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I'm a rust belt refugee. Long story short: my family came to Western Pa to work in the mills and mines around 1900 from Austria-Hungary (Slovakia and Ukraine today). I grew up in the Pittsburgh area when the mills were in place but quickly declining, then went off to college, moved back to Pittsburgh and then finally settled in DC. I have a good job, spouse, friends, etc and really love this city. However...
Although I didn't like Pittsburgh when I was growing up cause it seemed old and isolated, I somehow came to be extremely proud of it, and living in DC has only hardened my pride in Pittsburgh's food (pirogis), dialect (red up your room, yunz guyz), ethnic neighborhoods, beautiful architecture, etc. I may be the first to criticize the place, but I get uber-protective if anyone else does.
I have no intention of moving back there, because my job here is solid and very good, and I'm not sure I'd even want to live back there again. My parents and extended family are still there so I go from time to time, but most of my friends have moved away.
Here's my comment and question:
I find myself yearning for a connection to the rust belt in general and Pittsburgh in particular, and I'm struggling to find a way to fill the void. I like going to Baltimore every now and then, which helps, although I don't know anyone there and it's not my hometown. I have some rust belt refugee friends in DC, and we often talk about our hometowns, which helps. (Yea, I even like to talk about the mistake on the lake. You know who you are!)
On one hand, I feel like I totally fit into the DC crowd being the fed gov white collar guy I am. On the other hand, I feel like a fish out of water.
Sorry for the ramble; I know I'm not articulating it well. But does anyone else get what I'm saying and struggle with it?
Being from Chicago those feelings were here for the first few years in DC. They are completely gone now. As I have seen DC improve significantly, I really no longer have longings for the Rust Belt.
Yeah, I get what you're saying. I was nostalgic for Philadelphia for a long time. It is a lot easier getting back there than Pittsburgh though. When I go back, I have a great time, but most of my close friends have left because of the lack of opportunities starting out (Philly is not a good entry-level job market).
My wife is also from Philadelphia, and we used to talk about going back, but now that I've been down here for 9 years and she's been down here for 13 I think we finally feel more at home in DC than Philly.
Plus, same as you, I found a bunch of hometown refugees here to hang out with and watch sports. DC is pretty good for that kind of thing.
DC is one of those places that grows on you over time. Most people don't like DC right away. But the longer they stay the less they want to leave. Then they love DC. Its a city that you can't totally grasp as a tourist or new arrival. You have to explore, know people and live here to find the gold in the city.
While I would still move back to NYC if it was worth it.. there are really no other cities in the U.S. besides San Francisco that I believe I could enjoy living. They all have one major flaw that makes them unappealing:
Miami: Too isolated and not diverse enough (not just talking about people) Philly: Just bigger version of Baltimore that wants to be NYC Baltimore: Being so close to DC makes its inadequacies more obvious. Its like Newark NJ vs. NYC. Chicago: Just a wanna-be NYC.. only colder, smaller and more isolated. Why not just live in the real thing? Denver: Too isolated, cold and boring (but improving) Houston: Too spread out and hot Austin: Not diverse enough Vegas: Too hot and too fake. Doesn't feel like the real world. LA: Too spread out. Too car dependent. Too much smog. Crappy subway system for a city that size. Honolulu: Too isolated in a BIG way Seattle: Too gloomy and unimportant Portland: Boring Detroit: Detroit Boston: Nothing about it stands out to me. Its just an "any city" to me. Atlanta: Not diverse enough (people) Charlotte: Too culturally southern
Move to Baltimore..... its a rust belt city and commutable to DC. Has some similarities to Pittsburgh as well however as you know, the two cities are huge sports rivals.
I thought I would like living in a new city when I got here a few years ago. By about six months the honeymoon was over. Despite trying my hardest, I found it very difficult to create the same types of interpersonal relationships I enjoyed in Chicago. I'm eagerly awaiting a transfer and have recently started looking for positions in new industries as a back up. Places I wouldn't mind going would be Chicago, Indianapolis, Minneapolis, Houston, Seattle, San Fran or San Diego.
I gave it a good shot, but I figured out I'm just a square peg in a round hole around here in DC. Time to move on.
Move to Baltimore..... its a rust belt city and commutable to DC. Has some similarities to Pittsburgh as well however as you know, the two cities are huge sports rivals.
Baltimore is nothing like Pittsburgh. Except the fact that they both started off as Industrial Blue Collar cities like every other city on the east coast that's about it. Pittsburgh and Baltimore don't have the same architecture, culture, or demographics. Baltimore is much bigger than Pittsburgh and more developed. Pittsburgh is very isolated.
DC is one of those places that grows on you over time. Most people don't like DC right away. But the longer they stay the less they want to leave. Then they love DC. Its a city that you can't totally grasp as a tourist or new arrival. You have to explore, know people and live here to find the gold in the city.
While I would still move back to NYC if it was worth it.. there are really no other cities in the U.S. besides San Francisco that I believe I could enjoy living. They all have one major flaw that makes them unappealing:
Miami: Too isolated and not diverse enough (not just talking about people) Philly: Just bigger version of Baltimore that wants to be NYC Baltimore: Being so close to DC makes its inadequacies more obvious. Its like Newark NJ vs. NYC. Chicago: Just a wanna-be NYC.. only colder, smaller and more isolated. Why not just live in the real thing? Denver: Too isolated, cold and boring (but improving) Houston: Too spread out and hot Austin: Not diverse enough Vegas: Too hot and too fake. Doesn't feel like the real world. LA: Too spread out. Too car dependent. Too much smog. Crappy subway system for a city that size. Honolulu: Too isolated in a BIG way Seattle: Too gloomy and unimportant Portland: Boring Detroit: Detroit Boston: Nothing about it stands out to me. Its just an "any city" to me. Atlanta: Not diverse enough (people) Charlotte: Too culturally southern
Newark NJ is influenced culturaly, demographically, and economically by NYC. Baltimore however has its own culture and is not influenced by DC. They only share a parkway and an airport that's about it. There two different cities with the same population but in 2 different leagues. Don't Make Baltimore seem like its a satellite city of DC because it started off Blue Collar. Everything else in your post I agreed with
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