Reviews & Comments
Boulder, CO
re: Boulder for Real - 11/7/2009 -
5/24/2010sorry, but the cell drivers and rubber neckers or otherwise challenged etc in the denver metro, including boulder, are some of the most confounding in the the country as far as i could see. driving habits vary from place to place - this is an idiosyncrasy of that place. there are various factors that seem to contribute. and the quality of life may actually not be the highest in the US unless you can afford it and don't mind a pretty homogenous and arguably relatively pretentious crowd. the traffic: a somewhat ironic twist on the growth limit policies - limit growth in a place in close proximity to ~3M people (growing at about 80-100,000 /year or so last i checked), with a very high cost of living, and that's what you can get...a required commute to work etc for many). pretty place and nice for *some* may be a fair appraisal.
Boulder, CO
re: Boulder - 8/13/2007 -
6/4/2008I would say that the restaurants of Boulder are somewhat sub- what you might expect from an "upscale" city. the traffic is actually not bad (like nothing relative to the SF Bay Area, DC, etc.), though the growth restrictions make for much more traffic than might otherwise exist in Boulder (many can no longer afford to live in Boulder, but still have to work there, while not necessarily being inclined to ride a bike or take a bus...and there's no rail). i would also say that Boulder's "liberal" is probably more the kind of liberal you might find in a Whole Foods (Whole Paycheck) than in the union leadership of Detroit, in Vermont, in Europe, etc.. It reminds some people of how actors buy Priuses and espouse "you MUST vote" without considering the cost of a Prius for the average person, or whether voting is actually a good thing when people do not know what they are voting on (or the complexities of a measure's repercussions). True that Boulder is not liberal like Ithaca (or Greenwich of the 60s), NY, Santa Cruz, CA, Cambridge, MASS, or Berkeley, CA of the 60s.
Denver, CO
re: "still not getting it" -
8/23/2007much of what you find in denver (and especialy the suburbs - the denver "scene" can be very much a lot of people commuting from those suburbs into the city for work and socializing, and then leaving the more liberal crowd to go back home) is pretty conservative (by many standards - maybe not nebraska's, or south carolina's, but...). there are some pockets of hispanics (big latino population), and some of the gay community, e.g.. much of what you see in denver can be very RESERVED (interpersonally conservative), and even politically conservative (relative to much of the coastal states, or to much of europe, e.g.). also, rather homogeneous groups don't seem to intermingle as much as elsewhere, so it seem very white bread as a caucasian person (especially as a caucasian person from a more diverse or integrated place). denver does LEAN somewhat democratic (though the suburbs - HUGE suburbs - tend to be a bit more conservative) these days, but not quite like a Mass., CA., VT, NY, etc..
Denver, CO
identity -
8/9/2007I think the identity thing is true about Denver. I think it's changing so quickly and plastically that it has lost some senses of identity. A bit like an airport or shopping mall with wonderful views through the windows. As for a previous comment on missing the "treehuggers" in Denver, that seems curious to me - maybe that's the way it was decades ago (though I doubt that - it's been very much a boom and bust oil, cattle, etc. town, till relatively recently [real estate and mortgages was it's latest boom and bust] so...) Denver is very NOT a treehugger place. It's a drive over the mountians, and the river and through the woods...in your SUV. "I LOVE nature...it's my playground" kinds of things, often times.
Boulder, CO
boulder -
8/9/2007boulder's "progressive sprawl restrictions" ... are actually significant contributors to sprawl and homogenization (of skin color, of world views). in my opinion, this is iconic of boulder in so many ways. the climate is nice and the scenery is beautiful, too.
Denver, CO
the denver story continued... -
7/23/2007denver is not diverse, and certainly not very integrated. relative to some places it is, but relative to most it's size it is not. very not. and that seems reflected in interactions with people in denver. it's not LA, it's not dallas, it's not NY, nor seattle, but if someone wanted a "nutshell" feel for it, doesn't seem way out of whack to say, "well, you might imagine an especially suburban, midwestern, and smaller scale version of a dallas/LA hybrid next to the mountains and populated with mostly ... midwesterners with a vague interest in a dallas/LA next to the mountains, it might seem". "and very sunny." to say it's "mostly new yorkers looking for tofu and granola that have issues with denver" (and i paraphrase a previous post) is disingenuous. i've personally spoken with denver natives that have plenty to say about how homogenized and "dude - goin snowboardin" denver can be. this is not to say denver's not nice in many ways, but it is also what it is in some other not as nice ways.
Boulder, CO
boulder essence -
6/1/2007"Until Boulder, I'd spent my entire life in big cities, including two of the most beautiful in the western world, Paris and Stockholm. After 23 years in the suburbs of Washington, DC, I decided to make a change. Unfettered by children (grown now) and an office job (I work at home), I took the chance and rented an apartment in Boulder...to test the waters (although there's not much around here). After 6 months, I knew I wanted to stay. All the other postings are right in one way or another (expensive and little or no diversity, to name a few) but no place is perfect. We each have to discover what it is in a place that speaks to us: for me, it is the incredible weather, the friendly people (it's not fake - I've decided that people are friendly here because they're happy), the great musical venues, the concern for the environment, the open space, and waking up every morning to views of the Flatirons, the Foothills, and the Rockies. Is it DC, Paris, Stockholm? No, but what it offers are intangibles that feed my soul in a different way at this particular stage in my life."
perfect. THIS is the quintessential boulder-ite! "unfettered". "worldly" in a stockholm/paris/"sunny-day-soul" kind of way...that might not have it any other way, likely with some money to rest on or for a rainy day (that may never come)! love it!
Denver, CO
Denver drivers -
4/16/2007People tend to post a bit about the driving. HEre's my 2 cents.
In Southern CA, people drive 80mph, often times, on the freeways. They're often used to that. You synergize with it, and it goes smoothly. You don't and you get blown by until you adapt. Northern New Jersey, it can feel like sensory overload and people can generally be less patient than elsewhere. They're used to things happening now and to you "Getting it". DC, the beltway's a parking lot a good part of the time. Doesn't matter too much what your habits are for about 4 hours per day because it's just congested. Denver? You get a little bit of all of the above but, generally, all habits seem to be in effect, and people tend not to seem to adapt. Maybe a little like a bunch of pioneers, each on their own little hiway-homestead, or people that have generally moved here from elsewhere for their own reason, liking the proverbial view, or are "native" (i.e., 1st generation or greater) "and so don't impose on that world" seems to be the prevailing mentality. A bit of precipitation can throw the whole system into a bit of a lull. It's usually sunny here, so...
Denver, CO
response to "R" -
4/16/2007"After reading all of these posts, I find myself very confused. ..." You ask about the "nice" vs "rude" comments, etc...
My impression is that the "nice" could come from the surface impression you can get from people here (though I have talked with people that just visited and said it seemed Coloradans were too self-absorbed, so, go figure). Not entirely unlike Southern "hospitality", maybe. Lots of "new school kids" here up for a good ski day with you , maybe. Or latinos - not quite my world, so not sure quite what the experience is for that population here. It might also have to do with how people define "nice". If "nice" means people like to have fun and talk about lite things and have nice faces, then that might be one thing. If "nice" means people take a genuine interest in you - through the good and the bad, whatever your orientation and demeanor might be like - then maybe you might not think people are "nice" in Denver, and you might consider them "rude". It is not unusual for people to make plans and flake on them at the last minute here. There can be so much else to do! So many other people to see! 2 day away is so far away to plan on! These are obviously generalities, but we're not talking individuals here, we're talking culture, I presume. I have spoken with many people that agree that, in general, interactions with people in and around Denver can be a bit...dilute. If you're beautiful and a woman, it might be one thing, if you're not beautiful and a man, it might be a different experience. Maybe especially if you're single. All a bit circumstantial, but you get the idea. You've probably gotten that Denver is - despite whatever the Forbes columnists in some lofty office in a distant city might claim - not necessarily ideal for singles (maybe especially single men? there is an unfavorable ratio, at the least, and the population is a bit homogeneous - maybe great if you "fit the mold"!!). It's very sunny here, and you can ski, golf, and kayak all in the same day, sometimes nearly any day of the year. "Go Broncos! Go Avs!" Denver is what it is, attracts what it attracts, and those that like it stay, those that don't don't - the makings of the overall vibe, in part. Re you're Dallas question, I can't very fairly compare to Dallas. Good luck.
Ithaca, NY
jamie's previous post -
4/13/2007I lived in Ithaca for a bit a while back, so, it may have changed a bit since then (but, things in Ithaca probably do not change that much that fast - part of its charm, it seemed to me). I agree Ithaca can be a bit drab (lack of sunshine) - in the winter. In the spring and summer, it's arguably one of the most beautiful places I've seen. Ithaca did not seem politically correct for the sake of being politically correct, sort of like how Noam Chomsky is not politically correct for the sake of being politically correct. People there, as a result of the colleges and what they've attracted (people from all over the world that tend to be quite thoughtful) over the centuries, just tend to be a relatively very thoughtful, educated (formally or informally) group of people. That tends to translate to "progressive" or what might seem to someone from elsewhere in America as "politically correct". Small population with HUGE variety of backgrounds, generally, and with a HUGE variety of, e.g., cuisines at excellent restaurants, intellectual and outdoor opportunities, and a pretty "organic" feel (there's an ecovillage nearby, e.g.). But definitely a small place quite secluded from interstates and big cities - at least geographically if not in terms of where some of the people hale from - for sure. My $.02, anyhow.
Denver, CO
response to previous post by chris -
4/13/2007"Stop whining and start smiling"
"liberals from the coasts"
I would say these are pretty representative attitudes of many Colorado folks (whether or not those CO folks are FROM CO). And therein may lay some of the source of the dialogue here between those that "just smile! let's go SKIing!" or say "well we don't like you and won't talk to you anyway" and some of those "liberals from the coasts" (or, at least, maybe those people from places where a little variety in perspective and experience - good AND bad - can be more valued or open for discussion than swept aside or ignored).
Denver, CO
response to previous post by scott -
4/13/2007Scott -
I do not think that the post YOU responded to was necessarily alleging Denverites etc are inferior. I gather that is your interpretation. It seems to me that the "well, if you don't have lots of wonderful things to say about the place (regardless of any of it's shortcomings - as most places do have - and what good might come of them via broaching the subject) we don't want you here anyhow" or the auto-assumption that Northeasterners (or people from elsewhere) are too self-important actually sometimes manifests in people-that-believe-that as coming off as self-important/defensive/closed-minded etc themselves! ...which is probably what many of those that have a harder time with Denver/CO may be, in part, experiencing.
Just some food for thought.
Denver, CO
opinion spectrum -
3/26/2007It seems to me that if you read many of these posts, you will see common themes, and get a pretty good sense of the place relative to other places. And if you read the CityViews of other places, you will find quite different feels in the common threads in those cities' posts versus those for Denver.
It is a sunny place most of the time. If sunny is a big part of what you want out of life, Denver has that. Of course, the mountains are not far away, though the traffic there and/or back can be truly perplexing, though maybe not much different from San Francisco to Tahoe, for example.
Denver's suburban sprawl is utterly incredible. It is a suburboriented mentality here, and can be so even within the city-propper and out into the mountains.
Denver "natives" (i.e., usually > 1st generation white people) can be pretty interesting people.
I would guess (in many years of exploring the area) that at least 60% of people that move here move here from the midwest - Indiana, Wisconsin, Kansas, Nebraska. And many of the transplants here tend to like their SUVs and think it's real cool they're now able to go skiing and for a bike ride so regularly. Those tend to be the motives of many here.
Polls have found that the Denver "work force" is one of the most dissatisfied in the country.
People here can be clique-ish, and more so than other cities and towns (and countries) I've lived in. Conversation can often be relativiely surface and it can be surprisingly tricky to actually get to know people here.
There are many people with at least bachelor's degrees, though I am not convinced it's a "well educated" populace. Many can prefer to go to their alum gathering at a LoDo bar and watch "the game", or hop in the SUV with their buddies and head to the mountain condo for some drinking and skiing over exploration of things that "well educated" people might like to think and talk about.
There is certainly more diversity in Denver than in, say, Boulder, or maybe a little town in Wyoming or Oklahoma. But you don't really feel that exchange much. There are a few neighborhoods with a lot of Latin or Vietnamese flavor, for example, but I suspect few of the predominantly white people here ever venture there, and vice versa (no making a day of going to "China Town" for some ethnic flavor here, e.g.). Overall, I have seldom seen so few people of color (Indian, East Asian, middle-eastern, Afro-American, etc.).
My understanding is that Colorado public scho
Denver, CO
Liberal and cultured people? -
1/11/2007In response to Tevor.
Yes, Denver's not a bad place. But re the Forbes bit, for instance, have you seen the criteria Forbes uses for it's "best places for singles", for example? # of singles and # of people on match.com, to name a couple. I for one can imagine those could mean a few things, and even the opposite of "great place to be single". As for "educated", "cultured", "liberal", obviously those are relative terms. I suppose that when people get here, they can judge for themselves how "educated", "liberal", or "cultured" people are in Denver metro. But let's be honest with ourselves. Yes, it's not a bad place to live - better than many arguably. An up and coming, rather caucasian, rather male, rather midwestern city (largely because that's what it attracts by and large) that tends to appeal to those wanting to get to the mountains to recreate, or get to the states for a better life than a developing country might offer it might seem (those two demographics not necessarily intermingling much). Probably a wonderful place to bring the family to, too. I would say Denver might want to be more careful of how it grows and sprawls and interacts with people from a broader cross section of humanity than just those couple of somewhat segregated demographics, for example.
Denver, CO
response re a recent post -
1/5/2007From a previous post: "So in retrospect, when I read some of these posts that people are place saying that they want to move away, I say "Yay!". I think Denver is better off for it because, there are already so many people moving here. I'd rather have people live here who appreciate exactly what Denver offers...a laid back, beautiful city with a temperate climate and lots to do."
The irony here is thick. And yes, there are some Middle Eastern, Asian, Black, Mexican people in Denver. But the demographics in Denver are quite easy to look up and compare to other cities. You will likely see if you do so that, relatively, Denver is by NO means "cosmopolitan", and the surrounding communities on up to Boulder are quite homogeneous. To take an attitude of "well, I LOVE it, so, go back where you came from then" is a disservice to Denver as a whole.
Denver, CO
denver comments -
1/5/2007Moving to Denver several years ago has given me a new appreciation for how George W Bush was "elected" not once, but twice, for how huge Walmart boxes/stores now find themselves innoculated into just about every community in the country whether they like it or not, for how Disney Land and Niagara Falls and innumerable was-a-destination-but-now-not-so-much Daytona's/Virginia Beaches/LA's etc have morphed before our eyes, for how Britney Spears and "Miss America" and "reality" TV got to be so popular in this country. THIS -- Denver and places like it -- is America!