Does anyone else hate Bethesda?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I grew up there and it was good enough. Private schools were barely on my radar back then, except a number of foreigners would attend FIS or Holton. Otherwise, they’d have to pay for public.

I don’t think I’d want to live there now as I don’t want my kids growing up with the affluenza.

It’s materialistic now and lots of Botox.

I'm a middle aged woman living in Bethesda and no one I know does Botox or any other age-related intervention. My circle is not afflicted by affluenza, as in, they don't buy their kid a Jeep at 16, they don't run around covered in designer brands, they don't look down on others who live elsewhere. We save our money to pay for whatever college our kids can get into, or pay for expensive nursing homes for our parents. That's where the money goes!

It's pathetic when people just slap labels on neighborhoods and write them off. Morons think east MoCo is unsafe and gang-infested, they think Bethesda-Chevy Chase is full of rich snobs, upper county is full of hicks...

The stupidity is just mind-blowing.

I lived there. I grew up there and have been connected to Bethesda longer than you.

My friends drove BMWs and vacationed around the world.

When I go to Wildwood, there are plenty of people who’ve had lots of work done on their faces. Do you think the plastic surgeons advertising in Washingtonian are doing so for fun?

My elementary friends had house staff and one had drivers.

I’ve visited clients there. Two $70,000 cars in the garage, a maid, pool, giant house.

If you can’t admit Bethesda suffers from affluenza, then you’re not being honest with yourself.

Maybe you live in Westlake or something. If so, I’m not talking about you.

So you are saying there are people who live in Bethesda who are not affluent?

No, I think the PP was saying that affluence exists in Bethesda, it influences the culture, and feeling proud that that your small bubble is immune from its negative effects might be an exercise in absurdity.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I grew up there and it was good enough. Private schools were barely on my radar back then, except a number of foreigners would attend FIS or Holton. Otherwise, they’d have to pay for public.

I don’t think I’d want to live there now as I don’t want my kids growing up with the affluenza.

It’s materialistic now and lots of Botox.

I'm a middle aged woman living in Bethesda and no one I know does Botox or any other age-related intervention. My circle is not afflicted by affluenza, as in, they don't buy their kid a Jeep at 16, they don't run around covered in designer brands, they don't look down on others who live elsewhere. We save our money to pay for whatever college our kids can get into, or pay for expensive nursing homes for our parents. That's where the money goes!

It's pathetic when people just slap labels on neighborhoods and write them off. Morons think east MoCo is unsafe and gang-infested, they think Bethesda-Chevy Chase is full of rich snobs, upper county is full of hicks...

The stupidity is just mind-blowing.

I lived there. I grew up there and have been connected to Bethesda longer than you.

My friends drove BMWs and vacationed around the world.

When I go to Wildwood, there are plenty of people who’ve had lots of work done on their faces. Do you think the plastic surgeons advertising in Washingtonian are doing so for fun?

My elementary friends had house staff and one had drivers.

I’ve visited clients there. Two $70,000 cars in the garage, a maid, pool, giant house.

If you can’t admit Bethesda suffers from affluenza, then you’re not being honest with yourself.

Maybe you live in Westlake or something. If so, I’m not talking about you.

There are people like that all over the DMV and other major cities. Wildwood, wherever that is, is not the parts of Bethesda most people on here are talking about. Half the houses in my neighborhood don’t even have driveways and most don’t have a garage. No one is living the lifestyle you’re talking about. I’m sure someone somewhere is but those folks don’t mingle with the rest of us. Not saying I am not well off - two GS14s, sure I’m well off - but stop pretending every zip code that calls itself Bethesda is populated by people who live or die by the Washingtonian. Never read it, myself.

Wildwood is 'north bethesda'. When they add 'north' to the name it's to try to capitalize on the more affluent neighborhood. "North Cleveland Park", parts of Gaithersburg that people refer to as "Potomac". When people live in Burleith or Glover Park and say "Georgetown", etc.

I think it's actually Rockville.

Wildwood has a Bethesda mailing address.

[Anonymous]

I grew up in Bethesda and never going back. It’s the most stuck up, judgmental, and over-hyped area in the DMV.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I grew up there and it was good enough. Private schools were barely on my radar back then, except a number of foreigners would attend FIS or Holton. Otherwise, they’d have to pay for public.

I don’t think I’d want to live there now as I don’t want my kids growing up with the affluenza.

It’s materialistic now and lots of Botox.

I'm a middle aged woman living in Bethesda and no one I know does Botox or any other age-related intervention. My circle is not afflicted by affluenza, as in, they don't buy their kid a Jeep at 16, they don't run around covered in designer brands, they don't look down on others who live elsewhere. We save our money to pay for whatever college our kids can get into, or pay for expensive nursing homes for our parents. That's where the money goes!

It's pathetic when people just slap labels on neighborhoods and write them off. Morons think east MoCo is unsafe and gang-infested, they think Bethesda-Chevy Chase is full of rich snobs, upper county is full of hicks...

The stupidity is just mind-blowing.

I lived there. I grew up there and have been connected to Bethesda longer than you.

My friends drove BMWs and vacationed around the world.

When I go to Wildwood, there are plenty of people who’ve had lots of work done on their faces. Do you think the plastic surgeons advertising in Washingtonian are doing so for fun?

My elementary friends had house staff and one had drivers.

I’ve visited clients there. Two $70,000 cars in the garage, a maid, pool, giant house.

If you can’t admit Bethesda suffers from affluenza, then you’re not being honest with yourself.

Maybe you live in Westlake or something. If so, I’m not talking about you.

There are people like that all over the DMV and other major cities. Wildwood, wherever that is, is not the parts of Bethesda most people on here are talking about. Half the houses in my neighborhood don’t even have driveways and most don’t have a garage. No one is living the lifestyle you’re talking about. I’m sure someone somewhere is but those folks don’t mingle with the rest of us. Not saying I am not well off - two GS14s, sure I’m well off - but stop pretending every zip code that calls itself Bethesda is populated by people who live or die by the Washingtonian. Never read it, myself.

Wildwood is 'north bethesda'. When they add 'north' to the name it's to try to capitalize on the more affluent neighborhood. "North Cleveland Park", parts of Gaithersburg that people refer to as "Potomac". When people live in Burleith or Glover Park and say "Georgetown", etc.

I think it's actually Rockville.

Wildwood has a Bethesda mailing address.

Correct. It's not Rockville, it's not North Bethesda. I swear lots of people on this board have never even set foot in Bethesda. I don't know the exact boundaries of North Bethesda or Rockville, but if you're on Old Georgetown and haven't passed the exit for 270, you're in Bethesda.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I grew up there and it was good enough. Private schools were barely on my radar back then, except a number of foreigners would attend FIS or Holton. Otherwise, they’d have to pay for public.

I don’t think I’d want to live there now as I don’t want my kids growing up with the affluenza.

It’s materialistic now and lots of Botox.

I'm a middle aged woman living in Bethesda and no one I know does Botox or any other age-related intervention. My circle is not afflicted by affluenza, as in, they don't buy their kid a Jeep at 16, they don't run around covered in designer brands, they don't look down on others who live elsewhere. We save our money to pay for whatever college our kids can get into, or pay for expensive nursing homes for our parents. That's where the money goes!

It's pathetic when people just slap labels on neighborhoods and write them off. Morons think east MoCo is unsafe and gang-infested, they think Bethesda-Chevy Chase is full of rich snobs, upper county is full of hicks...

The stupidity is just mind-blowing.

I lived there. I grew up there and have been connected to Bethesda longer than you.

My friends drove BMWs and vacationed around the world.

When I go to Wildwood, there are plenty of people who’ve had lots of work done on their faces. Do you think the plastic surgeons advertising in Washingtonian are doing so for fun?

My elementary friends had house staff and one had drivers.

I’ve visited clients there. Two $70,000 cars in the garage, a maid, pool, giant house.

If you can’t admit Bethesda suffers from affluenza, then you’re not being honest with yourself.

Maybe you live in Westlake or something. If so, I’m not talking about you.

There are people like that all over the DMV and other major cities. Wildwood, wherever that is, is not the parts of Bethesda most people on here are talking about. Half the houses in my neighborhood don’t even have driveways and most don’t have a garage. No one is living the lifestyle you’re talking about. I’m sure someone somewhere is but those folks don’t mingle with the rest of us. Not saying I am not well off - two GS14s, sure I’m well off - but stop pretending every zip code that calls itself Bethesda is populated by people who live or die by the Washingtonian. Never read it, myself.

Wildwood is 'north bethesda'. When they add 'north' to the name it's to try to capitalize on the more affluent neighborhood. "North Cleveland Park", parts of Gaithersburg that people refer to as "Potomac". When people live in Burleith or Glover Park and say "Georgetown", etc.

I think it's actually Rockville.

Wildwood has a Bethesda mailing address.

Correct. It's not Rockville, it's not North Bethesda. I swear lots of people on this board have never even set foot in Bethesda. I don't know the exact boundaries of North Bethesda or Rockville, but if you're on Old Georgetown and haven't passed the exit for 270, you're in Bethesda.

The neighborhood (not the shopping) is outside the beltway.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
I’ve visited clients there. Two $70,000 cars in the garage, a maid, pool, giant house.

Bethesda's a big place geographically, encompassing 3 zip codes. Other than Edgemoor with historically large lots, a lot of areas near DT Bethesda are not going to have this -- there's simply no land for it. Sure, the developers do teardowns and may build a big house covering up the lot to the legal limit, but if so, there's no room for a pool.

Yes, if you go out Bradley just before Potomac, you'll find houses on plots that are 1 acre+, but thats' more the exception than the rule for Bethesda overall.

What you describe is much more typical in Potomac.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't like it either. Much less community than DC. No one plays after school at the elementary school or middle school -- or on the weekend. I knew we weren't walking distance to stores, but thought it would be OK. It is blah.

What school are you at? We are at Bradley hills and there are constantly kids meeting up there and playing after school and on weekends.

Same for Westbrook. It helps that most people are within walking distance.

[Anonymous]

I don't really like white affluent mainstream culture. I can blend, but my people are not those people. And other women are the worst. Passive aggressive, so positive that they're toxic, competitive, and really cruel.

"I don't know anyone like that," you'd say. "You must just have not met the right people. Or maybe it's you. You're the toxic one."

No. It's not me.

Things to dislike about Bethesda:

The Barnes and Noble closed (the one thing we liked about Bethesda).

Chain counter-service restaurants that serve carb-conscious "bowls" of food.

The lack of a grid and the confusing layout.

Parking manages to feel both unsafe and is expensive.

Chain sit-down restaurants that make you think you are in Walnut Creek, CA with your retired nana.

So many blonde ponytails.

So many SUVs.

Hyper-competutive, neurotic children with rich-kid kid problems: anxiety, etc.

People who think disliking these things means I'm jealous. Not jealous. I just don't like you or your town.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Would love more boutique/local places in downtown Bethesda or friendship heights. It’s a bit generic.

When we first moved to DC ten years ago it was a little better. They had that tea shop and a few restaurants we liked. And the Barnes and Noble, which, chain it might be, was a lot nicer to hang out in than crowded and pretentious politics and prose.

Now? Ugh. All the interesting stuff was priced out, and although I did have a few months when I was amused by how everyone had the same hair color and the same yoga pants, I've become jaded and the simple pleasure I once had mocking them has faded.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't really like white affluent mainstream culture. I can blend, but my people are not those people. And other women are the worst. Passive aggressive, so positive that they're toxic, competitive, and really cruel.

"I don't know anyone like that," you'd say. "You must just have not met the right people. Or maybe it's you. You're the toxic one."

No. It's not me.

Things to dislike about Bethesda:

The Barnes and Noble closed (the one thing we liked about Bethesda).

Chain counter-service restaurants that serve carb-conscious "bowls" of food.

The lack of a grid and the confusing layout.

Parking manages to feel both unsafe and is expensive.

Chain sit-down restaurants that make you think you are in Walnut Creek, CA with your retired nana.

So many blonde ponytails.

So many SUVs.

Hyper-competutive, neurotic children with rich-kid kid problems: anxiety, etc.

People who think disliking these things means I'm jealous. Not jealous. I just don't like you or your town.

I doubt these people your inferiority complex empowers you dislike even notice you exist. Successful people typically look up, not down

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't really like white affluent mainstream culture. I can blend, but my people are not those people. And other women are the worst. Passive aggressive, so positive that they're toxic, competitive, and really cruel.

"I don't know anyone like that," you'd say. "You must just have not met the right people. Or maybe it's you. You're the toxic one."

No. It's not me.

Things to dislike about Bethesda:

The Barnes and Noble closed (the one thing we liked about Bethesda).

Chain counter-service restaurants that serve carb-conscious "bowls" of food.

The lack of a grid and the confusing layout.

Parking manages to feel both unsafe and is expensive.

Chain sit-down restaurants that make you think you are in Walnut Creek, CA with your retired nana.

So many blonde ponytails.

So many SUVs.

Hyper-competutive, neurotic children with rich-kid kid problems: anxiety, etc.

People who think disliking these things means I'm jealous. Not jealous. I just don't like you or your town.

Do you like black affluent mainstream culture? asian affluent mainstream culture? WTF are you even talking about

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't really like white affluent mainstream culture. I can blend, but my people are not those people. And other women are the worst. Passive aggressive, so positive that they're toxic, competitive, and really cruel.

"I don't know anyone like that," you'd say. "You must just have not met the right people. Or maybe it's you. You're the toxic one."

No. It's not me.

Things to dislike about Bethesda:

The Barnes and Noble closed (the one thing we liked about Bethesda).

Chain counter-service restaurants that serve carb-conscious "bowls" of food.

The lack of a grid and the confusing layout.

Parking manages to feel both unsafe and is expensive.

Chain sit-down restaurants that make you think you are in Walnut Creek, CA with your retired nana.

So many blonde ponytails.

So many SUVs.

Hyper-competutive, neurotic children with rich-kid kid problems: anxiety, etc.

People who think disliking these things means I'm jealous. Not jealous. I just don't like you or your town.

Do you like black affluent mainstream culture? asian affluent mainstream culture? WTF are you even talking about

I prefer them, in fact. They're generally a lot more pragmatic and a lot less concerned with manners.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't really like white affluent mainstream culture. I can blend, but my people are not those people. And other women are the worst. Passive aggressive, so positive that they're toxic, competitive, and really cruel.

"I don't know anyone like that," you'd say. "You must just have not met the right people. Or maybe it's you. You're the toxic one."

No. It's not me.

Things to dislike about Bethesda:

The Barnes and Noble closed (the one thing we liked about Bethesda).

Chain counter-service restaurants that serve carb-conscious "bowls" of food.

The lack of a grid and the confusing layout.

Parking manages to feel both unsafe and is expensive.

Chain sit-down restaurants that make you think you are in Walnut Creek, CA with your retired nana.

So many blonde ponytails.

So many SUVs.

Hyper-competutive, neurotic children with rich-kid kid problems: anxiety, etc.

People who think disliking these things means I'm jealous. Not jealous. I just don't like you or your town.

I doubt these people your inferiority complex empowers you dislike even notice you exist. Successful people typically look up, not down

I see I struck a nerve.

I don't care if you don't see me, Lulu-mom. I can laugh at you either way.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't really like white affluent mainstream culture. I can blend, but my people are not those people. And other women are the worst. Passive aggressive, so positive that they're toxic, competitive, and really cruel.

"I don't know anyone like that," you'd say. "You must just have not met the right people. Or maybe it's you. You're the toxic one."

No. It's not me.

Things to dislike about Bethesda:

The Barnes and Noble closed (the one thing we liked about Bethesda).

Chain counter-service restaurants that serve carb-conscious "bowls" of food.

The lack of a grid and the confusing layout.

Parking manages to feel both unsafe and is expensive.

Chain sit-down restaurants that make you think you are in Walnut Creek, CA with your retired nana.

So many blonde ponytails.

So many SUVs.

Hyper-competutive, neurotic children with rich-kid kid problems: anxiety, etc.

People who think disliking these things means I'm jealous. Not jealous. I just don't like you or your town.

Do you like black affluent mainstream culture? asian affluent mainstream culture? WTF are you even talking about

I prefer them, in fact. They're generally a lot more pragmatic and a lot less concerned with manners.

I want to amend that: when I say less concerned with manners, I don't mean they have none or are rude.

I mean those cultures are generally more direct.

White Bethesda will mince circles around what they really mean. They're a lot more neurotic about how they're perceived.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I grew up there and it was good enough. Private schools were barely on my radar back then, except a number of foreigners would attend FIS or Holton. Otherwise, they’d have to pay for public.

I don’t think I’d want to live there now as I don’t want my kids growing up with the affluenza.

It’s materialistic now and lots of Botox.

I'm a middle aged woman living in Bethesda and no one I know does Botox or any other age-related intervention. My circle is not afflicted by affluenza, as in, they don't buy their kid a Jeep at 16, they don't run around covered in designer brands, they don't look down on others who live elsewhere. We save our money to pay for whatever college our kids can get into, or pay for expensive nursing homes for our parents. That's where the money goes!

It's pathetic when people just slap labels on neighborhoods and write them off. Morons think east MoCo is unsafe and gang-infested, they think Bethesda-Chevy Chase is full of rich snobs, upper county is full of hicks...

The stupidity is just mind-blowing.

I lived there. I grew up there and have been connected to Bethesda longer than you.

My friends drove BMWs and vacationed around the world.

When I go to Wildwood, there are plenty of people who’ve had lots of work done on their faces. Do you think the plastic surgeons advertising in Washingtonian are doing so for fun?

My elementary friends had house staff and one had drivers.

I’ve visited clients there. Two $70,000 cars in the garage, a maid, pool, giant house.

If you can’t admit Bethesda suffers from affluenza, then you’re not being honest with yourself.

Maybe you live in Westlake or something. If so, I’m not talking about you.

There are people like that all over the DMV and other major cities. Wildwood, wherever that is, is not the parts of Bethesda most people on here are talking about. Half the houses in my neighborhood don’t even have driveways and most don’t have a garage. No one is living the lifestyle you’re talking about. I’m sure someone somewhere is but those folks don’t mingle with the rest of us. Not saying I am not well off - two GS14s, sure I’m well off - but stop pretending every zip code that calls itself Bethesda is populated by people who live or die by the Washingtonian. Never read it, myself.

Wildwood is 'north bethesda'. When they add 'north' to the name it's to try to capitalize on the more affluent neighborhood. "North Cleveland Park", parts of Gaithersburg that people refer to as "Potomac". When people live in Burleith or Glover Park and say "Georgetown", etc.

I hear Wildwood Crest is the nice part of the neighborhood.

I might have heard that from Snookie.