My friend that's originally from Chicago HATES the cold weather. I'm sure that I would traumatized by it as well. There is no such thing as winter in Louisiana. LOL! But, I keep hearing how great Chicago is. I'll be up there in mid-August for a job fair, so I'll see what all the fuss is about. One of my friends just went there for a summer job. Hopefully he'll get an offer and then I'll be able to visit whenever I like.

Soror, you know what they say - you can always go back from wherever you left. We only live one life and a year or two of cold weather never really killed anybody. It's a great city. I could tell you where to find all of the sorors b/c you know that it's AKAtown, right? :) Nothing but AKA license plates as far as the eye can see. We definitely run Chicago. :) Ok, I'll stop now.... :)

But seriously, many people never really get out of their own backyard. Many from down south have never really lived in or seen the snow. Many from up north have never seen countrysides or anything but the "concrete jungle." I encourage you to venture to someplace different from where you've ever been - no matter where you decide to go. Even if, as we mentioned earlier, you want to spend a year or two or three out of the country. You can always go back to a city or state that's similar to what you are accustomed to. This is a great and fun time of your life. You can literally go anywhere where you want to go so venture out. You only live once. Lucky you! :) How many people get an opp in their lives to throw the net open to *wherever* they want to live.

Also, I lived in NJ for awhile and enjoyed visiting Philly from time to time. Philly also seems like a cool place. It was also listed as one of the top cities for AAs.

SC

I have been to Philly a couple of times in the past year, and I really liked what I saw there too.

This is really my goal. You've hit the nail on the head! I've been telling people for as long as I can remember that I want to experience something new. I would must rather go somewhere and HATE it, but have the option of coming back home, than to stay here forever and spend my years feeling like I have never "lived." I have ALWAYS felt like this. And after Katrina, I see so may people that have never lived (nor travel, for that matter) beyond New Orleans city limits and are struggling in other places. I don't know if it's just the whole evetnt of being forced out of N.O. or the fact they just don't want to adjust to life away from that one city.

At the end of my day, I want to look back at my life and say that I have been to places, lived places, and done things that I am happy with. I know that I can never be happy knowing that I didn't at least try to make it outside of my comfort zone.

Unspoken one is CORRECT its boring to HER because SHE DOESN'T DO ANYTHING!!!!:D :D ;)

Sweetie.........you know the number! Let's do lunch!:D

my 2 cents
 

im sure you know this, but i thought i would mention it. consider your short and long term professional/personal goals when considering where you want to live. that may help you narrow down the variety of choices you have.

not from houston, but my college roommate has spent almost a decade down there and loves it. it sounds like it is progressive for your professionals, but it is what you make of it. she and i are both northerners..lol, but each time i talked with her, she had so many great stories about the social scene.

i live in suburban md and since it is close to dc, it provides a great opportunity to connect with alot of progressive folks. so much to do! it is a good place to settle, but expensive as hell and the commute is the worst. housing is also really high, but if you are commanding a great salary you will have no problem. personally, i find a number of us are working to pay bills because the housing is so expensive, so again, consider that in the equation. but in my area, i have found a place where i can plant some roots which is nice.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO @ Soror IcebrAKA!!! LOL!!! Now that i'm back to being single, I guess I will have to get my bootie out there.

I'm going to take you up on that lunch offer! ;)

I'm cosigning with all the folks who stated Charlotte, DC, and Houston as wonderful places to relocate :) I lived in Charlotte for a year before I got married and ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT!!! It is definitely a place I wouldn't think twice about moving back to. Charlotte is centrally located, not to far from ATL, the beach, or the mountains. Everytime I visit I pick up literature to convince the hubby to give it a shot LOL

I would be remiss if I didn't give my thoughts on Raleigh/Durham :( As you can tell by the smiley I didn't have a pleasant experience there but it's probably due to the fact I had just moved from ATL and was spoiled rotten:)

No, you're not, soror. It's the lesser of the two "evils" for me, which is one of the reasons I can't wait to go back home to AK once my "stay" here in The 5th Circle of Hell is over. If I were to stay here in LA, it'd have to be in Baton Rouge (where most of *my* fam ended up post-Katrina). As far as other options go, I'll co-sign with the majority in considering Atlanta, Houston, and Dallas (in that order).

Now, back ttt...

How did you wind up in Louisiana ALLLLLLL the way from Alaska?

Soror would somebody PLEASE tell me the fascination with Atl? My parents caught the Atl bug and moved there back in 1990 and even then people had been flocking there. So I've lived there but, um, why are the masses going there? I might just move on back to be with family, especially now that i have a niece, but here's my viewpoint:

1. it's hard for many people (ex: teachers) to get a job b/c everybody and their mother is moving there and market is oversaturated to some extent
2. the ratio of single and heterosexual AA men to AA women is approximately 3 to 10 (lol) or something like that - does anybody know a woman who was not in college at the au who moved to atlanta and actually found a man that wasn't already married to somebody else?
3. it's not that scenic - there's no water, no mountains, no beaches
4. it gets kinda cold in the winter for it to be the south

so really ya'll, what gives? i love seeing that AA girl in the mural when I come up the escalators at the airport and i love the numbers of AAs. is that basically it?

do tell b/c a sister has been going there at least 5-6 times a year since i graduated from college there in 97 and i don't see it.
what.is.the.fascination?
SC

My roots...
 

LOL, soror! I get that a lot. I'm originally from LA (Kenner; most of my fam on both sides still lives here), but moved to AK when I was little. So, it's "home" for me. :)

I see where you're comin' from, soror. I see those as (relative) weak points as well (I'll add bad traffic/gridlock as #5). But, I have fam there...lived there during my junior high school years...went to Spelman for a year (94-95), etc. So, I have roots there as well. I'm always chomping at the bit to go visit, especially now that I'm an auntie (and anything to get out of Monroe for a while :rolleyes:). I guess my personal fascination with The ATL can be summed up in two words: SHOPPING (i.e. Lenox Square, Phipps Plaza) and EATING (i.e. The Cheesecake Factory {my fav restaurant, Olive Garden is a close second}, other local and franchises not in LA or AK, etc.), namely the former. I'm just shallow that way. As long as I have those things, I can make do. :cool:

Sorors yall read my mind! :D

Alaska to Louisiana, Wow. Baton Rouge is a great city in Louisiana. I know that I couldn't live in Northern Louisiana. For some reason Atl is not on my "to-do" list. I'm sorry yall but I prefer to be in diverse settings. Not in settings in where one race is the dominant race. Plus the hetero rate to homo rate is a lil scary for me.(I'm just being real)

LOL I wish I knew what the facination was with Atlanta. I hope people soon realize it is all hype and stop moving here. Traffic is bad enough as it it.
Here are my thoughts on your comments from someone who went to college in Atlanta, moved to Minnesota for a while and then moved back.
1. I can't really speak to teaching jobs, but I do know there are a lot of other jobs in Atlanta. Atlanta's housing is also cheaper than the Northeast, hence people moving here and buying mini mansions.
2. Yeah, supposedly there are a lot of down low/homosexual brothers in Atlanta. I have heard (not sure if it is reliable) that ATL is only second to San Francisco for per capita gay men. I am not sure, but I can tell you that I know plently of folks who have met and fallen in love out side of the AUC. I'm talking young (and not so young since that is now my demographic), professional black women who met and married young black men.
3. You are right about that. No water, unless you count the Chattahoochee River or Lake Lanier. No mountains, unless you count Stone Mountain.
4. I don't think it gets that cold here and when it does, it does not stay cold for that long. You could have a cold spell where it is in the 20s for a few days, but don't be surprised if it is in the 60s or 70s a few days later.

I love Atlanta. There is plenty to do, people are friendly and the salaries are decent given the cost of living. I was out of work 2 years ago and seriously considering relocating. I could have made the same amount that I am making now in cities like LA or DC, but my cost of living would have been dramatically reduced.

What about the Left Coast?
 

I know that the South and the Midwest are getting most of the love here, but let me put in a plug for the Bay Area of CA... I grew up in California and went to school in D.C. (LOVED it there), and now I live in Central NJ.

But California has a sizable population of upwardly mobile black professionals in both L.A. and the Bay. I do prefer the Bay slightly.

As for Atlanta, I went there once in high school and hated it, went back in college and liked it... but I don't think I "get it," either. :)