Should I move south to California??

[Shy Tall Guy]

The job situation sucks here (it is really hard to find a job), I am tired of the rain six months out of the year preventing me from doing what I enjoy most (riding my bike), and the constant grey skies depress me.

I love it here in the summer - most of the time, but I could probably get a job in a small town about 30 minutes east of San Fran (I don't really want to live/work in Silly Valley) where the cost of living is much lower than SF, and while it is isn't exciting tech (just data processing), at least it would be a job and I could ride my bike more often.

I dislike it when it is really hot there, but it would be better than the constant rain and cold here, and I know I would like the sunshine better than the dark and dreary skies here.

It is such a hassle to move though, and the job would be boring, and I would miss the trees and mountains.

 

[Nigel]

One of the things that I love about living in California is the fact that, depending on where you live (and from the sound of where you're looking, this would be the case), it is a relatively short drive to the mountains, trees, and winter snow as well as to beaches, lakesides, sand, and surf. You have to decide if riding your bike would give you enough pleasure to displace the monotony of your job. Personally, I would look for work doing what I love to do, and see if the location and cost of living makes it workable.

But then what do I know. I'm in a profession where there is 90 percent unemployment among union members, and of the number of working people, only about 10 percent earn yearly wages above the poverty line. So, I guess, take everything I say with a grain of panic.....

Nigel

 

[Shy Tall Guy]

One of the things that I love about living in California is the fact that, depending on where you live (and from the sound of where you're looking, this would be the case), it is a relatively short drive to the mountains, trees, and winter snow as well as to beaches, lakesides, sand, and surf.

Well, the same can be said for here, only more so as everything is closer yet. I've visited the area a number of times (on biz and personal biz) from the south edge of Sil Valley up Sacramento, and the thing I didn't like about the eastside (Calyton/Concord) was that it was almost like a desert in that there was mostly just grassy hills, and that it took more than an hour to get up into the mountains - although I could be wrong as I didn't go any further east than Sack-o-tomato.

You have to decide if riding your bike would give you enough pleasure to displace the monotony of your job. Personally, I would look for work doing what I love to do, and see if the location and cost of living makes it workable.

Ideally it would be nice to have a great job and a great place to live, but right now I don't have a job at all, and I terribly bored without one, and only moderately bored when I do have one.

I would like to stick around here, and I could stay around another 6 months or so if I cashed out my 401k, but I would lose money and have to pay taxes, and then there is no guarantee that the economy will turn around by then either. I had hoped it would have turned around by last fall, but it doesn't seem to be doing anything yet, and I don't know when it will.

 

[seXieleXie]

I love it here in the summer - most of the time, but I could probably get a job in a small town about 30 minutes east of San Fran (I don't really want to live/work in Silly Valley) where the cost of living is much lower than SF, and while it is isn't exciting tech (just data processing), at least it would be a job and I could ride my bike more often.

I dislike it when it is really hot there, but it would be better than the constant rain and cold here, and I know I would like the sunshine better than the dark and dreary skies here.

It is such a hassle to move though, and the job would be boring, and I would miss the trees and mountains.

what town stg? there really isn't anywhere 30 minutes out of the city that gets especially hot during the summer. up to the 80s, low 90s when it's bad, but that's the exception rather than the rule.

there are trees and mountains in california. with the better weather it would be easier for you to take your bike to those places.

the real question is the job, and of course leaving all your friends up north. are you unemployed where you are? is it impossible to get a job? does the job in cali have opportunity to advance? if you grew to hate it could you find something else?

obviously no one can decide this for you. best of luck in whatever you choose.

 

[LadyDarkFire]

I happen to live 30- 45 minutes east of San Francisco, and I love it. One thing, the tech industry is not doing to well at the moment. Not alot of jobs around here are being opened or filled. The trails in the county are fairly good, we do have some rainy season, but the trails are still accessable. Couple of California questions. Do you own a car? If you don't, you might find this part of the country a bit difficult to get around. County Connections (The Bus Service) flat out SUCKS, and BART is only along planned routes. Yosemite is a day's drive, so it's nice for 3 day weekends, and if you miss the cold, Tahoe is also accessable. One thing, the Lamorinda area is not cheaper than San Fransico to live in, and alot of the places in Concord/ Walnut Creek should be looked at Carefully before deciding where to live. Oakland and Berkeley, I'm not as sure about, but are pretty expensive in rent. Also, budget for ALOT more money in power.

 

[Shy Tall Guy]

Re: Re: Should I move south to California??

what town stg?

Clayton/Concord

the real question is the job, and of course leaving all your friends up north.

Actually I know as many people there as I do here.

are you unemployed where you are? is it impossible to get a job?

Yep - have been for some time (since 3-1-2001). At first I just took the opportunity to take a sabatical since I could afford to, but then about October I started looking for work. There just isn't much here, and it is getting worse not better. I could get a low paying boring job here if I wished, but I don't want to.

does the job in cali have opportunity to advance? if you grew to hate it could you find something else?

The job in Cal. would be working for my brother, and I could probably have any job there that I would be qualified to do. I could probably get a number of other jobs there once I was there as there are about 10 times as many jobs open there than here - but that would mean living in Silly Valley where cost of living is rather high and traffic horrible.

I don't know if there are better jobs (with respect to being involved in some interesting tech), but I suspect that most of those jobs are down by San Jose/etc.

 

[Shy Tall Guy]

One thing, the tech industry is not doing to well at the moment. Not alot of jobs around here are being opened or filled.

That may be, but there are still about ten times as many jobs as here being advertised on Monster/HotJobs.

But it doesn't matter; the job is not hi-tech, but it would be working with computers (that is about all I can do) and it would be mine. I wouldn't like working for a close relative though.

The trails in the county are fairly good, we do have some rainy season, but the trails are still accessable.

My "bike" is a motorcycle.

Couple of California questions. Do you own a car?

Yes I own a car - I know what it is like to get around down there having spent some time there myself. My commute wouldn't be that big as I would live in the Clayton area and work in Concord. No way would I want to live or work in San Fran or *shudder* Oakland.

 

[Nogard]

Go for it. I love the pacific northwest but a lot don't. If you would be happier there, go. The only one you have to please (thinking you are single) is you. Life is to short to be unhappy. Lots of luck and think positive

 

[cymbidia]

Hey STG, you know i just left Washington (eastern ~shudder~ Washington) to move back home to the Bay area. I live an hour north of the City, but the Bay area is the Bay area, pretty much.

Where i live, it's been in the 70's during the day, the flowers are blooming in white yellow and purple masses all over the sides of the roads, and endless trackless redwood pine and fir forests loom over us to just to the north. We've been getting about an hour's worth of well-behaved rain every three days or so, i'd guess. The landscape is painted with the vivid green of new grass and wildly exhuberant mustard is rioting into bloom under acres and acres of still-bare grapevines and apple trees.

It's beyond glorious here.

Ahem.
And WAY too many people know it, too.
Just stay there, big guy.





(OOOOOOOOOH! New smilies! How long have i been gone????)

 

[Shy Tall Guy]

Go for it. I love the pacific northwest but a lot don't. If you would be happier there, go.

Well, I've lived most of my life here, except for a few months here and there (boot camp in Alameda, "A" school in Virginia, 6 months or so in Alaska, and a few months in Montana), and I am thinking it may be time for a change because I am getting really sick of the weather here.

I did live for a little over a year in eastern washington (tri-cities) and hated it there; I like to visit the desert, but don't want to live there. If I could live north of Spokane that would be okay, but there are even fewer jobs there.

Right now the things that are holding me back are the physical moving (I hate that), the fact that it probably wouldn't be a very interesting job, and the reticence (sp?) I have about working for a close relative.

But if I don't get something soon I am going to have to do something!

 

[SpectreT]

Washington and Oregon sound like about as much fun as Central New York, jobwise. Good luck finding a living wage in my home town, unless you feel like chucking sleep and working two full-time jobs and a part-time one as well. I love this place dearly, it's my home, but there's no way I could live here without the support of my parents, and I'm 30 fer Christ's sake!

This thread caught my attention because I'm going to be looking into new areas to live/work soon, if the situation keeps deteriorating around here, as my parents will have to move if my father's department is eliminated, as they've been threatening to do for a couple of years now.

Kind of a bittersweet thought. I've wanted my own life for about ten years, now. But not like this. Of course, I'll take it any way I can get it, short of hurting the people who have given so much of their lives to mine.

 

[Cheyenne]

STG: Could you move and take the job you don't really want for awhile? You can always look for a new one in your new home in 6 months to a year. Or longer, if the market doesn't improve by then. But at least you'd be employed while you're looking.

If you are to the point of cashing in 401(k) money, it may be time to settle for something that isn't quite perfect, but not exactly hell, either.

 

[Shy Tall Guy]

STG: Could you move and take the job you don't really want for awhile?

Yes I could after a year or so.

If you are to the point of cashing in 401(k) money, it may be time to settle for something that isn't quite perfect, but not exactly hell, either.

I am not quite there yet, but that depends on how some other money sources work out, so it is a little up in the air.

The one thing nobody mentions, and that I just found out, was that CA has stat income taxes, whereas WA does not. I don't think it would make that much of a diff, because I think my income would be adjusted for it, but if my stock (not 401k - privately held stock) ever went public, then I would be looking at an addition 10% chunnk out of that money - unless I moved out of the state and went next door to Nevada (which is what my parents did when Oregon, out of the blue, decided they were going to tax their retirement income). I suppose, if it was that much money that I could retire, then it wouldn't matter, but it is something to keep in mind - and if it was a smaller amount, then I couldn't retire and CA would get their pound of flesh.

 

[SpectreT]

I didn't realize that there were any states that didn't have a State Income Tax.

We've got more friggin' taxes and absolutely nothing tangible to show for all the money we give to government, especially in this state.....

 

[Calamity Jane]

STG, I realize we're looking at this from both different gender, and different generation standpoints, but my first thought is usually 'what/where will make me personally happy?' second is 'what job can i get there that allows me to pursue the things that make me happy?'.

If you're unhappy with your current location, change it, even if it means you take a less than stellar job for awhile. More time on your bike, better weather, easy access to mountains, water, etc. Probably more opportunity to go out and meet people too, but that's just a guess. The job is secondary.

There are reasons I was working at a convenience store. It gave me days off to ride my horse, weekends I could foxhunt, and it payed just enough to support my horse habit. I made a lot more money as a graphic designer for the Navy, but my hours were less my own and I had less time to spend doing the things that I love.

 

[Demian]

Have you tried Taco Del Mar before you Go?

Too much Rain?

go to the Desert
Where waste iz the Staple of the rich

 

[PacificBlue]

Hmm...difficult decision to make. I was unemployed after my layoff for almost a year. I went to placement agency after placement agency, scored above 90% on all their stupid exams and still couldn't find work because the economy had bitten the dust. The jobs just weren't there. I heard time and again that in a different economy I could be placed within 24 hours. I also filled out applications or sent in resumes for everything and anything that looked remotely interesting in the paper, on the Internet, or was recommended by people I knew. I am still shocked at how long it took me to find work, especially having a college degree in such a generic/versitle discipline as Business Administration. Water under the bridge at this point. I learned some important lessons about life and myself. I view things differently now so I don't think the experience of being laid off was in vain. I am thankful that it happened as strange as that may sound.

I finally was offered and accepted a position with a company that was a paycut from where I was and a step back in responsibility. At the time, I figured it was better to be working than not and there was a lot of room for growth potential. It has been 4 months and although my pay won't change until the end of the summer, my responsibilities levels have increased by leaps and bounds once I earned the trust of my employer. I am challenged and very, very happy. This is not to say that I don't get discouraged when I sit down and try to work out a budget and I realize just how tight things are (this morning for example...yeesh!). I know I'm going to make it and I'm learning to live on less each and every day.

I have no idea where your job search has taken you or what you've already tried but maybe a computer job in a different industry would be a possibility? I'm in an industry that I never dreamed I'd work in and extremely happy. I'm not at all convinced that high-tech is the place to be right now. The jobs are unstable in my opinion. Everyone I know in that industry is constantly stressed about when or if their job will go away.

I will agree that gray weather is extremely depressing when life isn't going so hot. I would be reluctant to encourage such a big and expensive move when from what you've already written it seems it would make you even more unhappy. 1. You aren't "in love" with California. 2. You really don't want to work for your brother.

Job searching is hard work and taxing on the emotions. I feel for your situation, I really do. {{{Hugs}}} I would encourage you to keep going and maybe try an avenue or two that seem really unlikely to pan out. Sometimes the most amazing things happen when we take a chance.

~PacificBlue~

 

[Desert Amazon]

 

[Texan]

Hey STG

If you are open to new places, maybe you should consider Austin, Texas. They call it the "Silicon Valley of the South". It is the home of Dell and 3M, with a major IBM manufacturing center.

The area is very pretty with excellent places to ride (motorcycles). Austin sits in the edge of the "Texas Hill Country". I know it's not the Rockies, but it isn't bad. It gets very hot in the summer, but it's far enough inland to have all four seasons. If you like water, the area has an abundance of deep, clear water lakes.

The city is "young" with the Univ of Texas, and there is an excellent night life. Austin is also the capital of Texas, so you have a chance to meet future presidents in any little downtown cafe.

There are several websites and a couple of newsgroups with tons of computer related job listings in the Austin area. If you are interested, let me know and I'll send you some links.

Just let me warn you... most folks who move to Texas.... stay here.

 

[lavender]

 

[on_the_verge]

I have been out to Californiafour times and I like it a great deal. I might get into specifics later. It's going to be nice to have a change and enjoy that the beach and mountains are near. Besides, NYC is a great place, but I think I will take a three year vacation from there.

I am actually job hunting for jobs in S.F. and getting a place is being done by a friend right now. I am hoping I get a reply in the next few weeks and can have a job before moving out there.

Shy Tall Guy, no matter where you move, you are going to dislike something about it eventually. I imagine you just need to asses and see what fits you and what the reality of relocating. Perhaps you could write a list of what is important to you about a place to live and see if they are compelling enough and the ideal place to move will be warranted.

 

[Shy Tall Guy]

If you're unhappy with your current location, change it, even if it means you take a less than stellar job for awhile. More time on your bike, better weather, easy access to mountains, water, etc. Probably more opportunity to go out and meet people too, but that's just a guess. The job is secondary.

The job is not really secondary to me; I have done everything from digging ditches and shoveling shit to doing what I do now, and job satisfaction is a large concern for me.

When I had less than stellar jobs I eventually got to the point with the job where I dreaded getting ready for work and longed for the weekend. Some jobs were okay and it took a few years before I felt that way about them, then I would look for another job. A number of my jobs have different in that I liked what I was doing and actually looked forward to going into work almost all the time.

I don't want to spend 8-10 hours in a boring mind numbing irritating job just so I can play on the weekends - so the job does matter.

To be truthful I am not sure what I would be doing working for my brother, so it might actually be interesting.

PB, I do have reservations about working for my brother - I like the the independence of not having your work life being tied to your personal life - I am sure most of you can think of the possible ramifications of working for a family member.

It is not that my brother is hard to get along with, but he is different than me; more ambitious whereas I am more laid back. There is also the possible resentment of others when you go into such a situation; there is likely to be somebody that would resent my getting a job there solely because I am the owner's brother. I know I dislike it when I see nepotism.

As for liking or not liking CA; I do like the trees and ready access to the backwoods up here, but then there are about 6 months out of the year where it is more hassle than it is worth. As I get older I become more and more sensitive to the cold, wet, and dark, and even on a day like today where it is sunny, I won't go for a ride because it is just too cold.

Whereas in CA, it is sunny more often than not, and while it takes longer to get to the good areas, at least I would have access to most of them year around (the Sierras not really being accessible in the winter).

I used to keep busy in the winter by hiking, riding in the mud, X-country skiing, etc. - but most of that I can't do anymore as my back won't let me.

So I am looking towards a warmer clime, thinking I could use a change from the Pacific NorthWet.

 

[Shy Tall Guy]

You're still close enough to your daughter and parents, it may work out very well for you.

Well, I would be considerably further away from my daughter, but she is basically on her own pretty much now, and she doesn't need me to visit her so often as when she was growing up - so I see her about 4-6 times a year, and I could still do that from CA.

I would be even closer to my parents as they are in Las Vegas during the winter.

 

[Shy Tall Guy]

Re: Hey STG

If you are open to new places, maybe you should consider Austin, Texas.

The "Hill Country" is attractive to me, and I have kept my eyes on it for a while, but there really aren't any more jobs for me there than here - whereas I pretty much have a job waiting for me in CA.

 

[Shy Tall Guy]

Perhaps you could write a list of what is important to you about a place to live and see if they are compelling enough and the ideal place to move will be warranted.

This thread is kind of my list; that is how I way the different pros and cons by talking them out with people. Thanks.