karin_and_boys

A quick survey, if I may.

What I liked best about living in U.S:
great schools (people are surprised by this back in UK but our school in Illinois was awesome)
general politeness of society (know this is a generalisation, but I found drivers more courteous, teens more verbal and friendly, generally a bit less aggressive than Uk society
Variety of stores of every kind (my OH loved shopping for electronics!)
feeling of space, we lived in the 'burbs, would be different if we had been downtoen Chicago

What I disliked about living in U.S:
distance from family and friends (specially when anyone got sick or there was an event I couldn't travel back for)
feeling of not belonging (different accent)
making friends but no-one I had any history with
absence of old buildings, the newness of everywhere
lack of good newspapers, documentaries, radio shows. NYT and NPR not bad admittedly

trying to keep this balanced, 5 for each side! Would be interested in your likes/dislikes

Thanks,
Karin.

Manc

Ok.

why are you telling us this? We live here already and know the USA has lots of space.

Ash UK/US

Yeah but she has never driven in GR

Sally Redux

It's hard to generalise. Some people are more polite and some are far ruder. Some drivers are good and some are homicidally careless. Schools vary enormously, from excellent to war zones. The burbs can feel spacious or Valley of the Dolls weird. Etc.

karin_and_boys

1. I was not asking you in particular (as you like 'trying' to be a smart ass)
2. I was looking for people's favorite things. You probably don't have any, so go read some other posts

karin_and_boys

Funnily enough, I have....

Ash UK/US

You must have been on a street without any drivers then. There are no way drivers here are more curtious. I have also drivin in Chigaco and Ohio and they are worse than GR.

Mummy in the foothills

OK.
Likes.
Mild winters (here anyway)
my house
My Dh and kids.
Country gravy and biscuits.
San Francisco close enough to go for a day trip or overnight.
my few friends who are great


Dislikes.
Our schools (they were good when oldest ds started he's 21 now)
Cost of a college education. Ds's was $37,000 per year (not including books and food)
Driving and driving and driving to do anything, takes me an hour to get a gallon of milk here.
The summer heat.
Mosquitoes
Scorpions
Spiders
Snakes
Being 24 hours minimum from any family
Dh's sucky job that he's stuck in for medical benefits and retirement money
Being stuck in a job due to medical coverage
Getting horrendous bills for medical even when you have fantastic Cadillac plan medical cover.
Dh getting only two weeks paid holidays a year.
Me not being able to get back to work without driving an hour each way to a decent job
House prices being so low
Being surrounded by foreclosure homes that are going for next to nothing and still aren't sold.

dunroving

Worst has to be cost of health care and fear of potential bankrupcy form a major illness or accident. I couldn't ever see many major negatives.

Best: weather; positive can-do attitude (yes, at the extreme end it can be a bit tedious); general politeness and friendliness/openness to strangers; customer service; easier to drive; far better work culture (in my profession; I know it's the opposite in a lot of others); lower cost of living (mainly due to low mortgage); grits; cheap(er) Ben & Jerry's; and of course weather ...

Giantaxe

Agree 100%. Trouble is, for many folks it's one hell of a big negative.

Jscl

Best:

weather
more disposable income


Worst:
Lack of family
Having to drive EVERYWHERE
Medical care/expense
lack of vacation time
lack of vacations anywhere other than to the UK
never feeling really understood

E3only

[QUOTE=karin_and_boys;8654759]
What I disliked about living in U.S:

feeling of not belonging (different accent)
making friends but no-one I had any history with
absence of old buildings, the newness of everywhere
QUOTE]

Although I know its personal opinion, I really do not appreciate fully the whole “absence of old buildings” thing. That said, it’s not the first time I have heard someone say that. May be I need to spend extended time in England to realize the true fascination of being surrounded by old building. I am all for heritage by the way.

Also, you don’t get the feeling of belonging just because of difference in accent? UK is one of the most multi cultural places on this planet I am told.

For me, healthcare got to be the –ve. I have not been here too long but just to figure out the right cover is a pain in the backside. Also, the banks here seem somewhat slower than what I am used to. 15 days just for a credit card decisions (secured credit card by the by), 3 working days to transfer money electronically from bank to bank, not being able to open a checking account without being a GC holder or a Citizen just to name a few. Not going into ridiculous fees they charge.

But hey, hand on heart there the positives far outweigh the –ves that’s for sure. Cheap cars, gas, food, travel etc etc

SDDep

Thats just the LA thing again although you are right on all counts...

karin_and_boys

Maybe the common factor then is you...

karin_and_boys

hey guys,
thanks for the pleasant informative replies. Always nice to hear different viewpoints.