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good place to grow up, then leave - 1/5/2007 |
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| I'm a native of Chicago (33 year resident) but now reside in Portland, Oregon (3 years).
A little background: I grew up in a suburb near Chicago, went to college at a downtown university and then lived in north-side apartments for about ten years as I scraped by working as a teacher in the city. Approx 3 years ago I moved to Oregon.
As people on this board have already said, families in Chicagoland tend to stay there; Parents have kids who grow up and have kids who then also stay. The occasional "oddball" uncle slips out to live in Arizona, or San Diego or Simi Valley California, but a good percentage of those who leave end up going back (mostly for family reasons, I would say). I'm sure most people there expect to see me back too!
Anyhow, my family's American history all took place in or around Chicago. People don't move. And the friends I made in school growing up had families who were the same in this regard. This is what gives that city's people such a strong identity- being from there, you can easily pick up on if a person grew up there, or just "hung out" in Wrigleyville for a few years as a twenty-something!!
Now is it people don't move because Chicago is so great? Well *I got the hell out of there. And it isn't because the people aren't friendly- they are. But life is generally unkind in Chicago- brutal weather (winter AND summer!), oppressive police and local government, workaholism, and ubiquitous POOR SERVICE (unless you got bucks for finer establishments). I'd also like to add that the food in Chicago is garbage!! TOURISTS get good food in Chicago, which is otherwise too expensive. This leaves the lower-tier restaurants for locals, which is tacos and onion rings and dirty looks!! No thanks!!
But plenty of people enjoy the city for a few years and have a blast! I recommend this highly. Whether or not you want to stay might be dependent on your ability to put up with resistance- from the weather, the cops, the bus driver, the cashier. Incidentally, I thought the scene in the movie "the Weatherman" was dead-on- Nicolas Cage asks an Arby's cashier for change for the parking meter, but is denied. That resistance is in your life on a daily basis in Chicago!!
Okay, hope I didn't scare you, ha ha. Oh, and I might add Chicago offers decent suburbs to raise kids in because some of the suburban school districts are very good. And kids can make long-term friends quite often because families don't move around as much.
go white sox!
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Ron
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| re: good place to grow up, then leave - 1/5/2007 - 7/5/2009
I moved to Chicago from South Carolina in the early 90's (followed an ex-girfriend up here, but I'll save you the story). My dad's family is from Southern California and mom's from Flushing, Queens, NY, so I don't consider myself a true Southerner. However, before arriving in Chicago, I wasn't familiar with the city or the Midwest at all. After I graduated from college her I had become so attached this great city that I really couldn't see myself leaving (been here 15 years to date). Anyway, I guess it depends what you see in a city, but there are so many amazing and varied things to do here that I see sometimes feel like a tourist in my own adopted city. Depending upon which neighborhood you choose to live in, just about everything will be within walking distance and you may not ever need a car. I park mine on the weekends and use the elevated trains -- slow and old but very nostalgic. Yes, Chicago can be very expensive, but nothing like Boston, San Fran, or Manhattan. And, Chicago, like the other two biggest cities (L.A. & NYC), has its share of problems with high taxes, lack of parking, crime, etc. That's just a given in a huge metropolis.
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Thomas
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| re: good place to grow up, then leave - 1/5/2007 - 8/27/2008
I wholeheartedly agree... Chicago is all about non-stop stress. As far as the suburbs, it makes little sense to live in them unless you have children as there is little to do. The area is in general devoid of natural beauty.
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| winter in chicago - 12/16/2007
winters can be frigid with wind chills below zero. [read more...]
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| Chicago - 11/19/2007
Chicago has lot of things going for it.
Chicago pluses( listed in no order) 1. 5 pro teams 2. passionate sports fans
3. great shopping 4. some of the finest and most diverse selection of[read more...]
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| Chicago - 11/19/2007
Chicago has a lot to offer and individual or a family making a move to Chicago. The pluses in Chicago aren't listed in any particular order.
1. Chicago has 5 pro sports teams 2. Chicagoans are[read more...]
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| New to Chicago - 11/18/2007
I've only been in the Chicago area for about 3 months and am loving it. A friend recently said to me "Living other places, you figure out what's going on and then decide if you want to do it. In[read more...]
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| Livinig in Chicago never gets old... except maybe - 11/9/2007
As a real estate investor and fan of Chicago, I can tell you that living in the city never gets old. You name it, and Chicago has it: sports, shopping, entertainment, restaurants, parks. Just don't[read more...]
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| Expensive but fabulous place to live! - 11/4/2007
Chicago is an amazing city - great job opportunites for all professions, great restaurants, museums, bars.... but if you are looking to buy your first home you might have more luck starting out[read more...]
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| LOVE MY CITY! - 10/30/2007
I was born and raised in Chicago...not the surrounding suburbs...but Chicago itself. This city is geat, it's a city with so much entertainment; a place to truely experience diversity. There's so much[read more...]
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| CTA - 10/19/2007
The Chicago "El" is terrible right now due to a massive overhaul project. Delays are frequent and are expected for the next couple of[read more...]
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| Relocating advice. - 10/15/2007
If you are thinking about moving to chicago and want some advice, let me give you my point of view.I was born in the suburbs of chicago and have been here for 25 years., the schools are the same as[read more...]
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| My City is Great because....... - 10/3/2007
We have some of the best entertainment in the world. You can go to the Theater, see the Symphony, go to the Pier and view the boats, visit the museum or aquarium, dance the night away at a club,[read more...]
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| Great Theatre and Dining - 8/27/2007
Chicago has a lot to offer in the entertainment area. There are always great plays, concerts and restaurants to[read more...]
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| Chi-Town - 7/20/2007
I lived in Chicago for three years, a while ago. I would make the following comments, beginning with the negative and ending with the positive:
Negative: hot, sticky summers. Slushy winters with[read more...]
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| This city is crazy for food - 7/19/2007
I know that Chicago is known world-wide but I don't know if people are aware of the incredible love and addiction to any and all kinds of food that Chicagoans seem to have. It is wonderful. You can[read more...]
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| If you love a big city with beauty and gusto; this - 7/13/2007
Lived in the Chicago area all my life. Fast paced, diverse, fun and noisy. The lakefront is beautiful! If you love sports, well there is no better town than this one! For me, I have had enough of[read more...]
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| Mayor Daly's Kind of Town - 7/11/2007
Da mayor spent lots of dough sprucing up Grant Park and Navy Pier for the tourists, but he takes his toll. Recently I visited the Pier, and was shocked to see that the 'flat rate' parking fee was[read more...]
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| transportation - 6/25/2007
Transportation in chicago is a no-win situation. If you have a car - insurance is expensive, parking is expensive, parking is hard to find, and traffic is ridiculous and takes forever. Public transit[read more...]
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| I finally left Chicago for Scottsdale - 6/18/2007
People talking good about Chicago usually mean downtown/northside, along the lakefront, Michigan Ave, Rush Street, Lincoln Park, Oak Street beach, northside clubs, Wrigley Field, etc. Nice, but[read more...]
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| A Great Place to Be! - 6/14/2007
My apartment is right in heart of the city. It's expensive but it's worth the view of Grant Park and Lake Michigan. I love that everything is within walking distance but since it is the heart of the[read more...]
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| Chicago - 5/29/2007
Overall the best place to live in the USA for diversity - food, entertainment,[read more...]
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| Live there for the life style not the weather - 5/24/2007
Lots of locales have better weather, but if you want a stimulating environment with an amazing variety to do then Chicago is the place. I grow up in New York City and I find Chicago almost on par as[read more...]
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