Anonymous wrote:Nanny again- I really like that we dress casually out here! You sound really uptight. Unclench, OP.

Yeah, whatev... get back to work.

Anonymous wrote:I agree OP. Californians have a way of dressing that is just way too bohemian flower-child casual for me. It's like every day is a music festival and all the girls are dressed to go to Coachella. I was ready to return to New York.

I think it is excellent and speaks to enjoying life in and of itself.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think people in the dc area are generally very low key about their money. I've met more than a few people that when I found out they were loaded I was shocked. I have one friend in particular who went IPO and is making 7 figures a year off his stock alone. He drives his same old 10yr old car, lives in the same house, his wife works her middle management job, and carries targer purses. You would never ever guess.

I think you need to get out more.

No I don't...especially of that is your experience, as someone who "gets out more". You can enjoy your bougie wannabe hang outs.

I'll stick to my low-key friends who are humble.

I agree OP. Californians have a way of dressing that is just way too bohemian flower-child casual for me. It's like every day is a music festival and all the girls are dressed to go to Coachella. I was ready to return to New York.

Anonymous wrote:That sounds like a dream. I LOVE the SFB area. DH is from there and we have been dying to get back there, before (as Baz Luhrmann put it) our kids get hard living in DC. FWIW, we haven't had the braggert experience there but we sure get it here a lot.

+1 I've lived in SF area for about 17 yrs, in an upper SES town and didn't really notice people bragging about their wealth, per se. Things come up in conversation, like, "I have to go up to SF to do xyz on my rental property", or "hey, would you like to join us in Tahoe and stay in our vacation home." That kind of thing. But most of the people I've met there don't outright brag about their wealth.

That sounds like a dream. I LOVE the SFB area. DH is from there and we have been dying to get back there, before (as Baz Luhrmann put it) our kids get hard living in DC. FWIW, we haven't had the braggert experience there but we sure get it here a lot.

OP I 100% agree with you. I don't even think of myself as preppy or traditional, but when I travel to places like CA people stare and me like I'm Amish/Mormon or something. I can't stand short shorts or tight clothes.

I'm the OP. I didn't know some of these things happened everywhere, I definitely do not remember seeing this growing up. And I did say that there are tacky people in Maryland and NoVa and some parts of DC but they are not the majority of the DC professional class and no, I have never seen DC people flashing their watches around or talking about how much money they make.

Suburban California is very different from what I've experienced before. Obviously it has many good points - environmentally friendly, animal friendly, great natural scenery, great education and healthcare, etc - but I do miss formal culture a lot.

Anonymous wrote:I think people in the dc area are generally very low key about their money. I've met more than a few people that when I found out they were loaded I was shocked. I have one friend in particular who went IPO and is making 7 figures a year off his stock alone. He drives his same old 10yr old car, lives in the same house, his wife works her middle management job, and carries targer purses. You would never ever guess.

There are a lot of us out there. . We are driving our 10year old Honda into the ground before we consider a new car. I never buy name brand purses. Purses aren't my thing either--I just pick up totes at Banana Republic or Gap outlet.

Nanny again- I really like that we dress casually out here! You sound really uptight. Unclench, OP.

LA nanny here- I don't know anyone like that here, you must be attracting tacky with your attitude. "Wherever you go, there you are" I doubt you'll have much better luck back home. The kids I work with and all their friends are great. You seem to have a glass empty kind of attitude which is probably why you are so unhappy and why you and your kids are attracting those kinds of people into your world. Work on yourself OP.

OP, I am a native northern Virginian and I dated a guy from the Bay Area when we were in college, and I kind of know what you are talking about. I wasn't used to -- and eventually decided I did not care for -- the extreme casual-ness, little things like different manners or expectations for things (letting a female go into the elevator first instead of barreling in, holding a door open and letting the female go first, again, instead of cluelessly barreling through), etc. I decided that these things are just too much a part of me and that everytime I would see something like this, I would internally be jolted. I also lived in the Bay Area for one summer while in college and, while it was fine for a short time, I don't think it's for me for a lifetime. I ended up coming back to the DC area and I am happy here. Different strokes for different folks.

OP, it sounds more like you want to move back to the 1950s - hose??? The "tacky" culture you describe is today's culture, not just California's.

Live in New York City once but leave before it makes you hard

Live in northern California once but leave before it makes you soft

- Baz Luhrmann

Really simple question. Why don't you move back to DC or northeast? Sounds like you would be employable here. If you want a private college for your daughter, she can apply for scholarships and you can get loans. There are solutions