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I am really sorry that you got some negative pm's. You will always find people like that. Those people are just not happy anywhere I think. Overall people will welcome you to the area. I wouldn't worry about the FEW that don't. Have a great evening.
I am really sorry that you got some negative pm's. You will always find people like that. Those people are just not happy anywhere I think. Overall people will welcome you to the area. I wouldn't worry about the FEW that don't. Have a great evening.
Debbie
Did you ever consider that the people who sent the "negative" p.m.'s were trying to be helpful, may have seen or personally experienced the type of discrimination that the poster was concerned about and didn't want to post to the forum about it? I'm not someone who sent the poster a private e-mail but that's what I thought when I read his post about having gotten some negative p.m.'s. Doesn't mean it has a darn thing to do with the people who sent them being incapable of being happy anywhere.
The PM sender really was trying to be helpful and objective. The couple of negative things that they mentioned were important to them. They also mentioned some positive things. I really do appreciate everyone sharing their experiences with us - both good and bad. It is always better to learn what you can up front and make an educated decision, and that's the great thing about this type of forum. All opinions are appreciated. I can say that it seems like the known positives are outweighing the potential negatives at this point.
I know I am starting to sound like a broken record but I would suggest to you & to anyone considering this type of move, to visit again & again once you have found the town or neighborhood you want, go to restaurants, churches, check out the sports venues your child would be going to, ask to see a school, really dig in... b/c especially with a kid in the picture you have to get a good vibe, which you cannot get from a message board or one trip.
Then look for houses, b/c the housing stock is plentiful.
I know I am starting to sound like a broken record but I would suggest to you & to anyone considering this type of move, to visit again & again once you have found the town or neighborhood you want, go to restaurants, churches, check out the sports venues your child would be going to, ask to see a school, really dig in... b/c especially with a kid in the picture you have to get a good vibe, which you cannot get from a message board or one trip.Then look for houses, b/c the housing stock is plentiful.
Amen, Nyer! There is only so much advice that can be reasonably gleaned from an Internet forum. I think racism is alive and well in N.C. My husband says that he's never heard the * N* word openly expressed as much in his entire life as he has in in the time he has lived in N.C. He's shocked and dismayed. And the so - called *liberal* places - are white as the driven snow. If you are a mixed race couple or someone with a bi-racial child, or Hispanic, then I would strongly caution you to make multiple trips before moving here. Keep your eyes and ears open and TRUST your instincts.
But God forbid that anyone say anything negative about N.C. It's not P.C., ya know! But ya know what -- we aren't the ones who have to live in your shoes after you move here. So I would be be most interested in hearing from someone *other than Caucasions* or Realtors about how "accepting" N.C. is.
A&N, just wanted to pass along this link to a neighborhood in Raleigh my cousin & his wife moved to recently. It's a very unique community (and racially diverse) with LOADS of amenities.
As I posted months ago, I have found the Wake Forest area to be more integrated than Long Island was, in terms of housing & shopping & schools- shockingly, refreshingly so. Church? Totally separate, more separate than on Long Island.
How this would all apply to a bi-racial family I will leave to that poster to decide!
Amen, Nyer! There is only so much advice that can be reasonably gleaned from an Internet forum. I think racism is alive and well in N.C. My husband says that he's never heard the * N* word openly expressed as much in his entire life as he has in in the time he has lived in N.C. He's shocked and dismayed. And the so - called *liberal* places - are white as the driven snow. If you are a mixed race couple or someone with a bi-racial child, or Hispanic, then I would strongly caution you to make multiple trips before moving here. Keep your eyes and ears open and TRUST your instincts.
But God forbid that anyone say anything negative about N.C. It's not P.C., ya know! But ya know what -- we aren't the ones who have to live in your shoes after you move here. So I would be be most interested in hearing from someone *other than Caucasions* or Realtors about how "accepting" N.C. is.
Regards,
Cassie
i wish I had met you while we lived there I might have had a better time!!!!
Thanks, NYer that is great advice. Having already done quite a bit of internet research, we actually did take a week-long trip out to Raleigh and Charlotte specifically for that reason. And we brought our son along so that we could test the water and see how local people would reactto us. It was mostly all good, except for the couple of situations that I described in the first post. The problem with making multiple trips is that we are traveling from the opposite coast, and have to tap into $$$ and vacation time each time we come out, both of which will be needed come interview, house hunting, and moving time. So I think we will have to make a decision based on what we've done so far. We've really put a huge amount of effort into researching this move.
That trip, and all of your comments here have pretty much confirmed what I think we already knew. That is, that we will not be having issues in our daily lives (for the most part), but will be troubled from time to time by peoples attitudes and the occasional rude stare (hopefully nothing beyond that). Living in the RTP or Charlotte area we won't have to deal with it too much, but can probably expect the occasional attitude when passing through small towns when we travel.
Cassies non-PC comments ring true too. While visiting Charlotte we visited another engineer friend of mine who had moved from L.A. to Huntersville about a year ago. In his words, "I'm gonna be honest, you are going to hear some things that you're not going to like. Out of the blue, you'll be having a conversation and someone will drop the 'N-Bomb'. I just tell them not to use that word around me, because it offends me". I think the conversations he was refering to were not in mixed company. He also said you wouldn't typically hear that type of thing at work or in a professional environment.
Again, I just want to thank everyone for sharing the good and bad. The bad stuff is out there, it's just a matter of how much, and how to best avoid it by making our home amongst more educated and like minded people. I don't think we would have too many problems in the "good" areas mentioned here. And I don't see the positive comments as "sugar coated" either. I see it as a good sign that everyone on this forum seems so open minded and non-discriminatory. You are the type of people we will seek out as friends when we move to N.C.
We're very close to a decision now. I know it's a tough subject. Thanks for helping out.
i wish I had met you while we lived there I might have had a better time!!!!
Ditto, Nea1, but it still wouldn't have paid your bills. I get listings from various Internet job sites. ( Such as Monster. com) I laughed at one this morning. A job for an experienced Project Manager for a multi-project builder in *Charlotte.* Hold your breath now ..... a whopping $34,000 - to $45,000 a year. If this was a rare salary range in N.C. for this position I wouldn't have found it so amusing.
I wish you much happiness in Arid-zona!
Regards,
Cassie
Last edited by Cassie; 10-14-2006 at 06:24 PM..
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If this was a rare salary range in N.C. for this position I wouldn't have found it so amusing. 
