Is suburban living considered a failure?

[Anonymous]

The OPs angry view of the suburbs is so weird. Not everyone has debt and eats at Applebees. So bizarre. I love the burbs, no debt, no HOA, 10 minute walk to the Metro, and tons of restaurants. I even have a beach house, but yes I do need to drive my car there on the weekends. Bummer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Live in DC and it's still a 20 min walk from my rowhouse to the closest metro and a 30+ min walk from the closest metro to my work in DC.

I drive everywhere every day. DC has a horrible public metro system without any grand solution to make it easier for people. Remove lanes but don't add metro stops in the city. Great, that just makes everyone p*ssed off.

And don't tell me about busses, you cannot get anywhere faster on a bus in DC than you could if you drove.

Moving to the burbs and I will deal with less traffic in the burbs for my routine errands. You heard me. LESS TRAFFIC. Yes, more traffic getting into the city, but I can drive in during non-peak times so it's honestly not any different than driving to work in the city during peak.

Hey, sometimes you gotta recognize it's time to wave the white flag. If it's what is right for you, quitting and retreating to the suburbs and trying to carve out the best life you can is what you should do. We can't all win.

Of course not. I mean, even the folks who do live in the nicer parts of DC are still losing because living in a different city closer to a nice beach would be truly winning.

In the end, we're all failing.

We live in DC and have a beach house in DE for weekend getaways. Life is pretty damn good.

But… but… but Loudon? I drowned myself in debt and car payments and loneliness to live in some remote parking lot hellscape and you’re telling me you have it all? But I murder my lawn with pesticides!!! I’m a GODDAMN HOA vice-president! YOU MUST RESPECT ME? WHY DONT YOU THINK IM A WINNER! IM NOT LOSER! PLEASE TELL ME IM NOT A LOSER!

People live on horse farms in Loudoun and could purchase your entire family tree for cash from their daily earned interest. Seems like you don’t know much about the county.

lol, Dixie is dead - all that’s left out their is hillbillies honking their trunk horns at each other in the strip mall parking lot

Do you consider yourself an ignorant person or do you do this by accident?

A short play I wrote about living in the suburbs:

LYLE: "I BOUGHT ME A BIG FORD, I SHOULD GET TO PARK IN THE HANDICAP SPOT AT THIS HERE APPLEBEES!"

LURLENE: "WELL, I'M DROWNING IN CAR PAYMENTS AND A MORTGAGE I CAN'T AFFORD ON A POORLY BUILT MCMANSION, AND I GOT THEM DIABETES, I NEED TO PARK HERE!"

*fentanyl dealers continue their deal, ignoring both*

*FIN*

You keep making up these weird scenarios throughout this thread, and no, they don’t read clever. Just read like you need attention. Are you a budding comic book writer?

I dunno, it’s pretty realistic.

There’s really no place creepier than a suburban strip mall parking lot or a person more depraved than an SUV driving suburbanite who thinks they HAVE to park in the spot (occupied or not) closest to the shops.

Seriously, you can walk across the parking lot.

Sorry, suburban parking lot wars are my pet peeve.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The OPs angry view of the suburbs is so weird. Not everyone has debt and eats at Applebees. So bizarre. I love the burbs, no debt, no HOA, 10 minute walk to the Metro, and tons of restaurants. I even have a beach house, but yes I do need to drive my car there on the weekends. Bummer.

If you love eating at Applebees and being lonely so much why are you posting here trying to convince us you’re happy? Shouldn’t you be sitting silently, fuming that you can hear your neighbors AC? Or tearfully writing a memo to the HOA that you saw someone mowed their lawn 13hrs early?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The OPs angry view of the suburbs is so weird. Not everyone has debt and eats at Applebees. So bizarre. I love the burbs, no debt, no HOA, 10 minute walk to the Metro, and tons of restaurants. I even have a beach house, but yes I do need to drive my car there on the weekends. Bummer.

If you love eating at Applebees and being lonely so much why are you posting here trying to convince us you’re happy? Shouldn’t you be sitting silently, fuming that you can hear your neighbors AC? Or tearfully writing a memo to the HOA that you saw someone mowed their lawn 13hrs early?

Why so bitter?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The OPs angry view of the suburbs is so weird. Not everyone has debt and eats at Applebees. So bizarre. I love the burbs, no debt, no HOA, 10 minute walk to the Metro, and tons of restaurants. I even have a beach house, but yes I do need to drive my car there on the weekends. Bummer.

If you love eating at Applebees and being lonely so much why are you posting here trying to convince us you’re happy? Shouldn’t you be sitting silently, fuming that you can hear your neighbors AC? Or tearfully writing a memo to the HOA that you saw someone mowed their lawn 13hrs early?

Are you okay? Do we need to send a welfare check for you?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The OPs angry view of the suburbs is so weird. Not everyone has debt and eats at Applebees. So bizarre. I love the burbs, no debt, no HOA, 10 minute walk to the Metro, and tons of restaurants. I even have a beach house, but yes I do need to drive my car there on the weekends. Bummer.

If you love eating at Applebees and being lonely so much why are you posting here trying to convince us you’re happy? Shouldn’t you be sitting silently, fuming that you can hear your neighbors AC? Or tearfully writing a memo to the HOA that you saw someone mowed their lawn 13hrs early?

Why so bitter?

Because suburbia is such a inefficient unsustainable way of life. People asked the question of whether it was a failure to live there and now you’re mad you’re getting an answer.

[Anonymous]

So weird that this thread is still up

OP is off his meds. Somebody cart him away to the nearest Applebees…

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The OPs angry view of the suburbs is so weird. Not everyone has debt and eats at Applebees. So bizarre. I love the burbs, no debt, no HOA, 10 minute walk to the Metro, and tons of restaurants. I even have a beach house, but yes I do need to drive my car there on the weekends. Bummer.

If you love eating at Applebees and being lonely so much why are you posting here trying to convince us you’re happy? Shouldn’t you be sitting silently, fuming that you can hear your neighbors AC? Or tearfully writing a memo to the HOA that you saw someone mowed their lawn 13hrs early?

Why so bitter?

Because suburbia is such an inefficient unsustainable way of life. People asked the question of whether it was a failure to live there and now you’re mad you’re getting an answer.

According to who?

[Anonymous]

I am not quite sure I understand the charges of suburban crippling debt and parking wars.

DC real estate is just as expensive so it's not like they are handing out urban properties for free. If you bought recently, you are just as "debt crippled" as anyone who bought in the burbs.

There is ample space to park in the burbs so there is no need to fight for parking. It's not a scarce resource in the burbs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am not quite sure I understand the charges of suburban crippling debt and parking wars.

DC real estate is just as expensive so it's not like they are handing out urban properties for free. If you bought recently, you are just as "debt crippled" as anyone who bought in the burbs.

There is ample space to park in the burbs so there is no need to fight for parking. It's not a scarce resource in the burbs.

Ever been to a Wegmans on a Saturday afternoon? Tell me there's no parking wars. Literally insane people in insane cars trying to run each other over.

[Anonymous]

There's a thread over in the family relationship forum that sums up the suburbs for me...

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/1209934.page

Poster is having a lot of angst because his aging parents live 45 minutes away and struggle with things like taking the trash out and feel compelled to mulch their large yard. Nobody will help them and adult child feels obligated to tear himself away from his own life to try and help this unsustainable situation.

In the city I take my older neighbors trash out for them, I mow their lawn and I talk to them hours each week—I notice and care when they're having a tough time. I love it.

I know, people are going to bombard in response that this is a troll or the reason they love living in Loudon is so they don't have to take care of other people, or Communists trying to urbanize us or whatever, and change the subject to demands that DC put in more highways to ease their commute... but sorry, I think this is a better life.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am not quite sure I understand the charges of suburban crippling debt and parking wars.

DC real estate is just as expensive so it's not like they are handing out urban properties for free. If you bought recently, you are just as "debt crippled" as anyone who bought in the burbs.

There is ample space to park in the burbs so there is no need to fight for parking. It's not a scarce resource in the burbs.

Ever been to a Wegmans on a Saturday afternoon? Tell me there's no parking wars. Literally insane people in insane cars trying to run each other over.

No. I do my grocery shopping in the Vienna Walmart on Saturday morning during my daughter's gymnastic class nearby. Easy parking.

Also in Trader Joe's on Rt 7. Very easy parking. Also Safeway on Anderson Rd in McLean. Super easy parking.

Also in H-Mart on Merrifield, Halal City Market on Broad Street, and the Russian deli in McLean. Easy parking in all except occasional crowding on Broad Street.

Maybe I've never gone during a typical rush hour but have been here since 2010 and have never ever had parking troubles.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There's a thread over in the family relationship forum that sums up the suburbs for me...

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/1209934.page

Poster is having a lot of angst because his aging parents live 45 minutes away and struggle with things like taking the trash out and feel compelled to mulch their large yard. Nobody will help them and adult child feels obligated to tear himself away from his own life to try and help this unsustainable situation.

In the city I take my older neighbors trash out for them, I mow their lawn and I talk to them hours each week—I notice and care when they're having a tough time. I love it.

I know, people are going to bombard in response that this is a troll or the reason they love living in Loudon is so they don't have to take care of other people, or Communists trying to urbanize us or whatever, and change the subject to demands that DC put in more highways to ease their commute... but sorry, I think this is a better life.

Don't you think it's very person specific?

I live in Falls Church now and used to live in a high rise in Dupont Circle. I did not know any of my neighbors in Dupont. The one girl I did know have painted her walls pitch black and used to play music super loud at night. I can't say my life has been enriched by the acquaintance.

Also I doubt you talk to them "for hours" each week. A typical family with children does not have hours to talk to neighbors per week.

My block doesn't have any elderly people but if it did, I'm sure we could sort something out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Live in DC and it's still a 20 min walk from my rowhouse to the closest metro and a 30+ min walk from the closest metro to my work in DC.

I drive everywhere every day. DC has a horrible public metro system without any grand solution to make it easier for people. Remove lanes but don't add metro stops in the city. Great, that just makes everyone p*ssed off.

And don't tell me about busses, you cannot get anywhere faster on a bus in DC than you could if you drove.

Moving to the burbs and I will deal with less traffic in the burbs for my routine errands. You heard me. LESS TRAFFIC. Yes, more traffic getting into the city, but I can drive in during non-peak times so it's honestly not any different than driving to work in the city during peak.

Hey, sometimes you gotta recognize it's time to wave the white flag. If it's what is right for you, quitting and retreating to the suburbs and trying to carve out the best life you can is what you should do. We can't all win.

Of course not. I mean, even the folks who do live in the nicer parts of DC are still losing because living in a different city closer to a nice beach would be truly winning.

In the end, we're all failing.

We live in DC and have a beach house in DE for weekend getaways. Life is pretty damn good.

But… but… but Loudon? I drowned myself in debt and car payments and loneliness to live in some remote parking lot hellscape and you’re telling me you have it all? But I murder my lawn with pesticides!!! I’m a GODDAMN HOA vice-president! YOU MUST RESPECT ME? WHY DONT YOU THINK IM A WINNER! IM NOT LOSER! PLEASE TELL ME IM NOT A LOSER!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am not quite sure I understand the charges of suburban crippling debt and parking wars.

DC real estate is just as expensive so it's not like they are handing out urban properties for free. If you bought recently, you are just as "debt crippled" as anyone who bought in the burbs.

There is ample space to park in the burbs so there is no need to fight for parking. It's not a scarce resource in the burbs.

Ever been to a Wegmans on a Saturday afternoon? Tell me there's no parking wars. Literally insane people in insane cars trying to run each other over.

I’ve been shopping on weekends at the Germantown Wegmans for years and have no idea what you’re talking about.