Company wants to move me from Denver to place called Monroe in Louisiana...anyone heard of it?

I live in Monroe and worked for Centurylink for 6 years. Monroe is what you make of it. The people are very friendly. I can show you some places to run if you want. I can also show you around town. If you give me a way to contact you, I can send you my cell number. I can tell you whatever you need to know.

Nathan

Except pay in Denver sucks. They supplement your lousy pay with beautiful scenery.

Unless you want to move to LA find a new company.

I used to live there for ~20 years. There are pros and cons to the place depending on your personal preferences.

It's pretty divided between rich and poor. South Monroe is pretty run down. Pretty much anything south of Desiard St you would want to avoid. There are pockets to the north that are trying to build newer/fancier stuff, but it's somewhat sporadic. If you have kids, you'd want to be zoned for Neville High School, Ouachita High, or West Monroe. Carroll and Wossman would pretty much guarantee you would put your kids in private or home school. Also something to think about with kids - the university in Monroe has a great pharmacy school. The university in Ruston (30 minute drive) has a great engineering school.

There used to be some good businesses there: IP in Bastrop, State Farm in Monroe, Delta also in Monroe. Most of the large businesses pulled out long ago and left it kind of dead. Century Link is still there and seems to be doing well.

The main consideration in terms of jobs would be if you get laid off or fired, you most likely aren't going to pick up another job in Monroe.

South of Monroe, west of West Monroe and north toward Sterlington all get very rural very fast. There is nothing to see. Running trails are not well kept in general. The road race scene is mediocre. I ran at Chemin-A-Haut state park near Bastrop (about 30 mins north of Monroe) in the recent past and it was a disaster - half the park is currently underwater, which brings me to the next point. Much of the area is at or under sea level so if the levees ever breach or it ever floods (like it did in the 90s), you'll get wet.

The weather is warm most of the year and also can get humid. You get the occasional tornado activity. If you have allergies, you will be miserable with tree pollen and ragweed. Get used to seeing water moccasins if you live anywhere near water (like the bayous that are all around). Also get used to seeing the occasional alligator (rarely a threat to anybody). The place has the farm-style southern charm in one section and the bayou/water southern charm in the other if you like that sort of thing. The people can be awesome if you fit in or terrible if you don't - I suppose that is with anywhere you live though, but because the area is small'ish, it can be amplified there, especially for kids.

Any other specific questions?

NO...just NO!

Actually the move to Monroe is intended to get you to quit. This is easier than outright firing you. You should find a new job because the company your at wants you gone.

I know who you are. Way to back Monroe. Was there at the same time as you MA. It's not exactly a metropolis, but a lot of good people and the local runner crowd, though a bit crazy, are really cool folks.

BS wrote:

It is where Delta was founded.......I think that is about it under positives

How is that a positive?

Hello, "heading to louisiana."

I have a few things to tell you about Louisiana and Monroe as I have lived in the area for 28 of my 30 years of life. I think it would be best to do this by listing pros and cons.

Pros:

It's never too cold to run outside. We get a few chilly months, but nothing crazy.

It's the south, so people are more attractive in general.

Your $$ goes much farther here than in Denver.

Houses are less expensive and it's not even close. You get way more bang for your buck.

Best training group in the US. We don't have the fastest group; rather, the best.

Sexiest training group in the US.

There are lots of single women here that want to meet you.

We have Johnny's Pizza, which you will discover at a later date.

Living in the south will increase the size of certain body parts. I think it's safe to say that everybody knows that.

Contrary to a previous post or two, there are actually some really great places to run if you're willing to drive 15 minutes. We have some hilly dirt roads and flat grassy areas.

Cons:

You would at best be the 4th hottest guy in Monroe (I'm assuming you're a boy - am I wrong?).

You may not know what to do with the extra "growth" you receive from moving to the south.

You definitely won't know what to do with all of that extra money you save.

You may get more tan than you had hoped.

Oh yeah, I meant to say this earlier. When you came in hot with your take on Monroe, I really wanted to tell you to GOMN (Get.Off.My.Nuts.).

At any rate, we're happy to hear that a "fast" guy may be moving to Monroe soon. We'd actually really love for you to link up with us.

- A few 16:00 5K / 33:00 10K / 1:14:00 HM guys

If you want to link up with us, post your email and I'll reach out to you. Sincere offer.

Look, I’m sure Monroe is a perfectly fine place, but there aren’t many places in the US better than Colorado. For me, here are the reasons why:

1) Running is great

2) Maybe tied with number 1, but if you’re in Denver so many good ski options an hour away in Summit County.

3) Legal Weed

4) Great Beer (Outer Range In Dillon especially comes to mind, but so many others too)

5) Amazing Hiking & epic views.

If you really enjoy running, and are remotely athletic or outdoorsy for your own sanity, please do not move.

Terry Bradshaw went to Louisiana Tech which is in Monroe Louisiana!

I was wondering about flooding in Monroe, LA and found this. Enough in my opinion not to move there.

https://www.knoe.com/content/news/Remembering-The-March-2016-Flooding-Experts-Say-It-Can-Happen-Again--415737073.html

steelerfan67 wrote:

Terry Bradshaw went to Louisiana Tech which is in Monroe Louisiana!

Correction: La Tech is in Ruston... ~30 mins west of Monroe.

University Louisiana Monroe (ULM) is in Monroe... along with Delta Community College

I forgot to mention Johnny’s Pizza... best pizza you’ve never had if you haven’t been to Louisiana. Worth stopping to eat there if you’re passing through and like pizza.

OP

On my years in south/western LA:

You will be called "Yankee". Not an endearing term. women are not very loyal, and seem rather "available" even if married. Are you catholic? Again, not many are in that part of country. Follow NASCAR? Like College Football? Ever see road rage from guys in oversized trucks? And, yes, Indians (From India) are also taking over the gas stations and convenient stores in this part of the country as well. Hot girls like to flirt and many get married very young. It's more common in the south for the bride to sleep around before the wedding (get it out of her system) But they never do. Everybody cooks with lard or bacon.

Most food is good, just don't ask about the ingredients. Most southerners assume since you are a "Yankee", you are from the northeast and probably NYC. Most southerners assume northerners look down on southerners, and will make comments to that. Most southerners have NOT forgotten the Civil War (They lost), and still insist that the north should not have interfered with their "way of life" (holding people in bondage). Some tour guides at plantations actually said ; "There were more slaves in the north.."

The females milk being treated like a baby from their "daddy", even in their late 40's. Crawfish are delicious. Cornbread is great, but very heavy. Auto mechanics and police will treat you negatively if they find out you are a "Yankee".

Drive-thru frozen alcoholic drinks. Pentecostals have loud and sometimes very scary funerals. The beaches are nice. The humidity is daunting. The streets are typically very crowned and concrete rather than asphalt. There are usually many places to run on trails. Alligators are not unusual. People go "crawfish fishing" along roadsides everywhere. You will be judged.

if'n you wanna fit in, Git youself a Confederate flag - the stars and bars- and fly it on your pick-em-up truck.Yee-Haw!