Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Arizona
 [Register]
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
View Poll Results: Is Arizona the best state you have lived in?
yes 31 60.78%
No 11 21.57%
definitely in my top 3 7 13.73%
have not decided yet 2 3.92%
Voters: 51. You may not vote on this poll

Closed Thread Start New Thread
 
Old 05-03-2016, 12:00 AM
 
Location: Redwood City, CA
15,253 posts, read 12,977,625 times
Reputation: 54051

Advertisements

Arizona has the laidbackness that California is legendary for...but lost, long ago.

If you're looking to live among uptight control freaks, bypass the Grand Canyon State and head straight for California.

 
Old 05-03-2016, 12:37 AM
 
Location: When you take flak it means you are on target
7,646 posts, read 9,957,969 times
Reputation: 16466
Quote:
Originally Posted by locolife View Post
For not having an ocean Arizona packs a pretty good punch as a great place to live. The outdoors adventures are nearly endless, my biggest complaint is that the state really struggles to protect much of the beauty that was here when people arrived. It seems with population growth the regulation will have to come as people on their own will destroy even the most scenic of places.
But we do have an ocean. It just isn't here yet. But as soon as Comiefornia falls into the sea we're going to be sitting pretty!

Why I've even got a bridge that I'll sell you!

Quote:
Originally Posted by fluffythewondercat View Post
If you're looking to live among uptight control freaks, bypass the Grand Canyon State and head straight for California.
And leave your guns in AZ...
 
Old 05-03-2016, 07:43 AM
 
Location: AriZona
5,229 posts, read 4,615,407 times
Reputation: 5509
I don't get it. People all aflutter over oceans & beaches (etc). Will they be as giddy when a tsunami takes them for a ride?
 
Old 05-03-2016, 12:20 PM
 
Location: California
1,726 posts, read 1,724,528 times
Reputation: 3771
For me personally, Arizona is middle-of-the-pack in terms of the states I've lived in - it wasn't my favorite state, but it wasn't my least favorite, either.

My biggest complaints with Arizona pertain to the people and social atmosphere.

I found people in Arizona generally difficult to get to know because, while they tend to be polite and pleasant overall, they're not necessarily friendly or invitational.

This probably won't be a very popular statement, but I didn't find people in Arizona to be particularly enterprising, eccentric or festive, either.

People in Arizona tend to be poorly educated, so the general populace and their interests and preferences resonate a strong anti-intellectual vibe.

Arizonans - and I use that term loosely, since most people living in Arizona are not from there originally and won't be living there ten years from now - are less eccentric than people in the other states I've lived. I attribute this to the fact that most people in Arizona are living hand-to-mouth (salaries are generally low, COL is middle-of-the-road and the workforce isn't particularly highly educated or skilled), so they don't necessarily have the propensity to be eccentric or spontaneous.

Also, because people in Arizona tend to be living geographically far away from their families and childhood friends (again, most Arizonans are transplants), they tend not to be very festive, either.

For example, most homes are dark and undecorated around the major holidays, which is quite a departure from just about anywhere else in the country, except maybe Florida. There aren't very many holiday parties or gatherings, either, as people in Arizona don't tend to have very large circles of friends or be close with their neighbors and co-workers.

Because I've lived in a handful states, my interests include, but are by no means limited to hiking, off-roading, tailgating, etc., so I always kind of felt underwhelmed by the general dearth of activities and things to do in Arizona. I don't really wanna spend every single weekend going hiking or sitting by the pool.

The problem is, when you finally meet a friend who you can truly connect with on multiple levels, chances are they'll move out of Arizona within six months to a year. Arizona is an extremely transient state, and because people are constantly moving in and out, it's difficult to develop and maintain long-term, emotionally dependable friendships.

Other than the people and social atmosphere, however, there were other disappointing aspects about Arizona as well that I've already touched on and some I haven't.

I personally found the weather to border on horrible. Winters were COLD! They weren't cold in the same respect as winters in the Midwest, but they still get cold, regardless of how you slice it. The winters also don't offer much respite for the hellishly hot - and surprisingly humid - summertime weather, either.

Florida had significantly better winter weather, IMO. Every other state I've lived in had better summer weather, too, including Florida.

Salaries, benefits and worker rights and protections sucked in Arizona, too. They were very non-competitive and non-comprehensive, respectively, and since there were so few major, reputable employers, most of them acted like they were doing you a favor by hiring you. Please - you can go shove your $55k for experienced professionals up your ass and around the corner.

The very brown landscape and architecture never bothered me at all. In fact, I really loved the scenery of Arizona, even in the Valley of the Sun. However, I know this is a huge issue for a lot of people from "greener pastures."

Last edited by Bert_from_back_East; 05-03-2016 at 12:30 PM..
 
Old 05-03-2016, 12:40 PM
 
Location: The edge of the world and all of Western civilization
984 posts, read 1,192,699 times
Reputation: 1691
This poll doesn't specify US or sovereign state, thus I voted no. In that regard, I believe Germany is a much nicer place to live. Even if it had specified, I still couldn't vote yes. For me, Arizona was a quick fix and easy to find a job from out of state, but I wasn't entirely sure what I wanted to do after moving here: stay and make a home or just use it as a springboard. I've been here about 1 1/2 years now, and have decided to move on when the chance arises, but won't start working on that until this fall at the earliest.
 
Old 05-03-2016, 12:47 PM
 
Location: Arizona
1,665 posts, read 2,948,706 times
Reputation: 2385
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bert_from_back_East View Post
For me personally, Arizona is middle-of-the-pack in terms of the states I've lived in - it wasn't my favorite state, but it wasn't my least favorite, either.

My biggest complaints with Arizona pertain to the people and social atmosphere.

I found people in Arizona generally difficult to get to know because, while they tend to be polite and pleasant overall, they're not necessarily friendly or invitational.

This probably won't be a very popular statement, but I didn't find people in Arizona to be particularly enterprising, eccentric or festive, either.

People in Arizona tend to be poorly educated, so the general populace and their interests and preferences resonate a strong anti-intellectual vibe.

Arizonans - and I use that term loosely, since most people living in Arizona are not from there originally and won't be living there ten years from now - are less eccentric than people in the other states I've lived. I attribute this to the fact that most people in Arizona are living hand-to-mouth (salaries are generally low, COL is middle-of-the-road and the workforce isn't particularly highly educated or skilled), so they don't necessarily have the propensity to be eccentric or spontaneous.

Also, because people in Arizona tend to be living geographically far away from their families and childhood friends (again, most Arizonans are transplants), they tend not to be very festive, either.

For example, most homes are dark and undecorated around the major holidays, which is quite a departure from just about anywhere else in the country, except maybe Florida. There aren't very many holiday parties or gatherings, either, as people in Arizona don't tend to have very large circles of friends or be close with their neighbors and co-workers.

Because I've lived in a handful states, my interests include, but are by no means limited to hiking, off-roading, tailgating, etc., so I always kind of felt underwhelmed by the general dearth of activities and things to do in Arizona. I don't really wanna spend every single weekend going hiking or sitting by the pool.

The problem is, when you finally meet a friend who you can truly connect with on multiple levels, chances are they'll move out of Arizona within six months to a year. Arizona is an extremely transient state, and because people are constantly moving in and out, it's difficult to develop and maintain long-term, emotionally dependable friendships.

Other than the people and social atmosphere, however, there were other disappointing aspects about Arizona as well that I've already touched on and some I haven't.

I personally found the weather to border on horrible. Winters were COLD! They weren't cold in the same respect as winters in the Midwest, but they still get cold, regardless of how you slice it. The winters also don't offer much respite for the hellishly hot - and surprisingly humid - summertime weather, either.

Florida had significantly better winter weather, IMO. Every other state I've lived in had better summer weather, too, including Florida.

Salaries, benefits and worker rights and protections sucked in Arizona, too. They were very non-competitive and non-comprehensive, respectively, and since there were so few major, reputable employers, most of them acted like they were doing you a favor by hiring you. Please - you can go shove your $55k for experienced professionals up your ass and around the corner.

The very brown landscape and architecture never bothered me at all. In fact, I really loved the scenery of Arizona, even in the Valley of the Sun. However, I know this is a huge issue for a lot of people from "greener pastures."
We wanted the opinions of those who currently live in Arizona, not those who visited or lived in Az briefly you admitted you do not live here and almost all your posts indicate you live in California. We are not comparing California to AZ because that will turn this thread into a my current state is better than yours and that is not the question that this thread is asking. We all know that more californians move to AZ to escape destruction from liberalism than move from any other state, so that is a settled question.

Last edited by autism360; 05-03-2016 at 01:00 PM..
 
Old 05-03-2016, 01:11 PM
 
2,338 posts, read 4,719,897 times
Reputation: 2023
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bert_from_back_East View Post
For me personally, Arizona is middle-of-the-pack in terms of the states I've lived in - it wasn't my favorite state, but it wasn't my least favorite, either.

My biggest complaints with Arizona pertain to the people and social atmosphere.

I found people in Arizona generally difficult to get to know because, while they tend to be polite and pleasant overall, they're not necessarily friendly or invitational.

This probably won't be a very popular statement, but I didn't find people in Arizona to be particularly enterprising, eccentric or festive, either.

People in Arizona tend to be poorly educated, so the general populace and their interests and preferences resonate a strong anti-intellectual vibe.

Arizonans - and I use that term loosely, since most people living in Arizona are not from there originally and won't be living there ten years from now - are less eccentric than people in the other states I've lived. I attribute this to the fact that most people in Arizona are living hand-to-mouth (salaries are generally low, COL is middle-of-the-road and the workforce isn't particularly highly educated or skilled), so they don't necessarily have the propensity to be eccentric or spontaneous.

Also, because people in Arizona tend to be living geographically far away from their families and childhood friends (again, most Arizonans are transplants), they tend not to be very festive, either.

For example, most homes are dark and undecorated around the major holidays, which is quite a departure from just about anywhere else in the country, except maybe Florida. There aren't very many holiday parties or gatherings, either, as people in Arizona don't tend to have very large circles of friends or be close with their neighbors and co-workers.

Because I've lived in a handful states, my interests include, but are by no means limited to hiking, off-roading, tailgating, etc., so I always kind of felt underwhelmed by the general dearth of activities and things to do in Arizona. I don't really wanna spend every single weekend going hiking or sitting by the pool.

The problem is, when you finally meet a friend who you can truly connect with on multiple levels, chances are they'll move out of Arizona within six months to a year. Arizona is an extremely transient state, and because people are constantly moving in and out, it's difficult to develop and maintain long-term, emotionally dependable friendships.

Other than the people and social atmosphere, however, there were other disappointing aspects about Arizona as well that I've already touched on and some I haven't.

I personally found the weather to border on horrible. Winters were COLD! They weren't cold in the same respect as winters in the Midwest, but they still get cold, regardless of how you slice it. The winters also don't offer much respite for the hellishly hot - and surprisingly humid - summertime weather, either.

Florida had significantly better winter weather, IMO. Every other state I've lived in had better summer weather, too, including Florida.

Salaries, benefits and worker rights and protections sucked in Arizona, too. They were very non-competitive and non-comprehensive, respectively, and since there were so few major, reputable employers, most of them acted like they were doing you a favor by hiring you. Please - you can go shove your $55k for experienced professionals up your ass and around the corner.

The very brown landscape and architecture never bothered me at all. In fact, I really loved the scenery of Arizona, even in the Valley of the Sun. However, I know this is a huge issue for a lot of people from "greener pastures."
I agree with a lot of this. I like my solitude on weekends and park my motorhome on the acreage I have in Valle and Holbrook to take a break from The Valley. Autism's hatred towards CA is obvious. Here is the deal. If you make enough money to enjoy the riches of life, politics have a negligible impact on your life. Yes many in the Valley live paycheck to paycheck and are bitter as their driving habits confirm amongst other things.
 
Old 05-03-2016, 04:04 PM
 
2,338 posts, read 4,719,897 times
Reputation: 2023
To follow up more precisely, AZ outside of PHX has retained its new car smell as far as my hobbies and contacts made in the I40 corridor. PHX however I am here for employment purposes. As I have spent ample time in Southern CA I would definitely choose So Cal as a final destination in the future but will always hold onto land in Valle and Holbrook as my love for Northern AZ will always be a part of me.
 
Old 05-03-2016, 04:48 PM
 
Location: In the hot spot!
3,941 posts, read 6,731,629 times
Reputation: 4091
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bert_from_back_East View Post
For me personally, Arizona is middle-of-the-pack in terms of the states I've lived in - it wasn't my favorite state, but it wasn't my least favorite, either.

My biggest complaints with Arizona pertain to the people and social atmosphere.

I found people in Arizona generally difficult to get to know because, while they tend to be polite and pleasant overall, they're not necessarily friendly or invitational.

This probably won't be a very popular statement, but I didn't find people in Arizona to be particularly enterprising, eccentric or festive, either.

People in Arizona tend to be poorly educated, so the general populace and their interests and preferences resonate a strong anti-intellectual vibe.

Arizonans - and I use that term loosely, since most people living in Arizona are not from there originally and won't be living there ten years from now - are less eccentric than people in the other states I've lived. I attribute this to the fact that most people in Arizona are living hand-to-mouth (salaries are generally low, COL is middle-of-the-road and the workforce isn't particularly highly educated or skilled), so they don't necessarily have the propensity to be eccentric or spontaneous.

Also, because people in Arizona tend to be living geographically far away from their families and childhood friends (again, most Arizonans are transplants), they tend not to be very festive, either.

Definitely struggled with this over the years. Finally got my mother and brother to move here, though.

For example, most homes are dark and undecorated around the major holidays, which is quite a departure from just about anywhere else in the country, except maybe Florida. There aren't very many holiday parties or gatherings, either, as people in Arizona don't tend to have very large circles of friends or be close with their neighbors and co-workers.

Because I've lived in a handful states, my interests include, but are by no means limited to hiking, off-roading, tailgating, etc., so I always kind of felt underwhelmed by the general dearth of activities and things to do in Arizona. I don't really wanna spend every single weekend going hiking or sitting by the pool.

The problem is, when you finally meet a friend who you can truly connect with on multiple levels, chances are they'll move out of Arizona within six months to a year. Arizona is an extremely transient state, and because people are constantly moving in and out, it's difficult to develop and maintain long-term, emotionally dependable friendships.

I have heard this a lot. Heck, I've also personally experienced it! I like AZ, but this is an issue.

Other than the people and social atmosphere, however, there were other disappointing aspects about Arizona as well that I've already touched on and some I haven't.

I personally found the weather to border on horrible. Winters were COLD! They weren't cold in the same respect as winters in the Midwest, but they still get cold, regardless of how you slice it. The winters also don't offer much respite for the hellishly hot - and surprisingly humid - summertime weather, either.

Florida had significantly better winter weather, IMO. Every other state I've lived in had better summer weather, too, including Florida.

This is a first! Most Florida transplants I spoke with say they prefer the drier summers.

Salaries, benefits and worker rights and protections sucked in Arizona, too. They were very non-competitive and non-comprehensive, respectively, and since there were so few major, reputable employers, most of them acted like they were doing you a favor by hiring you. Please - you can go shove your $55k for experienced professionals up your ass and around the corner.

This is another issue I've heard people who've lived here (and who have since moved!) complain about.

The very brown landscape and architecture never bothered me at all. In fact, I really loved the scenery of Arizona, even in the Valley of the Sun. However, I know this is a huge issue for a lot of people from "greener pastures."
 
Old 05-03-2016, 06:09 PM
 
Location: Arizona
1,665 posts, read 2,948,706 times
Reputation: 2385
Quote:
Originally Posted by magnum0417 View Post
I agree with a lot of this. I like my solitude on weekends and park my motorhome on the acreage I have in Valle and Holbrook to take a break from The Valley. Autism's hatred towards CA is obvious. Here is the deal. If you make enough money to enjoy the riches of life, politics have a negligible impact on your life. Yes many in the Valley live paycheck to paycheck and are bitter as their driving habits confirm amongst other things.
Folks it is about liberty and freedom, states that take away freedoms from law abiding citizens,should be avoided at all costs unless you want to be a government slave. This is one of the reasons Arizona is so great it allows for individual freedom and among them is the right to carry a gun, buy a 64oz soda and send my kid to a charter school without having to get permission from a bureaucrat .
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Closed Thread


Settings
X
Data:
Loading data...
Based on 2000-2022 data
Loading data...

123
Hide US histogram

Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Arizona

All times are GMT -6.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top