The Pros of Living in Alaska (Anchorage: salary, work, houses)

[archytype]

superstition is right on. I would only add that in my time in Sitka and Juneau it seems that SE Alaska identifies more with Seattle than Anchorage. Not an insult at all just what I've noticed. My aunt and uncle live in Juneau and they say it's because a plane ticket to Seattle is often the same as one to Anchorage so the choice is easy.

[Georgia]

Had to provide a comparison as someone who lives in the Atlanta area but not all that trendy...

From tkx7:
I envision people helping their neighbors shoveling walkways and using cross country skiis or a doglsed to go to school. - No snow, small walkways. We escort our children to school so some recently released pedofile does not attempt to kidnap them

Moose roam freely up and down the Anchorage streets, being more of a concern than gangs or crime. - Only 19 Homicides? I think we had that last weekend. We don't have Moose but gangs and illegals roam the Atlanta streets on a regular basis

The citizens kill seals for blubber and hold ceremonies when the days start to get longer again. - We usually have citizens killing each other since our days are always long

All males have beards and wear flannel shirts. - Have that here too, but only with big pickem up trucks with the Rebel flag that Billy Bob places upside down cause he's to dumb to know about true Southern Culture.

From time to time, everyone sits around watching eskimos build fires, learning ways to live off the harsh land. - Maybe tourists? Same but it is usually vagrants sitting by the fire barrel off many Atlanta side streets. We don't have any harsh land, the developers have bulldozed most of it

People play hockey or go fishing for fun and enjoy making stabs at 'the lower 48.' - College Football, Catfishing, Huntin, in the county. The city enjoys making stab wounds at your lower extremities

On things MidniteBreeze mentioned, to be more vague: Georgia is ridiculously conservative, but the city of Atlanta is socialist liberal, the shopping is wonderul compared to any other city its size, and the dining options are pretty limited once you weed out the places that sound good but aren't.

The bottom line is that anyone moving to Georgia had better be doing so because of the nature it has to offer, in the North Mountains, and not because the city of Atlanta sounds interesting. It's dangerous, and it is definitely not on par with other cities its size in the states. And unless you spend a good chunk of your time doing things in Malls, or have family or some other reason to stay, you'll quite likely be wanting to move within two years.[

[debinmn]

This comparison of Atlanta to Anchorage sounds like Memphis that's why we moved to MN. It's a bit safer here and a better place to raise our kids. Now we might be moving to Alaska?????

I wonder if all of the big cities in the South are like this?

[Ms.Phitt]

Ok I couldn't resist... I had to provide a comparison as someone who lives in Los Angeles but is not all that trendy...

From tkx7 and Georgia:
I envision people helping their neighbors shoveling walkways and using cross country skiis or a doglsed to go to school. - No snow, small walkways. We escort our children to school so some recently released pedofile does not attempt to kidnap them Envision people avoiding their neighbors out of fear. No snow, but also no parking, no left turns 4-7pm, and no driving over 5 mph in many areas. We use a car to get our children to school even if it's right on the corner, because we're too afraid to walk down the street through all the gangs.

Moose roam freely up and down the Anchorage streets, being more of a concern than gangs or crime. - Only 19 Homicides? I think we had that last weekend. We don't have Moose but gangs and illegals roam the Atlanta streets on a regular basis Only 19 homicides? I think we have that by lunchtime every day. Ditto on the gangs and illegals, except that here they are the majority of the population.

The citizens kill seals for blubber and hold ceremonies when the days start to get longer again. - We usually have citizens killing each other since our days are always long The citizens and illegals kill each other for drugs and guns and hold street parties to celebrate, since our days are always long.

All males have beards and wear flannel shirts. - Have that here too, but only with big pickem up trucks with the Rebel flag that Billy Bob places upside down cause he's to dumb to know about true Southern Culture. Well, you got us there. Most of our males have shaved heads and wear huge shorts in order to conceal their guns, drugs, and cans of spray paint.

From time to time, everyone sits around watching eskimos build fires, learning ways to live off the harsh land. - Maybe tourists? Same but it is usually vagrants sitting by the fire barrel off many Atlanta side streets. We don't have any harsh land, the developers have bulldozed most of it Same on the vagrants and bulldozing. It's really harsh here all right, but I have to admit it's not because of the land.

People play hockey or go fishing for fun and enjoy making stabs at 'the lower 48.' - College Football, Catfishing, Huntin, in the county. The city enjoys making stab wounds at your lower extremities People get drunk/high and make public nuisances of themselves for fun - and ditto on the stabbing.

Georgia is ridiculously conservative, but the city of Atlanta is socialist liberal, the shopping is wonderul compared to any other city its size, and the dining options are pretty limited once you weed out the places that sound good but aren't. And L.A. is just plain ridiculous. Ok it's basically liberal but is becoming more and more like Tijuana. (Mind you, I could care less about race - heck, my spouse is Mexican.) I'm talking about the litter and filth left all over the streets and sidewalks, people with nothing to do just loitering everywhere, various run-down fleabag stores, and smelly fly-ridden diners. If you go to the ever-shrinking areas that aren't like that, the shopping and dining options are blow-your-mind awesome.

The bottom line is that anyone moving to Georgia had better be doing so because of the nature it has to offer, in the North Mountains, and not because the city of Atlanta sounds interesting. It's dangerous, and it is definitely not on par with other cities its size in the states. And unless you spend a good chunk of your time doing things in Malls, or have family or some other reason to stay, you'll quite likely be wanting to move within two years. The bottom line is that anyone moving to Los Angeles had better be doing so because they are rich enough to afford to live in one of the few non-warzone areas and don't mind risking their life to go out and enjoy the wonderful diversity and entertainment options here, or are violent/illegal themselves. The nature here consists of a few remaining lackluster, overtrampled parks (i.e. Griffith Park); I've been all over the continent and the nature everywhere else is at least 100 times better. This city is a cesspool if I ever saw one, and unless you spend a good chunk of your money to live in a half-decent neighborhood (read: $600,000+) or have some family or other reason to stay, you'll quite likely be wanting to move within 2 days. Or if you're like me and leaving will take time due to family considerations, you'll spend a good chunk of your time pulling out good chunks of your hair.

Yes, can you tell I came to this forum during my search for a new place to live?

[Ms.Phitt]

Anyway, as you can imagine from my previous post, I've had quite enough of the big city by now. So I would love to hear from you about any non-Anchorage areas you can describe, because I've found plenty of info about Anchorage but information on other areas is kind of sparse... things like cost of living, transportation, employment opportunities, food, general life, etc.

Just for reference my background is in computer repair, networks and electronics but I'd happily take general labor of any kind if it means I can live somewhere more peaceful.

[niceplacetovisit]

Originally Posted by superstition

As someone who has grown up and spent most of her life in Anchorage...

From tkx7:
I envision people helping their neighbors shoveling walkways and using cross country skiis or a doglsed to go to school. - No on all counts.

Moose roam freely up and down the Anchorage streets, being more of a concern than gangs or crime. - Yes on the first bit, to an extent. But no one is concerned, and with 19 homicides to date for this year, crime is quite a bit more attention-grabbing.

The citizens kill seals for blubber and hold ceremonies when the days start to get longer again. - These might be true in remote villages. I have no idea. It's definitely not a city thing.

All males have beards and wear flannel shirts. - On the beards, it is sad how accurate that is. Carhartts are more popular than flannel.

From time to time, everyone sits around watching eskimos build fires, learning ways to live off the harsh land. - Maybe tourists?

People play hockey or go fishing for fun and enjoy making stabs at 'the lower 48.' - Hockey isn't as popular as it may seem, except for the local Aces. The last part is absolutely true.

On things MidniteBreeze mentioned, to be more vague: Alaska is ridiculously conservative, the shopping is a joke compared to any other city its size, and the dining options are pretty limited once you weed out the places that sound good but aren't.

The bottom line is that anyone moving to Alaska had better be doing so because of the nature it has to offer, and not because the city of Anchorage sounds interesting. It isn't, and it is definitely not on par with other cities its size in the states. And unless you spend a good chunk of your time doing things outdoors, or have family or some other reason to stay, you'll quite likely be wanting to move within two years.

As someone who grew up in Anchorage and travels for a living...this post is SPOT ON about Anchorage.

A previous post mentioned "upscale" boutiques in anchorage...WHERE? One might consider a boutique in anchorage "upscale" because it's shelves are not adjustable...but most folks however would not.

Anchorage is incredibly conservative..HUGE southern baptist presence. And not gay friendly whatsoever. Others on here will tell you that most folks in Anchorage/Alaska do not care what others do and that is simply not true.

[mal_flisk]

I travel extensively throughout Alaska, and love the state. Village, town, city or wilderness, all have their appeal. There are villages so remote that I have to take 2 to three flights from Anchorage to get there. I have spent 2 months on Shemya, 2 weeks in St. George, a month on St Lawrence (never been to Little Diomede!), Dutch, Akutan, and thats just the Islands. Nothing is prettier than 2 million bird populating the cliffs of the Pribolofs, but nothing is noisier. I still get a kick out of watching moose pick their way across 4 lanes of traffic in Anchorage. My kids always get an annual warning in spring about the bears. I miss really GREAT bookstores, but until Powell's moves up from Portland, I'll live with Tital Wave. My worst traffic problems are during the Christmas season and tourist season. It takes me 15 minutes to cross Anchorage on a good day, and half an hour at its worst. I wish land was cheaper in the Anchorage bowl, but can still live in the Valley for cheaper (and mainly nicer) places to live. I wish I could convey the beauty of the drive from Glennallen to Valdez, or the look on my boys faces when they bring dinner home from the local streams, or the independent way they assume that everyone has the guts to live life to the fullest. I miss some hours of daylight in the long dark days of winter, but I get the aurora and most folks don't. I also have the summer solstice celebration to look forward to in June, and trophy level fishing that most people would kill for. I love combat fishing with outsiders, and talking tall tales with other dreamers like me. I grew up in Chicago, love it still, but you'll find me wandering around the state here, bundled up in my Carharts and winter beard, and wishing all my neighbors the joy of a happy holiday

[c.adam]

One thing I love about Alaska is a handshake still means something up here.

[HopefulGrad]

I'm in Louisville, Kentucky but am from Colorado and California, etc. (Air Force Brainiac, NOT brat), and am thinking of moving to Alaska after I complete my Masters degree in Social Work. It seems like it would b a great adventure to me, I've worked as a volunteer nurse in Africa, and am always curious and interested in cultural and social diversity. It sounds sad to think of Alaska as being such a bumer, (cold, sure...is that a surprise?, not trendy...sounds great!) that ceratinly isn't my hope or perception. So anyone out there that thinks there are positive aspects to Alaska for a mature adult, let me know, I'm looking at a job in Nome!! A smaller frontier town, why go to Alaska and not learn what it's really like!

[niceplacetovisit]

Originally Posted by HopefulGrad

Nome!! A smaller frontier town, why go to Alaska and not learn what it's really like!

Nome is a Native Alaskan village...a far cry from "a smaller frontier town". You may be quite disappointed.