OT: what do you like or dislike about the state you live in? - YouLookFab Forum

Category

General

Welcome! Read about what to wear and how to wear it on the YLF Blog. Join the YLF Forum to ask specific questions or just chat about fashion and personal style. Or check out the curated list of things we love in YLF Finds.

Outfits Ensembles Trends Advice

OT: what do you like or dislike about the state you live in?

Victoria

(website)

Veteran

I'll start
Like: weather(tropical), food, diversity of people, feeling as if you live in Asia except its still in US
Dislike: traffic, prices of everything(ridiculously high) not much of cultural life, the fact that closest state is a 5 hour plane ride, worrying about tsunamies and earthquakes. Couple of years ago, I would have said "lacking in shopping" but now they have more stores, places like Target and Nordstrom's opened up and they are opening TJ MAxx soon, yay!

General

15 replies

Latest reply was from Kari

Nakidra

Veteran

I live in Illinois and I've lived here (in different parts of the State) for nearly all of my adult life. Even though this is home, it's probably one of, if not THE most corrupt state in America. Our governor just went to prison, for goodness sakes! We also have an enormous amount of debt right now which is a drag on all of us.
I do love living in the midwest and since I live in the Chicagoland area I have access to culture, shopping and friendly people. We actually get all 4 season which is so nice.

MsMary

Veteran

I'm in California.

Love: The weather, the beach, the mountains, the desert, the cities, the shopping, the diversity, the people.

Notsomuch: The high cost of living and the dysfunctional and almost bankrupt state government. Oh, and the traffic in L.A.

Mochi

Veteran

I really like living in Massachusetts and don't have many complaints. We even had a mild winter this year! Cost of living is on the higher side, but so are salaries, etc. Within an hour of leaving Boston you can be in the middle of nature, you have access to mountains and the gorgeous Cape Cod National Sea Shore. Boston might seem a bit provincial if you're from a metropolis like New York, but it's still a nice, walkable, cultured city with lots of things going on.

Mo

(website)

Veteran

CA - native from L.A., but living in the Sierra Nevadas. I like everything about the town I live in except tourist traffic on holiday weekends and having to shovel and/or drive in several feet of snow. But it's fun to play in! Things cost more here (including housing) but ours is owned and we are not in personal debt so I'm happy. No real shopping to be found, but I've gotten very used to online purchasing over the years. I do wish I had better technology out in my area - cell phones don't work out here and my internet sucks at best lol.

Aziraphale

Veteran

Can we do provinces too? I live in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Like: most of my friends and family live here; love the climate (it's rarely too hot or too cold, and it tends to snow only on the local mountains so we can ski in the winter but don't to shovel the drive too often!); it's a nice cosmopolitan city with a relaxed vibe; plenty of fun things to do indoors and out; and last but not least, have you seen the scenery? Spectacular.

Dislike: traffic congestion/bridge bottlenecks; months of drizzle in the winter that can get annoying; high housing prices.

san

Veteran

I was born and raised in San Diego CA which is a very difficult place to leave and I still love it and miss it so much. Luckilly we have friends and family there to visit. I've been in the Seattle WA area for almost 40 yrs and I think I might just now be getting kind of used to the grey rainy weather. Not sure I will ever get really used to it but at this point I have kids and grandkids born here and I don't want to leave them. I will always be a CA sunshine person.

taylor

Veteran

I am in Northern Calif. now, but I have lived in Southern Ca. didn't like the traffic and smog.
I was born/raised close to Santa Cruz / San Jose/Los Gatos area and that is really my favorite spot weather wise...quite mild year round and very pretty.
I feel Nor. Cal is too cold in the winter and too hot in the summer, but we are close to Tahoe and S.F. Also not very pretty here , lacking sorely in green mountains/ foothills and the Sierra's are a 2 hr. drive. I miss the Santa Cruz mountains and a real beach area.
I am not crazy about California anymore. If it wasn't for my children and grandchildren I would leave this state for sure. On the up-side I have great shopping and friends:)

citygirldc

(website)

Veteran

I don't live in a state. I was born in Seattle but moved to Washington, DC at the age of 10 when my dad got a job with the Federal Government. We moved to Northern VA when my sister and brother started school and then I moved back to DC after college. I have been living in DC for 15 years.

Likes: history, art, music, theaters, free museums, greatest and most powerful city in the US, great restaurants, clean, an active and healthy city, bike lanes, mild weather, subway.

Dislikes: conservative and unfashionable, schools, city government, taxation without representation, bad roads, tourists (okay, I don't really hate tourists but it get so crowded here), parking problems, our mayor

jayne

Veteran

Norway, Asker a sub-burb but own city near Oslo

Loves, the absolute pure air, clean fresh, the winters of snow, untouched forest, free ski trails, and miles to go in forest and mountain. Summer green green green and light until well past midnight. Hiking! The bubble we iive in.

Dislikes, the limited selections for shopping, the high taxes for everything including imports, the summer nights that are light well past midnight (;) ), the bubble we live in because the 'natives' haven't experienced anything else, and it is limiting true thought.

christieanne

Veteran

Interesting thread!

Been back in Oakland/Berkeley/East Bay California since 1999 after a 15 yr. hiatus in Olympia, Wa. . Fourth generation from Oakland actually.

Like:
Weather. Love fog and moderate climate. Microclimates here so you can find any weather.
Culture. Anything you are interested in - we can cover it.
Diversity. We can cover that as well - and it brings more foods/languages/etc. to the table.
Family: ultimately why we moved back here because most of my family is in this area.
Choices. Can get anything you want from shopping to food to experiences.

Dislike:
Traffic.
Prices - Housing is ridiculous. Gas as well lately.
Politics - no one can agree on anything (that might be universal right now though) so the average person/needs seems to get lost.
Reputation - Oakland gets a seriously bad rap from folks who have never even been here. Like any large city, there are issues but also great benefits.

Michelle

(website)

Veteran

This thread is fun!
Thanks for opening the door to Canadian provinces, Elizabeth - I'm barging through. You do indeed live in a fab city, btw.
Toronto is the city where I was born, spent a happy childhood and have spent much of my life save a two-year hiatus during university. It has its faults, like any city, but I truly can't imagine calling anywhere else home.

Why I love it: It's a very diverse city with aspects of all cultures melding beautifully. There are unique neighbourhood cultural pockets throughout the city, which has an acceptable transit system if you're centrally located like I am. Restaurants, theatre, art and music all abound here. The city is also Canada's commercial hub, so we have no shortage of stores of all descriptions. It also just feels distinctly Canadian, with the mix of rettissance and bubbliness, assertiveness and politeness that I associate with my much-loved homeland. We also have a remarkably low crime rate for such a major city, and I feel safe almost everywhhere. In my own neighbourhood, it feels like a small town with shopkeepers that know my name and random dog owners that greet each other by referencing our pets.

Cons: Prices are insane here, particularly for housing. Corey and I want to own something, but it feels like a pipe dream. Our infrastructure is in desperate need of an upgrade. Our mayor is the most epic gong show imaginable, a totally disgusting pig of a man whose politics make me want to cry. Fortunately our council has recently grown a pair. In a display that's really beautiful to behold, they're standing up to his bullying tactics and reintroducing reason into the mix. The level of citizen engagement these antics have sparked is yet another reason I love living here.
Rumour has it our city isn't exactly what you'd call the fairest of them all, but as I've said before, blindness has its perks. Home is where the heart is, right?

Janet

(website)

Veteran

I've lived in Maryland my whole life, so it's hard to compare -- even though I've visited all but three states!

Likes:
- centrally located on eastern seaboard, so it's easy to visit NYC and other cities in a manageable drive
- lots of good art, culture, food, music in close proximity
- relatively progressive for a southern state
- four seasons of weather -- usually
- two hours drive to mountains, two hours drive to ocean
- being on the Chesapake Bay

Dislikes:
- humidity in the summer
- high tax rates
- high housing costs

My husband and I sometimes play the game of asking where else we would like to live in the US. He's lived in Massachussetts, California, Texas (where he grew up), Pennsylvania, and Puerto Rico, but he loves it here. We really can't think of any good reason to move!

krishnidoux

Veteran

Province: Ontario.

Like: weather (warm summer nights, magical springs...); level of lifestyle (as opposed to developing countries): access to healthy foods, maintained outdoor recreation amenities, bicycle paths, better overall urban and traffic design, relatively clean air, freedom for a woman to walk alone, etc. ; easy access to other cities by train or bus as more roads were built here; great public transportation system; job opportunities; the people are friendly and not as snobby as in other places; multicultural presence, and multilingual too; ever presence of French and English (and Frenglish).

Dislike: weather (winter's icy rains and drizzles, temperatures below -10...); pollens; humidity; not enough good restaurants; high prices compared to same product in the US and despite our dollar being stronger; the tendency we all have to live alone.

Beth

Veteran

I love Virginia for so many reasons:
-the history and the architecture here speaks to my mind and heart
-four distinct seasons
-many excellent colleges/universities
-snow is not uncommon, but it's still enough of an event that it's exciting
-both mountains and beaches are within a day's drive
-the Chesapeake Bay and its famous seafood and sailing. Yay on both counts!

I don't love:
-the generally conservative culture
-the fact that "Northern Va" and the rest of the state are very different places
-the summer heat and humidity

Kari

Veteran

I've lived my whole life in Washington state so I am biased...

Likes: Able to drive to the beach, a lake, mountains, Vancouver, Portland, or downtown Seattle within minutes/hours. No state income tax. Great public transit in the Puget Sound area. Our too-short but mild and gorgeous summers. The islands, particularly the San Juans. Mt. Rainier and St. Helens. Skiing. Immediate family and most of my close friends live here. Woodland Park Zoo. Bellingham. Year-round green. Good shopping resources, especially in downtown Seattle. KUOW (the local public radio station that I listen to most frequently.) Great theater and musical events, not only the big names, but smaller local performances as well. The Museum of Flight. The historic forts-turned-parks. No tornadoes! Good local wineries and breweries and Thai food. I can more or less wear boots year round.

Dislikes: Washington D.C. is too often just called "Washington", so I have to add "the state" when I'm mentioning where I live. The nearly year-round gray really gets me down. The prevalence of ultra-casual wear all the time; uggs, crocs, wearing pajamas in the grocery store. Drinking coffee... I love smelling it, but often feel like my boyfriend and I are the only Seattlites who dislike drinking it. Very expensive housing and terrible traffic in King County. The state cutting funding repeatedly for schools, particularly for arts programs. The high likelihood that we are horribly prepared for a potential large earthquake. Driving on ice. Horrible and inconsiderate drivers in general. Many of my close extended family members have moved out of state to the midwest, so we don't see each other very often.