Want to move to Cali, San Fran maybe, but not sure (San Jose: apartments, rent)

[Zerkeses]

I was born and raised in Memphis, and now that I'm in my late 20's, I have finally decided to move to the west coast. I want to move to Cali but am not sure where in Cali I want to move. This move represents growth in my life, and I would like to compare and contrast TN and CA. I have no kids and am not dating anyone and I'm a female. Keep in mind that I HATE Memphis, tn, and always have, almost to the point where I'm ashamed from coming here, but its my hometown. I am a musician, and would like a creative atmosphere. I also like to grow MMJ but it is not legal here, plus I feel like I have a right to smoke my MMJ without having to go to a gangster who wants to sleep with me and take everything I have, just so I can aqiure an eighth of pot. I need a drastically different environment than mid-south united states. i don't know anyone in cali as of yet, but i need to get to know people there that have similar tastes as me. I need to find a way to make a smooth transition to the west coast, and hopefully not get robbed in the process. I get robbed in Memphis almost once a year but random people I've never seen in my life. Poverty is pretty rampant in Memphis, and has encouraged me to stay inside for fear of my life, sanity, and dignity. Would love some factual advice on the situation.

[Setsuko]

Did you title your thread that way on purpose? You're about to get attacked by the language Nazi's.

[X_travelbug_X]

Be prepared

[clongirl]

Originally Posted by Zerkeses

I was born and raised in Memphis, and now that I'm in my late 20's, I have finally decided to move to the west coast. I want to move to Cali but am not sure where in Cali I want to move. This move represents growth in my life, and I would like to compare and contrast TN and CA. I have no kids and am not dating anyone and I'm a female. Keep in mind that I HATE Memphis, tn, and always have, almost to the point where I'm ashamed from coming here, but its my hometown. I am a musician, and would like a creative atmosphere. I also like to grow MMJ but it is not legal here, plus I feel like I have a right to smoke my MMJ without having to go to a gangster who wants to sleep with me and take everything I have, just so I can aqiure an eighth of pot. I need a drastically different environment than mid-south united states. i don't know anyone in cali as of yet, but i need to get to know people there that have similar tastes as me. I need to find a way to make a smooth transition to the west coast, and hopefully not get robbed in the process. I get robbed in Memphis almost once a year but random people I've never seen in my life. Poverty is pretty rampant in Memphis, and has encouraged me to stay inside for fear of my life, sanity, and dignity. Would love some factual advice on the situation.

I didn't hear the word "job" mentioned.

What makes you think "Cali" is going to be different when you seem like you're just seeking the same lifestyle? It won't be any different, but might even be worse for you here since it's certainly triple/quadruple the expense.

My brother lived in Nashville--move there. Not a bad place at all.

[mayorhaggar]

Get a job and things could come together for you. If you can't get a job, then you'd run out of money and have to move back home.

Just so you know, you'd probably find that SF doesn't particularly conform to the stereotypes everyone has of it. There's not really any hippies who aren't homeless bums here anymore, they all moved out when it became really expensive to live here--you kind of need a good job to pay the rent. And a lot of people who were hippies like 30-40 years ago grew up and moved to Marin and had kids and got a job at a bank or a law firm and now they're old and still somewhat eccentric but they're wealthy and in the minority. Most young people in the Bay Area, especially in SF, are yuppies or hipsters or yuppies trying to be hipsters. Also the pace of life in SF is not relaxed or laid-back at all, it's small but it's still a big city with a lot of traffic and people everywhere and it's noisy and smelly and hectic and everywhere you go you run into crowds--restaurants, bars, parks, grocery stores, etc. Also landlords are really down on smoking so you won't even be able to smoke a cigarette within 20 feet of your apartment, so if you smoke weed you'll have to go outside then the neighbors will complain. And you're sure as hell not going to be able to grow anything. If you are into that, move to Humboldt (where you'll find the hippies).

So there's that.

[bmw335xi]

Originally Posted by Zerkeses

I was born and raised in Memphis, and now that I'm in my late 20's, I have finally decided to move to the west coast. I want to move to Cali but am not sure where in Cali I want to move. This move represents growth in my life, and I would like to compare and contrast TN and CA. I have no kids and am not dating anyone and I'm a female. Keep in mind that I HATE Memphis, tn, and always have, almost to the point where I'm ashamed from coming here, but its my hometown. I am a musician, and would like a creative atmosphere. I also like to grow MMJ but it is not legal here, plus I feel like I have a right to smoke my MMJ without having to go to a gangster who wants to sleep with me and take everything I have, just so I can aqiure an eighth of pot. I need a drastically different environment than mid-south united states. i don't know anyone in cali as of yet, but i need to get to know people there that have similar tastes as me. I need to find a way to make a smooth transition to the west coast, and hopefully not get robbed in the process. I get robbed in Memphis almost once a year but random people I've never seen in my life. Poverty is pretty rampant in Memphis, and has encouraged me to stay inside for fear of my life, sanity, and dignity. Would love some factual advice on the situation.

If you can afford it, I think you'd be happy in San Francisco. Although, growing weed and smoking wherever won't be accepted. Most people starting up rent a room in an apt. Instead of paying 1500-2000 for a pvt 1 bedroom apt, you can rent a room for 600-1000.

[bigdumbgod]

Most the MMJ (outdoor) growers live up in the Santa Cruz Mountains, between San Jose and Santa Cruz. You can hook up with any number of them or those who are sympathetic to the cause through the myriad of shops and collectives throughout the Bay Area, who can advise on proper housing.

There are also opportunities to live/grow up in the North Bay, i.e. Petaluma, Santa Rosa. Wherever you end up, you're not gonna want to grow indoors, with the mammoth bill PGE will sock you with.

[Zerkeses]

Originally Posted by clongirl

I didn't hear the word "job" mentioned.

What makes you think "Cali" is going to be different when you seem like you're just seeking the same lifestyle? It won't be any different, but might even be worse for you here since it's certainly triple/quadruple the expense.

My brother lived in Nashville--move there. Not a bad place at all.

I'm really glad you chose sh***y old Nashville to make a point, because now I know how to explain what I'm really looking for out of a city. I'd stay in Memphis before I would ever consider Nashville. If I don't like Memphis, why would I like a place like Nashville ? HATE Nashville. I'm looking for a fast paced city with a lot of places to go, lots of people and things to do. I'm not looking for the "same lifestyle", whatever that is. I've been to other places around the country, and they are all different because of the different people and customs surrounding the environment.

As far as a job, I work for Fed Ex and plan on transferring to Cali, then starting my own business, but have not come to the final plan as far as what I'm going to sell. I'm also an author and a university major in journalism. What kind of jobs can I expect to have from a journalist/author history? Eventually I'm going to record documentaries. Are there any places in Cali that would be geared more or less towards a job in journalism?

I'm searching for drier weather. When I visit San Fran (and thanks mayorhaggar, as I'm sure people don't walk around calling it sf either, but hey, you understand the english), which I plan to do, where are some decent places to meet new people? I love Chicago, but would rather move to the west, due to the weather. Are there any places in Cali similar to Chicago as far as the fast pace? In the end, a place is really what you make it, but there are enough differences everywhere, so that one city may be more better suited for certain people than the other? (And don't really want to move to L.A. due to the smog.)

Oh, and just because I'm fond of marijuana, it doesn't mean I'm a hippy or looking to befriend these types. To the contrary, there are plenty of people who smoke the stuff that don't live the hippy lifestyle.

[mayorhaggar]

Originally Posted by Zerkeses

I'm also an author and a university major in journalism. What kind of jobs can I expect to have from a journalist/author history? Eventually I'm going to record documentaries. Are there any places in Cali that would be geared more or less towards a job in journalism?

Journalism is kind of dying in the US. We only have a few small regional papers here, nothing big like the NY Times or whatever. For film stuff like documentaries, there's very little film work of any kind done in the Bay Area, it's almost all done in LA or NYC. Honestly there's not a lot of artsy stuff in SF, it's mainly law firms, tech firms and banks--not a lot of creative stuff.

(and thanks mayorhaggar, as I'm sure people don't walk around calling it sf either, but hey, you understand the english)

Well they sure don't call it San Fran, and they don't say Cali either...I think people might say Cali more in Socal.

Oh, and just because I'm fond of marijuana, it doesn't mean I'm a hippy or looking to befriend these types. To the contrary, there are plenty of people who smoke the stuff that don't live the hippy lifestyle.

You said you wanted to grow it. People don't grow in SF especially in the small apartments there. They grow it in Humboldt or Santa Cruz and sell it in SF.

[iabhornc]

Originally Posted by Zerkeses

I was born and raised in Memphis, and now that I'm in my late 20's, I have finally decided to move to the west coast. I want to move to Cali but am not sure where in Cali I want to move. This move represents growth in my life, and I would like to compare and contrast TN and CA. I have no kids and am not dating anyone and I'm a female. Keep in mind that I HATE Memphis, tn, and always have, almost to the point where I'm ashamed from coming here, but its my hometown. I am a musician, and would like a creative atmosphere. I also like to grow MMJ but it is not legal here, plus I feel like I have a right to smoke my MMJ without having to go to a gangster who wants to sleep with me and take everything I have, just so I can aqiure an eighth of pot. I need a drastically different environment than mid-south united states. i don't know anyone in cali as of yet, but i need to get to know people there that have similar tastes as me. I need to find a way to make a smooth transition to the west coast, and hopefully not get robbed in the process. I get robbed in Memphis almost once a year but random people I've never seen in my life. Poverty is pretty rampant in Memphis, and has encouraged me to stay inside for fear of my life, sanity, and dignity. Would love some factual advice on the situation.

I can easily relate. I live in North Carolina and hold the same opinion as you do with Memphis (i.e. that you hate it like I hate NC.) San Francisco (as a place to live in) I would not recommend b/c chances are you will encounter the same pains as you do in Memphis. I would, however, recommend it's surrounding area(s) such as Menlo Park. You would have the option of taking the train into San Francisco. Personally, I like L.A. better (as a place to chill), but, like San Fran., I would pass in living there. As for not dating someone, North Carolina (or the Southeast in general) is the LAST place I would pick anybody as a ''mate'' just the same Too much backwards, ''pheasant,'' mentality. Small towns with that ''urban'' feel to it make no sense to me. If you are single down here (despite gender), your life could be the most miserable. At least you can manage that in a big city (except New York.) Good luck.