9 June 2010, 6:21 am
I am wanting to move to California in a couple years and I need some advice on places, money, rent...etc. First, I am 34, single with no kids. Just me and my adorable rat terrier Wyatt that I got from a rescue shelter. I live in a small town about 1.5 hours south of St. Louis Missouri. It has a population of about 13,000. Small conservative bible fanatic town. I on the other hand am pretty much the complete opposite. I am a Humanist and I am a Liberal, so needless to say, I don't have many close friends here...lol I currently work at a billing company, we pay medicaid clms for about 12+ states. I currently make 13.00 an hour, which for this town, is pretty good pay. There are way too many 'country boys' here with no college education and only want to drink beer on the weekends. It is VERY difficult to find a man to have an intelligent conversation with. The only thing to do in this town is a bowling alley, or bars, or go to Walmart. (not my idea of culture and entertainment) I would love to move to California. My ideal place is a small town (by California standards..lol) of about 50,000-100,000 people. Not looking for a huge city but big enough to have stuff to do..i.e. museams, coffee shops, jazz clubs (or something like it) maybe a park or two to walk my dog and take a jog. Somewhere safe (since I am alone) to where I can go out during the day by myself and not be worried, or where I can go to the beach and not be scared being by myself. I am in college right now, but wold be continuing my education over there if I do move. I am currently going for social work which may later turn into psychology or maybe even working at a non profit org. I have lived in Missouri my whole life and am just wanting something different and more of what I am looking for as far as a community. I would like to start saving and maybe move out there in a couple years. How much do you think I would need to live in the areas I mention below? And how much would I need to make annually to be able to live in these cities/towns? I would love to be close to the beach and in an area with very little rain and mild temps all year. With all this being said...I have been looking into a few places to live. Can anyone who knows these areas and (now my life story) tell me if these are any good areas or not. I don't want to go from a small town to a HUGE city..I would love to just start at a semi small town with pop 50,000-100,000 (as stated earlier) I have looked into Bakersfield, Thousand Oaks, Ventura county, Gilroy, San Clemente, also in North Ca--Livermore These are the basic ones I have found that seem to have what I am looking for, however, reading about the towns only takes you so far. I would love to hear from some people with first hand experience of any of these places. Or your oppionon on what town would be best for a person from the Midwest. I know this is a lot of info, but I appreciate any input you have! I am new to this whole experience, it is something I have never done before but I am excited! p.s. oh, and also a town with NICE people would also be great! :) Thaanks so much in advance for reading my story and all your advice and suggestions! MovintoCA!... Read More »
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