If my family weren't in the area we probably wouldn't live here either. I want my kids to grow up close to their cousins (and aunts/uncles) like I did. We also rent a really small place, but near where we work, so it's bearable. But boy am I jealous of friends who live in more affordable places!

Anonymous wrote:What are some good semi-rural, beautiful places that also have a lot of highly educated people & some culture? I mean besides Aspen.

Charlottesville.

PP here - type: so we're not the only *ones* doing the dc living thing

Anonymous wrote:I wouldn't like living in "DC" either, if I lived an hour away.

this. we are incredibly happy here. we live and work in the city (and actually in the city, i mean). we walk our kids to daycare and then bike to work. our commutes are both under 25 mins, including the walk to daycare. we leave the house around 810am and we're both at our desks by 830-835am. we don't have jobs that require either of us to carry blackberries. we both work no more than 8 hours a day but are able to vary our schedules a bit so that we aren't both 9-5 and so that we can minimize daycare time. our kids are therefore out of daycare by 3pm everyday. we -- and i say this in all honesty -- want for nothing. our kids have good food, clothes on their back, us too, and we vacation well. we couldn't be happier. and we have awesome neighbors, who have been in this area for a while, so we're not the only wants doing the dc living thing

So you equate high income to "bright"/brains?

Yes, in the District of Columbia. Not necessarily in Hollywood or Miami, but here, yes. If you are making $850K a year and you are an equity partner at Arnold, there is an excellent chance you are brighter than the average American. Are you really disputing that supposition?

The parallel is not assured at all, though: the -smartest- people I know in the area are not high income.

I think there is a huge difference between DC and these so called "close in suburbs". There is no comparison. Affording a house on Lowell lane or even somewhere like AU Park requires a much higher level of income than the burbs. And yes higher income generally means best and brightest.

I wouldn't like living in "DC" either, if I lived an hour away.

I'm on your page, OP. And depressed, as a really great job opportunity in a small town in PA just fizzled out.
Of course, different people value different things. I know many people who love the DC area. But for me, the negatives outweigh the positives and I'd love to move.
Good luck to you.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What are some good semi-rural, beautiful places that also have a lot of highly educated people & some culture? I mean besides Aspen.

Santa Fe?
Santa Cruz?

Ew
Ew

Spoken like someone who has never been to either.

Funny. Born in Santa Fe and my husband is from Santa Cruz. Hit both at least once a year due to family which is plenty. I always thought there were a ton of homeless in Santa Cruz until I realized they were actually the UCSC students! Santa Fe is just icky -- well nicer than most of NM but still rather icky. I can't imagine living there willingly.

We live in close-in Silver Spring and both work within minutes of home, and we are happy with our kids' schools - so I have no beef with all of that.

It's the weather that gets me. When this heat settles in, I literally feel sick and awful. I am miserable every year from May to September.

It is very upsetting.

Anonymous wrote:

Fact: The people who have recently moved to upper NW(Last 10yrs) are wealthy either by their own means or trust funds. THey're the brightest, go-getters in this area and they can afford to live in DC comfortably.

Data to back your statement up, please. I smell some bs!

I have some! NP here. Checking 2010 US Census data, I can see that approx. 40% of the people in my very immediate neighborhood make more than $200,000 a year. This is a 10-fold increase from 10 years ago. As I click around the rest of upper NW DC in 20015, 20016, 20008 and 20007, I see the same thing.

We can debate whether $200,000 a year + is 'wealthy' or not, but I think it's safe to say where the trend is going here in CCDC and AU Park. It's LawyerTown now. Not so much NPRtown

Look under "more maps" then click "Income"

http://projects.nytimes.com/census/2010/explorer?ref=us

So you equate high income to "bright"/brains?

Anonymous wrote:Before kids, I loved living here. After kids, life in the D.C. metro area is tough. My commute is 45 minutes to an hour (8 miles) which is not bad but the high cost of housing plus $3200/month day care for two children is hard financially. These days, Denver is on my mind!

amen. also it's been hard for DH and I to make friends in our age group because we're relatively young parents for this area (29/32) though relatively old first time parents where we're both from.

Before kids, I loved living here. After kids, life in the D.C. metro area is tough. My commute is 45 minutes to an hour (8 miles) which is not bad but the high cost of housing plus $3200/month day care for two children is hard financially. These days, Denver is on my mind!

As much as I like this area, DH and I are strongly considering moving in a few years as well. The HCOL here is just too much. It pains me to think that with 2 masters degrees, DH and I can't afford to provide a lifestyle for our children equivalent to the one my parents provided me (and just with a basic high school education). My family wasn't rich by any means, but I grew up in a decent sized home with good neighborhood schools and my parents were both home by 5:30 everyday. This just isn't going to happen for us as long as we live in this area.

Anonymous wrote:I'm happy. I have great friends, a good job that pays well, I have a husband who works hard but when he comes home is an equal partner in parenting, I am very disciplined about turning off my own Blackberry once the garage door closes until the kids are in bed (colleagues know they should call me with any true emergencies), when it's hot I turn on the sprinkler or head for the pool, and I'm not really status conscious and neither are my friends. My kids love their school, play in the streets during the long summer evenings after its has cooled off (lots of adults out in the evening gardening or hanging out with a drink, watching the kids and visiting). I use my commute to listen to NPR or music or to chat on the phone with my mom or just to daydream. If people are annoying or self important I just kind of tune them out because it has nothing to do with me.

18:56: I like you and the way you live.

I like you and your lifestyle too, 18:56. Sounds like you have achieved a good balance. I love the line you wrote that I've bolded. Good philosophy... I must keep that in mind always.