Texas boy moving the Chicago! (Cuba: live, rated, trees)

[PaidFun]

Majority of the year is cold and ugly as hell so my point still stands. As for your doubts, read the big post I made... it's pretty accurate

[Avengerfire]

Originally Posted by PaidFun

Majority of the year is cold and ugly as hell so my point still stands...

You have no idea what you are talking about. You are on ignore. Bye bye.

[R1070]

You will have fun in Chicago, its a neat city. The extremely long colder weather season/gray skies there will be a big hurdle for you and getting used to the very old looking city compared to the shiny new cities in Texas may seem a bit depressing to you but you are human and you will adjust to your surroundings. If things don't work out you could always move back to Texas but to one of the big cities like Dallas/Ft Worth or Houston, they will have a lot more available to you than Austin.

[linicx]

Trees are budding in May regardless of the temperature, and sometimes earlier; it depends upon the type of tree. Northern trees are much hardieer than Palm trees. There is sun all four seasons... and even in the winter. I was there when 16" of snow was on the ground and the temperature was below zero. The sun was shining. But. The Canadian air that cools the hot City in the summer, delivers a artic chill in the winter due in part to the "lake effect".

There is nothing NOT to like about the city - if you are willing to look for it.

[hank0604]

Originally Posted by PaidFun

In my very honest opinion, Chicago is a ****ty city and I am moving out of here to Miami, FL as soon as possible!

Have fun in Miami. I take it that Cubans don't bother you as much as Mexicans.

Right now, as I look out my window, I see nothing but green trees. The bradford pear trees all over the city were blooming by early April. And did you not see all the tulips up and down the streets everywhere in April?

And it's really only cold from November until early March. Sure, you may have an early frost in mid-October, but those also happen in Texas and Florida. And yes, I have seen snow in early April, but for the most part April-October is a great mediterranean climate with crisp, cool nights and moderately warm days, not too hot or cold.

[Nomadic9460678748]

Originally Posted by PaidFun

Well man, I'm going to be brutally honest with you. A lot of people look at the good side of things, and ignore the rest.

I was born in the Caribbean so I love the heat, but we (as a family) moved to Chicago. We became naturalized. Anyway, it was a huge huge change for me and several things struck me the most. I lived in Chicago for about 5 or 6 years, and I currently live in the north suburbs (so far 1 year and a half).

In the heat, you tend to go out and enjoy life. Have a cold refreshing drink, go to the pool, exercise in the sun, go to the beach, go "wild". Whereas in Chicago, man it's a totally different story. It is brutally cold 8 out of the 12 months of the year. People talk about the snow, where it doesn't snow here THAT often. When it *does* snow, it turns black after a week due to the salt. Then what do you see? Ugly black snow along the streets and sidewalks - and this lasts for a while. Now comes in the trees (I'm used to growing up around palms) and man, are they depressing. Imagine trees that look like it's halloween but.. all year round. No leaves. Just black trees without leaves just standing there. Don't worry, there is plenty left. The cold here is incredible, so cold that the wind cuts your face. Yup, it sounds strange but it really does. So cold that it makes you want to just hug yourself out how cold it is.. Along with this comes the sky, it is GRAY the majority of the year, too. FORGET ABOUT THE SUN LOL. It is night/dark outside usually by 5 or 6pm. I'm not joking. Cars get dirtied up due to salt.

Okay, now comes the rest. The houses are old plus dirty, and in my opinion they don't look very refreshing. Most are packed right next to each other... blah, not a refreshing sight imo. The buildings are also a very similar story, especially during the winter season.

That covers the realistic physical "scenery" of Chicago. Dwontown is pretty, yes, but living right in Downtown Chicago requires a lot of money. I'm talking about right in downtown, not some little ugly building by the side of downtown.

Now come the next part, which is the people. I will be brutally honest here. Some may take it as racism, but it isn't. It is called being realistic about the situations. Chicago is filled with Mexican people. You can't go anywhere without seeing one . Pretty girls are hard to find in Chicago (although they do exists if you know where to look, but the concentration of isn't too good for us guys), since everyone is in their houses the amazing majority of the year! Trust me, I exercise/work out 2hrs a day, Monday-Friday. Have been doing so for the past 3 years, and I'm at 10% bodyfat. I won't get into that too much, as some might take it as excessive

Okay now comes in the crime part which is big. Crime is everywhere and there is no way you can't see it. You go out and you see dudes standing on a street corner or walking around. Whether they be black, white, mexican, puerto rican, other hispanics and occasionally Asian. -random- A lot of people like to use general terms, but I use what they are. If you are black, you are black. So what? Skin color or ethnicity does not make a difference WHATSOEVER. Anyway, crime is a biggie biggie here.

In my very honest opinion, Chicago is a ****ty city and I am moving out of here to Miami, FL as soon as possible!

Ironically, your post has made me want to scope out Chicago even more!

I love REAL diversity and love old, charming architecture. Strip malls and big box development are not my idea of an aesthetic.

And considering that basically the only women deemed "beautiful" in Austin are Tri-Delts (read blond, rail thin, and orange from tanning beds) I can't wait to see women who look different.

Thanks for getting me that much more excited about the prospect of exploring Chicago!

[vlaraujo]

Chicago is great, I lived there for 9 years and I love it. It is one of the best cities in this country especially for a young guy like you. It has so much culture, night life, restaurants, it is the best! You don’t need a car to live there, I did not have one. I don’t know what neighborhood you are going to live in, some neighborhoods have good street parking, and others don’t. You may want to ask the people you are going to live with if you should bring your car or not. If you decide not to bring your car, I would rent a U-Hall and drive there. You will enjoy living there immensely. It is so much better than Austin in so many ways, I can’t even describe. The winters are brutal and long, but you eventually get used to it.

[JsTx0521]

I will be living in Wrigleyville. And they have a garage so I'm going to take my car. From what I hear that is a very good area that is also close to the brown line. There are alot of things I love about Austin. It has a nice mix of small city, nature, and culture. Swimming the green belt in summer is one of the most relaxing things to do. Probably something I wont be able to get to much of in Chicago but every city has its pros and cons. Its all what you make it. My main concern is getting plugged into the right restaurant circles and building some relations with farmers, producers, and artisans (especially cheese). That's my thing. I have that here in Austin and that is something I NEED.

[Attrill]

Originally Posted by JsTx0521

My main concern is getting plugged into the right restaurant circles and building some relations with farmers, producers, and artisans (especially cheese). That's my thing. I have that here in Austin and that is something I NEED.

You probably know this already, but LTHForum is the best place to get solid information about anything food related in Chicago. You should also check out the farmers markets (http://www.explorechicago.org/city/en/things_see_do/event_landing/special_events/mose/chicago_farmers_market.html - broken link). There are loads of them around the city, but Green City is the largest and has the most going on. If you get there right when they open you're likely to run into a lot of professionals. They also have a lot of free demonstrations, which are interesting and can also be an opportunity to network.

[Drover]

Yeah, LTHforum is a good resource because not only do foodies hang out there but so do industry professionals.