people, be judgmental, and have no qualms about being prejudice and downright rude to CA people. You want to be, oh so different, and yet, dammit, follow OUR RULES if you're not from here. Oh, but you're individualists too. I don't think I have found people in CA to be so pushy. (disclaimer: I really don't believe this, I'm just saying it for pure sarcastic value)

Originally Posted by Larry Caldwell

If you plan to be one more rape it and leave it Californian, don't expect a pleasant experience in Oregon. The consequences may be more profound than you imagine. You could easily end up with your tires slashed or your paint job keyed by identifying yourself as a transient. If you don't want to waste your $350 registration fee, all you have to do is stay in California. Good luck filling out the police report while explaining that you just didn't feel like changing your drivers license.

Did you read my post at all? Did you read the part about KNOWING and UNDERSTANDING what the consequences are? I'm not the type of person to whine about how it's soooo unfair because I got caught and have to pay the fines. If there are consequences to something and I am faced with those consequences, I deal with it and you won't hear one peep out of me on the forum boo-hooing about what the mean OR ppl did to my car cuz I had CA plates (btw, thanks for making my point about how GREAT OR really is).

It's the same deal on dog licenses. The fine for invalid license will run about $350, and you don't get the dog back until you have paid the fine, immunization and license fees. We figured out a while back that if people can't be responsible dog owners, just take their dog. That may not be a big consequence for you, but you have about 2 weeks to come up with the scratch or your dog ends up dead.

Well, at least I know what to do now if my dog pisses me off. You OR people are so compassionate and loving tree-huggers and animal lovers.

These are just a couple of examples. Either up your game to become a decent citizen or stay where you are.

Oh, the threats again. Is this how OR would like to represent itself? People like you? Wow. And "they say" CA people are arses.


Let me ask you something. How many laws do you break in a day? And if you say none, then you're the first person I have met that breaks absolutely no laws and follows them all to a T....or you're lying.

(95% of this post is sarcastic so if you wish to reply, go for it. Feel free to judge me all you want. You know me like you know...........oh that's right, "You know nothing, Jon Snow".)

[psichick]

Originally Posted by Metlakatla

Not exactly. Rental cars from national companies go back and forth from here to California and surrounding states all the time; you just happened to get one that was based in CA. Some rented it in CA, drove it up, left it with the company. The next time someone's looking for a Prias to drive to California, that'll be it.

That makes sense. I rarely see "out of state" rental cars in Hawaii. Thanks for the explanation.

[EnricoV]

Originally Posted by psichick

(95% of this post is sarcastic so if you wish to reply, go for it. Feel free to judge me all you want. You know me like you know...........oh that's right, "You know nothing, Jon Snow".)

I'm not sure what 5% is serious but ... I'm not sure that yet another post in this forum bashing Portland is a good idea. We've had a surfeit of them lately.

I'm sorry you're having a bad day. But judging a whole city and its inhabitants on one or two encounters isn't very nice.

[sayulita]

Just come here. do your thing, legal or not. It will all be OK. If you get fined, cool. If not, also cool. For the most part, you'll be fine no matter what. We are not a herd of sheep who all do the same thing. It's a pretty big place. No one will even notice you for the most part. You'll blend in in no time. Don't let this forum scare you off. It's a big city with tens of thousands of different people. No one is going to zero in on you for any particular reason. Just relax, make the move and don't worry.

[psichick]

Originally Posted by EnricoV

I'm not sure what 5% is serious but ... I'm not sure that yet another post in this forum bashing Portland is a good idea. We've had a surfeit of them lately.

I'm sorry you're having a bad day. But judging a whole city and its inhabitants on one or two encounters isn't very nice.

That's the point. I'm not judging anyone nor any place, but am being judged because I am from CA (hmm...being judged because I'm from a specific city......not very nice, right?). Hence my sarcastic post. Trust me, I'm not bashing OR in anyway, I love the place....and if I was, do you honestly think I'd want to move there? Like I said. I'm not one to complain about something I did to myself.....even if I moved and hated it there, I certainly wouldn't bash the city just because I made error in judgement.

ETA: the 5% is probably the first and last sentence.....just so we're clear on that.

[psichick]

Originally Posted by sayulita

Just come here. do your thing, legal or not. It will all be OK. If you get fined, cool. If not, also cool. For the most part, you'll be fine no matter what. We are not a herd of sheep who all do the same thing. It's a pretty big place. No one will even notice you for the most part. You'll blend in in no time. Don't let this forum scare you off. It's a big city with tens of thousands of different people. No one is going to zero in on you for any particular reason. Just relax, make the move and don't worry.

Thanks. And honestly, I'm not afraid and I wouldn't judge an entire city due to one person or one incident (unlike those who judge me for simply being from CA). That's not the type of person I am. And I would assume most people from OR aren't either.

BTW, the only time people comment about where I'm from is 1. when being asked why I'm looking for an apt, 2. I have to show my ID, and 3. they ask, "what brought you here today" be it a store, apt, or otherwise. Otherwise, I have gone to dinner, shopped at the mall, went grocery shopping, etc. heck, I even went to the local car dealership to talk to the service ppl about my car, and when I have spoken to people, they have all been very nice and we had great conversations. I especially love how nice they are in the drive-thru fast food joints...oh and they speak good english (sorry S. CA, I hate that).