Chicago.. Anyone live there? What's it like?

[Annie]

Avoid living on west side. There are alot of problems with gangs. The Wrigleyville and West Lakeview areas are nice as well as Bucktown. Lincoln Park is nice but very expensive!The North part of the city is best to live!GNR usually play at hte Allstate Arena in Rosemont! Rogers park is nice too but gangs are around in pockets there.

[the dirt]

Probably more than half the country is in a gang.

[SLCPUNK]

And if you get lost on the way there, you better know the phrase:

Donde esta "South Beach"?

I remember going into a place to eat with my wife, and nobody spoke English. Of course they did not believe my wife when she said that she did not speak it either. The waitress gave her the worst look..........

[darknemus]

Yeah, if you're in Miami (any part of Miami) and you don't speak Spanish - they look at you like you're fucking crazy.. its whacked.

-darknemus

[Kujo]

I remember going into a place to eat with my wife, and nobody spoke English. Of course they did not believe my wife when she said that she did not speak it either. The waitress gave her the worst look..........

She's almost as demented as you are, she probably threw it right back at the waitress


Oh, and back on the Chicago thing, they have the best pizza in Chicago. Between Unos and Lou Malnattis you dont need anything else

[darknemus]

Probably more than half the country is in a gang.

Half of what country, the U.S.?  I doubt it.  Outside of the particularly urban areas, there's not really much gang activity.  That's usually relegated to big cities.    Now, a bunch of wanna be kids wandering a mall trying to act all tough is a bit different  -but that's not quite being 'in a gang'.

-darknemus

[Kujo]

I'd say its probably somewhere in the middle. I live up on the Treasure Coast and there are no big cities there. Yet over the last holiday weekend there was a drive by shooting at a park near the beach because some gang members were hanging out at the beach.

[The Dog]

If you're into city life and just city life i hear chicago is a great town.  but from what i've heard, there is NOTHING around it at all.  If you are going for city life, why not try NY??

[2NaFish]

What's chicago like?

Windy. or so i've heard.

[darknemus]

If you're into city life and just city life i hear chicago is a great town.  but from what i've heard, there is NOTHING around it at all.  If you are going for city life, why not try NY??

A. My girl prob just isn't ready for NYC - as much as I'd love to.  Chicago is one of those things where I could take her for a year or two and get her 'acclimated' to that type of environment.. THEN try the NYC migration.

B. I'm not real worried about the nothing around it thing.  Since my girl won't fly, we drive for all of our vacations.  There's alot more stuff within a days drive of Chicago than there is a day's drive of Fort Lauderdale, FL - that's for sure.

C. She has friends who just moved to Chicago and are pushing her on the city.. that also helps with the whole 'hey lets go there!' thing.  Me pushing NYC would be tougher as its never easy for her to go somewhere unknown that she doesn't know people in.  (Me, I couldn't care less - I can live anywhere and have no issues with just up and moving every year or two.. but.. you know.. opposites attract and all that)

-darknemus

[Gaymo, the Hobbit]

My uncle lives in chicago and i absolutely love it. I'd move there in a minute

[JennaSide]

I lived in Chicago for a while, and I grew up in Milwaukee, which isn't too far so I've spent most of my life there. It's great... not quite New York City (where I've been living the last couple years - greatest city in the world!) but Chi-town's easily my second-favorite place to be.  As someone else said, the north-side is the place to be. It's more friendly and safer - and while it might cost more, you can't put a price on safety - especially in a city you're not familiar with yet.
It's a fun town- lots to do, nice museums, great theatre, the lake is awesome, pretty cool music-scene, etc. I would highly recommend it 

[Tomorrows]

Ive only stopped over in Chicago while I was travelling from Boston to Louisville (dont ask) and it seemed like a cool place. I like the Mid West a lot though, seemed laid back and nice.

Really modern buildings. Good music scene Ive heard. Though like the midWest the restaurant scene is the similar everywhere - its just more expensive in the bigger cities.

Check out Springfield, IL (the capital) just two hours south - the nicest town in the US imo.

[Brody]

B. Like I said, I love cold weather.. it could just be because I'm a big guy - but I've been in 0 degree weather on top of a mountain before (In Vegas, of all places) and was fine with little more than Jeans, a long sleeved sweatshirt, & a leather jacket.

I guarantee you wont do that in chicago come winter time!!!

[darknemus]

I've been in some damn cold weather before.  Although, you're right, I'm betting I'd need a bit more protection from the elements in a place like Chicago - but, to be honest, is it as cold as Toronto is?  I mean, I was in Toronto in temps in the teens and I just wasn't really bothered by it.  Heck I actually put the window down on the rental for a little bit just to experience some of the brisk cold air.  Now I'm not saying I was in shorts and a tanktop - but I certainly wasn't bundled up like Nanook of the North, either.

-darknemus

[Annie]

It's probably about the same, it just gets tiresome that it's still cold in April! The summers are so much fun! Alot of festivals and art fairs and stuff! And we have our own production of WICKED that is just as good as Broadway!

[darknemus]

It's probably about the same, it just gets tiresome that it's still cold in April! The summers are so much fun! Alot of festivals and art fairs and stuff! And we have our own production of WICKED that is just as good as Broadway!

I can see where that would suck.  However, it also sucks here to have it still be 85+ degrees hot in FREAKING DECEMBER.  We have basically two seasons here.  Nine months of "Freaking hot" and Three months of "not quite so Freaking hot".  If the temp drops below 60 here, its a rare event.  Below 50, people freak.  Below FORTY?  Its like you're in the arctic circle, judging by the way people dress. 

I hear Wicked is a great play - I really want to check it out.  We're gonna be in Chicago from Nov. 16 - Nov. 23 to check out the area.  Its looking more and more like it will be our eventual residence.. just the more I read, the more I like

-darknemus

[pilferk]

Are winters really that bad there?? I've heard varying reports.? Keep in mind, I'm a Florida boy.. although I LOVE cold weather, I've never lived it for an extended period of time.? In addition, I've never actually 'dealt' with snow.? I've seen it fall, I've seen it on the ground, but I've never dealt with it as an actual 'it snowed' kind of thing.

-darknemus

Snow sucks.  Take it from someone in the "snowbelt" of CT.  I think we get you Floridians share and then some..

And if you're not acclimated to it (and I would guess you're not) DRIVING in the snow sucks....

If you're gonna live in the city, proper, you're likely not going to have to deal with it much.  If you buy a condo, you'll likely have indoor (garage) parking.  If you live in an apt, you'll probably have to find off street parking in the event of a major blow (parking bans will be in effect on the streets).  If it's only a few inches, the worst you'll have to do is clean off, and dig out, your car.  Not TOO bad.

It's also cold.  Colder than Toronto?  No.  But close. 

I've heard the layout of the city is not quite as convenient as NYC, but better than LA's.  I've been to Chi town exactly twice and didn't have much of a problem getting around.  Oh....O'Hare sucks donkey balls...though less so as a final destination.  "Running the spokes" should be considered as an Olympic Event....

[SLCPUNK]

Have you thought about any other cities? Do they have to be larger or no?

[darknemus]

Have you thought about any other cities? Do they have to be larger or no?

I've considered a few different places.  But Chicago has some definite advantages over them for me.

A. Location - as I stated before.. my girl won't fly.. so we're stuck driving when it comes to vacations we take together.  Chicago's within a day's drive of alot of destinatons I'd like to go to.

B. Size of city - big city = lots to do.

C. Politics of city - The city is a major Liberal base.. I like that, as it equates to alot more of the things that I believe in.  (Please don't let this get political - its simply MY OPINION of the place)

D. Proximity to Canada (kind of falls into location) - I love Canada.. alot.  And I love the thought of driving there in a few hours.

E. Potential for income - In addition to the pays being generally higher than South Florida there, it'd be a good place to expand my consulting business - as there's a large pool of people to draw from.. in addition, the public transportation makes it relatively easy to get to those places.

F. The music scene - Chicago's music scene and the diversity thereof appeals to me.

-darknemus