Yeah. Tough sledding out there even after 8ish years. Thought once kids entered the picture friends could at least be made with parents of other kids but even that feels like pulling teeth a lot of times.
Thinking about moving out of Iowa
- Thread starter mschmitty17
- Start date
Other than Army training, I am a lifelong Iowa resident. My wife and I live on an acreage with trees, gardens, a small vineyard and a river running out the south edge of the property. We love it here from May through Christmas.
Once January hits, we simply don't want to be here. We have taken some winter vacations to the gulf coast of Florida and to Hawaii (Maui, Kauai and the Big Island). Our goal is to become snow birds when we retire in a couple years.
I don't see us moving very far from our new baby grandson. Ma simply won't allow that.
H
Once January hits, we simply don't want to be here. We have taken some winter vacations to the gulf coast of Florida and to Hawaii (Maui, Kauai and the Big Island). Our goal is to become snow birds when we retire in a couple years.
I don't see us moving very far from our new baby grandson. Ma simply won't allow that.
H
My only regret in life is not trying to get a big time job right out of college on the West coast and slumming it for a few years while making bank then moving back to Iowa. Instead I just accepted the full time offer after my last internship, coasted through my senior year and moved to KC. Had several in my degree/class who were making double my original salary in the bay area, Seattle and NYC. It's whatever now 10+ years later and I'm back in Iowa still in the same job and living comfortably.
Make sure they steer clear of Walter White and Jessie Pinkman.
Honestly, Iowa isn’t all that friendly.
We lived back there for 2 years in 2010-2012. We were back where I grew up, where both my parents families were from. Doing sales, even knowing people and having them know my family…wasn’t all that welcoming.
But noting will be worse than Sioux Center Iowa where I lived for 3-4 months in the 90’s. Being non-Dutch was like being a leper…with AIDS.
In this thread we learned Iowa is a pretty good place to live. You don't know what you have until it's gone. I left for 2 years and could not wait to return. It's not perfect, but no place is. It is home though and I don't think any other place can create that same feeling of home that Iowa does.
Sioux Center is a good place and I'm not Dutch. People I work with from there are genuine and just super duper down to earth good people.
There you have it folks, nobody in Iowa is friendly since this guy had a couple bad experiences 15-30 years ago. LOL
Didn’t you say you lived there for 3-4 months? Did you rent an apartment or live in a hotel? Did you switch jobs after that short time period?
I worked in Sioux Center and lived in Orange City for awhile, also non-Dutch. People there were irritatingly friendly. I did mow my lawn on Sunday morning once which is apparently a serious no-no, but those are both very nice, clean friendly communities.
Another thing to consider is the different cultures in other parts of the country. For instance, don't try ordering a vegetable cheeseburger in most other parts of the country. What you'll get is something that's not meat. Same thing with a pork tenderloin sandwich, only they'll just stare at you like you just flew in from Mars when you order that one. In the South, If you don't like grits, prepare to get them anyway, every time you order breakfast, whether you want them or not. But the biggest thing I miss about Iowa is the beef. You just can't get beef anywhere like the beef, steaks in particular, you can get in Iowa.
I grew up 20 minutes from Sioux Center. The Dutch are evil people.
Something I've learned is commit two years at a time. If you move somewhere and hate it, give it some time even if you hate it after 6 months. At the same time, know you aren't signing your life away by choosing to move. Iowa will still be here in 2028.
We moved from central Iowa to Madison WI shortly after graduating from ISU and getting married. Lived there for 25 months. Once we started a family, the wife and I knew it was time to move back closer to family. I'm glad we took the opportunity to try something different when we were young, but now that we have a family, central Iowa is hard to beat.
We moved from central Iowa to Madison WI shortly after graduating from ISU and getting married. Lived there for 25 months. Once we started a family, the wife and I knew it was time to move back closer to family. I'm glad we took the opportunity to try something different when we were young, but now that we have a family, central Iowa is hard to beat.
I remember on a trip to Florida some friends went deep sea fishing and they cooked the catch right there.
A local guy compared eating those fish like that to preferring to eat pork or steak in the Midwest.
There's nuance to it all but there's some truth to that aspect.
It is also one of the few markets to have all of NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, and MLS teams. I think since recent MLS expansion it is up to 10 markets nationally.
This is one thing that has me mildly concerned about moving away. Just about every year we get a 1/2 or 1/4 beef plus 1/2 a hog and fill our freezer with fresh meat from a couple local farmers.
Maybe you can do that other places, but I doubt it will be nearly as easy as it is right here in Iowa.
Also, Edgewood Locker is the KING of lockers.
I'm sorry but saying Madison WI is something different from here is like saying I usually order a hamburger, but today I am going to try a CHEESEburger!
