Looking for a Place to Live...

[true_notes]

Hey guys,

I'm being discharged early from the military(within the next year) and I am looking for a good, progressive place to live. I'm currently 22 and hold a Degree in Journalism. I'm looking at 5 places right now..they are

1.Los Angeles
2.San Francisco
3.New York City
4.Seattle
5.Or Miami

If you guys live here, can you give me the run down on the current political enviroment? I'm currently in Europe, and if none of these cities fit my needs, then I will expat here.

Thanks

[tk2kewl]

1. I think everyone should live in NYC for a bit.

Great place, lots to do, and good outdoor recreation in all directions out of the city. And remember that 80% of Manhattanites voted for Kerry.

[Lannes]

2. NYC is great Im from there originally

Just spent a week in San Fran for the first time and Ive got to tell you its one of the most beautiful cities Ive ever seen.The people were real friendly and it has a history of being progressive not to mention there was a beautiful woman on almost every block.Wish I could have stayed longer.

[tjdee]

3. All searching should stop at New York City. That is *the* place to live.

All the places you named are very expensive, so keep that in mind, LOL. Because they are cities, all of them are fairly liberal (not 100% sure about Seattle).

New York City is the cream of the American crop, IMO. You will not find the diversity of culture/lifestyle/people/nightlife anywhere else. There are about a million (okay, I'm overstating) newspapers/magazines here to work for, and many of them are world leaders in the field. It is a very politically liberal place (do not let their Republican mayors fool you. Republicans/Conservatives there are mostly conservative Democrats. Even Rudy Giuliani crossdressed on occasion.)

I love New York City. I don't know that I'd raise children there, but for a young person it is absolutely wonderful.

[GalleryGod]

4. I Concur, Wholeheartedly.

:applause: :woohoo: :applause:

[orwell]

5. Good Luck - Bring Lots of $$$

Every one of those cities is outrageously expensive. I lived in the SF Bay for most of my life. You better be pulling down 50K plus just to exist.

I hope you have plenty of cash - or a great job waiting for you.

Good luck.

[bettyellen]

6. if you are thinking of NYC...

manhattan is sooo expensive most people live in bklyn, queens or new jersey.
in NJ, jersey city is affordable, very close to new york and pretty up and coming. it's just across the water and there are actually a lot of jobs there, too.
good luck!

[tjdee]

8. Aww yeah, NJ does rock.

I live there...but even if I didn't, I could see how very much it rocks, being so close to NYC. I have friends who live in Jersey City and work in Manhattan, they are renting a kickass brownstone and it is gorgeous, convenient, etc. etc.

I agree with your post. Actually, some places in NJ are closer to Manhattan than some places in the Bronx (I think).

[bettyellen]

14. oh hell yeah, i grew up in the bronx

and it's a hike. and it's not that cheap either.
hoboken/ jersey city are much closer to manhattan. and they have the trains that run all night and are cheaper than the subway.

[AllegroRondo]

7. Have you considered St Louis?

good points:
low cost of living
lower than average housing prices
decent job market
great sports teams
decent weather

bad points:
awful public school system (City, not County)
worst drivers in the country

[RebelOne]

9. Don't even consider Miami.

I lived there most of my life. Finally got sick and tired of the bugs, heat, humidity, nobody speaking my language anymore and the crime.

Finally wised up and moved up here to Georgia just northwest of Atlanta. That was the smartest move of my life.

Actually, if you could stand living in a red state, the Atlanta area is the place to be.

[NewJeffCT]

10. West Hartford, CT - not too far from NYC or Boston and more affordable

About 2 hours to both places... it's reasonably affordable (unless you are looking for a home in certain sections...), traditionally Democratic, has a lot of good restaurants for a small city of 60,000 or so, and is pretty diverse for Connecticut - good percentages of Jewish residents, Chinese, Vietnamese, African-American & Hispanic as well. And, neighboring Hartford has a pretty decent arts scene for a city of its size.

[WhollyHeretic]

12. That's where I'm from, though I live in Simsbury now

[NewJeffCT]

16. among the doctors, insurance & UTC execs then?

great school system in Simsbury, though. Just ahead of Avon & the Hall district in West Hartford. Stop by the CT board when you get a chance... it's very slow there.

[WhollyHeretic]

19. This town is way too republican for me

I'll probably move to Granby next year.

[NewJeffCT]

20. I have family in Granby...

I think Avon & Simsbury have a sizeable contingent of conservative Republicans who moved from West Hartford when they realized that WH has a lot of them librul jewish folks, and even some black, brown and yella people, too.

[DS1]

11. Stay the hell away from Seattle

I've heard nothing but bad things about it, all those rumors about it being a nice place to live are bunk. It's 95 degrees every day, the sun never sets, water is 14 dollars a gallon, and the one way roads are all designed to be going uphill after that great gasoline truck disaster of '86 where that school full of white blond girls was blown up and burned to the ground.

Stay away. Avoid at all costs. You have to pay city 50 grand cash to leave, even for vacations.

[progressive_realist]

33. Ah, yes. . .The Great Gasoline Truck Disaster of '86

:rofl:

[XNASA]

13. Please. Do not move to Chicago.

Housing? Really expensive. Especially when compared to other cities.
Public Transportation? Well, public transportation is for losers anyway.
Arts and museums? Forget about it.
Food? It's terrible. I wouldn't feed this stuff to my family, but I have to.
Architecture? This place is a cowtown.
Jobs? There are none. There are never any well-paying jobs with benefits to be had in Chicago.
Not only that, but this place is crawling with repubs.

The only redeeming quality this place has is the weather. :popcorn:

[lpbk2713]

18. I really love the nice breeze coming off Lake Michigan in mid-January.

:eyes:

[LiberallyInclined]

28. no museums and bad architecture in Chicago...?

i didn't realize that there was another chicago besides the one i live in here in Illinois...

what state are you in?

terrible food? (charlie trotter and arun aren't going to like hearing that)

[entanglement]

30. Don't forget the parking nightmares n/t

[grace0418]

15. I'd live in any one of those cities except Miami.

I know Miami is cool but Florida as a state is just too fucked up for my taste.

All of your choices are going to be expensive, but if you're young and can live frugally you'll be okay. Of the top four, Seattle is probably the most affordable and it's incredibly beautiful there. And New York City just rocks, there's no two ways about it.

But for my money, California has the most to offer. There aren't very many states you can live where, within a few hours drive you can be in so many different environments. Beaches and cliffs along the ocean, snowy mountains, hot deserts, misty forests, rolling farmland, big cities, small towns, vineyards, rivers,

[marzipanni]

17. Just for the fun of it try this quiz-"Find Your Spot"

http://www.FindYourSpot.com/
(It has a name/address/email address section but I entered fake info)

[true_notes]

22. Wow

This is a great resource! Thanks a lot! My first option was Eugene Oregon. Hmph, I'll look into it.

[marzipanni]

23. LOL- maybe this is sponsored by Oregon realtors

My top 2 were Corvallis and Eugene! (There is another quiz like this listed if you Google "where should I live")

[LeftyDarthBrodie]

26. I had four Oregon citites when I did the myspot survey

I'm sensing an insidious plot by the Oregon Tourism Board or maybe it's just getting late.

[Omphaloskepsis]

31. I live in Eugene..

My #1 was Portland. I moved to Eugene from Portland a year ago.
My #4 was Eugene.

[xmas74]

27. They gave me Portland and Eugene OR

(not so bad since I have family in Oregon), Baltimore, Hartford, New Haven and Providence. I live in the Midwest. Chicago and Milwaukee were pretty far down on my list according to them (I still don't know how they came in lower than Seattle and Boston).

[Omphaloskepsis]

32. We rock..

I-5 Kicks major ass. -Salem.. eww..

[xmas74]

34. I have relatives in OR,WA and CA.

So I'm not surprised that they made the list (they gave me Sacremento in CA).
But I'm surprised that Chi-town wasn't higher since I've always loved it there.

[Kathleen04]

21. NYC is wonderful

I live outside of it, but I love going into it..its fast paced, exciting.

I'm originally from Southern CA, not a big fan of LA..
if you're thinking of Southern CA, I know LA comes to mind first, but there are better surrounding areas, IMO.

[Lindsey]

24. As a Southern Californian, I have to say I can't imagine any place else

having more to offer - especially if you love the outdoors. The weather can't be beat. WE truly have something for everyone regardless of what you're into (water skiing, snow skiing, roller blading; or the best concerts at a variety of venues, the Hollywood Bowl, lots of small theatre options as well as well-know productions' we get all of the major displays at our main museum (Body works, Kig Tut, vanGogh, etc.). Yes, the cost of living is high but you make it work (roommates?), yes, there's traffic-get some great CD'S and books on tape; some people say it's hard to meet friends but all ya have to do is join a club you're into (for example, The Sierra Club for hikers) and you'll definitely meet like minded folks.

[ElsewheresDaughter]

25. Hoboken NJ!!!

[LiberallyInclined]

29. Madison Wisconsin, OF COURSE!

one of the most progressive cities in the country, and you can take classes at u of wis.
not expensive to live,
great people,
great outdoors....

MADISON- do yourself and your psyche a HUGE favour, and give it some consideration.