Please help me think through a major life decision, moving to Denver from DC

Actually, Gym Jordan and Matt Gaetz may be upset that an "under 30" male is leaving DC !

Hi, I moved from DC to Denver last year and it’s the best decision I ever made! I’d lived in the DC area for most of my life and got tired of being around self-important Hill staffers and non stop traffic. Denver is a huge step up. I don’t think I’ll ever leave!

thtrnnr wrote:

Hi, I moved from DC to Denver last year and it’s the best decision I ever made! I’d lived in the DC area for most of my life and got tired of being around self-important Hill staffers and non stop traffic. Denver is a huge step up. I don’t think I’ll ever leave!

3/10

No proof

Pittsburgh is the place to be for everything you are looking for:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=miax0Jpe5mA

There's a reason DMVers head northwest on the weekends to get a feeling for the real world.

CrispyChicken wrote:

Pittsburgh is the place to be for everything you are looking for:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=miax0Jpe5mA

There's a reason DMVers head northwest on the weekends to get a feeling for the real world.

Lemme guess, youre a runner who used live in DC and recently moved to Pittsburgh.

I lived in the DC area for a while. The population there is definitely very diverse and the running scene is very good - though I can't imagine Denver doesn't have a good running scene as well. DC living by the metro and DC by car are 2 different experiences. I didn't live anywhere close to a metro line so was mostly getting around by car. Not having hour long commutes to go 10-15 miles was a huge relief after leaving the DC area.

Nope, but spent a lot of time within the DMV on business and spent a fair amount of time in Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh has a vibrant university and cultural life, is close to all sorts of outdoor and sports activities, is affordable, is diverse (whatever that really means, but in my book includes diversity of thought), and has real people, not just posers and pretenders.

thtrnnr wrote:

Hi, I moved from DC to Denver last year and it’s the best decision I ever made! I’d lived in the DC area for most of my life and got tired of being around self-important Hill staffers and non stop traffic. Denver is a huge step up. I don’t think I’ll ever leave!

First of all, to all the people who claim that DC is a soulless city filled with bureaucrats, politicians, and lawyers wearing baggy suits and carrying briefcases, this is simply false. This certainly the vibe in very specific parts of downtown (Farragut square for example), but the rest of the city is filled with cool, distinctive neighborhoods with their own unique character.

Was this the best decision you ever made because of bad things about DC or good things about Denver?

Gawdam what's their to think about? GTFO the East Coast and get West of the Rockies. Colorado's close but keep going.

Flagstaff bro. Flagstaff.

You're young enough, give it a shot! Western suburbs (Golden, Lakewood, Morrison) are near/in the hills yet you can still catch commuter transit into the city. If you want to key on vibrant city life, there are plenty of neighborhoods in the city to aim for. RiNo is rather soulless but lots of younger adults and near lots of restaurants and things to do, probably a lot of single women there. Highlands (NOT Highlands Ranch) is a short bike ride west of LoDo across the Platte/I-25, an older neighborhood that is hip and slowly reaching west toward Sloans Lake. Cap Hill and Cherry Creek are also attractive. Plenty of access to running anywhere there. Like someone said, with the sun and lack of humidity the snow melts fast here as a rule. Plenty of great destinations for play in the Rockies, you could choose a different area each weekend of the year. Front Range is run out, in terms of trail traffic but if you get up early enough you can beat the crowds and have great runs and hikes. Even RMNP is outstanding, and if you're through Estes by 7 a.m. then the tourist crowds won't have any impact.

Oh dang, it sounds like someone forgot to tell you that Colorado is full. Sorry about that. Try Cheyenne, Wyoming, it’s only quick ~ 90 min drive north of Denver.

looking for truth wrote:

Flagpole wrote:

Not true. DC is unique among all cities in the US regarding EDUCATION...that is the only point I was making, so your other things in the list have no bearing on what I said. Yes I've been to Boston. ALL cities have educated people, but DC has more and more with advanced degrees. Just not comparable to any city in the country in that regard.

In DC they have advanced degrees in law and political science so they can f**k you over. They are power hungry. I'd rather be friends with a truck driver than a lawyer or a politician.

Well, my brother is one of those lawyers, but he also has a Ph.D, in pharmacology, and he doesn't drug patent law...not trying to f*ck anyone over. His wife has a MA in English Education (as do I, and I used to live there) and was a teacher for a long time. She also wasn't trying to f*ck anyone over. AND, a lot of those people with advanced degrees there that would fall into your category have spouses who also have advanced degrees who are NOT trying to f*ck anyone over.

I have nothing against truck drivers. I'm sure most of them are decent hard-working people. I just personally don't have much in common with people who aren't educated, so a friendship with a truck driver would have to be centered around something we might have in common, and I'm not sure what that would be.

To that end, I don't have much in common with politicians either...other than my own father who was once mayor of his small town, but that doesn't count. So, I can't imagine being friends with a big time politician either. I know lots of lawyers though and am friends with several...one use to be a bass player in two different bands I was in.

You confuse education with intelligence.

So...two thoughts:

1) no move is permanent. And you are 24 and have lived your entire life in DC, and don't really have anything solid tying you to the area (family, job prospects, mortgage).

Independent of what Denver may have to offer or how wonderful the DC area is (and I love DC), I think it's a great idea to give something different a try, and now is certainly the time in your life to do it. Move to Denver for a year, check it out. If you don't like it, move back. And you'll know a bit more about what you enjoy and don't enjoy in terms of places to live.

2) Regarding Flagpole's comments about DC - I think that DC is to intelligence as NY is to style and money or LA is to celebrity. Being smart here is just valued in a way that it's not in those cities.

TAA wrote:

I would move to a smaller city (Boise, SLC, Colorado Springs, Missoula)

By 2050, Colorado Springs will be the largest city in Colorado, surpassing Denver.

DC is a sh*t hole filled with piece of sh*t politicians. Why would you ever want to stay there? Denver sounds awesome but any city would be better than DC

looking for truth wrote:

Flagpole wrote:

Not true. DC is unique among all cities in the US regarding EDUCATION...that is the only point I was making, so your other things in the list have no bearing on what I said. Yes I've been to Boston. ALL cities have educated people, but DC has more and more with advanced degrees. Just not comparable to any city in the country in that regard.

In DC they have advanced degrees in law and political science so they can f**k you over. They are power hungry. I'd rather be friends with a truck driver than a lawyer or a politician.

This. Flagpole is more comfortable around other narcissistic, condescending, pseudo-intellectuals so he is biased.

Colorado Springs has a pretty nice setting But otherwise it is a completely gross city. It’s miles and miles and miles of sprawl, it’s like a giant suburb with no downtown outside of three blocks. It’s definitely a more conservative part of the state. The is probably the worst in the state. And if you’re worried about other guys around remember there’s an army base and the Air Force Academy in the springs. It has none of the advantages of a big city and all of the disadvantages