Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion The Water Cooler I'm Young, I'm Naive. Where to move after college?

Well, Graduation is approaching. One of my top job opportunities I have available enables me to work remotely, programming from wherever I so choose. This gives me the ability to move...well..anywhere.

While I don't really like working remotely a lot...it does give me the ability to try living in various places around the states.

Even if I don't land a job where working remotely is possible, I can concentrate my job-hunting efforts towards certain locales...and hopefully find a job in a good location.

Because I'm probably one of the youngest (as I know of) regular members here, I thought I could ask the knowledgeable (and older and wiser...) Axiom Family :-).

Here's a little bit about where I've lived my life...

Places I've lived

Chicago
I'm a Chicago Native. I love the city, but had the massive "suburbia" getting more and more packed and crowded. If I had a choice, I think I might like living in the city and not having a car.

Indiana
I go to school in the middle of Indiana. Upland to be exact. Besides the advantage of living in a fireworks-legal state with plenty of breathing room in farmland country, there is nothing to do for a single guy like me. It's a 20 minute drive to the nearest Wendy's. If I became a family man I might like the ability to buy a nice, private, big property for a low price, but I'm not at that stage in life yet.

Southern Florida
The previously mentioned company is based in Southern Florida, and I lived there last summer, and didn't like it as much as I thought. It. Was. HOT.

While I appreciated the weather somewhat and was indoors coding in the dark during the hottest parts of the day, being 85-95 degrees every day kinda got old. Going to bed in a sweat wasn't my favorite...and I had a huge ceiling fan above me.

Besides, one can go to the beach only so much. I did enjoy the fact that I could possibly go cycling all year round, or smoke cigars outside all year round, or just have the ability to be outside for a nice walk...but even at night it would be hot and muggy.

Places I'm scoping out

Colorado

I love the mountains. I've been backpacking with my dad and by myself in Rocky Mountain National Park on over 6 separate occaions. If I had a choice right now, I would be living either in Estes Park or Boulder right near RMNP. However, while I know I'll love the summers, I'm not sure how I'd like the winters being so close to the mountains (5 feet of snow anyone?)

Seattle, Washington

Mostly the reason I'm considering Seattle is because a friend works at Amazon, and referred me to them for a possibility at a position. Even if I do or don't get anywhere with Amazon...I started researching the location. They have mountains. Check. It's possible to enjoy the weather all year round. Check.

But...the weather thing comes with a catch...isn't it rainy and wet all year? Like, raining all the time? So, that means outdoor adventures or anything might get cut short by an annoying rainfall?

My professor even said in class that Idaho was the "best kept secret" of the US, because he loved it there. Who knows.


Final Thoughts

Basically, I want some place where I can truly enjoy the location, have a good atmosphere for connecting with people and doing stuff, be somewhat near civilization, and not spend gobs of cash doing any of the above.

I know you guys have had your own sets of experiences and location-hopping, so I'd love to hear any suggestions you guys have. Thanks a lot!

I think with the economy the way it is, a number of extra programmers, IT people now on the loose, I would be happy with a job anywhere I could get one.

An Aunt of mine was married to a man in the US AirF. years ago(so she moved around alot)...she presently lives in Washington St near Seatle, but has lived in Hawaii, North Carolina, Florida, Alaska and Arizona(I believe). The one place she said she loved the most was Alaska believe it or not. The west coast is quite expensive which could be a consideration for you otherwise Washington St or Oregon would be nice, I'm sure Colorado would be nice too.

I'll offer what little advice I have. I live in the middle of nowhere in Illinois, but my wife and I travel a lot and thus I have a few opinions....

Chicago is a wonderful city. You know that already. But if it's too packed and crowded for you, check out Milwaukee. Milwaukee has the lake, the same climate, and is only an hour(ish) away from your friends & family in Chicago. It's big enough to be a 'city', so there are plenty of things to do and keep you entertained. But it's small enough that you can easily get away from the sprawl.

Colorado. Amen, brother. I have family that lives in Boulder, and I visit as frequently as I can. We just about always visit RMNP and EP when we're there. Should a good job opportunity open up along the front range, I'm *there*. But there's a catch, and that catch is property values. The front range (Denver-Boulder) area is a *damn* expensive place to live. And there are a *lot* of people trying to live there. My uncle is a realtor in Boulder, and let me tell you, unless you're living way out on the plains, get ready to spend absurd amounts of money for property. Now with the economy in shambles, those values are falling. Maybe things are changing. Check out Fort Collins though. Lovely town, near the mountains, not too absurd prices. EP would be a fun place to live, but only if you really like winter. But like everywhere else that has to deal with winter, the city & people are prepared for it and it's not too bad. It is an awfully touristy town to actually live in. You'd be inundated with bus loads of tourists from May until October. That would annoy me.

I have also heard that Idaho is a 'gem' of a place to live. Rugged beauty of Colorado without the explosive property values and massive influx of tourists. I've also heard the same about parts of Montana.

I can't really offer any advice on the other places you listed. I have another uncle that lives near Portland, Oregon and routinely tells us all how perfect & beautiful it is there. I have another friend that lives in Seattle and has also commented many times that he absolutely loves the city. Never been to either, however.

Other places? That's a tough one. There are many 'cool' places to live.

One city that's always fascinated me is Vancouver, BC. Yes, out of the country. No, I've never been there. But I've known a few people who have, and one person that lived there for awhile. It's a beautiful city and I've heard many wonderful things about it. The people I've known who have visited all seem to say, "yeah, such a beautiful place. I'd love to just move there". Plus it's Canada. We all know how cool Canada is.

I've been to Asheville,NC a few times and it has always seemed like a neat place to live as well. Again, mountains & a lot of outdoor activity, but with a toned-down Winter. The 'vibe' felt a lot like Boulder there. You're also just a few hours away from the ocean - handy for weekend trips to the beach. Plus the people. There is such a thing as southern hospitality, and rarely have I met as many nice people as I did while in Asheville. No sweeping generalizations here.

I have another group of cousins that live in the Baltimore, MD area. They also seem to have generally positive things to say about the area.

Places I don't like? Atlanta. I've been there a couple of times and it just felt like a cluster-#&%@ of a city. Traffic was always horrible and I felt stressed the whole time I was there. It just seemed really hard to get from point A to point B. I've heard/read that the population growth of Atlanta in the past decade has outpaced the infrastructure, and that's exactly what it felt like when I was there. I just didn't find a lot of charm there.

Another no-go for me personally is NYC. Yes, *the* great NYC. I've visited a few times and really felt like it was just a dirty, crowded, over-rated place. I picked up absolutely none of the charm that I've found in other cities like Chicago, New Orleans, St. Louis, Milwaukee, Denver, Kansas City, etc. Just felt like I was surrounded by millions of angry people who all hated each other. A few million people are now lining up to throw me in the East River, but that's how I feel. Sue me, I'm a midwesterner.

I'm sure you'll get many more opinions on the matter. Take mine with a grain of salt. One thing I would say is to slow down and enjoy the process of deciding. At the risk of sounding like an old man, it's an exciting time of your life. Enjoy it!

Best of luck with your decision!

I look forward to seeing the other responses.

Peter, I have been to Vancouver (my parents live in nearby White Rock) and it is indeed a nice city. Surrounded by the coastal mountains and the ocean on the other side with a very moderate climate. Having lived in Southern Ontario most of my life, the people on the west coast(and I think this goes for the US too) are much more laid back than here. That's not a knock against Toronto by any means, it's also a beautiful city in it's own right, but the nicest areas in Ontario are mostly up in our cottage country(ask the folks in Dwight!!). For me, the summers in Northern Ontario are hard to compare.

Vancouver is nice but shares a bit of the same weather pattern as Seattle, although I do believe Vancouver gets more sunshine in the summer. If you are interested in Canada as a possiblity, Calgary is great, similar to Denver/Boulder with our proxiity to the Rockies but with out all the snow, or so I have heard from those that have lived in both. You just have to get used to our non-weather patterns, winter in April or August and spring in January or February, we just had several days at +14C after a few weeks in -20C. We do see lots of sunshine inspite of the weather changes.

Amen!


If you have the option of working 100% from home; how about moving to each of those cities that interested you for a few month? Sooner or later you'll find the right place for you.

Upon driving through atlanta...ugh. Hot. No ocean breeze (that made my stay in Florida bearable with the heat).

Alaska! That would be extreme, but interesting. I'm sure my sleep schedule would get messed up with the sun being out for more than 20 hours or less than 4 depending on the season. Hmm...

North Carolina seems like a nice place, I should look into that too. It's been in the back of my mind but I never really considered it that much. Southern hospitality sounds great :D.

Canada *might* be a stretch...I might have to get over some fun rivalry I've always had with some Canadians...and to "convert" and become one of them? Ha.

One of the nice things is that I have a few friends that definitely want to move somewhere else...so I might be able to take some friends with me wherever I go :D.

Thanks for the input you guys! This is kind of the time in my life where I think I know what I want to do, but I don't. Often I can get "tunnel vision" towards a goal, build that vision up over time, then wonder why that was my goal in the first place.

Thought of that too :-). Might be an odd mentality since I wouldn't want to "settle down."

I work in North Carolina now (I like it)...
I live in Indiana (LOVE IT)...

There is a lot to do in Indiana if you live by Indy. IMHO, it is the best kept secret of the Midwest. A big town (13th largest city in the USA) with small town feel, accessibility, and all those small town intangibles.

Also, it's dirt cheap to live here!

PS - 20 mins for Wendy's!!!! No Way! Unless you live 100 miles from Indy. You can be in a 4 star restaurant in less than 20 mins!.