COMMENT BY
Karen from Boston, MA
COMMENT ABOUT PLACE
Jamaica Plain, MA
COMMENT
Not a comfortable place to live
Look, here's the real scoop on Boston. I've lived here for 5 years, moved here from the South. also lived in DC and NYC. Boston is, yes, VERY cold. If you have a car and aren't able to get it covered, prepare to spend hours every winter shoveling. Also, you need to know Bostonians are extremely POSESSIVE of "their" parking spots. Prepare to see random chairs and trashcans on the CITY PUBLIC street. People want to reserve "their" spot, even DAYS, WEEKS after a snow fall. One guy on my street in Jamaica Plain has his trash can out there almost YEAR ROUND. It's so difficult b/c I do home visits for my job (I'm a family counselor) and I can drive down a street and I have to park blocks away b/c people are unecessarily possessive. They will SLASH your tires, key you, so something if you MOVE "their" chair.. I am NOT kidding. My dad was visiting a while back and moved a chair and he got a note in red lipstick warning him not to park there!! Also, I think Bostonians are rude on the surface. Heard of Massholes? They are proud of it! OMG People have bumper stickers with it.. can you imagine, being proud of being rude? I don't get it!! okay..BUT proud massholes are not too many.. AND once you get to know most Boston people, many Bostonians are NICE people. Most just come across as gruff and really keep to themselves. Ruder people than NYC, DEFINITELY. They also drive, as you've heard, INSANE. They will make up their own rules. If I had a buck for everytime someone came up to a RED LIGHT, stopped, looked both ways, and PROCEEDED to cross the intersection.. I'd be able to pay rent in Boston for a month (a very large sum!).. It's preposterous!! What is this, a third world country? road rules are very 'bendable' here. Cops do let a lot more rule breaking slide on the roads. ALSO, a plus for these MA folks--they drive very defensively, so this is how they avoid accidents. Compared to the south, you will definitely notice a difference. People here expect you to do CRAZY *ss things on the road, so this is why there aren't accidents all the time. Lastly, taxes. Do you know where they go? UNIONS out the yin yang. Very good benefits for low-income folks (good... but it's EXCESSIVE!). The accents sound like finger nails on a chalk board to me, but perhaps a southern accent (which I do not have even though I'm from there) sounds bad to them, I get it. ALSO, foget fast food joints. A FRACTION on the number from the south. I know for many people, this is a good thing :) but for me, I don't want to have to fight for parking, walk a mile, then buy my dinner, or worse, take the subway to eat. EVEN in the suburbs, not as many restaurants -- my theory? I will tell you: you don't have enough disposable income here to afford eating out. PERIOD. Go to Dallas, TX and compare... it's as clear as day (also go to salary.com to see real numbers.) I would love to be able to drive up somewhere, park, get my meal, done. Also, everything is INCREDIBLY expensive and expect to live with a dozen people or live in an attic. seriously, it breaks the bank here. A THIRD of my income goes to taxes (federal, state income tax, car tax, high sales tax, union dues ($600/yr). I make 40K and I can hardly make enough to live. I can't afford a newspaper subscription or to buy a book. my budget is SOOOO tight. OKAY, if you make enough money, you are young-ish, like the cold, like the "feel" of the north, like to travel (great location)... come to Boston! Otherwise, NYC or DC or Chicago will do the trick.