(no subject)
I told a few people, but I guess I'm not a hot topic on the grapevine so I should probably tell a few more. I'm lazy though, so I'm making an LJ post. I decided to move back to Binghamton. I'm not sure it can be classified as "moving back" as to be fair, I never really settled here. Not to say I didn't try; I found work, made friends, explored and looked into houses a little. I guess in the end I didn't mesh well with the west coast. I miss my family and friends something horrible, and that was a big nail in the coffin for me.
The trip went fine. Mary and I made it across the country in less than five days and we learned our way around the Bay Area pretty well. The wedding, while a lot of fun, I think impeded our finding of a place. To be fair, we probably should have been looking while everything was going on (for jobs and a place to live. Up till that point [late June] Mary was still looking for work and I had worked a few days as a professional panhandler for a non-profit) but it was like, two weeks of Mary and Steve's friends and family visiting and there was always so much to do. In early July I got a job at a call center doing telephone surveys which was awfully boring, but a nice, steady paycheck. Mary found a job at a scrapbook store a week or two later which has been awesome for her.
I'm going to try to format this as things I disliked and things I liked:
During all of this I came to a series of conclusions blanketed under the umbrella of missing home. I know most of us from Binghamton shit on the area constantly, but the truth is (and most of us will admit it) is that the area is a pretty nice place to live overall. Prices things across the board are significantly lower than in other metropolitan areas, though that's balanced out by high-ish taxes. As for the Bay Area, EVERYTHING is at least 25% higher: taxes, food prices, gas, rent, etc, while wages are ~15% higher. I'll give you that the area has a nice public transit system and lots of stuff going on, but we have stuff going on in Bing too and we're near places that have shit going on (NYC/Syracuse/Scranton, etc). Oh yeah, and California is bankrupt, meaning that social services will be cut likely leading to an increase in crime. Sounds awesome! (Not). Basically all that means it's harder to save money, and I love saving money for rainy days.
Pro: The weather is FANTASTIC. I haven't felt overheated all summer. The sun is a bit harsh, but it shines constantly and it rarely rains. The climate is just gorgeous and it is one of the things I'll miss most.
Con: People out here are so passive-aggressive about so much. It's hard to explain, it's just a vibe you get from people while driving(I absolutely HATE HATE HATE driving out here. I cannot wait to not be driving here omg), in lines for stuff, conducting business transactions, etc. At least in NY people are honest about hating you. Everything in California is so roundabout and indirect. Keeps you guessing I suppose, but not fun and at times far too stressful.
Pro: Some of the people out here are fantastic. I met some really cool people and was often able to start a random conversation with people on the street (or get dragged into one). That was pretty cool at times. I certainly had fun with the people I met, but I've already got great relationships with people back home, and it kinda hurt to feel like I have to abandon those connections to forge new ones here.
Con: The Bay Area is super unfriendly to cars. You have to pay to park pretty much everywhere, street cleaning is done at random times (because there are so many streets) so it's hard to know when and where you can park without searching for signs (many of which are obstructed or completely blocked by trees and other things). Tolls to drive into SF are $6 which makes sense, just kinda sucks, and the rates to park anywhere are sooo high. It's rare to visit a business and have parking available to you.
Next is the matter of my teaching career. There are about the same number of jobs available to me here as there are back home, but to teach here I have to take additional exams to get certified, meaning my certification that I was told was going to be good here, isn't. I'm done shelling out hundreds of dollars for fucking state tests. I also don't know the curriculum out here like I do New York's. I want to start subbing in upstate districts so that I have some ins for work when I'm ready for a stable career. As much as I think I'd like a steady teaching job now, I think the sub work is what I need for the time being. Let's me be flexible for a while longer while still making some money.
Last, though probably should have been first, is Mary. I would have left a week or two earlier at least if she wasn't here. We decided we're going to stay together, which was a huge relief. She's going to stay here, in California, for a while longer (how long? No one knows!) and make her own way in the world. When she feels like she's done what she set out to do, she will hop on a plane and fly out to New York and move in with me. Yay! I was SO scared that if I left she'd say "FUCK YOU!" and just stay here and dump me. The decision we came to, while not perfect, is FAR preferable to my fears. I feel like a dick for leaving her out here, but I know she can take care of herself, and she wasn't fully exploring the area with me around, so I sincerely hope she takes advantage of everything the Bay Area has to show her before she comes back. It is a cool area and I'd love to come back and vacation here, but just like NYC, it's not someplace I want to live.
So yeah, that's basically the whole story. I'm going to leave my computer here for Mary to use, then she'll bring it back to NY with her somehow. I'm going to by a nice-ish gaming computer from Newegg once I get back (yay savings!) and start looking for places with Paul. We may be interested in a 3rd roommate, so anyone who's interested drop us a line. I'll be leaving this evening after having a last dinner with Mary, Kathryn and Steve, and I should HOPEFULLY be home by Saturday. I'm going to a Christening on Sunday where I'll be able to see my Dad's half of the family (with whom things seem a bit rocky among the family, but that's another entry entirely) and that'll be awesome. That is, provided I'm not completely exhausted from the trip, but we'll see how I feel. Then I'll be looking for work and places to live as of next week. See you all soon!
The trip went fine. Mary and I made it across the country in less than five days and we learned our way around the Bay Area pretty well. The wedding, while a lot of fun, I think impeded our finding of a place. To be fair, we probably should have been looking while everything was going on (for jobs and a place to live. Up till that point [late June] Mary was still looking for work and I had worked a few days as a professional panhandler for a non-profit) but it was like, two weeks of Mary and Steve's friends and family visiting and there was always so much to do. In early July I got a job at a call center doing telephone surveys which was awfully boring, but a nice, steady paycheck. Mary found a job at a scrapbook store a week or two later which has been awesome for her.
I'm going to try to format this as things I disliked and things I liked:
During all of this I came to a series of conclusions blanketed under the umbrella of missing home. I know most of us from Binghamton shit on the area constantly, but the truth is (and most of us will admit it) is that the area is a pretty nice place to live overall. Prices things across the board are significantly lower than in other metropolitan areas, though that's balanced out by high-ish taxes. As for the Bay Area, EVERYTHING is at least 25% higher: taxes, food prices, gas, rent, etc, while wages are ~15% higher. I'll give you that the area has a nice public transit system and lots of stuff going on, but we have stuff going on in Bing too and we're near places that have shit going on (NYC/Syracuse/Scranton, etc). Oh yeah, and California is bankrupt, meaning that social services will be cut likely leading to an increase in crime. Sounds awesome! (Not). Basically all that means it's harder to save money, and I love saving money for rainy days.
Pro: The weather is FANTASTIC. I haven't felt overheated all summer. The sun is a bit harsh, but it shines constantly and it rarely rains. The climate is just gorgeous and it is one of the things I'll miss most.
Con: People out here are so passive-aggressive about so much. It's hard to explain, it's just a vibe you get from people while driving(I absolutely HATE HATE HATE driving out here. I cannot wait to not be driving here omg), in lines for stuff, conducting business transactions, etc. At least in NY people are honest about hating you. Everything in California is so roundabout and indirect. Keeps you guessing I suppose, but not fun and at times far too stressful.
Pro: Some of the people out here are fantastic. I met some really cool people and was often able to start a random conversation with people on the street (or get dragged into one). That was pretty cool at times. I certainly had fun with the people I met, but I've already got great relationships with people back home, and it kinda hurt to feel like I have to abandon those connections to forge new ones here.
Con: The Bay Area is super unfriendly to cars. You have to pay to park pretty much everywhere, street cleaning is done at random times (because there are so many streets) so it's hard to know when and where you can park without searching for signs (many of which are obstructed or completely blocked by trees and other things). Tolls to drive into SF are $6 which makes sense, just kinda sucks, and the rates to park anywhere are sooo high. It's rare to visit a business and have parking available to you.
Next is the matter of my teaching career. There are about the same number of jobs available to me here as there are back home, but to teach here I have to take additional exams to get certified, meaning my certification that I was told was going to be good here, isn't. I'm done shelling out hundreds of dollars for fucking state tests. I also don't know the curriculum out here like I do New York's. I want to start subbing in upstate districts so that I have some ins for work when I'm ready for a stable career. As much as I think I'd like a steady teaching job now, I think the sub work is what I need for the time being. Let's me be flexible for a while longer while still making some money.
Last, though probably should have been first, is Mary. I would have left a week or two earlier at least if she wasn't here. We decided we're going to stay together, which was a huge relief. She's going to stay here, in California, for a while longer (how long? No one knows!) and make her own way in the world. When she feels like she's done what she set out to do, she will hop on a plane and fly out to New York and move in with me. Yay! I was SO scared that if I left she'd say "FUCK YOU!" and just stay here and dump me. The decision we came to, while not perfect, is FAR preferable to my fears. I feel like a dick for leaving her out here, but I know she can take care of herself, and she wasn't fully exploring the area with me around, so I sincerely hope she takes advantage of everything the Bay Area has to show her before she comes back. It is a cool area and I'd love to come back and vacation here, but just like NYC, it's not someplace I want to live.
So yeah, that's basically the whole story. I'm going to leave my computer here for Mary to use, then she'll bring it back to NY with her somehow. I'm going to by a nice-ish gaming computer from Newegg once I get back (yay savings!) and start looking for places with Paul. We may be interested in a 3rd roommate, so anyone who's interested drop us a line. I'll be leaving this evening after having a last dinner with Mary, Kathryn and Steve, and I should HOPEFULLY be home by Saturday. I'm going to a Christening on Sunday where I'll be able to see my Dad's half of the family (with whom things seem a bit rocky among the family, but that's another entry entirely) and that'll be awesome. That is, provided I'm not completely exhausted from the trip, but we'll see how I feel. Then I'll be looking for work and places to live as of next week. See you all soon!