Has anyone dropped everything and moved?

If one could sort themselves out with a good n plumpish girlfriend the winters might not be so bad. It's just easy to go into monk mode and stack money.

 

I can not speak of North Dakota but don't knock the "Swamp" until you have tried it.....enjoyed living in Central Florida and now I am here



But I do miss this every now and again

 

The one’s fleeing California aren’t Libs!

 

It's the news stories that really put me off when it comes to Florida that and having worry every five years if you shit is going to get washed out to sea

 

Hi. Not a lib. Lived my whole life in Orange County California. Split CA for our new home in AZ and could not be happier. Been here a little over a year. It was a must for me to find a state UNLIKE the one I left. Having a wife who was also getting sick of our state and not having kids made our move easier. My folks also followed us over here. Also not libs. Life is short. Change is good. Go for it OP!!!

 

OP, if I can do it you can do it. Earlier this year I filled my 08 2wd access cab with all my shit(TV, desk, boxes of clothes) and hit the road without a job lined up. 3 moths later I bought a new TRD Off-Road. Things aren't the greatest but they've worked out. My parents thought it was just a fit and they'd go bail me out in a few months but I've been sticking it out pretty good.

Now my dilemma is that I have job offers back home(got another today) and as much as I love the farm I really don't want to go back to that dump known as California.

A few younger libs who can't afford the San Francisco lifestyle try to head out to Portland and Seattle(almost same cost). Funny thing is lots of hostility in Oregon against Californians even amongst liberals which makes me lol.

 

OP - one thing to do is wherever you visit/scope out/plan to go, make sure there are signs of a viable middle class. I've been noticing that big cities have been losing the middle class. It's probably shrinking everywhere though.

Also make sure it's a "business friendly" state. Business owners live in the real world. Where I live the middle class is shrinking and businesses are going away. Social tensions seem high as well. I started feeling this vibe about 6 years ago and it had nothing to do with the "current" president in office.

Recently (over the past 5 years or so) there was a huge effort to make inner city DC a palatable place for young professionals. The problem is no one feels safe because DC has stupid policies that don't take the criminal element off the streets. An example is when someone is a murder suspect and DC will put an ankle monitor on them and tell them to show up on such and such date. Then everyone seems surprised when these animals cut off their ankle monitors, continue killing people and don't show up for their court date. Everywhere else I have ever lived will jail/imprison someone suspected of muder. Not DC. No one feels safe and those that bought into the DC dream are leaving in droves.

I always had enough sense to live comfortably away from DC even though I worked there for a while.

When people ask about having a career in government I always let them know to prepare themselves to be underwhelmed, unimpressed and to have a backup plan.

 

Sounds like every liberal shithole I've ever lived in. Controlled by naive elitists who think society is at fault for the crimes neanderthals commit, consequenly making the poor people they pretend to care for so much less safe and more disenfranchised.

 

Yeah almost all the OC Californians are conservatives (with the exception of Santa Ana). We make good money, and we hate the high taxes, but the coastal weather and beautiful beaches make it worth it. I think I could move to Utah or Texas, but my wife grew up in Huntington a mile from the beach and I know that when her mom dies, I'm selling my house and we are moving right back there.

For a while, I was poor and renting a room in Costa mesa while working as a shuttle driver at the Pelican Hill resort. I spent so much time in Newport on the Penninsula where people have multimillion dollar homes. The area is so nice and I got to enjoy it for free. I suppose when you're young with no responsibilities or assets, politics and taxes don't matter as much.

If you're just looking to waste some time, I recommend living in the OC for a while. If you're looking to start a family, find a career, and buy a home (and another Tacoma), I'd say get out of CA. It's definitely an uphill battle to be successful here.

 

Thanks everyone, you've inspired me!

 

Ill be right behind you. Lucky to have a decent skill set (carpenter for 7yrs, union plumber for 5 and counting). Not much money in savings but once we can buy here we'll be moving and living off the rent and whatever job i can lock down. Pay anywhere out of cali sucks but then again the cost of living is usually 40% less or more. Los Angeles is the worst place ive ever been. Plenty of work but its bloodthirsty here and everyone is trying to screw you. Union is pretty much dead here anyways with the amount of corruption going on.

We've looked at all the bordering states. Homes are astronomically cheaper and twice the size. Less taxes. Less BS. Less people. One more year to see if my company will make me a final offer or else we're gone.

 

I too, love the California weather, having grown up in Southern Ohio.

But, like the op, I am tired of the traffic, taxes, stupid gun laws, high cost housing and then the jury verdict in the woman who was killed on the San Francisco pier!

The wife and I are looking to move, but with kids and grandkids here........................it will be tough.

good news is AZ or TX will allow us enough money for several trips a year back to see them.

She retires in 14 months,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,adios Kommiefornia!

so run fast, run hard, but mostly just run.

 

Just dont move to NH, its terrible.

 

Do it.

Greatest thing I have ever done. Wife and I traveled Europe for two months then did New Zealand for 7 months. Helpx is a backpackers website, you stay in exchange for work. They feed you and pay all your bills. We did it all over New Zealand. 1 year visa is free to all u.s. citizens. Tickets are the most expensive part. We are having a bit of trouble getting back adjusted to the living in one place life but we are okay with it because we took such a huge risk to get out. You will find that there are A LOT of people from around the world doing the same thing. Great places to make long time friends and good conversations. I would recommend it to anyone who has a good head and doesn’t often find themselves getting into trouble. Last thing you want is to be in jail in another country.
Also, other countries have a completely different lifestyle. It’s skmething you need to see for yourself. It will change how you live here in the “live to work” United States of America.

 

Yup. Right after college, a buddy and I were on our way from NY state to go live the high life in New Orleans... we got as far as DC where we had friends, and got jobs (me as a waiter, my buddy as a temp office worker). It was a lot of fun living in DC in my early 20's. I lasted about a year, where I packed up again after getting a job counting fish on the commercial fishing boats in Alaska for the NMFS.

I don't regret either time packing up and going on these adventures.

The only regret I have is the function of currently being a 45-year old middle class dad from NH... I wish I had started a Roth IRA asap out of college... even putting $25 a month in it back then. Ha.

 

Back in the 80's when I was doing construction work in the upper Midwest, I was tired of lack of work in the winter and just decided to go somewhere else for a change. Packed up all my possessions in my '74 Chevy 1/2 ton, had some brackets welded up to attach to my back bumper to hold my Yamaha 400, and moved to Houston. I knew no one there and had no job lined up.

Definitely exhilarating starting a new chapter in ones life, and I met a lot of great people.

I'd guess it's probably easier to do something like this when one's younger and single. If the SoCal milieu is draining you, definitely get out and find another scene.

 

My sorry ex wife buying a home one mile down the road is causing me to move 15 minutes further away from the bitch.

All kidding aside I think having the balls to get up and roll out is awesome and makes for good memories. Load up your Tacoma
and hit the road. Only advice I would suggest is move to a location where you will love the weather. Enough peeps on Tacoma World
that can hook you up no matter where you move. Start trolling in the forum section that covers the area you are looking at moving to.

 

WHAT IF I could work 8-10 months and still get my full bene's , my a$$ would own homes in both states Florida where I am now and back on the "Seacoast"

I am only 50ish so a few more years with just "3 seasons" would be NICE