NEPA College Grad to the South (Pittsburgh, Austin: 2013, find a job, school)

[Moopsiepie]

I will be graduating from King's College in May and I am looking to relocate to Georgia, Florida, NC or SC. It seems like several people who move from NEPA become much more happier down south.

Aside from that, I will not be able to find a job in NEPA with the degree I have. In addition, the warmer weather and more friendly people down south will be better for my well being. Even though I have been living in NEPA all of my life, I still find most people (middle aged and older) pretty stingy. After all, the area was in the top list for most miserable in the country.

Has anyone moved to the south or know of anyone who has? What has it been like, and did anything surprise you?

[Gettingouttahere]

Lack of diversity and more segregation, more conservative outside of a few college/city areas, stifling humidity, low cost of living because of much lower wages, better roads, much slower pace of life.

Those are mostly the reasons I left the South (Florida + S.C.). Except for the roads.

But you may like those things, so best of luck to you!

[PAhippo]

Curious where this list is?


Good luck to you. I hope you a place you like more better.


I moved here from western NY. It's not ideal-no place is. But it's better than where I was. But then I'm one of the few that doesn't mind cold weather.

[Gettingouttahere]

Were you asking me? I lived in Brevard County, Gainesville and Sarasota in Florida and Charleston/Summerville, S.C.

[PAhippo]

Originally Posted by Gettingouttahere

Were you asking me? I lived in Brevard County, Gainesville and Sarasota in Florida and Charleston/Summerville, S.C.

no-sorry


The OP mentioned that NEPA was top of the list for most miserable in the country. I'm curious about where this list is.

[Gettingouttahere]

Ah. Then probably from the report mentioned in this story:
The report can be downloaded here. It requires registration so I didn't bother.

[PAhippo]

thanks-I'll check it out.

[wadejay26]

To OP,
I lived in LA(Lower Alabama) for a while. Moved back to NEPA because of health reasons. Just wanted to chime in that the friendly southerner is very superficial. Everyone says hi on the street to everyone they pass. But I found it difficult to become close to natives. The 3-4 people I became close to were all northerners that had relocated. I also saw blatant racism that I found disturbing. But as is true for everywhere, you will find some good people and some not so good people. I wish you luck in becoming "more happier" down south.

[jimazee]

Originally Posted by wadejay26

To OP,
...But as is true for everywhere, you will find some good people and some not so good people. I wish you luck in becoming "more happier"...

So true...

Have you considered Austin or other parts of TX? It's not really so "south" in character. May be worth a look.

(BTW, Have you considered many older natives in NEPA have lived through some tough times and also probably aren't all that wealthy? Many have sacrificed to send their kids/grandkids to school/college hoping to help them better themselves and (optionally) leave the area, if they choose to.

As a result they are often poor and/or "frugal" ... not that there is anything wrong with that....)

[theatergypsy]

moopsie, miserable is in the eye of the beholder. Perhaps you, yourself, may be part of that statistic, given that you are so unhappy here in NEPA.

I'm just a bit perplexed at your comment about the "middle-aged and older" residents being "stingy". Taken out of context, it's possible to assume that you have an older relative who has refused to part with something you want.

While I hope that isn't what you meant, let me point out that the older people - I'm one of them - are living out their days on Social Security payments and what little they may have been able to scrape together into a "retirement" account during their working years. And many of the middle-aged folk have been ousted from jobs and have no prospect for another that offered the salary and benefits they were earning before their jobs went away. They may be evidencing "stingy" because they don't know where their next dollar will come from.

As for moving south, you might want to check with SteelCityRising, who currently resides in Pittsburgh, having been much more unhappier during his sojourn to the NoVa environs. He being a fellow King's alum, will probably be delighted to offer his experience.

Good luck, whatever you decide.