I meant to update everyone but got busy with the move to Georgia and new job. I'm finally settled down for the most part and got a house just south of Augusta in the little town of Hephzibah. Overall I'm very happy with the change. There isn't really much I miss from CO aside from my friends and some mountains-related stuff like skiing and scenery. Cost of living here is much lower. Government isn't going crazy with regulations and taxes on everything like CO is. Crime is lower, don't feel the need to lock up all my stuff all the time and there are far less homeless people here. Food is much better, it's tougher to find healthy options when going out but the quality and flavor is just so much better and obviously the price is much lower.
The change in culture is welcome. Outside of the downtown and fancier suburban areas people are more "normal" and just go about their daily lives in an honest way. One of the first things I noticed here is how every other car doesn't have political bumper stickers all over it. I also get the feeling people aren't all fired up and polarized when it comes to politics here which is nice; if they do they don't show it or feel compelled to talk about it. People here also aren't obsessed with showing off their lifestyle whatever that may be; back in CO everyone tries to show off how they're into rock climbing or skiing or shooting guns or whatever by how they dress, vehicle they drive, stickers on their car etc. which just makes them seem like they're fake and have no real life. I also appreciate how it's more normal here for people to get married and have children of all things. All the guys I work with are 30-40 years old (including my boss) and are married or soon-to-be married, at least half of them have kids already. Having children in CO is apparently a big deal now I imagine because it's so damn expensive and from my observations, most people don't know how to parent anymore (kids are spoiled brats). Keep in mind these opinions about CO relate mostly to the more populated and urban areas on the Front Range along with touristy mountain towns, It's probably different in smaller towns out east or on the Western Slope.
I'm sure there's more I could talk about but that's all I can think of for now. Overall impressions after living here about 2 months are very positive.
