Yes, I'm sure people have heard me say it. "I hate Cleveland (and/or Ohio)." Those are strong words, and probably too strong for what I really feel. The truth is, I'm just "done" with it, but some of the circumstances make it feel worse than it is.
I lived in Northeast Ohio for 36 years before I moved to Seattle. I resent myself a little for waiting that long. Almost everything about Seattle (save for the lack of theme parks) was a great fit for me. It was extraordinarily frustrating for me when I thought I had to move back because of my stupid non-selling house. Seattle opened my eyes to the fact that you can live in a place with better culture, more professional opportunity, and a whole lot of beautiful scenery. It isn't totally perfect, but it's "better" than Cleveland.
The fact that I couldn't entirely cut ties with it, in terms of the house, is certainly part of the resentment toward the area. Admittedly, this was somewhat by choice, and part of that choice was the idea that we wouldn't stay more than two or three years (hooray for making good on that). The other part of it is the lack of interesting work, the winters, the backward culture issues (a marriage inequality state), way too much state and local income tax, moronic politics... it just sucks all around.
That's not to say there aren't some wins here. There's a surprising foodie scene, great theater, some of the best museums in the world (especially the art museum), a great zoo, and of course, proximity to Cedar Point. The economy is too focused on specific industries, but I can't say that it's headed toward the shit kingdom it was five or six years ago.
Orlando certainly has its compromises as well. I don't think there is a single place that could be everything I wanted. However, for what we want at the moment, it's a pretty solid combination of location and weather, work potential and reasonable housing cost.
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