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A soccer club -- of all things -- produces video that makes Iowa look like an awesome place to live...

Metro >>>>>>>>> anywhere else in Iowa
It's nice from an urban living standpoint, but Eastern Iowa overall is a better place to live. There is nothing around Des Moines that is very interesting. Eastern Iowa has driftless area, the Mississippi, decent metros in CR/IC and the QC and Dubuque/Galena, is closer to Chicago and of course is home to the University of Iowa and all its awesome cultural/arts/sports offerings.

I guess Des Moiners can go to Ames. I've heard the water tastes good.
 
It's nice from an urban living standpoint, but Eastern Iowa overall is a better place to live. There is nothing around Des Moines that is very interesting. Eastern Iowa has driftless area, the Mississippi, decent metros in CR/IC and the QC and Dubuque/Galena, is closer to Chicago and of course is home to the University of Iowa and all its awesome cultural/arts/sports offerings.

I guess Des Moiners can go to Ames. I've heard the water tastes good.
They both suck pretty bad, you're splitting hairs
 
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It's nice from an urban living standpoint, but Eastern Iowa overall is a better place to live. There is nothing around Des Moines that is very interesting. Eastern Iowa has driftless area, the Mississippi, decent metros in CR/IC and the QC and Dubuque/Galena, is closer to Chicago and of course is home to the University of Iowa and all its awesome cultural/arts/sports offerings.

I guess Des Moiners can go to Ames. I've heard the water tastes good.
Lol what a blowhard. The QC is full of white trash.
 
It's nice from an urban living standpoint, but Eastern Iowa overall is a better place to live. There is nothing around Des Moines that is very interesting. Eastern Iowa has driftless area, the Mississippi, decent metros in CR/IC and the QC and Dubuque/Galena, is closer to Chicago and of course is home to the University of Iowa and all its awesome cultural/arts/sports offerings.

I guess Des Moiners can go to Ames. I've heard the water tastes good.
It's what you know I guess. In Iowa, I have lived in the QCA, Iowa City, and the DSM metro. In the advantages column for the QCA, I would put proximity to Iowa City and Chicago first, and then I guess proximity to Illinois for weed and proximity to Wisconsin for real lakes, and then the Mississippi (although personally, I don't really find that to be all that great). If we are playing the proximity game, DSM is closer to Minneapolis and then Omaha for the zoo and cheaper flights, and Okoboji if you're into that. I think DSM beats out the QCA pretty easily in most other categories such as touring broadway shows, concerts at Wells Fargo Arena and the civic center, restaurants, fests, farmer's market, minor league sports, a concentrated downtown vibe, overall housing stock, etc. Although, as someone who has in the past lived in the Boston area for years, I could see outsiders characterizing this as claiming which pig cleans up the best with lipstick. Not me, but I certainly knew many many people who think Iowa/Ohio/Idaho/Illinois (other than Chicago) are all fungible and wholly unnoteworthy.
 
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It's what you know I guess. In Iowa, I have lived in the QCA, Iowa City, and the DSM metro. In the advantages column for the QCA, I would put proximity to Iowa City and Chicago first, and then I guess proximity to Illinois for weed and proximity to Wisconsin for real lakes, and then the Mississippi (although personally, I don't really find that to be all that great). If we are playing the proximity game, DSM is closer to Minneapolis and then Omaha for the zoo and cheaper flights, and Okoboji if you're into that. I think DSM beats out the QCA pretty easily in most other categories such as touring broadway shows, concerts at the civic center, restaurants, fests, farmer's market, minor league sports, a concentrated downtown vibe, overall housing stock, etc. Although, as someone who has in the past lived in the Boston area for years, I could see outsiders characterizing this as claiming which pig cleans up the best with lipstick. Not me, but I certainly knew many many people who think Iowa/Ohio/Idaho/Illinois (other than Chicago) are all fungible and wholly unnoteworthy.
I am probably biased by my affinity for outdoor recreation. Within 1.5 hours of my driveway in Davenport I can: go trout fishing in clear coldwater streams, be on a lake in SW Wisconsin with my boat, go downhill skiing in Dubuque or Galena or Mt. Horeb, Wi.; and walleye fish up and down the Mississippi which is one of the best-kept walleye fishing secrets in America.

I don't think you can do any of those things that easily living in Des Moines. But yeah, it's a nice city with an increasingly cool downtown, which I appreciate.
 
If you think Iowa ducks you probably haven't lived too many other places. It's got a lot going for it, particularly if your raising a family.

I could see where a young single might want to stick to the urban areas.
 
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If you think Iowa ducks you probably haven't lived too many other places. It's got a lot going for it, particularly if your raising a family.

I could see where a young single might want to stick to the urban areas.
Iowa ducks are black and gold! ;)


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Des Moines > Easern Iowa AINEC.

Food scene, Wells Fargo Arena for shows, Wolves, menace, Wild, Bucs!, I cubs, (modern woodman is nice, when it isn't flooded) 80/35 makes KC and the twin cities easy. Galena is cool, for a day, Des Moines has the east village and Valley Junction. Adventureland, Madison County in the fall is every bit as pretty as NE Iowa and we dont have to deal with assholes from Wisconsin. The rivers in the cedar valley are pretty but I wouldn't want to live in cedar falls area, there just isn't the income potential of DM. And the final nail in the coffin, Jalapeño Poppers from TASTY TACOS.
 
I am probably biased by my affinity for outdoor recreation. Within 1.5 hours of my driveway in Davenport I can: go trout fishing in clear coldwater streams, be on a lake in SW Wisconsin with my boat, go downhill skiing in Dubuque or Galena or Mt. Horeb, Wi.; and walleye fish up and down the Mississippi which is one of the best-kept walleye fishing secrets in America.

I don't think you can do any of those things that easily living in Des Moines. But yeah, it's a nice city with an increasingly cool downtown, which I appreciate.
This piqued my curiosity and I spent the past 15 minutes watching videos of people skiing the "double black diamond" run in Mt Horeb. Oh boy, ya really live on the edge out there in the great plains don't you?
 
Des Moines > Easern Iowa AINEC.

Food scene, Wells Fargo Arena for shows, Wolves, menace, Wild, Bucs!, I cubs, (modern woodman is nice, when it isn't flooded) 80/35 makes KC and the twin cities easy. Galena is cool, for a day, Des Moines has the east village and Valley Junction. Adventureland, Madison County in the fall is every bit as pretty as NE Iowa and we dont have to deal with assholes from Wisconsin. The rivers in the cedar valley are pretty but I wouldn't want to live in cedar falls area, there just isn't the income potential of DM. And the final nail in the coffin, Jalapeño Poppers from TASTY TACOS.
I would offer a point-by-point rebuttal, but your reputation for being wrong precedes you on HROT, so I'll just let you bask in your wrongness.
 
I can see why you like that one @torbee
3 or 4 really nice bridge shots in there.
Des Moines has superior bridges to the QC. They've got interstate bridges, highway bridges, they've got old railway bridges turned into bike trail bridges, cool lit up at night foot bridges... They've got it all.
 
Hey, our snow is usually slick and iced up. Not that pussy-ass "powder" you mountain skiiers call snow. ;)
You guys get all the ugly winter of living in the mountain west, but none of the advantages. I'm not sure exactly what the appeal is. But as long as you're happy...
 
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This piqued my curiosity and I spent the past 15 minutes watching videos of people skiing the "double black diamond" run in Mt Horeb. Oh boy, ya really live on the edge out there in the great plains don't you?
Tyrol is a very small resort, even by Midwest standards. It's only 30 minutes from Madison, though, so a local favorite.

Here is where I'm skiing tomorrow -- not exactly Breckenridge, but bigger/more challenging than Tyrol:

 
Tyrol is a very small resort, even by Midwest standards. It's only 30 minutes from Madison, though, so a local favorite.

Here is where I'm skiing tomorrow -- not exactly Breckenridge, but bigger/more challenging than Tyrol:

That's.....cute?
The place I ski at the locals call "Flatstar" because compared to the surrounding resorts the terrain is pretty flat. Most of the blacks would be blues or purples at Squaw. Still, this is a typical black run there.

 
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It's too bad the people of the QC don't have this albatross.

Bet Krause won't be on the hook when it bleeds money.
 
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As opposed to on the Caribbean off Jamaica, which is analog to downhill skiing in the Rockies.
Well, yeah, that's sort of my point. I don't understand people ripping on non-premier locations for fun activities.

I'd love to ski Steamboat every day. But I get a lot of pleasure out of skiing closer to home, not to mention it's about one million times cheaper.

I'd love to be musky fishing in Hayward or catching walleyes in Lake of the Woods -- but if I can't get to there, I should feel shame and regret for enjoying fishing Lock and Dam 10?

At the end of the day, it's the ACTIVITY that matters far more than the location. The dude I'm skiing with tomorrow surfs on the great lakes (pic of him in action below). He also makes sure to take 1 or 2 trips to Cali or Mexico each year for bigger/better/warmer waves. But he absolutely LOVES hitting up Sheboygan in November and that's awesome I think!

I just don't get your mindset. I've always worked hard to do my best with what I have available. Enjoy where I live, what I do for a living and find ways to make the best of it. It must suck to go through life bemoaning the fact you can't have the very best of everything.

Lake-surf.jpg
 
Well, yeah, that's sort of my point. I don't understand people ripping on non-premier locations for fun activities.

I'd love to ski Steamboat every day. But I get a lot of pleasure out of skiing closer to home, not to mention it's about one million times cheaper.

I'd love to be musky fishing in Hayward or catching walleyes in Lake of the Woods -- but if I can't get to there, I should feel shame and regret for enjoying fishing Lock and Dam 10?

At the end of the day, it's the ACTIVITY that matters far more than the location.

I just don't get your mindset. I've always worked hard to do my best with what I have available. Enjoy where I live, what I do for a living and find ways to make the best of it. It must suck to go through life bemoaning the fact you can't have the very best of everything.
I think you are conflating me with other posters. He poked fun at the selling of the local ski experience. I likened the downhill skiing vid to waterskiing on the Rez. Objectively enjoyable but in terms of a sales pitch, it is better left imagined in the mind's eye, in my opinion. Kind of like how I really enjoy our backyard pool, but it would not be making any promotional videos for it. Not sure how that equates to going through "life bemoaning the fact" I "can't have the best of everything."
 
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