Sorry, found Ohio not so appealing... (Columbus, Cleveland: RV parks, appointed, fit in)
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Hello all, Im new to this forum. I just started researching a few other states, and decided to join in. Ive been stuck here in OH, dangerously close to the Michigan line, for a few years now. I am trying relentlessly to get out, but it seems every other day something happens here to prevent it. Biggest mistake I ever made was moving here from Maryland. Here are my reasons.
1. People. There are some good people here. Dont get me wrong. Otherwise, they are very cliquey, rude, fake, and will backstab you in a moments notice. Getting drunk and driving old beat-up Camaros to the trailer park to see your girl seems to be the favorite pastime– It is at least in the part of Ohio that I am stuck in (Toledo). You have to be a “good ‘ol boy” to fit in here. Get drunk, and watch OSU!! If thats not your bag, plenty of tattoos, hat turned sideways, shorts falling off your rear, and plenty more alcohol coupled with pot (or something worse) is the way.
Aside from that, they have their own native language here. For example, instead of a “vacuum” it is called a sweeper. Sweepers are machine guns or brooms, not vacuums. When you say “thank you” to an Ohioan, all you get is “YEP”. “Your welcome” is not in their vocabulary. Also, soda here is called “POP”, A pop is a noise, not a softdrink. (I know, grow up, but these are pet peeves) These are just a few examples, there are many many more. The accent is a cross between the Kentucky drawl, and the Michigan roll. They couldnt come up with one on their own. There seems to be a problem with teenage pregnancy, and single women that have 5 kids with all different fathers.
2.The weather. Summers are oppresively humid, rainy, seldom sunny, and very short. Mosquitoes are as big as squirrels, and will attack you relentlessly even if you were swimming in a bath of bug spray. Winters are so cold that you cant even touch your steering wheel in the morning without your fingers freezing to it– thats if you can get into your car after scraping 3 inches of ice off of it. Long, gloomy, sub-zero winters are the norm. They last from October to April here. They use salt on the roads, so not only does your car freeze, it rusts out all over. The brown nasty slush on the roads in winter is no picnic either.
3. Economy. I have been trying to sell my house and move out, almost a year now. I have dropped the price twice. It is now quite less than what it appraised at. I live in what is supposed to be a “nice neighboorhood” by Ohio standards. Toledo is very slow right now. There are very very few jobs that dont consist of waiting tables, or low paid factory work. No wonder I cant sell it. Those that have good jobs here are either lawyers or doctors. Ohio has one of the highest bankruptcy rates, so go figure. I can say im glad to have the job that I have, but I have found it pays better elsewhere.
4. Toledo & Vicinity: I have never seen some where that is so sports-barified in my life. Chain restaurants and big box stores are everywhere. This is becoming the norm most everywhere though. It is ridiculous. It is impossible to get anywhere without driving. The bus system is sub par, and hardly runs anywhere– if you want to go to a bar or club, your out of luck unless a DD can be found. Walking anywhere is out of the question. That normally does not bother me that much, but just adds to the difficulty of having some kind of fun here. There is no culture here. The downtown is a lifeless concrete nightmare, and the rest is just ghetto stick houses. The only plus side, is 5/3 Field. I will give it that-- except that I object to it being named after a bank. Again, sign of the times.
Outdoors life is nearly non-existent. Cedar Point is the only plus if your into that. Going fishing in polluted lakes and rivers and getting wasted while doing it is all there is. I was in Fremont just today, and drove over the Sandusky river bridge, and it smelled of sewage. Golf and parks get old quick when they look the same. There are no mountains, ORV parks, or nice huge national parks here. Flat as a table top. You have to drive for 3 hours to see even small hills.
I could go on for hours, but that should give you a good idea. Thanks for reading my rant. I am looking at North Carolina, Arizona, Oregon, or Georgia right now as possible new homes. I have been to all, and have not decided which to move to yet. But I cant even move till my house sells. Pardon any misspellings or grammatical errors, its not because im from Ohio.
I know some of you wont feel the same way. This is just my opinion of this place.
After reading your post and your possible next locations, you might want to rule out Oregon due to the rainy/not sunny days and out here in the NW, we drink Pop
Georgia and NC are going to have more than their fair share of humidity.
As far as selling your house, it's currently a buyer's market. You're not the only one in that boat.
You are so off its not even funny. Im sure everyone knew that i would come in here and have to correct this. Some things i can agree with you on, lol like the sweeper and pop thing. But seriously, this is obviously your opinion. And some of the places you are looking into have more problems than Ohio. Arizona was probaly your best pick on there. North Carolina growing out of control with redneck hicks sorrounding you everwhere you turn. Oregon and its overcast skies. It must just be in your neighborhood. Toledo is a very diverse city. Check out the demograhics. It has a very quick growing hispanic population. Columbus is one of the fastest growing cities in the northern USA, Cincinnati is one of the fastest growing metros in the NE and Midwest. Cleveland is one of the most culturally diverse cities in the nation as well as one of the biggest banking cities in the WORLD. Over 300 billion is assets. I can think of two states right off the bat that are worse than Ohio. I have lived in both, Michigan and Pennsylvania. You want to talk about hicks and bad weather just head to PA, with the mountains in PA and the way people live and talk you would think you were in a different country. Michigan has the worse economy in the nation. Unemployment through the roof and high crime rate. Ohio's unemployment rate is at 4.9% compared to 7.2% in Michigan.
Talk about cold winters head to Michigan. The roads there are horrible because they dont clear them off. You want to talk about bad cities, just look at Detroit and Flint. Urban decay everywhere and crime through the roof. Detroit is the most dangerous city in the nation. Flint not far behind. Pennsylvania has some of the worse freeways in the nation. They are horrible with pot holes everywhere.
My wife moved here from Florida, and you want to talk about their fair share of problems. Hurricanes are horrible there. They still have damage in downtown West Palm with three highrises abandoned. Not to mention the horrible cost of living and the horrible school system. Florida is ranked 49th in graduation compared to 17th here in Ohio. We have many large coporations based here in Ohio. There are a lot that i didnt even know were based here.
Also Toledo has the sixth highest amount of develoment going into in the Midwest. Competing with cities like Chicago, Milwaukee, Cleveland, Columbus, St. Louis and Minneapolis. You want to talk about jobs. Ha, just look at Florida where most people make their living off being a waitress or working for the tourism business. Trust me they dont make much money. I know this because a lot of my family lives there. My brother-in-law and his wife are moving from Boca Raton, Florida to Columbus, Ohio for a better education for their kids. They had no problem finding a job here and they got a 600k house in Dublin (a suburb of Columbus). A 600k house in Florida is nothing. Its very small and probaly in a bad neighborhood. In Ohio that can buy you so much with money to spare.
I moved to Ohio from Pennsylvania. I can tell you without a doubt that Ohio is a much better state to live in. I work with many people from across the world that have moved here to Cleveland. A lot from West Virginia and Kentucky getting a better job oppurtunity. I have been to many states across this country because my job makes me travel. I will tell you that Ohio doesnt face near the amount of problems some other states are facing, believe it or not.
This was your opinion and im sorry that you dont like it where you live. Just remember no place is perfect. I had to come in here and correct some things, lol. I know many people that have moved here to Ohio and love it. I wish you the best of luck in your move and hope everything works out fine.
Sounds like you have had a bad personal experience, like a close friend ditched you or something. The area where your living in sounds like a white trash area, you werent living in East Toledo by any chance.
Aside from that, they have their own native language here. For example, instead of a “vacuum” it is called a sweeper. Sweepers are machine guns or brooms, not vacuums. When you say “thank you” to an Ohioan, all you get is “YEP”. “Your welcome” is not in their vocabulary. Also, soda here is called “POP”, A pop is a noise, not a softdrink. (I know, grow up, but these are pet peeves) These are just a few examples, there are many many more. The accent is a cross between the Kentucky drawl, and the Michigan roll. They couldnt come up with one on their own. There seems to be a problem with teenage pregnancy, and single women that have 5 kids with all different fathers.
I live where your at and never heard the term "sweeper" thats sounds ridiculous. Myself and people I know call it "vaccum" or "vaccum cleaner" but stay away from the "pop" bashing Lucas county teen pregnancy rates are slightly below average. But again this area you are in sounds trashy and it may be different for your area.
2.The weather. Summers are oppresively humid, rainy, seldom sunny, and very short. Mosquitoes are as big as squirrels, and will attack you relentlessly even if you were swimming in a bath of bug spray. Winters are so cold that you cant even touch your steering wheel in the morning without your fingers freezing to it– thats if you can get into your car after scraping 3 inches of ice off of it. Long, gloomy, sub-zero winters are the norm. They last from October to April here. They use salt on the roads, so not only does your car freeze, it rusts out all over. The brown nasty slush on the roads in winter is no picnic either.
Ohio has all the seasons, nothing extreme. Winters last from November to May. Last winter was unusually long, but not common. There are times when you have to turn on the heat and the AC in the same day but lets just say there are alot colder states than Ohio. But I too hate the winters when they come but on the bright side crime rates go down in those months.
3. Economy. I have been trying to sell my house and move out, almost a year now. I have dropped the price twice. It is now quite less than what it appraised at. I live in what is supposed to be a “nice neighboorhood” by Ohio standards. Toledo is very slow right now. There are very very few jobs that dont consist of waiting tables, or low paid factory work. No wonder I cant sell it. Those that have good jobs here are either lawyers or doctors. Ohio has one of the highest bankruptcy rates, so go figure. I can say im glad to have the job that I have, but I have found it pays better elsewhere.
Its certainly not unique to Toledo, all over the country housing prices are dropping, in fact the housing bubble may have burst. Your house will sell dramically lower than the apprasial price. Toledo has historically had a weak job market but you should have known that before you moved. Those GM and Jeep factory jobs you speak of pays more than your high tech Microsoft and Google jobs in most cases after you add benefits but I understand if you dont like factory work, I dont either. Jobs in the South on averge pays lower wages than the Midwest (hence why business are moving south). Just hold on to that Toledo job till the day you move.
4. Toledo & Vicinity: I have never seen some where that is so sports-barified in my life. Chain restaurants and big box stores are everywhere. This is becoming the norm most everywhere though. It is ridiculous. It is impossible to get anywhere without driving. The bus system is sub par, and hardly runs anywhere– if you want to go to a bar or club, your out of luck unless a DD can be found. Walking anywhere is out of the question. That normally does not bother me that much, but just adds to the difficulty of having some kind of fun here. There is no culture here. The downtown is a lifeless concrete nightmare, and the rest is just ghetto stick houses. The only plus side, is 5/3 Field. I will give it that-- except that I object to it being named after a bank. Again, sign of the times.
Like you said, its just about everywhere. Downtown is going through a dramatic make over and will looks different in about 3 years.
Outdoors life is nearly non-existent.
Lots of people enjoy the great lakes, but obvioulsy its not everybodys cup of tea. As for the parks, Of course they will look the same, are they suppose to change by the hour.
I could go on for hours, but that should give you a good idea. Thanks for reading my rant. I am looking at North Carolina, Arizona, Oregon, or Georgia
My recommendations would be North Carolina or Georgia. I have had alot of people who have move from Ohio to Arizona and have been disappointed for whatever reason.
Well, I'm sorry that you hate us so much! I'll just go through your list and give you my opinions...I don't really care if anyone reads this or not, I have to respond, it's just KILLING me to keep my mouth closed on this one!
1. Most Ohioans are NOT rude and fake, and most are not back-stabbers. I don't know WHY you think you have the authority to GENERALIZE a population that you OBVIOUSLY know nothing about!
Yes, we do call "soda" pop. Why? Don't ask me, but, yeah, I do call it pop. Why do you care so much? I call the vacuum a vacuum, no a "sweeper", but I know people that call it that. Why? Don't ask me, but why do you care so much? AND, I don't know anyone here in Ohio that doesn't say, "You're welcome," so I don't know where you're coming up with that one. That would bug me too, so if that's really how people are around you, then I'm sorry they're like that because that IS rude. I think our accents are fine. Everywhere has an accent, so get over it. If you think ours is a mix of Michigan and Kentucky, then so be it, but I'm not going to apologize for the way I speak. I really can't comment on the teen pregnancy and single mothers, because I have no statistics, but I can assure you that it's not just here, it's the whole nation that has that problem.
2. Yeah, out weather isn't the best, but you've just gotta suck it up. This summer has been extremely rainy, I'll give you that, but normally it won't rain for so long that there is a drought! Winter sucks, yes, but you just have to find ways to deal with it. Warm up your car, make sure you wax it before it gets cold so it isn't effected by the salt as badly, and buy a good coat. I thank God every day that we don't have to worry about hurricanes ever, about tornados (except for the rare occasion), and I used to about flooding, until Lake County flooded this summer. What are you talking about mosquitoes as big as squirrels? I've seen mosquitoes in many other states, and they've all been the same size as those here in Ohio. They aren't any worse here as anywhere else, so get over it. Now you're just finding excuses to complain.
3. The economy isn't just bad here, it's everywhere. Yes, your job probably pays better elsewhere, but then you will have higher housing costs, higher gas prices, higher everything...your income won't go as far as it does in Ohio.
4. I've never been to downtown Toledo, so I can't really argue with you. Have you ever come to Cleveland? We have lots of culture and, although we get a bad rap, we're improving.
So, anyway, I wish you luck in leaving if you're really that unhappy. I don't think I'd ever leave Ohio by choice, but to each his own.
You are so off its not even funny. Some things i can agree with you on, lol like the sweeper and pop thing.
This is how I feel about the area. It was a rant, so I couldn't resist throwing the "pop and sweeper thing" in-- and HAS, no I dont really care that much. If you say "sweeper" or "pop" its not going to kill me.---ranting....
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Originally Posted by paintballer1708
Arizona was probaly your best pick on there. North Carolina growing out of control with redneck hicks sorrounding you everwhere you turn. Oregon and its overcast skies.
Arizona is #1 on my list. I am going back at the end of the year. I thought North Carolina would be nice, after living in Maryland. I have an aunt living in Oregon, but the weather is depressing. I could move back to Maryland, as I loved it there, but theres no reason I couldnt move elsewhere.
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Originally Posted by paintballer1708
Michigan has the worse economy in the nation. Unemployment through the roof and high crime rate. Ohio's unemployment rate is at 4.9% compared to 7.2% in Michigan.
Hence, "living dangerously close to the Michigan line"
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Originally Posted by paintballer1708
Also Toledo has the sixth highest amount of develoment going into in the Midwest.
It sure doesnt show that well. They have the new bridge going in downtown, and the ball field, but the east side still on a downward spiral, the famous "erie street market" is nearly bankrupt, and they cant seem to get any other projects off the ground.
1. Most Ohioans are NOT rude and fake, and most are not back-stabbers. I don't know WHY you think you have the authority to GENERALIZE a population that you OBVIOUSLY know nothing about!
This is the way people treat you around here. Plain and simple. I have many good friends, but the others I have dealt with leave much to be desired. Im not saying the whole population is like this at all.
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Originally Posted by HAS
Yes, we do call "soda" pop. Why? Don't ask me, but, yeah, I do call it pop. Why do you care so much? AND, I don't know anyone here in Ohio that doesn't say, "You're welcome," so I don't know where you're coming up with that one. That would bug me too, so if that's really how people are around you, then I'm sorry they're like that because that IS rude.
Honestly, I dont care about the "pop" and "sweeper" thing. I was in a rant, so I included it. As far as "your welcome", must be specific to this area then. All I ever get is "YEP", even if I get that.
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Originally Posted by HAS
2. Yeah, out weather isn't the best, but you've just gotta suck it up. This summer has been extremely rainy, Winter sucks, yes, but you just have to find ways to deal with it.
Yeah, but it is very uncomfortable. My job requires me to be inside and outside. The weather plays a big part. The seasons here are, winter, almost winter, humid, and construction, as far as im concerned. Right now its 74 degrees, and 94% humidity. It feels like im walking thru pea soup. Yuck.
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Originally Posted by HAS
What are you talking about mosquitoes as big as squirrels? I've seen mosquitoes in many other states, and they've all been the same size as those here in Ohio. They aren't any worse here as anywhere else, so get over it. Now you're just finding excuses to complain.
This was a little bit of a ranting exaggeration. But the mosquitoes are horrible here. You cant even have a nice outdoor party in your backyard. They are relentless. The best "OFF" available at Meijers doesnt seem to work at all. (The cashier at Meijers this morning when I bought the OFF said "YEP" when I said thank you BTW ).
All in all, I cant wait to leave this state. The sooner the better. Thanks for hearing my rants, and wishing me luck.
I feel for you. But believe me when I say, whatever is in your heart to enjoy life, you will find it. No BS here. Ohio is a standard middle of the road kind of place. People where I grew up in southern OH are well grounded salt-of the earth folks. Def. not rude, but at times in a hurry or something occupying their time. Columbus and Cincy are good places to be. Cbus never took much of a hit in the last recession. But as always, depending on what you do, there are limitations no matter where you live.
So in all, it may just be a case that we all endure sometimes - that when some of us relo elsewhere, it isnt b/c we dislike where we were living. So in this regard we take with us our impressions of what we love (4u it is Maryland), and trust things are similar elsewhere. That happened to us in moving to Charlotte, NC. Very warm, humid summers, goodly number of bugs, no culture b/c everything is in transition from a sleepy southern state to a rising southeast star. The pace of life in CLT to me is stressing (my tolerance level). Projected growth looks good for the next 7-10 yrs.
So, enjoy NC...Charlotte/Mecklenburg county and NC in general has higher overall taxes than OH, mainly by "nickle & diming" taxpayers. Wages are not in pace with the rising costs. The "southern hospitality" in the city is thin. People do [i]act friendly[i]. Only you can never tell if they really mean it. Sorry to offend any from NC. At least in OH, you know where you stand.
We are moving back to OH next year, going to C-bus area. Being away, we realised what life we are passionate about. Our good friends and neighbors there really are the heart of it. We miss them dearly, and difficult times or no, nothing will stop us.
One last item: instead of AZ, have you considered living in CO? a relative lives in Denver for 4 years and swears he's there to stay.
Peace!
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Lucas county teen pregnancy rates are slightly below average. But again this area you are in sounds trashy and it may be different for your area. 
Sorry!
I've seen mosquitoes in many other states, and they've all been the same size as those here in Ohio. They aren't any worse here as anywhere else, so get over it. Now you're just finding excuses to complain. 
). 
