There are better places to live
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1/3/2015
Researching Omaha told me that there was an abundance of restaurants, shopping, jobs, and even some interesting things to do. There are several farmers markets as well as several grocery stores that sell organic food. Once I moved here, however, I found a different side to this story. Yes, there are lots of restaurants, chain restaurants with boring, bland food, (and I have consistently heard from the people working in the restaurants that Omaha people do not like flavor). Yes, there is a lot of shopping, however many of the stores have the exact same items, just in multiple locations, and if it is something I really need, they are often out of it (in multiple locations) or simply do not carry the item at all. As to the few mildly interesting things that there are to see and do here, once I have seen them and done them once, they really are not that interesting to do or see again. As to the farmer’s markets, yes there are several around the city, but several look like craft fairs selling very little actual food and there is almost no organic food, and what is there they charge a premium price for (for example one small organic garlic head costs $3 per head, peppers are $2 to $3 a piece, non-organic eggs are $5 to $7 per dozen). Grocery stores, yes there is a Whole Foods and other natural grocery stores, however, they do not carry the quality of food that you would hope would be there. As to other quality of life issues, it takes 15 to 30 minutes to get anywhere, and drivers don’t appear to either pay attention to or care about how they are driving. Many are talking on their cell phones with their cells phones held up to their heads. The drivers tend to be more on the rude side and often don’t follow the rules. At certain times of the year it smells like manure in the air everywhere. Rent that is not in a high crime area is $1300 and up per month (more if you have pets). There are areas that do have a lot of crime (weekly on the news you hear about murders, drive by shootings, and thefts). People here are more than happy to tell you that yes they will get right on something, get something done, but then nothing happens. There are a mix of attitudes from downright snotty (and you wonder why?), to hillbilly, to ghetto, to I don’t care – I’m not seeing overly friendly people here. If you like outdoors activities they have a very small forest, a few wildlife refuges and if you are willing to drive several hours a few more places for bird watching. That’s about it – and it’s not that great. If you love the great outdoors, this place is not for you – not only because there is not much here, but also because a lot of the people here do not even understand what that means or what the joy of it is. They think a man-made hole in the ground with some water dumped into it with a cement “trail” around it is enjoying the great outdoors. Husker football is the big deal here and if you are not into that it is like you are not part of the culture. The way Omaha presents itself in magazines, brochures or online is not what you really get when you live here, and the “Best of Omaha” ratings are a real joke. I followed those ratings shortly after moving here to try and find the best services and stores in the area and, wow, those ratings are either wrong or if that is the best that Omaha has to offer then my best advice would be to run!
Amy | Omaha, NE