The Land of Oz for Yuppies
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12/31/2012
I was born in Charlotte and grew-up in the piedmont region of NC during the 70's and 80's and have no bad memories of that time, despite the fact it was not an idyllic upbringing by any measure. However, as I got older soon realized that it was not a place I wanted to live and moved out west once I graduated college. It is true that people are cliquish and trendy, insipid and vain, but the worst part is how they are oblivious they can are realizing this character trait. It's as if they actually believe there is no greater place on Earth to live. I came back in the 1990's and it had become a dull place to be despite all of the new marketing terms and infrastructure -- just an inbred corporate landscape of shopping malls, banks and churches. In fact, that's what Charlotte is: A giant Church/Bank/Shopping Mall connected by miles of endless traffic jams. A city full of pretense and contrivances, no culture independent of the mainstream corporate-sponsored programming. If you like talking to people about what tv shows they watch, or just get drunk and have a pretend existence full of phoney, backbiting friends, then this city is for you. Move to Charlotte, buy an overpriced, cheaply constructed monopoly house in one of those fake neighborhoods and join a mega-church. Your life will improve immediately following the ads from your sponsors.
martin | Bellingham, WA