Relocating to Ca and why Québec

[Fontucky]

Originally Posted by allenk893

One place I would definitely avoid is Santa Barbara. There was an infamous thread made sometime last year or the year before about some nurse that moved from the Bay area to Santa Barbara in a job transfer and she thought it was hell on earth. So don't go there if anywhere in California.

So one dingbat nurse, with an axe to grind about Santa Barbara, says she doesn't like the place, and your esteemed advice (as someone who has never even stepped foot in California) based on one thread is: "So don't go there if anywhere in California".

The more you post, the more you dig yourself a hole to Moronia.

[allenk893]

Originally Posted by Fontucky

So one dingbat nurse, with an axe to grind about Santa Barbara, says she doesn't like the place, and your esteemed advice (as someone who has never even stepped foot in California) based on one thread is: "So don't go there if anywhere in California".

The more you post, the more you dig yourself a hole to Moronia.

If you have something to say to me, respond to the other thread with Jill61. I already spanked and whipped you and her into shape. Don't make me do it again.

[bikramkat]

Allenk893, Thanks again for the advices and yes, I did post a thread on the Florida forum, you can type in "Florida" in the "Search box" and look at the "Moving to Central Florida" thread. As I mentionned in my thread, I'm afraid now to go to Orlando because of all the bad comments I've read, so I'm thinking about Longwood which is not too far from Orlando and which has a Bikram Yoga studio (I practice this type of Yoga so I want to live near by a studio and the only ones they have are in Orlando or Longwood for the Orange/Seminole county). Also, I want to stay in those areas cause I have a friend who will be realocating in Orlando area so It'll be helpfull for me to have someone I know near by.
Anyway, if you can give me a reply on the Florida forum, I would really appreciate.

[Santa's Neighbor]

If you come to the States, come with an agency. It's nearly impossible to get work on your own, I'm not sure why. I think employers that hire foreigners do it through agencies. I'm a nurse who got herself paper-ready to work, but employers are clueless about the (very minimal) procedures on their part needed to hire a Canadian, and very suspicious too when you explain it to them. If you come through an agency, the agency hires you and then places you with the employer (who then pays way more for you, but health care employers are not known for brains.). I gave up and just visit for a few months in the winter, and work up in Canada in the summers since I have a much better-paying job up there than I could (or couldn't!) get down here.

However, the cost of living is probably about the same in California, and from what I hear from my local friends the taxes work out about the same (probably less than Quebec though, but Quebec has it's own weird dysfunctional culture, I know because I've lived there), but you get a lot less for your taxes than you do in Canada.

Have you ever lived and worked in a different Canadian province? You might check that out first. The weather is lovely in California, but for all the other reasons you list, staying in Canada might be easier and get you what you want.

[bikramkat]

Santa's Neighbor, I also heard that getting a letter of employment from a californian hospital is very difficult, but not in Florida since I've worked there a few times (it was true 2 years ago but I don't know if it changed now).
Are you saying that you have a better paying job in Canada (are you in Québec?) because I'm in Québec and let me tell you that when you work as a nurse for a gov place (hospitals, clinics, etc), the salary stinks big time!!! I, myself, work for an agency here because I can't afford living on the gov salary. I know also for a fact (because I did it) that working for an agency in Florida pays more than here and even working for a hospital in Florida pays more because we have less taxes taking.
If you're saying that the COL is about the same in California, well it's not that bad because as a nurse, the salary is much higher than in Québec (a nurse from California told me that) and I don't doubt for a second that taxes are less in California than in Québec.
I haven't tried another province because I want to leave for a warmer place and If I can't go south for whatever reason, I'll stay in Québec since I'm used to it and I have my family here.

[Santa's Neighbor]

I work in Nunavut, so that's why my salary is high. But other provinces pay more that Quebec. True, if you want warmth, you are looking at the southern states, but for everything else you want, pretty much any other province than yours offers it. I live in Ontario now, but was in Quebec for 5 years until 2009. Florida might be the best bet if you want to avoid taxes. I don't know what taxes are like there, but I know California taxes are comparable to Ontario's. Everything is lower than Quebec's though, so as long as you leave there things will get better!

[MathieuL]

Good Thread! J'habite a Montreal, pu capable ici. C'est plate, y fait froid et c'est tres cher. Canada/Montreal where I live is just like the USA almost nowadays. Only we don't pay for healthcare but like the woman said in the thread, it ain't free. It's just included in our HUGE taxes and the waiting is hell.

I am also moving to California (LA next Fall) to Santa Monica College. My only problem right now is trying to find a program that can assist International Students (me being from Canada) with a Student Loan. Tuition @ SMC is $5,952 per year. I am saving money but if I end-up paying the 2 years in Advance @ 11k I will have no more money to live lol.

That's why I'm looking into it.

Bonne Chance a toi!

[bikramkat]

Salut MathieuL,
Je suis comme toi, pu capable!!! Ça fait 27 ans que je suis à Montreal (j'habite la Rive-Sud) et je donnerais n'importe quoi pour pouvoir partir demain! Mais je prends mon mal en patience et je compte partir juil 2012. J'avais pensé à déménager en Floride, mais mon premier choix serait la Californie. Je connais pas mal le sud de la Fl, mais pas dutout la Ca. Je suis infirmière et j'ai entendu dire que c'était compliqué d'avoir un hôpital qui te parraine, mais quand ce sera le temps, je me renseignerais comme il faut.
Je ne savais pas qu'on pouvait partir comme ça aux USA comme étudiant international et qu'on pouvait avoir de l'aide. Le collège à S.M est $6000 par année? Je pensais que ce serait beaucoup plus cher que ça, connais-tu les tarifs pour l'université?