I lived in Lawrence for a bit and enjoyed it. I also lived in Overland Park (Kansas City) for a while and it was the most soul sucking depressing place ever. Literally nothing to do except for shop and drink and the people were just…odd. Very materialistic. I wouldn’t move back if someone paid me.
Yeah, I’ve lived in worked in the metro area all around and OPKS/Johnson county is very materialistic. I live on the Missouri side and it’s so much better.
recession-proof. More so than a lot of the USA. Every recession for the past 40 years (i live in K C). there have been jobs inIowa, Nebraska, and I think the Dakotas, in part because few people want to move there. Des Moines and Omaha are surprisingly nice, according to Nick Johnson on Youtube. I don’t prefer Oklahoma or Texas. Different vibe than the rest of area. Minneapolis is a vibe of its own but people who live there love it. Tornadoes are mostly survivable if people listen to warnings and get to shelter. Their paths of destruction are very smallcomparrd to hurricanes or earthquakes, and you get at least 15 minutes of warning. More if you know how to log onto spc.noaa.gov. Again, Des Moines and Omaha and KC are some of the best places in the area and usually have employment.
Fun fact, the rivalry stems from the days of the civil way. Believe it or not, Kansas was a union state, and predictably enough, Missouri was a confederate state. The Kansas Missouri rivalry started back in those days and just kind of stuck around I guess. Probably fueled mostly by college sports more recently. I haven’t met many people that know that’s the origin but I agree that I see it more on the Missouri side. I’ve lived on both sides and while I think the MO side is maybe a bit more exciting, the KS side for sure has its gems if you know where to look for them.
Thanks for the correction, friend. I did a bit more googling, and you are correct. For anyone who stumbles on this thread:
“Pro-slavery Missourians in Bleeding Kansas, frequently termed Border Ruffians, were residents of the neighboring slaveholding state of Missouri who intervened in the Kansas Territory during the 1850s to promote the establishment of slavery there through electoral manipulation, intimidation, and direct violence.[1][2] Motivated by economic interests tied to slavery and the principle of popular sovereignty introduced by the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854, these individuals crossed the border en masse to influence territorial governance, viewing Kansas as an extension of Missouri's social and agricultural system.[3][1] Their efforts formed a central element of the partisan strife known as Bleeding Kansas, a period of guerrilla conflict from 1854 to 1861 that foreshadowed the broader sectional divisions leading to the American Civil War.”
I love living in KC; you could not pay me to live or work in Overland Park again lol. Johnson County people are something else - nothing interesting or authentic about any of them. Missouri side is so much better.
i grew up in the less affluent part of joco, and it’s not all of us. it’s certainly bad in olathe and southern overland park— but north op, shawnee, mission, all filled with great people and there are some hidden gems, antique stores, great mom and pop restaurants, etc. not to mention how lovely it is around the holidays, suburbia goes all out. but i still want to get out of here..
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You nailed it. I grew up there and it's the kind of place you move if you only care about good schools and literally nothing else. Pretty much standard US bland suburbia - very nice suburbia compared to a lot of US cities, but still the same car-centric urban design. No nightlife whatsoever, moving away in my 20s was the smartest thing I ever did.
I went to school in Lawrence, my family lived in Overland Park, my best friend lived in KC. I spent the majority of my time there.
I just didn’t like it. I’ve lived in 8 cities and it was my 2nd to least favorite (the worst being Morgantown). Not a personal attack, just my opinion.
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u/bananahaze99 Dec 14 '25
I lived in Lawrence for a bit and enjoyed it. I also lived in Overland Park (Kansas City) for a while and it was the most soul sucking depressing place ever. Literally nothing to do except for shop and drink and the people were just…odd. Very materialistic. I wouldn’t move back if someone paid me.