Existential crisis in downtown Bethesda

[Anonymous]

I live close to downtown Bethesda, 2 minutes away from my favorite restaurant, because:

1. My husband has a 10 minute bike commute to work.
2. The public schools are a good.
3. I love the idea of a quiet suburban life with leafy sidewalks but also excellent walkability to restaurants, shops and metro.

You know what I never do?

Shop at the stores you mention

You sound like my friend's husband, who also works in Bethesda like us, but is jealous he could never afford to live there, and who thus denigrates that little town whenever he can.

[Anonymous]

Keep in mind that a lot of people in that area are not Bethesdan’s. I live in Bethesda and go to the Row occasionally, but usually for a specific purpose like dinner. I am more likely to be in the strip mall with the Strosniders.

[Anonymous]

To be frank, Bethesda is TERRIBLE for this. MoCo in general is pretty bad. I can't even count how many entitled boomers (sorry, but it really is this age range) I saw during my time living in Bethesda and Chevy Chase. They just LOVE to chew out minimum wage workers. I saw old people chew out the ticket seller in front of Bethedsa Row Cinema 3-4 times in a one year period over stupid stuff. One guy was infuriated that he had to select seats. For whatever reason I do not observe this in NoVa - perhaps merely because the average age is 5 years younger and there are fewer of those people *yet*

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:I am sitting in downtown Bethesda on a Sunday afternoon, sipping my $5.50 iced coffee. I am looking around me at these three blocks of fancy chain stores, that are just like the fancy chain stores in the analagous parts of other upscale suburbs, and watching people pop in and out like automatons. It seems so pointless and empty. Is this what it's all for? Strive to live in a HCOL area and make a big enough salary to live there so you can go disburse your dollars among certain branded storefronts as if you are robot operating on preprogrammed instructions thinking that you "belong"?

As I got my coffee I witnessed a middle aged UMC (white) woman haranguing the (black) barista for ten minutes about how dishonest they and the business are for putting too much ice in her iced juice drink & how they are defrauding customers by putting in too much ice and not enough juice. Seriously? Work all your life for the privilege of raising your kids around people like this?

How old are you, OP? Ballpark.

Why do you ask?

Not the PP, but maybe mid-life crisis?

I was going to say teenager.

OP here. I am 50. Why would you think teenager?

Because you are just seeing this NOW?

I am actually not from around here and thinking of moving here. I have the money. I am just looking around and wondering about the value and purpose.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
I live close to downtown Bethesda, 2 minutes away from my favorite restaurant, because:

1. My husband has a 10 minute bike commute to work.
2. The public schools are a good.
3. I love the idea of a quiet suburban life with leafy sidewalks but also excellent walkability to restaurants, shops and metro.

You know what I never do?

Shop at the stores you mention

You sound like my friend's husband, who also works in Bethesda like us, but is jealous he could never afford to live there, and who thus denigrates that little town whenever he can.

^^^^Perfect example of who lives there. OP, don't move here unless you want to raise your kids around people like this.

[Anonymous]

Bethesda has always seemed extremely materialistic and full of nasty people like the woman described by OP. And Chevy Chase also has a strong "don't you know who I am" vibe.

I don't really see the appeal. We could afford these areas but they are just depressing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
I live close to downtown Bethesda, 2 minutes away from my favorite restaurant, because:

1. My husband has a 10 minute bike commute to work.
2. The public schools are a good.
3. I love the idea of a quiet suburban life with leafy sidewalks but also excellent walkability to restaurants, shops and metro.

You know what I never do?

Shop at the stores you mention

You sound like my friend's husband, who also works in Bethesda like us, but is jealous he could never afford to live there, and who thus denigrates that little town whenever he can.

I easily afforded living in Bethesda for 15 years. I left precisely because of people like you who proliferate the area.

[Anonymous]

I don't find Bethesda stores all that. They seem to cater to people who have more money than sense.

No, I am not jealous. I used to live in the Bay Area that is waay more expensive than Bethesda.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't find Bethesda stores all that. They seem to cater to people who have more money than sense.

No, I am not jealous. I used to live in the Bay Area that is waay more expensive than Bethesda.

OP here and I agree, these stores all all generic storefront outposts of businesses that are ubiquitous online. There is not a speck of individuality, originality, uniqueness or creativity among them. They are just uniform stores for an UMC tax bracket.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:I am sitting in downtown Bethesda on a Sunday afternoon, sipping my $5.50 iced coffee. I am looking around me at these three blocks of fancy chain stores, that are just like the fancy chain stores in the analagous parts of other upscale suburbs, and watching people pop in and out like automatons. It seems so pointless and empty. Is this what it's all for? Strive to live in a HCOL area and make a big enough salary to live there so you can go disburse your dollars among certain branded storefronts as if you are robot operating on preprogrammed instructions thinking that you "belong"?

As I got my coffee I witnessed a middle aged UMC (white) woman haranguing the (black) barista for ten minutes about how dishonest they and the business are for putting too much ice in her iced juice drink & how they are defrauding customers by putting in too much ice and not enough juice. Seriously? Work all your life for the privilege of raising your kids around people like this?

How old are you, OP? Ballpark.

Why do you ask?

Not the PP, but maybe mid-life crisis?

I was going to say teenager.

OP here. I am 50. Why would you think teenager?

Because you are just seeing this NOW?

I am actually not from around here and thinking of moving here. I have the money. I am just looking around and wondering about the value and purpose.

Don't do it. It is as you describe and much worse. Really, many many people here are damaged goods. They are not the cream of the crop -- no intellectual curiosity, no creativity, no compassion, no interest in the people around them other than to be reflected by them. Really sad lifestyle.

[Anonymous]

OP, live your life as you see fit and have gratitude for the privilege that allows you to ponder it all over a $6 iced coffee. A city-dweller at heart, I generally avoid Bethesda and similar places because the inhabitants seem insufferable and the locations fake, kind of like a residential Disneyland. The relative quiet can be nice but I'll take people-watching (and living) in the city any day!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
I live close to downtown Bethesda, 2 minutes away from my favorite restaurant, because:

1. My husband has a 10 minute bike commute to work.
2. The public schools are a good.
3. I love the idea of a quiet suburban life with leafy sidewalks but also excellent walkability to restaurants, shops and metro.

You know what I never do?

Shop at the stores you mention

You sound like my friend's husband, who also works in Bethesda like us, but is jealous he could never afford to live there, and who thus denigrates that little town whenever he can.

^^^^Perfect example of who lives there. OP, don't move here unless you want to raise your kids around people like this.

People who bought because of commute, walkability and schools, and who rightly point out that OP is unnecessarily critical?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
I live close to downtown Bethesda, 2 minutes away from my favorite restaurant, because:

1. My husband has a 10 minute bike commute to work.
2. The public schools are a good.
3. I love the idea of a quiet suburban life with leafy sidewalks but also excellent walkability to restaurants, shops and metro.

You know what I never do?

Shop at the stores you mention

You sound like my friend's husband, who also works in Bethesda like us, but is jealous he could never afford to live there, and who thus denigrates that little town whenever he can.

If you were really rich you would be paying Bethesda taxes and still sending your kids to top-tier private. It's folks like you, so proud and protective of their middling place on the social ladder and assuming anyone who has other values an't afford it, who ruin perfectly nice places.

[Anonymous]

Bethesda haters,

You dismiss an entire group of residents living in your own region like this?

That's not cool, especially as I'm sure you believe you're tolerant in general, and claim you're not racist, not classist, not xenophobic, and have all the virtues.

[Anonymous]

I like my part of Bethesda for the pretty trees everywhere, proximity to the towpath, variety of housing stock, and good schools. I also like that it’s convenient to DC and places with good, cheap food like Rockville. If you find yourself going out for expensive iced lattes frequently, regardless of your location, you probably need to look for some more fulfilling things to do with your time and money.