Good Charlotte
Do me a favor and take this little quiz. Would you rather:
1. (a) live in a four bedroom house or (b) live in a cramped one-bedroom apartment?
2. (a) be paid more than $200,000 a year or (b) be paid less than $100,000 a year?
3. (a) be back home in time for dinner every night or (b) eat delivered Chinese food at the office?
4. (a) swim and water-ski in the summer or (b) sit in front of a rotating fan without air conditioning the entire month of August?
If you answered "b" to any of the above, then you should probably stop huffing so much paint thinner and step away from the computer. If you answered "a" to all of these questions, then you might feel the same way I do about considering a move to Charlotte, NC. I'm not saying that the streets there are paved with gold, but from what I've heard it sounds like there are a lot of well-paying jobs, nice houses, good schools and easy living to be had there. We're not planning on leaving Paris anytime soon, but if we were ever to head back to the US of A it might be nice to have an alternative or two to New York.
For some reason, though, Pegs absolutely refuses to consider ever moving there. Despite the fact that we could buy a large house for the same price as a small apartment in New York or Paris (if not less), make a good salary and actually see each other during daylight hours on a regular basis, there's something about Charlotte that completely turns her off. I've asked her about it a number of times, but the most I've ever been able to get out of her is that she wouldn't be able to stand the accents. The accents.
Maybe I'm being irrational about the whole thing, though. Maybe she knows something about Charlotte that I don't and she's not willing to tell me. Maybe it would be that bad to hear people address us as "sir" and "ma'am" or, God forbid, "ya'll". I tell you what, though: if somebody offered you a job at $200,000 a year, a huge house you could afford without a mortgage and the chance to come home about two to three hours earlier every evening, I don't think your first reaction would be to ask whether your neighbors talk like Slim Pickens or Jimmy Swaggart.
9 comments:
Something tells me a fight is a-brewin'. Perhaps the reason why Pegs does not want to go down there is that she didnt very much like her stay in S. Carolina? I have no idea if this is true or not, but just perhaps. Plus the heat, the small(er) town atmosphere, the potential ignorance of the masses, etc, etc.
Going along with Damien's points, there's also the significant lack of atmosphere that comes with a place like Charlotte. Don't get me wrong - I really like the towns in North Carolina where I lived. But Charlotte is one of those places whose name conjures up rows upon rows of identical homes in gated communities, streets riddled with SUVs because absolutely nothing is within walking distance and people apparently value cars by how little gas mileage they get, a Lilliputian downtown composed almost solely of bank buildings, and an absolute dearth of culturally or intellectually stimulating opportunities. Coming from Paris or New York, that isn't exactly the biggest draw.
On the other hand, maybe I'm just a snob who's lived in California for too long and doesn't know what he's talking about. Plus, there's a very real possibility that after Ariel and I come back to the US from my research in France, we might end up back to North Carolina for Ariel's turn at grad school - then the Alexander-and-Daverpools could be (almost) neighbors! Yay!!
Oh, and by the way, Lee - it's spelled "y'all" (as in "you all"), not "ya'll" (as in "ya... something that ends with ll").
I hear what you're saying, guys, but I'm still not convinced. Just because Pegs might (purely hypothetically) have had some bad experiences living in South Carolina doesn't mean that she should be able to unilaterally veto ever moving anywhere near there. Besides, I'm not suggesting that we move back to Mullins or any other Southern town of less than 10,000 people; I'm talking about the second largest financial center in the United States outside of New York and a city of about 2,000,000 people (yes, Charlotte is that important financially and that big).
It's true that there may be a lot of similarities in the houses on the market, but no more so than in any other town that had a housing boom in the last ten years (you don't think French suburbia looks cookie-cutter?). A quick look on realtor.com will show you that there are a lot of unique and interesting homes available if you enter the right criteria. The omnipresent SUVs are annoying, I grant you, but that doesn't mean that we would need to have one, and I have to imagine that it would be nicer to drive fifteen minute to work rather than wait for a bus or taxi in the rain. As for the lack of cultural and intellectual activity, Paris and New York have a lot more to offer, to be sure, but it's not as if Pegs and I are going out to the opera every evening and hitting the latest art exhibits on the weekends. Most Saturdays and Sundays I'm so exhausted I sleep until noon and spend the rest of the day trying to decide if I have the energy to get off the couch to take a shower. I'd give up the art and culture in a second if it meant that I would have more free time to spend with my family. Finally, I will concede that your spelling of "y'all" is more appropriate; clearly I have been out of the South for too long. Sweet Jesus, I never thought I would say that.
dude, move to Charlotte. but speak in French accents. the whole time. oh, and don't buy a house until this whole subprime thing gets fixed. it is going to be painful.
if it gets you guys back in the usa i'm all for charlotte even though i completely understand yoda's point of view (sorry yoda)...but wouldn't you much rather live in "2005's best place to live in america" - i'm sure you could find a great in house corp job in wilmington
If Lee is averse to living in Wilmington (which based on how he describes the summer he interned there, I think he might be), then he definitely should not move to Charlotte. Yes, there are more banks. But the cities pretty much have the same feel to them - only Charlotte doesn't have the beach.
That being said, Ariel has noted that a move to Charlotte would mean that we would both have family in North Carolina, which is very appealing from our point of view. And I bet Mom and Dad wouldn't mind moving out to the east coast either (minus the humidity) if it came down to it.
Finally, Pegs is conspicuously absent from this conversation. Perhaps it's because she wants it to go away. If that's the case - I sorry!
I always feel like I'm the bad guy when it comes to this whole leaving/staying conversation. And I would rather not have a discussion about it on this blog. But because people keep commenting on this post, I'll say this - when it is just me and Lee and we are talking about this whole subject (the to leave or to stay part), Lee, without exception, says that he is happy to stay and he is not looking to leave, etc. Then, when he has a late night at work, he starts to look at real estate and job listings in Charlotte and he emails them to me and I'm guessing his friends/family. He starts saying that if we lived in Charlotte he would get out of work every day at 6 or 7. How the salaries and the jobs are great there. But, he has never been to Charlotte and he knows absolutely nothing about the job market there - what kind of deals they do, etc. He has put Charlotte up on this pedestal and I don't understand why. Now, when this subject comes up, I will get fed up and say to Lee, if you want to go back then let's go back because God knows I'm the one who's sitting on my ass not working, so I have no right to insist we stay in Europe. And Lee always, always, says that he wants to stay here. I'm sick of the topic. I don't want to talk about it with Lee or with anybody else. If Lee wants to leave, he's a big boy and he can speak up about it. I'm tired of being the bitch in the situation.
Wow Queen Mary, you really stuck it to the masses with that response.
After having spoken with Nik last week, I took the opportunity while on a conference call this morning to take a few minutes to see what's new in the world of Lee and Peg.
Things learned today:
1) Apparently Peg's hands are still used for cooling beverages, covering burns, making ice…etc. Trust me, it hurts when they hit you!;
2) Peg's on a diet, again. Go get'em tiger!;
3) Lee can give some very sultry looks - and we all know about those 'moves';
4) Good Charlotte - hmmm.
The first 3 were very interesting, but nothing new. C'mon, who can't tell that Lee is a smooth operator (even after only a handful of meetings)? I had some pretty good comments to share regarding Charlotte on the blog, not that anyone would notice at this point, however I've chosen to refrain after reading Peg's unambiguous response.
I will say though, that after living in San Francisco, it is not San Francisco - in any way. I can also say, after living in Mullins, it is not Mullins - in any way.
While Charlotte itself may seem like a soulless entity, it's the communities around it that make it a great place. In all likelihood Charlotte could fulfill 80% of your cultural and dining demands, 100% of your nature demands (mountains/beach fairly close, lots of parks, etc) and 75% of your "I don't want to be in the south" demands. In fact, when I look at my neighbors, only a handful are "southern" and all are well educated and financially comfortable. While not a concern now, the public schools in our area of Charlotte (Lake Wylie) are better than most private schools.
Also, lots of jobs in the area and the housing market is pretty good.
Think "airline hub" when you want to get away!
Plus, the water is invigorated with my presence - for now. What more could you ask for?
Of course, all of this is respectfully submitted for your consideration.
I'll see you in a few months :P
Sincerely,
Your brother from another mother!
Post a Comment