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Holy cow, I'm from Cherokee County (Towne Lake) and went to GT as well! What a small world... I'm debating whether I want to move west after grad school. I'

Holy cow, I'm from Cherokee County (Towne Lake) and went to GT as well! What a small world... I'm debating whether I want to move west after grad school. I'd really like to get involved in a start-up. Although I doubt there's many chemical engineering start-ups compared to software/tech ones. > People are generally pretty nice, but not interested at all in getting to know you or chatting randomly. Could you elaborate on this? I've heard things like this from other people.

SimianLogic2 14y ago
I don't think it's that people are "mean" or less friendly than in the South--it's just harder to break through with strangers. People in general are a little less outgoing towards strangers (not sure if that's the right word, but can't think of one better) and a little more focused on their own things. That may be because the work culture is so focused--free time is a little more valuable when you're working long hours and people just may not be as willing to stop in a grocery store and chat for half an hour on the best way to cook zucchini. I guess another way to put it would be that everyone is headed somewhere (and not always a place), whereas living in the South I remember the culture being a lot more about relaxing and waiting for things to come to you. It's not as bad as New York, where everyone is literally headed somewhere, but more like a state of mind--like everyone here is working on a difficult puzzle in their head, even when they're not at the office. Take a trip out to Tahoe or Yosemite and that mostly shuts off--people you meet on hiking trails and in restaurants/hotels are warm, friendly, and usually pretty chatty.
Greenisus 14y ago
I grew up in the South too (Memphis, TN) and I live in Silicon Valley. It's kind of hard to elaborate on this, but I would say that Californians keep to themselves more than Southeasterners (people in Texas are a totally different story than SEC states), but when you get to actually know CA folks, they're far nicer people who genuinely care more for their friends and do more for them. Basically, Californians are maybe harder to befriend, but worth way more than you do. That's my anecdotal experience anyway, and some of my favorite people in the world live in Southern states. Really there are great people and terrible people everywhere in the world.

SimianLogic2 14y ago

I don't think it's that people are "mean" or less friendly than in the South--it's just harder to break through with strangers. People in general are a little less outgoing towards strangers (not sure if that's the right word, but can't think of one better) and a little more focused on their own things. That may be because the work culture is so focused--free time is a little more valuable when you're working long hours and people just may not be as willing to stop in a grocery store and chat for half an hour on the best way to cook zucchini. I guess another way to put it would be that everyone is headed somewhere (and not always a place), whereas living in the South I remember the culture being a lot more about relaxing and waiting for things to come to you. It's not as bad as New York, where everyone is literally headed somewhere, but more like a state of mind--like everyone here is working on a difficult puzzle in their head, even when they're not at the office. Take a trip out to Tahoe or Yosemite and that mostly shuts off--people you meet on hiking trails and in restaurants/hotels are warm, friendly, and usually pretty chatty.

Greenisus 14y ago

I grew up in the South too (Memphis, TN) and I live in Silicon Valley. It's kind of hard to elaborate on this, but I would say that Californians keep to themselves more than Southeasterners (people in Texas are a totally different story than SEC states), but when you get to actually know CA folks, they're far nicer people who genuinely care more for their friends and do more for them. Basically, Californians are maybe harder to befriend, but worth way more than you do. That's my anecdotal experience anyway, and some of my favorite people in the world live in Southern states. Really there are great people and terrible people everywhere in the world.