Re: Nasty Surprise: The Story of High-Tech Jobs

[Lydia Wong <lydiaw -at- FPOINT -dot- COM>]

I don't usually respond to criticisms such as Maurice's, but it's late on a
Friday, so what the heck.

Here's Maurice's comment:
>The location, for those who asked, is the Triangle region of North
Carolina. I've said it before that I'm no lover of the area; it's Redneck
Territory concealed by the quasi-cosmopolitan nature of the Research
Triangle Park.

Of course, if that is how Maurice has felt about the area, I completely
understand his wanting to leave. Best of luck to him. But as someone who has
lived here almost ten years (and in the south over half my life), I wanted
to say some nice things about the area for those of you who might be
considering coming here.

First, North Carolina *is* part of the south. For some of you, that conjures
up visions of rednecks, hound dogs, and country music. But there's a lot
more to it than that, as any region has its benefits as well as its down
sides. For those of you who haven't been in the south, there are so many
lovely things about it. People can be so friendly, and often, the pace of
life really is slower. There are beautiful days here in the spring where the
sun pours down, the sky is the clearest, prettiest blue, and the air feels
like a soft, warm blanket, and you can't imagine wanting to be any place
else in the world.

You can find friendly, hospitable people all over the world, but often,
people in the south take it to a higher level. Having company is an art
form, where an extra guest is always welcome, and always made to feel
special. Yes, for many of us our roots are from farmers; my paternal
grandparents grew tobacco, for example. But I think that helps us appreciate
what we're losing as our cities swell and roads spring up daily. And being
in an area that still borders farms and isn't far from the coast, we're
reminded that there are people behind the food we eat, and environmental
issues aren't somewhere else, but right at our back door.

My husband and I (and several people I know) came to the Triangle area with
no jobs. We just had our hopes, and fortunately, some skills and education
that helped us find jobs. In the years we have been here we have met
wonderful people, from all over the country, many of whom came here for the
same reasons we did: abundant job opportunities, major educational
institutions, proximity to the coast and the mountains, and just a darn nice
place to live. We're lucky to live in an area, though it is experiencing
major growth, where we can still commute to our jobs in less than 20
minutes, where we don't always remember to lock our doors (but don't worry
too much about it), and where we know our neighbors and their kids run
across our yard.

Is this area for everyone? No, not everyone is going to like it here. I can
tell you some things I don't like about it, but the bottom line is it is a
wonderful area to have a family and a nice life. It isn't all that
cosmopolitan, we don't have the culture or events that larger cities do, but
we don't have a lot of the problems those areas have either.

Everything in life is a trade off. I hope that if one of you reading this is
thinking about relocating here, you'll talk to people who live here and like
it, as well as those who live here and hate it!, and form your own opinions.
And definitely *come visit*! ; )

Lydia
------------------
Lydia Wong
Technical Writer
FarPoint Technologies, Inc.
www.fpoint.com


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