Does NEPA have a "Culture?" (Stroudsburg: live in, restaurants)

[Suzer]

I couldn't agree with you more. Tell that to my husband. We're both miserable living in the country, I don't think living here is worth the lower taxes. Here we are - home purchased and great opportunity for my husband's resume while mine tanks.

We're right at the edge of the border of PA and NY and NJ. The taxes do triple once you cross the PA border.

I think it's wonderful that some people adore the rustic charm and low population density. I'm just not one of them.

I still haven't been able to find a job yet, the job market for my field is very competitive/scarce in Orange County, Sussex, Westchester, and Northern New Jersey area.

[JimmyLane]

Originally Posted by Suzer

I couldn't agree with you more. Tell that to my husband. We're both miserable living in the country, I don't think living here is worth the lower taxes. Here we are - home purchased and great opportunity for my husband's resume while mine tanks.

We're right at the edge of the border of PA and NY and NJ. The taxes do triple once you cross the PA border.

I think it's wonderful that some people adore the rustic charm and low population density. I'm just not one of them.

I still haven't been able to find a job yet, the job market for my field is very competitive/scarce in Orange County, Sussex, Westchester, and Northern New Jersey area.

maybe it's time to start thinking about doing something outside the purview of your career, no? The jersey/ny market may be even more competitive. take it from me.

[AmeriKenArtist]

"I don't mean to offend anyone here, but being familiar with the area around Montrose is what attracted me to the thread. Over thirty years ago I came to this area and fell in love with it's rural charm. During the last ten years I've seen the rural charm slowly crumble away as the population in the area increases."

I'm not familiar with your area, but it seems to me ... there's quite a lot of "ruralness" in northeastern PA! I'm in Bloomsburg, which is a very nice college town. Sure there's some sprawl and a plaza here and there. What do you expect? We have a growing population in this world. Our medical knowlege is the culprit! ;-) And with ever-constant growth, you have construction.

Surrounding my town, there is a lot of open space, dotted mainly with farms and some villages. I am in town and it is great! I can walk to work, walk to the main street for shopping or stopping at a diner or coffee shop. (So much for the price of gasoline!) We have live theatre with the Bloomsburg Theatre Ensemble and art galleries. The large Town Park, next to the Susquehanna River is beautiful!

Many of my friends are "out of town" just five to fifteen miles away and are in "the middle of nowhere!" They love the woods and have a very quiet lifestyle. What a great combination for me! And convenient.

[SteelCityRising]

Suzer, I'm sorry to hear that you're unhappy living in Pike County. I concur that when I visited for my Milford Photo Tour after hearing about all of the "hype", I had to say to myself "THIS IS IT??!!" I truly didn't see how it could have been ranked as one of the coolest towns in America; what truly sets it apart from what I feel are nicer towns, such as Jim Thorpe or Honesdale?

If you want to live closer to urban life, then why not see if you and your husband might be able to secure employment either in the Lehigh Valley or Scranton/Wilkes-Barre areas? The Lehigh Valley is now second behind Philadelphia in terms of cost-of-living, so that can be a turn-off, but you'd be only about 90-minutes to both NYC and Philly. Scranton/Wilkes-Barre has its own unique charms, minor-league sports teams, coffee houses, art galleries, historic architecture, etc.

If I remember correctly you are in the higher educational field, right? What does your husband do? I know there are PLENTY of institutions of higher learning in both the Lehigh Valley and Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, so you should be able to secure a position somewhere around one of these two areas.

[BLUEDIAMOND64]

Milford was once a sleeping town back in the 1970's..........what a different place it was and I recall the beauty of it very fondly. It had an innocence to it! I considered myself back then a weekender and now living here full time. I do not any of us could have predicted the change and growth.

The Hat

[Suzer]

Thanks for the concern ...

I got a call last night for an interview in Oakland. I hope they will agree to a phone interview, they wanted to see me on Monday! 2 for 2 - I put in two resumes in California, and have had two invitations to interview. Both for human resources in school districts. I can't seem to get a bite in the tri-state area.

SWB - My husband can't relocate positions now - he has a great opportunity right where he is, in Newburgh. I've applied for a few positions in Scranton and Wilkes-Barre. We'll see what happens. If I do get the job in CA, eventually my husband could transfer to Dublin, which is in the same area where I would work.

I can't believe I am considering such drastic measures. I never thought NJ/NY/PA would be so bereft of suitable employment. We wouldn't have left if we had a crystal ball ...

Milford and Dingmans are o.k. There's charm. There's lots of trees. I just miss what I'm used to.

[Suzer]

Hi Jimmy,

If I can't get a job in something I have ten years experience in, and a Master's degree, how is it any more likely for me to find work in another field? I've applied to many more jobs in NY/NJ than I ever did in California. Even though the quality of jobs is not equal, the competition must be fierce. I've concluded there is a bias against my out of state experience.

[JimmyLane]

Originally Posted by Suzer

Hi Jimmy,

If I can't get a job in something I have ten years experience in, and a Master's degree, how is it any more likely for me to find work in another field? I've applied to many more jobs in NY/NJ than I ever did in California. Even though the quality of jobs is not equal, the competition must be fierce. I've concluded there is a bias against my out of state experience.

I know what you mean---it was impossible for me to land a job in the Danville area when i lived there. One interviewer at a local college came shy of telling me that there is a provincialism when it comes to hiring that makes it practically impossible to land a job, let alone good paying job. i challenged the system with the claim of a hiring bias to out-of-staters and ended up no where. sadly there are laws against this sort of practice that are unenforceable because they're difficult to prove.

the situation in ny/nj is not much better.

there is no easy answer. one alternative is to find work in another field by taking on a couple part-time gigs, which will give you at least some flexibility and a chance to find a seam in the system to write your own ticket.

good luck with your job search.

[Suzer]

Thank you for your kind words, Jimmy. Shortly after I started looking, I had an invitation to interview for a position at Marywood, which I declined when they told me up front that the pay was $12.00 an hour. Now I regret turning them down.

I'm going to send you a DM to hear more ....

[studentmom54]

The area is rich in culture if you do there search. The coal brought people here to work. Many stayed because of it. It fueled the country for a long time. Some people came from Polland, German, Russia. With them they brought their religious believes and foods from their country such as kielbasa, hallusky, not sure how to spell it, there's Old Forge pizza, there are many other things. Another thing is real estate in this part of the state is very inexpensive. You can buy a really nice piece of land, build a house on it really cheap. Do the research and see what you get.