Moved from Metro Detroit to Columbia, South Carolina

gi · 02-12-2014, 09:04 AM

So was offered a great opportunity with Amazon and moved to Columbia, South Carolina. Big difference from the Metro Detroit area. Any helpful tips or suggestions for easing my family into the new area? I have a 5 and 3 year old kids.

I also left my table top rpg group as well as my board game group, any FOFC members in the area with those hobbies?

Looking outside, it seems I brought the snow with me as well, ahh...feels like home.

Butter · 02-12-2014, 09:50 AM

It gets unbelievably hot in the summer. My wife used to call it the armpit of South Carolina, but that was more due to her hatred of the Univ. of S. Carolina than anything. But I have been there in the middle of summer and it is not pleasant.... remember one summer it got above 90 every day for 42 straight days with almost no rain. Just mentally prepare yourself.

Little Pigs BBQ on the outskirts of town (Alpine Road, after looking it up)... that place is a hole in the wall, but the food is unbelievable. We stop there every time through, and if we aren't coming through during lunch/dinner time, we alter our plans. It is that good.

Other than that, I know more about the Upstate than I do about Columbia.

albionmoonlight · 02-12-2014, 09:53 AM

I cannot help you with much info about Columbia. However, you are ~2 hours from Charleston, which is one of my favorite cities to visit. Well worth some day trips. There's a couple of wonderful outdoor splash fountains near the river in Charleston that are great for kids your age on a hot summer touristy day.

gi · 02-12-2014, 09:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by albionmoonlight

I cannot help you with much info about Columbia. However, you are ~2 hours from Charleston, which is one of my favorite cities to visit. Well worth some day trips. There's a couple of wonderful outdoor splash fountains near the river in Charleston that are great for kids your age on a hot summer touristy day.

Lot of my co-workers are raving about the beaches there, definitely on the to-do list. Thank you!

Flasch186 · 02-12-2014, 10:01 AM

Did you turn the lights off when you left?

gi · 02-12-2014, 10:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Flasch186

Did you turn the lights off when you left?

Detroit doesn't have lights to turn off

Thomkal · 02-12-2014, 10:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gi

Lot of my co-workers are raving about the beaches there, definitely on the to-do list. Thank you!

Yeah if you can get away for the weekends to "cool off" here in Myrtle Beach and Charleston, you'll have lots to do during the summer. Never been to Columbia so can't be of much help there though.

Blackadar · 02-12-2014, 10:30 AM

Rule 1: Stay far, far away from Maurice's BBQ unless you're a raging racist.

What part of Columbia did you move to? I've spent a lot of time in the city.

gi · 02-12-2014, 10:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blackadar

Rule 1: Stay far, far away from Maurice's BBQ unless you're a raging racist.

What part of Columbia did you move to? I've spent a lot of time in the city.

We're looking at Lexington and Irmo to buy a house. Still in the process.

Ben E Lou · 02-12-2014, 11:23 AM

Columbia has a really nice Children's Museum. We've made a couple of day trips from Charleston just to take the kiddos there.

And yeah, Charleston is close enough for day trips.

Honolulu_Blue · 02-12-2014, 12:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Flasch186

Did you turn the lights off when you left?

Quote:

Originally Posted by gi

Detroit doesn't have lights to turn off

Come on!

I'm sitting right here.

gi · 02-12-2014, 12:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Honolulu_Blue

Come on!

I'm sitting right here.

Sorry to leave you and just making sure you're paying attention

gi · 02-12-2014, 12:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ben E Lou

Columbia has a really nice Children's Museum. We've made a couple of day trips from Charleston just to take the kiddos there.

And yeah, Charleston is close enough for day trips.

Thanks Ben!

Ann Arbor has a great childrens museum that my kids love, so I'll make sure we check it out.

CU Tiger · 02-17-2014, 07:57 AM

Ditto on the Children's museum.
The outskirts area out toward the lake are nice..actual Columbia...well it will feel pretty familiar for someone from Detroit other than the weather.

Armpit of the south is right, and has nothing to do with college affiliation.

Ditto on Maurice's...KKK "uniforms" and segregationist era signs "Whites Only" are the decor of choice and to boot their Q sucks. (Ive had it catered a couple times)

For beaches definitely go south to Charleston and not to Myrtle.

Bout all I got for now. Used to have a few accounts in Columbia we worked regularly, if you come up on something specific let me know Ill gladly try to help

Blackadar · 02-17-2014, 08:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CU Tiger

Ditto on the Children's museum.
The outskirts area out toward the lake are nice..actual Columbia...well it will feel pretty familiar for someone from Detroit other than the weather.

Armpit of the south is right, and has nothing to do with college affiliation.

Ditto on Maurice's...KKK "uniforms" and segregationist era signs "Whites Only" are the decor of choice and to boot their Q sucks. (Ive had it catered a couple times)

For beaches definitely go south to Charleston and not to Myrtle.

Bout all I got for now. Used to have a few accounts in Columbia we worked regularly, if you come up on something specific let me know Ill gladly try to help

I wasn't going to call it the Armpit of the South, but I agree. I don't much care for Columbia. It's kind of a weird town. It's part college town, part government town, part military town and not much else. I never found much "culture" or any really cool sections of the city. Contrast that with Greenville's cooler downtown area and foothills setting, Charleston's historical areas or Myrtle's tourist-trap feel and Columbia never had much of an identity to me.

It's hotter than blazes during the summer too with no cooling breeze and the mountains & beach too far away to be of much use on a day-to-day basis. Everything south is nasty swamp. The politics are unimaginable and some of the worst shitheels in the nation patrol the halls of the Columbia capitol building.

That doesn't mean that Columbia doesn't have it's good side though. I just never found it.

Desnudo · 02-18-2014, 07:15 AM

How I'm picturing gi's arrival in town

JonInMiddleGA · 02-18-2014, 07:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blackadar

It's kind of a weird town.

My limited experiences with it lead me to feel like this is a pretty darned good description. There's no real sense of "there" there that I've ever found.

revrew · 02-18-2014, 09:48 AM

Echoing all good things said about taking day trips to Charleston. Food, history, architecture, culture, the ocean, museums, photo ops, art - love Charleston. Best thing about Columbia? You're close to Charleston.

Ben E Lou · 02-18-2014, 10:13 AM

Calling Columbia the armpit of the south is unfair as long as Macon, GA exists.

gi · 02-18-2014, 10:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Desnudo

How I'm picturing gi's arrival in town

I'm not that good looking.

Bout sums it up though.

Love grits...

gi · 02-18-2014, 10:15 AM

Found a sushi and thai place that's good. Also found a good bar with a lot on tap from local micro brews.

Kroger is here, with all the same product I had in Michigan.

Looking at houses in a lot of communities. Getting the feeling I'm in swamp land.

Dutch · 11-29-2014, 01:43 PM

Found myself in Sumter, South Carolina for Thanksgiving....so for Friday breakfast I found a little breakfast joint and had some grits. Just seemed like the right thing to do.

gi · 11-29-2014, 01:44 PM

Pretty close to where I'm at now. One of the few good things about the Midlands is the grits. Everything else makes me long for Michigan.

Dutch · 11-29-2014, 01:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gi

Pretty close to where I'm at now. One of the few good things about the Midlands is the grits. Everything else makes me long for Michigan.

Edit: Same thread!

My son just married a girl from Michigan and that's who I was visiting. Small world!

korme · 11-29-2014, 06:42 PM

Googled that bbq spot and found this:

Barbecue eatery owner, segregationist Maurice Bessinger dies at 83 Feb 24, '14

So, that's good.

Blackadar · 11-29-2014, 06:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by korme

Googled that bbq spot and found this:

Barbecue eatery owner, segregationist Maurice Bessinger dies at 83 Feb 24, '14

So, that's good.

Good riddance.

Desnudo · 11-29-2014, 07:05 PM

Is that how he introduced himself at cocktail parties?

ISiddiqui · 11-29-2014, 11:54 PM

My girlfriend is going to Seminary at Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary up in the north part of town, in the ghetto, but Eau Clare High School. Anyways, one of the first thing we heard when asking about BBQ picks was Don't go to Maurice's. It's one of those things to tell everyone who comes to Columbia, I guess.

BYU 14 · 11-30-2014, 01:05 AM

My only experience there was basic training at Fort Jackson June - August, so you know how great that was...

Dutch · 11-30-2014, 07:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BYU 14

My only experience there was basic training at Fort Jackson June - August, so you know how great that was...

I bet the breakfasts were good.

BYU 14 · 11-30-2014, 08:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dutch

I bet the breakfasts were good.

My personal fav was the "med aid" which was basically Kool Aid laced with salt and you had to drink a full glass before every meal as a dehydration prevention measure. Great stuff

Buccaneer · 11-30-2014, 09:31 AM

I love learning about places from others that I haven't been to or experienced. South Carolina is one of the few holes I have left to travel to, with Charleston my #1 un-visited city to go to. Living in North Carolina for a couple of years and learning about Southeastern geography and culture, I always found it interesting to experience the differences between coastal, Piedmont and upstate/mountains. Funny how SC, despite the same geographic regions as NC, has a very different Piedmont than NC. That's what happens you have a very famous historical city on the coast, which NC did not. Good luck.

gi · 03-26-2015, 08:06 PM

And I'm back again to Michigan, though this time in East Lansing. Glad to be back in the Midwest. Columbia didn't agree with me or my family.

Bobble · 03-27-2015, 08:09 AM

Welcome back. You just missed a crappy winter and are right on time for the good stuff.

timmae · 03-27-2015, 08:54 AM

Go Sparty!!

Peregrine · 03-27-2015, 08:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gi

And I'm back again to Michigan, though this time in East Lansing. Glad to be back in the Midwest. Columbia didn't agree with me or my family.

I lived there for a year and have to agree. I am from South Carolina but Columbia in particular is not my favorite place.

Honolulu_Blue · 03-27-2015, 02:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bobble

Welcome back. You just missed a crappy winter and are right on time for the good stuff.

Despite the fact that it is kinda snowing outside right now. It's just flurries, but...

gi · 03-29-2015, 08:16 AM

Missed the cold and glad that the weather is turning. Now to have a summer that is not at a boil all the time.

albionmoonlight · 03-29-2015, 12:35 PM

There's no place like home.

Dutch · 03-30-2015, 03:44 AM

South Carolina can be a challenge for northerners. My grandparents did it, but even after 30 years they were still "the people from New York. I like to consider myself a 3rd generation southerner and I still dont feel southern. Well, to northerners I do.

britrock88 · 03-30-2015, 03:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by albionmoonlight

There's no place like home.

You're telling me.

02-12-2014, 09:50 AM	#2
Butter Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Dayton, OH	It gets unbelievably hot in the summer. My wife used to call it the armpit of South Carolina, but that was more due to her hatred of the Univ. of S. Carolina than anything. But I have been there in the middle of summer and it is not pleasant.... remember one summer it got above 90 every day for 42 straight days with almost no rain. Just mentally prepare yourself. Little Pigs BBQ on the outskirts of town (Alpine Road, after looking it up)... that place is a hole in the wall, but the food is unbelievable. We stop there every time through, and if we aren't coming through during lunch/dinner time, we alter our plans. It is that good. Other than that, I know more about the Upstate than I do about Columbia. __________________ My listening habits Last edited by Butter : 02-12-2014 at 09:51 AM.

02-12-2014, 10:01 AM	#5
Flasch186 Coordinator Join Date: May 2002 Location: Jacksonville, FL	Did you turn the lights off when you left? __________________ Jacksonville-florida-homes-for-sale Putting a New Spin on Real Estate! ----------------------------------------------------------- Commissioner of the USFL USFL

02-12-2014, 11:23 AM	#10
Ben E Lou Morgado's Favorite Forum Fascist Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Greensboro, NC	Columbia has a really nice Children's Museum. We've made a couple of day trips from Charleston just to take the kiddos there. And yeah, Charleston is close enough for day trips. __________________ The media don't understand the kinds of problems and pressures 54 million come wit'!

02-18-2014, 09:48 AM	#18
revrew Team Chaplain Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Just outside Des Moines, IA	Echoing all good things said about taking day trips to Charleston. Food, history, architecture, culture, the ocean, museums, photo ops, art - love Charleston. Best thing about Columbia? You're close to Charleston. __________________ Winner of 6 FOFC Scribe Awards, including 3 Gold Scribes Founder of the ZFL, 2004 Golden Scribe Dynasty of the Year Now bringing The Des Moines Dragons back to life, and the joke's on YOU, NFL! I came to the Crossroad. I took it. And that has made all the difference.

02-18-2014, 10:13 AM	#19
Ben E Lou Morgado's Favorite Forum Fascist Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Greensboro, NC	Calling Columbia the armpit of the south is unfair as long as Macon, GA exists. __________________ The media don't understand the kinds of problems and pressures 54 million come wit'!

02-12-2014, 09:53 AM	#3
albionmoonlight Head Coach Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: North Carolina	I cannot help you with much info about Columbia. However, you are ~2 hours from Charleston, which is one of my favorite cities to visit. Well worth some day trips. There's a couple of wonderful outdoor splash fountains near the river in Charleston that are great for kids your age on a hot summer touristy day.

02-12-2014, 10:30 AM	#8
Blackadar Retired Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Fantasyland	Rule 1: Stay far, far away from Maurice's BBQ unless you're a raging racist. What part of Columbia did you move to? I've spent a lot of time in the city.

02-17-2014, 07:57 AM	#14
CU Tiger Grizzled Veteran Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Backwoods, SC	Ditto on the Children's museum. The outskirts area out toward the lake are nice..actual Columbia...well it will feel pretty familiar for someone from Detroit other than the weather. Armpit of the south is right, and has nothing to do with college affiliation. Ditto on Maurice's...KKK "uniforms" and segregationist era signs "Whites Only" are the decor of choice and to boot their Q sucks. (Ive had it catered a couple times) For beaches definitely go south to Charleston and not to Myrtle. Bout all I got for now. Used to have a few accounts in Columbia we worked regularly, if you come up on something specific let me know Ill gladly try to help

02-18-2014, 07:15 AM	#16
Desnudo Coordinator Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Here and There	How I'm picturing gi's arrival in town

02-18-2014, 10:15 AM	#21
gi College Prospect Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Berkley, MI	Found a sushi and thai place that's good. Also found a good bar with a lot on tap from local micro brews. Kroger is here, with all the same product I had in Michigan. Looking at houses in a lot of communities. Getting the feeling I'm in swamp land. Last edited by gi : 02-18-2014 at 10:16 AM.

11-29-2014, 01:43 PM	#22
Dutch "Dutch" Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Tampa, FL	Found myself in Sumter, South Carolina for Thanksgiving....so for Friday breakfast I found a little breakfast joint and had some grits. Just seemed like the right thing to do.

11-29-2014, 01:44 PM	#23
gi College Prospect Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Berkley, MI	Pretty close to where I'm at now. One of the few good things about the Midlands is the grits. Everything else makes me long for Michigan.

11-29-2014, 06:42 PM	#25
korme Go Reds Join Date: May 2001 Location: Bloodbuzz Ohio	Googled that bbq spot and found this: Barbecue eatery owner, segregationist Maurice Bessinger dies at 83 Feb 24, '14 So, that's good.

11-29-2014, 07:05 PM	#27
Desnudo Coordinator Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Here and There	Is that how he introduced himself at cocktail parties?

11-29-2014, 11:54 PM	#28
ISiddiqui Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: Decatur, GA	My girlfriend is going to Seminary at Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary up in the north part of town, in the ghetto, but Eau Clare High School. Anyways, one of the first thing we heard when asking about BBQ picks was Don't go to Maurice's. It's one of those things to tell everyone who comes to Columbia, I guess. __________________ "A prayer for the wild at heart, kept in cages" -Tennessee Williams

11-30-2014, 01:05 AM	#29
BYU 14 Coordinator Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: The scorched Desert	My only experience there was basic training at Fort Jackson June - August, so you know how great that was...

11-30-2014, 09:31 AM	#32
Buccaneer Head Coach Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Colorado	I love learning about places from others that I haven't been to or experienced. South Carolina is one of the few holes I have left to travel to, with Charleston my #1 un-visited city to go to. Living in North Carolina for a couple of years and learning about Southeastern geography and culture, I always found it interesting to experience the differences between coastal, Piedmont and upstate/mountains. Funny how SC, despite the same geographic regions as NC, has a very different Piedmont than NC. That's what happens you have a very famous historical city on the coast, which NC did not. Good luck.

03-26-2015, 08:06 PM	#33
gi College Prospect Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Berkley, MI	And I'm back again to Michigan, though this time in East Lansing. Glad to be back in the Midwest. Columbia didn't agree with me or my family.

03-27-2015, 08:09 AM	#34
Bobble College Prospect Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: High and outside	Welcome back. You just missed a crappy winter and are right on time for the good stuff.

03-27-2015, 08:54 AM	#35
timmae College Starter Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Chicago	Go Sparty!! __________________ Interactive OOTP 15 Dynasty (Single Season) CHAMPION!! Oh yeah... Happy New York Day everyone!

03-29-2015, 08:16 AM	#38
gi College Prospect Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Berkley, MI	Missed the cold and glad that the weather is turning. Now to have a summer that is not at a boil all the time.

03-29-2015, 12:35 PM	#39
albionmoonlight Head Coach Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: North Carolina	There's no place like home.

03-30-2015, 03:44 AM	#40
Dutch "Dutch" Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Tampa, FL	South Carolina can be a challenge for northerners. My grandparents did it, but even after 30 years they were still "the people from New York. I like to consider myself a 3rd generation southerner and I still dont feel southern. Well, to northerners I do.

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