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What do like and dislike about the Northeast?


Rwarky

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i sometimes dislike the weather. it gets too cold sometimes. too bad i can't change it. maybe if i keep polluting the area but that won't be a good idea.

I dislike the weather, but I like the weather. I, like many New Englanders, love having the different seasons. The terrible weather now and then makes you appreciate the really nice weather we get. I love the 50-60 degree weather in the Spring and revel in it. In the fall, I dread it. I also appreciate some of the bad weather. I love the snowstorms for their beauty until I have to drive in them and shovel heavy snow, and I love watching thunderstorms.

Other things I love about New England: apple cider, foliage, the historic charm of colonial-era buildings.

I have to say I hate the politics of the area, and I think the policy makers are what are making the northeast a tough place to compete in when conducting business. From what I can tell, CT's Governor Rell is actually pretty good. Moderate to liberal on social issues and Republican on the economic front. She's the opposite of the Republicans in Washington. She's campaigning on spending billions to improve mass-transit in the state and from what I can tell has been a lowering taxes kind of Republican. BTW... why does the northeast seem to be one of the big hotbeds of corruption in the country? I think we have the most educated populace, so the level of corruption in our city and state offices really intrigues me.

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Like:

- the weather (4 seasons, lots of snow)

- the history

- the old "streetcar" suburbs

- the knowledge & wealth

- the high quality of major cities within a very short distance (the megalopolis)

Dislike:

- the people (too cold, standoffish, snobby)

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I dislike the fact that despite being an overall dense region with dense urban cores, we really only have two cities with good mass transit systems (NYC and Boston, maybe Philly). That really grinds my gears.

Governor Rell of CT has been shoving a $2 billion plus mass-transit pacakge (featuring the New Haven to Springfield commuter rail) through congress.

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The long & very cold winters really turn me off the most. I think/believe the 1st year i was in NJ, i was suffering from a seasonal depression disorder [grew up in the south in a coniferous area]. Best way i overcame it was trying hard to adapt to the change of seasons by occupying my time with as many things to do as possible & be around people who are always happy. Playing ice hockey in the frozen ponds in rural Connecticut were one of my favorite things to do for winter activies :)

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i love the weather... it keeps you on your toes. i love being able to enjoy some fine beaches as well as awesome skiing all within a few hours of each other.

as for the mass transit... there's too much sprawl outside boston, new york, and philly to really support those types of transit systems. there need to be more railroads (hartford, new haven, providence, and worcester all need better railway systems, maybe even a manchester to boston railroad). but aside from improving the bus systems, there isn't much that can be done in the smaller cities.

i dislike all the traffic and the idiot drivers with cell phones and all the freaking SUV's. i love that our major cities aren't loaded with sprawl like those in other parts of the country.

and i love that we have the yankees.

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I love the diversity and fairly open minded population.

I love the summer and hate the winter, but tolorate a harsh winter for a tolorable summer. (When I can afford to have seasonal residences I will not be here for the Winters!!!!)

I hate the lack of regional cooperation, however I love having so many historically significant towns and cities.

I love the food, no one said food yet. I love being able to get authentic spanish, west indian, american, asian, and italian foods whenever I want to.

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I love the food, no one said food yet. I love being able to get authentic spanish, west indian, american, asian, and italian foods whenever I want to.

Also the Polish food. One of the great things about living in CT is you can go to Big Y and pick up Martin Rosel's kielbasa (based in New Britain). I'm also a big fan of gilabki.

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Also the Polish food. One of the great things about living in CT is you can go to Big Y and pick up Martin Rosel's kielbasa (based in New Britain). I'm also a big fan of gilabki.

Yeah, the polish food is good too. Everyone in New Britain eats Porogis (sp?). If I lived elsewhere I wouldn't even know these things though.

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Yeah, the polish food is good too. Everyone in New Britain eats Porogis (sp?). If I lived elsewhere I wouldn't even know these things though.

The ones I learned how to make are pronounced "pee-doggies". Farmers cheese and spearmint are used for the filling. Once you put enough mint in there it gets this unique taste. Not cheesy, not minty.

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The ones I learned how to make are pronounced "pee-doggies". Farmers cheese and spearmint are used for the filling. Once you put enough mint in there it gets this unique taste. Not cheesy, not minty.

pierogies

i'm half polish. :D never heard of having mint inside them... the standard is potato. basically, it's like a thick ravioli filled with potato and fried, usually with onions. they're my favorite. the cheese ones are pretty good too (i think i've had them with potato and cheddar inside but i prefer the potato ones). my mom's aunt used to make the best... too bad she's now deceased.

it's more pronounced like peh-doh'-gies with the accent where i put it. i'm a stickler for pronouncing ethnic food properly (except gyro, for some reason i have to say it like it's spelled). manicotti and ricotta are my biggest pet peeves for pronunciation.

other foods the northeast has that the rest of the country can't touch... PIZZA!!! new haven has hands down the best pizza.

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pierogies

i'm half polish. :D never heard of having mint inside them... the standard is potato. b

I think it's got something to do with the region of Poland the people around here came from. I actually put mashed potatoes and some of the leftover potato water in the dough. It's a real pain to make though... I usually make an afternoon out of it.

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is that some sort of italian sausage? i've never heard of it before... you can't get it in NYC?

Portuguese, you can probably find it in a specialty shop or high end butcher in NYC, but it's not in every grocery store like it is here, on the South Coast, and on the Cape.

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Dislike:

- the people (too cold, standoffish, snobby)

I think this depends on where you go. In some northeastern cities...I wont mention names I can walk around and not get spoken to, get a nod, headshake, smile from one person but in some cities like New Haven and Providence (these are not the only ones just the ones I have visited where I had nice encounters with people) people are smiling, say hello, asking if you need help if your lost, etc.

Yeah, the polish food is good too. Everyone in New Britain eats Porogis (sp?). If I lived elsewhere I wouldn't even know these things though.

Yes one of the things I love about New England is that if you want Polish food (shops and restaurants) you can head to a place like New Britan, you want Spanish food head to Park Street in Hartford, Italian food head to New Haven, Federal Hill in Providence, etc.

- I also love going through the small and large town centers of towns and cities across New England. Going through the country or sadly in some cases the sprawl and finding the town center that still has spaces in front, ground level retail and maybe some residential up above.

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I think this depends on where you go. In some northeastern cities...I wont mention names I can walk around and not get spoken to, get a nod, headshake, smile from one person but in some cities like New Haven and Providence (these are not the only ones just the ones I have visited where I had nice encounters with people) people are smiling, say hello, asking if you need help if your lost, etc.

Yes one of the things I love about New England is that if you want Polish food (shops and restaurants) you can head to a place like New Britan, you want Spanish food head to Park Street in Hartford, Italian food head to New Haven, Federal Hill in Providence, etc.

- I also love going through the small and large town centers of towns and cities across New England. Going through the country or sadly in some cases the sprawl and finding the town center that still has spaces in front, ground level retail and maybe some residential up above.

i've never encountered those "nice people" you speak of in new haven or providence. while i have encountered people who smile and give a little nod or a quick "hello" while passing by, i've never encountered people who ask if you're lost. and i know you're talking about new york... there's plenty of "nice people" there as well, but there's just a larger number of people who are cold or have that "rush rush" attitude (you've got those people in new haven or providence as well). it's also been my experience that the people in boston are ruder than those in new york.

the small towns of new england are great. i love town centers where in the middle of sprawl, you've got a miniature dense neighborhood (although not totally walkable because usually there's not a nearby grocery store, although in branford, CT there isn't one too far away from the center of town). i'll probably never leave new england because it's just got so much of everything...

Yeah. Not just the ethnic food options, but the fact that we have so many independant restaurants. We aren't dominated by chains up here like other places are. And we have a lot of diners. Real, authentic diners.

the first diner was in providence... yet there aren't too many diners in RI. i wish we had the greek diners like CT has (at least southern CT).

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i've never encountered those "nice people" you speak of in new haven or providence. while i have encountered people who smile and give a little nod or a quick "hello" while passing by, i've never encountered people who ask if you're lost. and i know you're talking about new york... there's plenty of "nice people" there as well, but there's just a larger number of people who are cold or have that "rush rush" attitude (you've got those people in new haven or providence as well). it's also been my experience that the people in boston are ruder than those in new york.

the small towns of new england are great. i love town centers where in the middle of sprawl, you've got a miniature dense neighborhood (although not totally walkable because usually there's not a nearby grocery store, although in branford, CT there isn't one too far away from the center of town). i'll probably never leave new england because it's just got so much of everything...

the first diner was in providence... yet there aren't too many diners in RI. i wish we had the greek diners like CT has (at least southern CT).

Ok I will use more city names now...I am from Hartford, I love Hartford and I am a major supporter of Hartford but I experienced more openess and friendliness when I visited New Haven and Providence then I do when I am in Hartford. This could just be my personal opinion but it was definitly something I noticed.

the first diner was in providence... yet there aren't too many diners in RI. i wish we had the greek diners like CT has (at least southern CT).

In Newington on the Berlin Turnpike the Olympia Diner is owned by a Greek family I believe and has been a favorite for locals and travelers (more so before I-91 was built). In addition I know there are dozens of other diners in the Hartford area...not all in a real diner building but nevertheless some include Town Line Diner in Rocky Hill, Goldroc Diner in West Hartford, Quaker Diner in West Hartford, A C Petersons in West Hartford, Cromwell Diner, etc.

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  • 2 months later...

As a person that has lived outside of NE and is so confused about where he wants to go eventually .....coupled with the fact that I gravitate towards the negative aspect of life here....I thought I would post something positive and something that I've been through as a resident of South Florida and beyond...things that people really take for granted here.

1.)Architecture- When you live in a colonial home with distinct details, nooks and crannies, and stairs that creek, there is no townhome, apt., or condo in Fla that will ever come close or give you that sense of home.

2.)Density- We think that NE is sprawl but most of us can walk to the corner store even if we live in "suburbia." I always had to take the car just to get a gallon of milk. It's another thing we definitely take for granted here.

3.) Weather-Although there are a FEW days ( less than 5) that it may be unbearable to go outside, the majority of the time we can put on a coat and exude a different fashion sense. Fashion in Fla is a wife beater and flip-flops...not to mention that it is completely unbearable in July with the humidity.

4.)Economy-People often associate the NE now as a liberal unfriendly business climate. However, the business climate in FLA is almost non-existent and the jobs pay far less. The economy revolves around tourism and virtually nothing else.

5.)Convenience- Everything in RI is within a 15 minute drive. We definitely take that for granted. It doesn't matter where you live in the metro area. So. Fla. is one giant 6 lane suburb.....and one that is more clogged than the Cross Bronx Expressway.

6.)Culture-The NE is virtually a melting pot of many nationalities that immigrated here to work in factories etc. Many contributed to the Industrial Revolution and helped to form the distinct and cultural identities that our urban areas have today. South Fla has almost zero identity....except being universally known as a retiree stronghold and a sanctuary for Cuban exiles...great if you speak Spanish como yo but a D- grade on the diversity scale....

7.)Familiarity- I know , as a long time RI resident, that it is all-to-common to know your neighbors and to run into somebody at one time or another. This is yet another thing we take for granted. While there may be people we would prefer not to see again, there is a sense of community here unlike anything I've seen living in FLA. I went months at a time without knowing who actually lived in the villa next door. If it was RI, I would've known all the gossip and learned half a thing or two already in the first few weeks. I liken it to 9/11. If I lived in RI, we'd be chatting together. If I was in So Fla, I would be boarding my house up....

Jerry- One time Southerner...long term Yankee

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