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1. You have gridlocked traffic on the freeways and major roads every day--including weekends.
2. The public transportation system (Metro) is falling apart at the seams.
3. DC attracts a lot of the Honors Society, Student Class President, Type-A jerkwads who only care about the promotion and more power over other people.
4. The place is a putrid swamp during the summer months and we don't get a REAL WINTER here.
5. The real estate is a tad pricey in case you haven't noticed.
6. You have too much economic and racial inequality between the Upper NW and newly gentrified parts of town vs. the wards in eastern and southeast DC. It's a black vs. white thang.
7. If you hate lawyers, you are gonna really hate DC!
8. Idealistic types who aspire to make the world a better place because they have so much knowledge and experience to offer.
9. No skyscrapers. No skyline. Just ugly concrete Greek/Roman-looking buildings. The office buildings are so 1970s looking.
10. The local professional sports teams really stink. Redskins, Nationals, Wizards, Mystics, and DC United are horrible. Only the Capitals have a close shot at winning a title in their respective sport.
11. Despite gentrification of U Street, Logan Circle and H Street areas, there is too much crime and gangsta activity nearby. Muggings and robberies are too numerous to count.
12. A dictatorial mayor in Adrian Fenty. A clueless school's chancellor in Michelle Rhee. A legendary crack-addicted corrupt scoundrel in Marion Barry. Nuff said.
13. Too many chain restaurants and shops and not enough independently-owned establishments. If you come from NYC or Philly, you know what I mean.
14. People in DC have a hard time saying "Thank You" or "Please".
15. Republicans commute from NoVA and Democrats commute from Maryland. Why is that? Can't Republicans and Democrats live on the same block in this town?
16. Men and women have no fashion sense in this town. If you want to see attractive, stylish, and more friendly people...you won't find it in our District of Columbia.
Other than that, DC is an awesome place.
Ever heard the saying "You see what you want to see and hear what you want to hear?" Everything is a CHOICE and it appears you choose to focus on the negative. Too bad. Life is what you make of it, and if you always look on the dark side then how could you possibly be happy in D.C. or anywhere else?
Oh, believe me when I say that I've tried out almost all I can bear to taste of places like U Street, Adams Morgan, and Dupont Circle, especially during the night.
Oh well. I enjoy the jazz scene and the blues scene, or maybe bluegrass from genuine West Virginia bands, great Ethiopian meals or Ghanan dinners or the Mall at night or some great local theatre from a really vibrant scene...
A lot of people commend me for showing them a side of DC they never considered before.
It's easy to hate on DC and dismiss it the way so many do. Takes some effort to really appreciate the soul it resonates.
Personal attack because I told an adult to stop whinning!!! I don't like this area because of this, or that...oh I can't make friends, this town is so political...geezzzz!!!!!where's the pacifier
Hey, guy, I don't who you are but you're making more of this than that guy (or girl) was. In fact, you're making this more about you and your self-righteous attitude than the discussion at hand. So the person doesn't like what they've seen so far of the D.C. area? I haven't liked the D.C. area and there is certainly some truth in terms of there being isolation and obnoxiously preppy, self-absorbed people here (as would probably be the case in many major metropolitan areas). Of course, like anywhere else this place is what you make it and I've grown to really adore and appreciate all this area has to offer, though it took time and experience. Ironically enough, though, your rude and unhelpful comments just make you look like an infantile adult.
Hey, guy, I don't who you are but you're making more of this than that guy (or girl) was. In fact, you're making this more about you and your self-righteous attitude than the discussion at hand. So the person doesn't like what they've seen so far of the D.C. area? I haven't liked the D.C. area and there is certainly some truth in terms of there being isolation and obnoxiously preppy, self-absorbed people here (as would probably be the case in many major metropolitan areas). Of course, like anywhere else this place is what you make it and I've grown to really adore and appreciate all this area has to offer, though it took time and experience. Ironically enough, though, your rude and unhelpful comments just make you look like an infantile adult.
Location: That star on your map in the middle of the East Coast, DMV
8,128 posts, read 7,565,972 times
Reputation: 5785
Quote:
Originally Posted by d-fens
Let me give you some background on myself. I moved to Northern Virginia from Newark, NJ to take a job that is in DC last November. I was familiar with the area since my sister has lived here for about 7 years. When I would come down to visit, I generally liked the area (but then again this was during college and all we were coming down to do was hang out and party, see friends, etc.) At first when moving here, I did like some things such as my car insurance being cheaper, but other than that I've found it to be even more expensive here than North Jersey. My job doesn't pay very well, and while I am in the process of possibly getting another one (that only pays slightly more), I am wondering if I should even bother or just move to an area I want to be and figure things out once I get there. I want to live either in Florida (South Florida or Tampa) or back in North Jersey or NYC. Honestly, everyone in the DC area is some political nutcase that tries to push their agendas on you while reading The Economist and sipping wine they don't even like, but say they do because it fits their image. Other people my age here are in that "wealthy young professional" bracket and have no interest in anyone that doesn't make 75 grand or more a year. Everyone I'm friends with has two or even three jobs just to rent a bedroom of a house in questionable neighborhoods. On top of all that, I can't stand the guy that moved into the basement of my house (my landlord controls who moves in, not me.) Even if I get the new job, I probably won't be able to afford my own place, which I had in NJ. So much for this area being cheaper.
You just sound like your life is not enjoyable right now, i wouldn't blame that on the area. I love Miami/S. Fla as well, but it doesn't compare to hear in certain ways. The job market here is still better than most places, although still tough, and DC is a world class city. Many people that move to Northern Virginia like yourself try to classify the whole metro area as the same, but its not. Thats why I have a problem when people say "im from DC" when they live in Fairfax. Thats no different than living in suburbs of LA, Atlanta, or Miami, all the same in my opinion.
Location: That star on your map in the middle of the East Coast, DMV
8,128 posts, read 7,565,972 times
Reputation: 5785
Quote:
Originally Posted by coldbliss
Let's see...do I hate DC?
1. You have gridlocked traffic on the freeways and major roads every day--including weekends.
2. The public transportation system (Metro) is falling apart at the seams.
3. DC attracts a lot of the Honors Society, Student Class President, Type-A jerkwads who only care about the promotion and more power over other people.
4. The place is a putrid swamp during the summer months and we don't get a REAL WINTER here.
5. The real estate is a tad pricey in case you haven't noticed.
6. You have too much economic and racial inequality between the Upper NW and newly gentrified parts of town vs. the wards in eastern and southeast DC. It's a black vs. white thang.
7. If you hate lawyers, you are gonna really hate DC!
8. Idealistic types who aspire to make the world a better place because they have so much knowledge and experience to offer.
9. No skyscrapers. No skyline. Just ugly concrete Greek/Roman-looking buildings. The office buildings are so 1970s looking.
10. The local professional sports teams really stink. Redskins, Nationals, Wizards, Mystics, and DC United are horrible. Only the Capitals have a close shot at winning a title in their respective sport.
11. Despite gentrification of U Street, Logan Circle and H Street areas, there is too much crime and gangsta activity nearby. Muggings and robberies are too numerous to count.
12. A dictatorial mayor in Adrian Fenty. A clueless school's chancellor in Michelle Rhee. A legendary crack-addicted corrupt scoundrel in Marion Barry. Nuff said.
13. Too many chain restaurants and shops and not enough independently-owned establishments. If you come from NYC or Philly, you know what I mean.
14. People in DC have a hard time saying "Thank You" or "Please".
15. Republicans commute from NoVA and Democrats commute from Maryland. Why is that? Can't Republicans and Democrats live on the same block in this town?
16. Men and women have no fashion sense in this town. If you want to see attractive, stylish, and more friendly people...you won't find it in our District of Columbia.
Other than that, DC is an awesome place.
Let me guess you live in Ashburn?? No one with any common sense in there head would read what you just wrote and agree with you on 95% of that nonsense. I have never met anyone who has come here from out of town who didn't tell me that DC was one of their top 5 American cities they would live in.
Do me a favor and you take those same reasons and that list and apply that to every other top 10 metro area in the country and see how the others pan out...Minus the false statements like there are only republicans in Nova, and Dems in Maryland, that foolish comment about no one having any sense of style, and that blatant disrespecting of the cleanest and 2nd busiest subway system in the country in Metro, also find me a major metro area of this type of importance that doesn't have traffic problems, and your gross exaggeration of the weather which is a minuscule factor of what makes or breaks the lifestyle in this area.
Let me guess you live in Ashburn?? No one with any common sense in there head would read what you just wrote and agree with you on 95% of that nonsense. I have never met anyone who has come here from out of town who didn't tell me that DC was one of their top 5 American cities they would live in.
Do me a favor and you take those same reasons and that list and apply that to every other top 10 metro area in the country and see how the others pan out...Minus the false statements like there are only republicans in Nova, and Dems in Maryland, that foolish comment about no one having any sense of style, and that blatant disrespecting of the cleanest and 2nd busiest subway system in the country in Metro, also find me a major metro area of this type of importance that doesn't have traffic problems, and your gross exaggeration of the weather which is a minuscule factor of what makes or breaks the lifestyle in this area.
It's funny you defend the mass transit system here. Why is it that there is a train servicing DC commuters in far-flung places like Martinsburg, WV (MARC) yet there is no mass transit between Reston, one of DC's largest suburbs with a population of 65,000, and the Disrict? Anyone from Reston can take a Metrobus to the West Falls Church Metrorail station and then take the Orange Line into the city, but when the last bus back to Reston from West Falls Church stops running shortly after midnight, what sort of "nightlife" can you really enjoy in the District when you have to leave DC shortly after 11 PM to be sure you're back to West Falls Church in time to catch the bus?
Also, the traffic congestion here is much worse than most of the country. We have the nation's second-worst traffic congestion. If I leave my dwelling in Reston any later than 6:40 AM it's a pretty good guarantee I'll be miserable with a 45-minute bumper-to-bumper drive along Route 7 to my office, just seven miles away in McLean. To try to imply that this area's issues are not unique and that "everywhere" has the same infrastructural woes is woefully irresponsible on your behalf.
Before you say "that's your fault for living way out in the hell hole called NoVA" bear in mind my job was originally to be located in Herndon. It would have been miserable for me to have lived in the District and driven back-and-forth everyday. After being on the job for two weeks (and being in my Reston apartment for a month) I found out I was being transferred to McLean (slightly better commute from DC). Now it looks like it might be getting transferred again out near Dulles Airport. Let's not even touch upon the cost of housing here. Sure, DC is great if you're both 25, engaged, and each earning a $70,000 salary. What about those of us 22, single, and earning a $40,000 salary? Do we move into SE or NE DC and get shot at or live with a bunch of spoiled frat boys who booze it up every other night in a group house in NW? I already pay $1,135/month for rent on a 1-BR apartment in Reston ($1,350/month with utilites factored in), and I can barely afford that. I've eaten soup the past three nights for dinner. I cut back on groceries last week and will be doing so again tomorrow. The cost-of-living here makes all of those "good jobs" you all brag about here in DC worthless because the salaries being offered haven't kept pace with it. To be quite frank I also don't know what you get in return to justify this exorbitant cost-of-living. I just feel the "bang for your buck" factor is so much better in so many other cities. My salary wouldn't be poverty-level in Pittsburgh. On the contrary some people who earn less than I do there own their own homes at my age. Here I can barely afford a (crappy) 1-BR apartment in a bland suburb.
By the way, I DO agree with 95% of what that poster typed (although I couldn't care less that DC has horrible sports teams or "fashion sense"). The lack of a "real" winter is also a deal-breaker for many, including myself. I'd love to live in an area with four distinct seasons---not three. If DC doesn't get snow in the winter then that's one more strike against it in my eyes. That poster is also spot-on about the racial and socioeconomic segregation here.
NW = Rich, white, well-educated
SE/NE = (Generally speaking): Lower-middle-class or working poor, minority, high school educations.
Mont. Co. = "See NW"
P.G. Co. = "See SE/NE"
Fairfax Co. = "See NW"
I don't appreciate living in a region so visibly segregated by class and race. I think the reaction most in the "trendy" areas here have towards their counterparts in the "not-so-hot" areas is pretty well-exemplified in the "Arlington Rap" video on YouTube with the grimaced face being shown at the suggestion of taking the Green Line. I know many in DC are so full of themselves after being told how "progressive" and "ahead of the curve" they all are that they may wish to put the blinders on, but yes, racism/classism is alive and well here too, folks, just like in most every other city. I saw "hate" when I was in the city last Sunday and stumbled upon a massive anti-gay rally in the District near City Hall. DC isn't "light years ahead of the country" on many, many issues, and for that reason I'll still never understand why I'm paying near-NYC prices for housing and getting Omaha in return.
I'd love to live in an area with four distinct seasons---not three.
There are four seasons here. That period between December and March when the temps are at or below freezing, with wind, sleet, snow and ice is a season we call "winter". It would be distinct from other seasons we call "spring" "summer" and "autumn". Our "winter" is not as extreme as winters you might find in, say, Chicago, but it remains very much winter nonetheless.
What you are asking for is snow, which can be a part of winter but does not define it. I hear Buffalo is lovely in the winter, if you are a snow-loving person.
Quote:
DC isn't "light years ahead of the country" on many, many issues, and for that reason I'll still never understand why I'm paying near-NYC prices for housing and getting Omaha in return.
Reston may be Omaha, but DC most certainly is not. If you want to get out of Omaha, get out of Reston. I don't understand why people pay NYC prices to live there, either.
There are four seasons here. That period between December and March when the temps are at or below freezing, with wind, sleet, snow and ice is a season we call "winter". It would be distinct from other seasons we call "spring" "summer" and "autumn". Our "winter" is not as extreme as winters you might find in, say, Chicago, but it remains very much winter nonetheless.
What you are asking for is snow, which can be a part of winter but does not define it. I hear Buffalo is lovely in the winter, if you are a snow-loving person.
Reston may be Omaha, but DC most certainly is not. If you want to get out of Omaha, get out of Reston. I don't understand why people pay NYC prices to live there, either.
Why is real estate so darn expensive in Reston? It's a living hell on Earth, and yet I'm paying more to rent a 1-BR here than I would be paying to rent a 2-BR in many large cities (and supposedly I got a "good deal!")
It's encouraging to hear that DC does have a "real winter." I was concerned it might be a case of the natives saying "It's so cold out! It's got to be about 40!" LOL!
Is there really a difference between DC during the weekdays and DC during the weekends. Granted that the weekend nights scene of Adams Morgan and Dupont Square are insufferable with annoying spoiled preps, flamboyant ghetto posers, and pseudo-politico wannbe yuppies en masse, but I'm not exactly getting the feel that the weekday DC scene is that much better.
I find it insufferable,too. But really it's not because of the people, it's because I'm too damned old to be in da club.
Fortunately, DC has so many other things to do that don't involve alcohol and loud music that I don't feel like I'm missing out on having a social life.
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