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After reading ever post on this thread I am more looking forward to moving to the area then I was before. I have lived in the San Fran bay area of California most of my life. I did move to Boise Idaho and loved it. The only thing there I found distasteful was some of the California bashing and blaming for any thing some one did not like. I did find the outdoor activities wonderful but in the end people’s attitudes help make the call to leave for good. I am reading about Springfield and permit me to make some observations of two cities close to the same size. Boise most liberal city in the state so conservative do not like it. Springfield more conservative then the big cities so liberals do not like it. Both small town feel with all the big city plusses just not every store you may want but good repayments. Springfield bets Boise in the if they do not have it make a day trip to get it .in Boise you have to go to Portland Oregon, Seattle Washington, or Salt Lake City Utah all over 7 hours away by car. Both have major medical just not the top line progressive that a big city will have. Both have lower cost of living in the over all picture. Now like I said I loved Boise and all it offered it was people that to me made it ugly just like here in California. I do not believe you really fit in to any place tell you have been there tallest 5 years. This I base on living in North Dakota, Idaho, California and Texas. Some were over 5 years and others were not. Some I did feel welcomed, others I never felt I was welcomed. Now t was it them or my self just not into the local swing yet? I believe it was me in honesty as I had not acclimated fully yet and was still wanting what I left. Yup home sick be it for family friends or things you want or miss. I had no family in Boise and that was hard at first but with time I began to love it. This will be the same when I move to Missouri. . I left Idaho because of a divorce (did not want to live near the ex wife and her games but I could have stayed and wanted to because of my kids and love for Idaho) but mostly due to people, there actions and words about California’s as it had not changed from when I moved there to over 10 years later I made up my mind to leave Idaho and Boise. Our welcome to Boise Idaho was we had our car spat on with ugly words telling us to leave. I do not find that any were here reading on Missouri but you will read it rampart on the Boise sight. Is Springfield for every one I believe not? Big city lover will not like it to small. Small town lover will not like it to big.
.peoples well welcomes or not welcome you if all you do is complain about how they live. I have not moved to Missouri yet for only two reasons. One money or lack off LOL I live on SSDI. As I am disabled. The wife went back to school after raising her three kids, becoming a grandma she has one year left. She will have a BSW and wants to work in the child welfare system. Looking at starting wages for California we have found the same starting wages in the Springfield Missouri area. Here we can most likely never own a home with out a 2 to 3 hour commute time each way. In Missouri we do see it happening some day. We see Missouri as a better fit to how we want to live. We do not want to keep up with the Jones nor do we need the best and newest things. We are simple folk, country folk stuck in a fast past world. We are rednecks living in California wanting a place to call home. For all its good (many) and some bad (few) Missouri and the Springfield are calling us .am I wrong believing this? Tell me as I am basing this on past experiences and years ago spending summers on the grandparent’s farm in Urbana. the wife has lived in New York state and city and small less then 500 towns were you drive 30 miles just to grocery shop ( were we live now in California if you can believe that)..I have lived the same big to small, cold North Dakota to warm Texas Hot 110 plus to cold -70 with wind chill. Want I want to know is, are people welcoming or do they label you because of were you came from and then let you know your not welcomed because of that one fact?
After reading ever post on this thread I am more looking forward to moving to the area then I was before. I have lived in the San Fran bay area of California most of my life. I did move to Boise Idaho and loved it. The only thing there I found distasteful was some of the California bashing and blaming for any thing some one did not like. I did find the outdoor activities wonderful but in the end people’s attitudes help make the call to leave for good. I am reading about Springfield and permit me to make some observations of two cities close to the same size. Boise most liberal city in the state so conservative do not like it. Springfield more conservative then the big cities so liberals do not like it. Both small town feel with all the big city plusses just not every store you may want but good repayments. Springfield bets Boise in the if they do not have it make a day trip to get it .in Boise you have to go to Portland Oregon, Seattle Washington, or Salt Lake City Utah all over 7 hours away by car. Both have major medical just not the top line progressive that a big city will have. Both have lower cost of living in the over all picture. Now like I said I loved Boise and all it offered it was people that to me made it ugly just like here in California. I do not believe you really fit in to any place tell you have been there tallest 5 years. This I base on living in North Dakota, Idaho, California and Texas. Some were over 5 years and others were not. Some I did feel welcomed, others I never felt I was welcomed. Now t was it them or my self just not into the local swing yet? I believe it was me in honesty as I had not acclimated fully yet and was still wanting what I left. Yup home sick be it for family friends or things you want or miss. I had no family in Boise and that was hard at first but with time I began to love it. This will be the same when I move to Missouri. . I left Idaho because of a divorce (did not want to live near the ex wife and her games but I could have stayed and wanted to because of my kids and love for Idaho) but mostly due to people, there actions and words about California’s as it had not changed from when I moved there to over 10 years later I made up my mind to leave Idaho and Boise. Our welcome to Boise Idaho was we had our car spat on with ugly words telling us to leave. I do not find that any were here reading on Missouri but you will read it rampart on the Boise sight. Is Springfield for every one I believe not? Big city lover will not like it to small. Small town lover will not like it to big.
.peoples well welcomes or not welcome you if all you do is complain about how they live. I have not moved to Missouri yet for only two reasons. One money or lack off LOL I live on SSDI. As I am disabled. The wife went back to school after raising her three kids, becoming a grandma she has one year left. She will have a BSW and wants to work in the child welfare system. Looking at starting wages for California we have found the same starting wages in the Springfield Missouri area. Here we can most likely never own a home with out a 2 to 3 hour commute time each way. In Missouri we do see it happening some day. We see Missouri as a better fit to how we want to live. We do not want to keep up with the Jones nor do we need the best and newest things. We are simple folk, country folk stuck in a fast past world. We are rednecks living in California wanting a place to call home. For all its good (many) and some bad (few) Missouri and the Springfield are calling us .am I wrong believing this? Tell me as I am basing this on past experiences and years ago spending summers on the grandparent’s farm in Urbana. the wife has lived in New York state and city and small less then 500 towns were you drive 30 miles just to grocery shop ( were we live now in California if you can believe that)..I have lived the same big to small, cold North Dakota to warm Texas Hot 110 plus to cold -70 with wind chill. Want I want to know is, are people welcoming or do they label you because of were you came from and then let you know your not welcomed because of that one fact?
Dude I've known some people in Springfield who had their house robbed, and another who had several thousand dollars worth of tools stolen from them within a week of moving there. It can happen anywhere. Some people just have a lot of bad experiences.
I know out west, and particulary in the Boise area that they really don't like Californians but that can also be said of lots of other locales.
I found the Ozarks to be a really friendly place when I first arrived but that was before Nixa had sprawled to within 30 yards of south Springfield. The more other people move in from other places the more the area will resemble anywhere else. That has both an upside and a downside. The downside has already been discussed but the upside is that lots of the traditional ciquishness will give way to new things and ideas and a greater competition between businesses which will be better for the overall economy.
I am curious about the starting pay you mentioned for a social worker. My sister in law used to be one in SP and I can't imagine her starting wage being embraced by anybody in California from what I know of the differences in cost of living there. I had friends who had jobs in California making $36,000 a year and they said it was peanuts. My SIL wasn't making anywhere near that.
I think you are just burned out of living in the area. Many people got burned out on the Ozarks for ther own reasons and moved to places like Texas and California. I can think of 5 offhand in the last 6 years. Maybe it's just time for a change for you? Go and check it out before you commit to anything. Statistics aside, you will only know if it's right for you once you've seen it firsthand. Look at the good and don't ignore the bad. Contrary to many's opinions there is bad there although it might not affect your opinions of the place in the end.
Last edited by Junk Bond; 06-17-2008 at 11:30 PM..
Yes, there are absolutes! I was formerly missoura, but lost my password. Thanks mrsgenealogy! I still want to go live in Springfield, MO. Is it a nice clean city? Nice people? What do you think? Is it a lot like Oklahoma City -- people there are really laid-back and sweet. Bloomington, IN is stressful, cold, expensive and only a handful of people here are easy to get along with. I can't wait to leave this town in December.
As my screen name would indicate, I have lived in the area for more than 20 years - part of that time in Springfield. Since I don't have kids, I cannot speak for the educational system there, but I can say that when I lived there I liked it just fine.
I have lived in many large cities (Phoenix, Corpus Christi, New Orleans, San Antonio to name a few) and many smaller towns all over. If recycling and public transit are important to you, then most likely you will be disappointed. Personally, I think that Springfield is getting a little toooooo "upscale" for my tastes and I prefer the atmosphere of the "north side" to the sea of trendy housing developments that litter the southside. My experience has been that people that you might classify as lazy or poor (the tattooed???), in most cases are more honest, honorable and genuine than the Hummer crowd.
My thoughts are that it is pretty intolerant to judge someone because they have a tattoo or live in a inexpensive, old house on the North Side. There are good and bad in every socio-economic group and generalizations are doomed to failure.
I've been to Kansas City (and St. Louis) and I can tell you that I'd rather live in Springfield any day, well, I'd really rather live in Tulsa, but we're talking about Missouri here. LOL
Anyway, no place is going please EVERYBODY 100 percent of the time.
20yrs
I'd take Springfield any day, too. I live in Bloomington, Indiana. It's a college town and I'm moving out in December. It's low crime and pretty and all but it's not at all home to me. Very snobbish views and the "Hummer Crowd" (Hummers are made in Indiana by the way) dominate this post-industrial dead town. I'm very unhappy in Bloomington and I wished I'd never heard of the place. I'm originally from Jeff City, MO and I'm thinking about Springfield because it's a city. I'm so sick of small towns and I want to be closer to Oklahoma City where my family lives w/o leaving my Missourian roots. Tell me -- or show me -- more about Springfield. Isn't that where The Simpsons live?
We moved here less than 2 years ago from IL. Having lived in larger metropolitan areas and smaller suburbs, thought Springfield would be a good fit. How wrong we were! The people here are not friendly, especially if you have an opinion different from the AG's (Assemby of God) or Baptists. Greene County has the highest child abuse rate in the state I believe, or at least close to St. Louis. They have to send kids home from school on weekends with backpacks of food they can open themselves as parents are too dumb? or lazy? or poor? (lots of money for beer, tattoos etc though) to take care of the little ones. Schools are not that great; son is in honors classes at HS & even those teachers don't bother to post grades for 2 or more weeks at times. He's thinking about going to a math & science academy after sophmore yr or grad. after jr. yr. Drug, alcohol problems are rampant in HS here, but they try to cover it up.
They are about 5-6 years behind the rest of the country in everything-from recycling, health care, transportation-only public transit is buses & they don't go to all areas. Again, we are ready to leave; love the KC area & hope to get out of here to move closer. Lucky we are professionals who have options. Many people here aren't as lucky.
I'm sorry about all that bad stuff happening to ya. If you don't like Sprfld, here's a warning to avoid Bloomington, IN and Indiana at all costs. I'm stuck in Bloomington "B-town" they call it, and I can't wait to leave. Best of luck to you finding a better place. I'm moving to Springfield -- God willing -- and I hope it isn't as bad as Bloomington, IN.
So can you please tell me more about Springfield? I'm from Jefferson City, MO but unfortunately I'm stuck in Bloomington, Indiana for a few more months but I'm thinking of moving to Sprfld, MO in December and making my first real visit in September instead of just passing through town this time. Bloomington is a small, boring, unfriendly college town and kind of stuck-up. I'm lonely and cut off from the rest of the real world and there's absolutely no rock or metal scene up here. People are phoney as a three dollar bill and they'll stab you in the back any chance they can get. Bloomington is GREEDY! I've lost so much money here. Gas is $4.17 for unleaded and going up every week. I'm ready to leave, God willing, and go back to my sweet Missourian roots. I hope Springfield feels more like home. I'm a simple hard-working Midwesterner who plays bass guitar and I just want to find a place to call home. Jeff City's too small -- I want some more excitement, but St. Louis and KC are too big. Prayers for Springfield!!!!
Wow. There have been a wide variety of opinions on Springfield. I have lived in smaller towns on the outskirts my entire life. I ended up "in the city" over a year ago.
Springfield has it's good and it's bad. Just like anywhere else. Crime? Of course. Criminals live everywhere. Drugs? Sure, unless you live in outer space, there are always drugs around, even in the small towns. The schools? Some are nicer than others, but none of them are perfect. Housing? Prices are reasonable, and there are "bad neighborhoods" here just like any other city. Downtown Springfield WAS nasty. Run down. They have been working to fix it up, and making progress....that just isn't my type of place.
Each person has their own opinion, based on their own life here. I live in an older neighborhood, quiet, big trees, large yard. Mortgage is very reasonable. Neighbors are nice, but also mind their own business. It's a kid-friendly area. I'm a country girl, and this is my first time living in a city, but I have to admit....it's not too bad here.
I've spent the last 3 years looking for a place that I could relocate to that met all my criteria. I have to say that Springfield looks very promising. Compared to where I am currently living (Baton Rouge, LA) Springfield sounds like heaven. I was even surprised by housing and rent costs. The promise of lower taxes and more affordable automobile insurance rates also has its appeal. I lived in Spokane for 2 years and I would be able to adjust to the weather easily, I believe. I love to fish and having 9 lakes within 90 minutes of Springfield is just icing on the cake. Can I tell you, I even get excited at the thought of driving on roads without pot-holes. I understand and expect that some people will be distant or stoic but I can live with that. I can be friendly enough for the both of us. I heard someone mention a lack of "gourmet" foods but my only concern here is, is there a Whole Foods Market in Springfield? I've been meaning to learn to cook anyways. :-)
Quote:
Originally Posted by Leadfingers
I just looked at the Whole Foods web site and they have a link for those who wish to "request" a Whole Foods Market in your area. Perhaps you can get enough people to do so and they will have one built before I get there. LOL. With the areas population, I find it hard to believe you don't have one, especially in Branson.
After such a long search, it's such a relief to finally have some light at the end of the tunnel. Having a goal/destination, I can now make the necessary preparations. My heart's racing at the prospect of moving away from Louisiana. The strong Christian community, in Springfield is also a breath of fresh air to me.
I'm going to try and convince my boss to relocate his business there. He could easily get the capital to make the move if he wanted. I think he wants to get out of Louisiana as much as I do, and his having children would make it even more important to him.
Either way I now know where I would like to be, and it would still put me in driving distance of my extended family.
I know what it's like to fall in love with a place and ache to get there! Our good friend northbayeric seriously understands!!! Anyway, we'd love to have ya, Leadfingers! Come on dowwwn! We'll leave the light on fer ya!
As for your question about Whole Foods Market. I knew of a couple of whole foods type stores in the area and went on a google/yahoo search. I came up with a couple of interesting links and a rumor that might interest you. First of all, yahoo has an interesting site that talks about Mama Jeans and Akins Natural Markets. Here are their links:
http://local.yahoo.com/details?id=17906820
http://local.yahoo.com/details?id=17891741
The first link is the one for Mama Jeans and one of the people giving the reviews (scrappyquilter) wrote that she has been shopping there "ever since Whole Foods closed down". If that's true, it makes me wonder if it would be futile to start a campaign to bring them back. kwim? Just a thought.
Yes, there are absolutes! I was formerly missoura, but lost my password. Thanks mrsgenealogy! I still want to go live in Springfield, MO. Is it a nice clean city? Nice people? What do you think? Is it a lot like Oklahoma City -- people there are really laid-back and sweet. Bloomington, IN is stressful, cold, expensive and only a handful of people here are easy to get along with. I can't wait to leave this town in December.
Welcome back, springfielder a.k.a. missoura! I had that password problem just this week so I totally understand. I must admit it's kinda funny in a cute sort o' way that both of your names are more about where your heart is instead of where your body is! Hahaha!
Most everyone here knows that I don't live in Springfield so I don't know if I'm qualified to speak on its behalf. I do shop there some and am happy with my options of things to do there and in the area. I really don't get around much but I've seen all types of neighborhoods and none of them have been scary to me. There are fabulously rich and beautiful neighborhoods and lots of quaint, older areas. I've seen the run down areas and I've been impressed with the changes I've seen downtown. Every town has a mix...except for Stepford, of course! Since people are different, too, it's impossible to tell whether one will meet your needs...even a majority of your needs. We traveled the state in search of our "utopia" and found it didn't exist but we settled for what seemed like the best overall.
In the end, we're happy with our decision even though it hasn't always been easy and still isn't "all good", as the saying goes. I know better than to expect that, anyway. You ask if the people are nice and what I think...well, for us, that's a mixed bag of sorts. There seems to be a serious lack of people willing to look others in the eye or smile back at you. Then again, if you speak to them, most of the time, you'll find them friendly and easy to talk to. My dh & I just talked about that this morning and it seems the same in Ozark and Nixa, as well as Springfield. Big stores, small stores, restaurants, same thing. But never have we been treated badly or spoken to rudely for being outsiders or Californians, even once they've learned that we were. No one has even come close to being rude even though we've been warned that it would happen.
I've never spent any time in Oklahoma City, OK or Bloomington, IN but I'm sure there are people in each town who love it and those who hate it. I guess its just like people...some are more compatible with us than others. All relationships don't work out...just as all cities/towns don't work for everyone. If you can...I guess that should say IF you can, walk away from bad relationships and bad towns. Cut your losses...chalk it up to paying for your education...and move on. Key word...NEXT...!
Having said all that, my dh and I are both glad we moved HERE to the Springfield area and still feel we made the best choice. I hope you are able to make the move and that we'll meet you in an OTFCC gathering sometime! Wouldn't that be cool?!
Quote:
Originally Posted by in3dee
Wow. There have been a wide variety of opinions on Springfield. I have lived in smaller towns on the outskirts my entire life. I ended up "in the city" over a year ago.
Springfield has it's good and it's bad. Just like anywhere else. Crime? Of course. Criminals live everywhere. Drugs? Sure, unless you live in outer space, there are always drugs around, even in the small towns. The schools? Some are nicer than others, but none of them are perfect. Housing? Prices are reasonable, and there are "bad neighborhoods" here just like any other city. Downtown Springfield WAS nasty. Run down. They have been working to fix it up, and making progress....that just isn't my type of place.
Each person has their own opinion, based on their own life here. I live in an older neighborhood, quiet, big trees, large yard. Mortgage is very reasonable. Neighbors are nice, but also mind their own business. It's a kid-friendly area. I'm a country girl, and this is my first time living in a city, but I have to admit....it's not too bad here.
Welcome to the forum, 3dee! You're exactly right...it's usually a case of 6 of these, 1/2 a dozen of the others! When did you live in Springfield and where are you living now? Darn! I should have looked at your profile! Oh, well...I just wanted to let you know that I love what you said, "I live in an older neighborhood, quiet, big trees, large yard. Mortgage is very reasonable. Neighbors are nice, but also mind their own business. It's a kid-friendly area." That sounds very nice and I'm sure most would agree with me on that!
We found what we were looking for in the country. If waving as you pass in the distance is friendly, our neighbors are friendly. If chatting at the fence and inviting each other to a BBQ is friendly, our neighbors are not. They are very rarely a nuisance and they keep to themselves...which suits us fine. We'll take that over bad neighbors whose houses are too close to ours any day.
We make "friends" wherever we go...with people who have things in common with us. Real friendships take time and common interests. Don't you agree? I've heard it said that happy people are not ones without problems. It's our attitude and response to problems that largely determines our future and our happiness level along the way...because after all, we're almost always on the way and rarely arriving.
Okay, all...enough philosophizin' from me! I'm off to find something else constructive to do.
Welcome to the forum, 3dee! You're exactly right...it's usually a case of 6 of these, 1/2 a dozen of the others! When did you live in Springfield and where are you living now? Darn! I should have looked at your profile! Oh, well...I just wanted to let you know that I love what you said, "I live in an older neighborhood, quiet, big trees, large yard. Mortgage is very reasonable. Neighbors are nice, but also mind their own business. It's a kid-friendly area." That sounds very nice and I'm sure most would agree with me on that!
We found what we were looking for in the country. If waving as you pass in the distance is friendly, our neighbors are friendly. If chatting at the fence and inviting each other to a BBQ is friendly, our neighbors are not. They are very rarely a nuisance and they keep to themselves...which suits us fine. We'll take that over bad neighbors whose houses are too close to ours any day.
We make "friends" wherever we go...with people who have things in common with us. Real friendships take time and common interests. Don't you agree? I've heard it said that happy people are not ones without problems. It's our attitude and response to problems that largely determines our future and our happiness level along the way...because after all, we're almost always on the way and rarely arriving.
Okay, all...enough philosophizin' from me! I'm off to find something else constructive to do.
Make it a great day, everyone!
I live in what used to be considered SW Springfield, though with it spreading further south....LOL I'm not terribly far from Holland elementary school.
Our neighbors are nice, but not intrusive. They wave. If we are both out in our yards, they speak. (we discussed trimming my tree which was hanging onto one's land, in case of another ice storm) Another, to our back, came out to offer help when a limb fell on our privacy fence. But we don't do bar b ques, or anything. As you said, friends are made due to common interests, etc. And frankly, I'm too busy with all the kids and my mother to attempt neighborhood block parties and the like.
The only time I lived away from here, was on the outskirts of OKC, which was asked about. For what it's worth, I hated it there. Too big, too much traffic, too many buildings, not enough trees, the land is flat, and I could go on and on. There is no comparison between OKC and Springfield.
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good response to missoura
P.S. If anyone would like to know the meaning of "oxymoron", heeere's yer link: 
Springfield any day
-- more about Springfield. Isn't that where The Simpsons live?
not a good place
kwim? Just a thought. 
Oh, well...I just wanted to let you know that I love what you said, "I live in an older neighborhood, quiet, big trees, large yard. Mortgage is very reasonable. Neighbors are nice, but also mind their own business. It's a kid-friendly area." That sounds very nice and I'm sure most would agree with me on that! 
