Is commuting to work a bad idea? (Millinocket, Washburn: insurance, mortgage)

[Casper1212]

I commuted the entire first year of pharmacy school from BR to NOLA (both are in La. ) after Hurricane Katrina, and that was stressful.

Come on, nerdy. Driving anywhere NEAR Baton Rouge or N'Orleans at ANY time is stressful! You haven't lived until you've been stuck on the bridge over the Mississippi at BR at rush hour and the truck drivers are screaming that the bridge is going to collapse when they feel it shaking. I remember driving I12 about a year after 'Trina and couldn't believe how much damage was still clearly visible. Did you see the billboards near Hammond? The last time we went that way, the were STILL slanted!

[alittlenerdy]

Originally Posted by angelo129

Since you seem ambivalent about a long commute, I think the most important thing would be to avoid getting into a position where you've made your bed and must lie in it. If the place you want to live involves a commute, I would ask myself the following questions:

1. If you have a family, particularly children, how would they feel about seeing so much less of you than they might? And how would you feel about seeing less of them? Have you thought it over and talked it over?

1. I don't have kids. So, that's not an issue, and it shouldn't be an issue for several years, if at all.
I spend time with my SO, but since we have different lifestyles, I don't see there ever being a "happy middle". He has an electrical business right now, and he plans on going back to school for 5 years after I finish school next May.

Originally Posted by angelo129

2. Would a long commute still allow you enough time to fully enjoy and appreciate living in the place you chose, or would your time there be cut too short to make the commute worthwhile?

2. I don't mind driving, and I spend a lot of time at home as it is, so what I'm trying to do is to maximize certain qualities about my home, which include: comfort, scenery, and space. If I could walk out of my job and know that I'm heading off to my own personal oasis that is somewhat convenient, then that would be ideal.

Originally Posted by angelo129

3. What expenses would be involved in commuting, and how would they figure into your budget? Have you taken into account a possible large increase in the cost of gas, such as we have had recently and could have again?

3. I usually drive economical vehicles. Currently, I'm zipping around in a 1988 CRX. During the winter, though, I would probably drive some kind of 4WD drive vehicle like a truck, suv, or Subaru. My SO is drooling over the idea of having a Honda Ridgeline right now.

Originally Posted by angelo129

4. Can you afford (both monetarily and in all other ways) to be wrong? If you decide, after a year, that the commute is too disruptive, do you have the resources to move closer or will you have gotten into a situation that's difficult to get out of? I point this out because, if you buy a house, selling again after only a short time might expose you to quite a loss (particularly when real estate in Maine isn't really moving, especially very rural properties).

4. I don't know. It's a tough question! I'm very frugal though, except for a few treats here and there, so as long as I can keep a job, then buying a more convenient house/condo in addition to the "out of the way" home might work.

Originally Posted by angelo129

5. Have you compared the cost of living, quality of schools (if applicable), services available, and other factors, of places near to the workplace and farther away? There will be trade-offs no matter what decision you make, but you should consider everything that matters to you, including such apparently insignificant things as how far you must drive to the nearest grocery store or to your child's school. If you have a child who would need pre-school or after-school care, what is available and how far away is it?

5. I usually don't go to the grocery store more than 1 or 2 times a week, and I can walk there and back within 15 minutes. I don't have children, but if I were to have them, then I would not live more than 20 or 30 minutes away from their school... but seeing as though I'll be the "breadwinner", then I would have to have quite a bit of money saved up to work part-time or quit working altogether... so I have no plans for children any time soon.

Originally Posted by angelo129

6. Are you used to driving a long distance on icy roads and in bad weather? Some people don't mind at all and even enjoy it, while for others it's terrifying and not to be tolerated at any price. I have no idea which camp you fall into, but if you haven't actually made a long commute under icy conditions for at least a year, you have yet to discover which camp you belong in. Above all, if you assume you'll have no problem because you drove through a snow storm in New Jersey a couple times, you should reconsider.

6. I don't know. I'll would have to find that out whenever I visit, because we don't have icy roads very often. It snowed once in the past 4-10 years this December.
I'm more used to driving in horrific rain storms, and they don't bother me very much.

Originally Posted by angelo129

If I were you, I'd consider renting for at least a year so that, whatever decision you make, you can undo it in a year's time if need be. Best of luck to you.

If I were to rent for a year or so, then I would be alone, away from my SO for a year or so, because it's too difficult to find a landlord who will rent to someone with kitties. Besides, I'm so tired of renting! I've been renting for 7 years now.

[alittlenerdy]

Originally Posted by Casper1212

I commuted the entire first year of pharmacy school from BR to NOLA (both are in La. ) after Hurricane Katrina, and that was stressful.

Come on, nerdy. Driving anywhere NEAR Baton Rouge or N'Orleans at ANY time is stressful! You haven't lived until you've been stuck on the bridge over the Mississippi at BR at rush hour and the truck drivers are screaming that the bridge is going to collapse when they feel it shaking. I remember driving I12 about a year after 'Trina and couldn't believe how much damage was still clearly visible. Did you see the billboards near Hammond? The last time we went that way, the were STILL slanted!

So you know what I'm talking about...

You're right! Try being on I-10 behind an accident in LaPlace.

Hurricanes tear up everything along the Gulf Coast. It's devastating!


I wouldn't even know what to do with myself during hurricane season in Maine. It would probably be lovely!

[reloop]

Originally Posted by alittlenerdy

I wouldn't even know what to do with myself during hurricane season in Maine. It would probably be lovely!

Hurricane season in Maine is more like a "stiff breeze." It's certainly nothing compared to what you're used to.

[Casper1212]

Originally Posted by alittlenerdy

So you know what I'm talking about...

You're right! Try being on I-10 behind an accident in LaPlace.

Hurricanes tear up everything along the Gulf Coast. It's devastating!


I wouldn't even know what to do with myself during hurricane season in Maine. It would probably be lovely!

I can top an accident on I 10 near LaPlace. Try getting held up by an accident on I 10 on the Atchafalya Basin bridge. When I worked in BR, I would talk to the truckers so that I had warning, and I would skip over to 190. But sometimes that was worse.
We were in LA for a while before Texas. Our daughter is still there, with our grandkids. They evacuated twice this past year. But not for Katrina. Gustav took off a few shingles, but that was about it.
Rita was the one that really did the damage that most peole don't see. It wiped several small towns off the map. Literally. There were several small communities along the coast in the Sabine area that are gone now.

[peachie_in_maine]

This is how I see the subject.
Comparing City to Country life

Now my brother in law lives about 10miles out of the city of Ottawa (appx)

It takes him over an hour to get to work... traveling possible at a high rate of speed of 30-miles per hour. Parking monthly costs of over 100.00.

Friends of ours travel 40 miles to work at just under 1hr. The ride is smooth, relaxing and no monthly costs for parking.

Brother in law lives in a 3 bedroom home paid 4 times more then I did for my 3 bedroom home in the country. Taxes are higher being closer to the city then it is for myself. I pay apprx 400.00 a year and he pays apprx 4 times more for his.
Moral of my story...
I guess commuting would be okay with me.

[Mongohateswinter]

I commute about 30 feet to my home based office / shop & approx. 6 miles to my other shop....I wouldn't have it any other way... Why would U spend half your life commuting ??? If U spend your whole life getting 2 work, working all day & getting back home, where's the quality of life ??? U have 2 stop & smell the roses, spend time with your friends, family & enjoy the short time we all have - it could all end tomorrow.....

[alittlenerdy]

Originally Posted by Casper1212

I can top an accident on I 10 near LaPlace. Try getting held up by an accident on I 10 on the Atchafalya Basin bridge. When I worked in BR, I would talk to the truckers so that I had warning, and I would skip over to 190. But sometimes that was worse.
We were in LA for a while before Texas. Our daughter is still there, with our grandkids.

The Gulf Coast is lovely. Hurricanes are not.

Originally Posted by Casper1212

They evacuated twice this past year. But not for Katrina. Gustav took off a few shingles, but that was about it.

My SO and I had to pack up everything that we owned for Gustav, including pets and potted plants, and evacuated via U-haul. We live in an area that flooded during Katrina. There are still orange water lines next door that go up 6-7 feet from the ground due to Katrina, and that equates to 3-4 feet of water inside the houses.

Originally Posted by Casper1212

Rita was the one that really did the damage that most peole don't see. It wiped several small towns off the map. Literally. There were several small communities along the coast in the Sabine area that are gone now.

I'm from that area. I have a friend from Cameron parish. He said the same thing.
After Rita, my grandpa complained that the traffic back home had worsened dramatically, because the area had been flooded with Rita's evacuees. He's north of Cameron parish.

Someone on the Maine health insurance thread said that they felt as though they were living their lives around health insurance. Well... I feel like I live my life around hurricanes, and I need a divorce or at least a break from it!

There are so many wonderful places in the United States (which I can say with pride after daydreaming about Europe for so many years before finally visiting and living there and thinking that things would be better over there). It's a shame that people have to live their lives around natural or bureaucratic disasters in the United States. There are so many things that are wonderfully executed in this country, like: freedom of religion, educational freedoms, public areas such as libraries and parks, and minimal restrictions in terms of property and ownership, so why can't life here be more wonderful and less afflicted?



If there was no need for me to have a job, then I wouldn't have to worry about commuting to work. If money didn't matter, then I would just sit at home all day and write, read, or do art or socialize with friends and loved ones.

Money does matter, though. I will have a little more than one hundred thousand dollars in student loan debt after graduation that will have to be paid back sooner or later, and I would prefer to pay it off sooner rather than later- within 2-10 years or so.
So... that leaves me with a big decision to make! It might actually be the most important decision of my entire life... Do I stay and fight tropical storms or move and fight snow and ice? Do I live close to my job but hate living in a cookie cutter house in the middle of a pre-existing neighborhood? Do I live secluded and deal with the consequences of driving back and forth to work 5 or more days a week? Will I miss the conveniences of living in the middle of the city or will I miss the day-to-day interactions with various people? Will I miss out on having a somewhat exotic lifestyle if I live in a highly domesticated area? Will I miss out on the happenings of a city by living far outside of it?



I have so many thoughts that sometimes it's difficult to sleep...

Oh well.

Today is my birthday! I'm a quarter of a century old.

[RHB]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

In a short while, I'll be twice as old as you are today

Enjoy your day!

[corgis]

I think the older we get, the less we want to commute long distances. I know that if I were not retired, I'd probably not want to travel more than 10 - 12 miles to work but back when I was "alittlenerdy"'s age, commuting 40 - 50 miles or more to work was no big deal.

Happy Birthday nerdy! You're 25 today? You're just a young whippersnapper, heck I got socks older than you.