What the heck is up with these exburb boosters?

[Anonymous]

I don't get this whole thing. I realize a lot of this discussion is about NoVA which I don't think about driving to much less living in. But if we're in Bethesda inside the beltway and less than a mile from a metro stop, this would be close-in suburb and not exburb right? What in Maryland would be considered an exburb to DC? Potomac? Gaithersburg?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can we set a baseline and then work from there. Baseline - If you live in the exburbs is most likely because you can't afford DC or close-in suburbs. Now that we understand most of your frustration i.e. money we can understand you better and why you bash those of us with better resources.

You know, if you said this at a party to an actual live person, people would look at you funny.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some people really get their self-esteem from feeling better about their neighborhood than someone else's, don't they? This is DCism at it's most stereotypical. Competitive zipcodes... isn't this kind of embarassing?

Are you new to life? Everything is a competition. Now put the most competitive people in the country in one place and it goes into hyper drive. That's what makes USA great and North Korea bad.

Um, okay. You are a competitive ass, but whatever.

[Anonymous]

Telecommute means I don't have to slum it in the city

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Really, how late do you need to stay up? My DH goes to sleep between 10:30 and 11, is up at 5:30, and out the door by 6:30.

Many of us live in the exurbs BECAUSE WE LIKE IT. We don't want to live closer in, and either have jobs out here or are willing to commute a little more to live here. If you want the city life, then enjoy it! But the thought that everyone who lives in the suburbs or exurbs has the desire to live in DC or even in the close-in areas in absurd.

Sheesh, if the sedentary lifestyle and stress-filled commute doesn't kill you, the lack of sleep will.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504763_162-20012475-10391704.html
http://www.wjla.com/articles/2012/02/commuter-stress-d-c-commute-can-add-to-existing-health-problems-72857.html

Because working 60+ hours a week and living in a 'gentrifying' (i.e. crime-ridden) neighborhood is absolutely un-stressful.

Who works 60+ hours a week? And if you think gentrifying neighborhoods are "crime-ridden" enough to be stressful, you've been watching too much TV. Most of the folks I know in town work about 35 hours a week, work from home, and meet up for 2 hour lunches a couple of times a week. And on the rare occasion that someone gets shot at 2 am a few blocks away, it makes for interesting cocktail banter.

You seem to have a really weird conception of what life in the city is like.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't get this whole thing. I realize a lot of this discussion is about NoVA which I don't think about driving to much less living in. But if we're in Bethesda inside the beltway and less than a mile from a metro stop, this would be close-in suburb and not exburb right? What in Maryland would be considered an exburb to DC? Potomac? Gaithersburg?

Since you can ride a bike to Georgetown in less than 30 minutes on the Capital Crescent Trail, you are not an exurb. You are a "streetcar suburb" which is the best of all possible worlds. Congratulations!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Really, how late do you need to stay up? My DH goes to sleep between 10:30 and 11, is up at 5:30, and out the door by 6:30.

Many of us live in the exurbs BECAUSE WE LIKE IT. We don't want to live closer in, and either have jobs out here or are willing to commute a little more to live here. If you want the city life, then enjoy it! But the thought that everyone who lives in the suburbs or exurbs has the desire to live in DC or even in the close-in areas in absurd.

Sheesh, if the sedentary lifestyle and stress-filled commute doesn't kill you, the lack of sleep will.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504763_162-20012475-10391704.html
http://www.wjla.com/articles/2012/02/commuter-stress-d-c-commute-can-add-to-existing-health-problems-72857.html

"Sedentary lifestyle"? The same DH I spoke of above is a marathon runner, and is in spectacular shape. Do you know how much time it takes to train for marathons? Let me tell you, it's a lot, and *somehow* even with this commute that some of you think leaves no time for anything else (which is so untrue), he is able to put in the miles and miles -- OUTSIDE, I might add, in the beautiful, open areas near our home -- that it takes to stay in shape for those runs.

The funny thing is that so many people on DCUM go on and on about how many hours they work and how much money they earn, blah, blah...but if they are working all of those hours, how is that less stressful or time-consuming than commuting? If my DH works 40 hours a week and spends a total of 10 hours commuting, he still has more time at home than someone who works more than 50 hours a week. We also don't have a huge mortgage or private school tuitions to stress about, and we don't need two incomes to live comfortably.

You are mad at him that he spends so much time away from the house training for his marathons.

[Anonymous]

1*:43 - "Perfect" if you spend all your waking hours on DCUM. Sad, indeed.

[Anonymous]

1*:43 = 18:43

[Anonymous]

Also the schools in most of these exburbs are quite terrible. I'd rather take my chances with Wilson than have my kids endure ms13 at centreville high.

[Anonymous]

OK, really, where are you getting your information from? The most recent stories I could find about gangs in Fairfax County HSs were from 4 years ago. Don't believe all the crap you read on the internet. I live right around the corner a HS that apparently had some kids arrested for gang activity - it is NOT a rough place. Our elementary school works closely with them, as they are neighbors. Some of the high schoolers come to volunteer in our classrooms. I've met many of the kids who go there and are very happy - sweet, well rounded teenagers. The track team goes on training runs through our neighborhood. Several of the principal ballerinas at our dance studio are students there. I'm sure there are problems if you fall in with the wrong crowd, but I honestly have NOT seen this crowd anywhere near my house.

While I think there likely is still some gang activity in NoVA, the Police have worked very hard to get it out of the schools. It isn't like the schools are war zones out here in suburbia. Have you ever driven that road that Centreville HS is on? You're talking horse farms and mansions, not a militarized zone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OK, really, where are you getting your information from? The most recent stories I could find about gangs in Fairfax County HSs were from 4 years ago. Don't believe all the crap you read on the internet. I live right around the corner a HS that apparently had some kids arrested for gang activity - it is NOT a rough place. Our elementary school works closely with them, as they are neighbors. Some of the high schoolers come to volunteer in our classrooms. I've met many of the kids who go there and are very happy - sweet, well rounded teenagers. The track team goes on training runs through our neighborhood. Several of the principal ballerinas at our dance studio are students there. I'm sure there are problems if you fall in with the wrong crowd, but I honestly have NOT seen this crowd anywhere near my house.

While I think there likely is still some gang activity in NoVA, the Police have worked very hard to get it out of the schools. It isn't like the schools are war zones out here in suburbia. Have you ever driven that road that Centreville HS is on? You're talking horse farms and mansions, not a militarized zone.

the east side of dc is scary especially at night

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't get this whole thing. I realize a lot of this discussion is about NoVA which I don't think about driving to much less living in. But if we're in Bethesda inside the beltway and less than a mile from a metro stop, this would be close-in suburb and not exburb right? What in Maryland would be considered an exburb to DC? Potomac? Gaithersburg?

Layhill Rill road near the ICC would be like the Mosaic District (not in terms of amenities, rather in terms of proximity to downtown).

Move Wheaton a few miles north on Georgia Avenue and that's Pimmit Hills (be sure to stay ON Georgia Avenue tho)

Frederick is like Loudoun.

[Anonymous]

I live in NW DC (EotP near Walter Reed). People who live downtown think I live in a sleepy suburb or the dark side of the moon. The people I work with who live out in Columbia, MD think I live in a crime ridden ghetto. Both are wrong.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Really, how late do you need to stay up? My DH goes to sleep between 10:30 and 11, is up at 5:30, and out the door by 6:30.

Many of us live in the exurbs BECAUSE WE LIKE IT. We don't want to live closer in, and either have jobs out here or are willing to commute a little more to live here. If you want the city life, then enjoy it! But the thought that everyone who lives in the suburbs or exurbs has the desire to live in DC or even in the close-in areas in absurd.

Sheesh, if the sedentary lifestyle and stress-filled commute doesn't kill you, the lack of sleep will.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504763_162-20012475-10391704.html
http://www.wjla.com/articles/2012/02/commuter-stress-d-c-commute-can-add-to-existing-health-problems-72857.html

Because working 60+ hours a week and living in a 'gentrifying' (i.e. crime-ridden) neighborhood is absolutely un-stressful.

Who works 60+ hours a week? And if you think gentrifying neighborhoods are "crime-ridden" enough to be stressful, you've been watching too much TV. Most of the folks I know in town work about 35 hours a week, work from home, and meet up for 2 hour lunches a couple of times a week. And on the rare occasion that someone gets shot at 2 am a few blocks away, it makes for interesting cocktail banter.

You seem to have a really weird conception of what life in the city is like.

What field are you in? I want to work in that field!!! I'd love to work less than 40 and work from home.