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I certainly like the layout and feel of the Bay Area way more than Jax, Orlando, and Miami. It's sprawly, but it seems to be more contained than Orlando. Miami, geographically, is too far from everything.
My point was that there isn't really a comparison between these cities...each has it's own thing going and Tampa out of these 3 is, or could be for you the best choice.
This job thing really depends in what field you are looking for find a job in...for example the construction industry sucks right now with tons of lots started and abandoned.....other industries may not have issues at all....as a small business owner if you decide to go that route, it is harder because the demand slowed because of all the jobless people around....the tourism industry may be a bit slow too since again the avalanche effect, people who loose jobs are less likely to travel.......
I don't read those articles that RANK places because they are highly subjective and normally don't portray the truth.....my husband also has an awesome job!!!!! so no complaints here.......I on the other hand have to deal with the "cheap people" around who want the world for zero dollars...but I ignore them as I have better fish to catch..........so, I don't get lost in the small stuff.
Yes, Tampa is very very scenic and no one beats our beaches.....some could use a bit more cleaning and also more educated people on them who can SPOT a garbage can & ashtray...........but hey, if all these people had good parental education instilled in them who would we complain about then?????
It take longer than 2 months in most cases to find "any job"........unless you are THAT CHARMING! LOLOL Don't count on the 2 month thing it may backfire......
It take longer than 2 months in most cases to find "any job"........unless you are THAT CHARMING! LOLOL Don't count on the 2 month thing it may backfire......
Really appreciate all the advice guys, while my decision will not be dictated by an internet forum it really helps for me to get a taste of the attitudes and the moods of the people who live in a given place and who know the terrain.
I spoke with my sister who visited St. Petersburg and she said it was gorgeous and she loved it, she said it was much better than California (another place I was considering relocation).
This comment I quote above definately got my attention however. I will have to do more research on this particular comment to see if it holds merit.
I think that a comment like this is more of a gut feeling of fear than anything else. Most people just really get freaked out at the idea of going anywhere without a job in place and for good reason because many people have something to lose. For many people they must sell their house or leave a secure well paying job or to pull the kids out of school away from their friends.
My situation is that I am in a seasonal area. If I stay here I will be jobless by the end of December REGARDLESS. If I don't relocate soon it may be my last chance to relocate to a bigger area with more oppurtunity. I also want to go to school ASAP and I can only borrow money for that once. So this is my best chance. With careful budgeting I could be down there in November and not have to borrow money until the end of January.
I have a 4 year business degree (no focus that was my mistake), and extensive restaurant, customer service, supervisor, and call center experience. I'm not a slick salesman who can charm someone into giving me a job from their gut on the spot (most of the time) but Im the kind of person who never gives up, prints off 100 resumes, and goes out every day until I find someone that see's something in me above all the other applicants or I simply end up in the right place at the right time. I always try to make friends with staff to get leads and try to get ahold of the boss and follow up when I apply to places. I'm a scrapper. Im not one of these people who must have the perfect job. Right now due to this economy I have been forced to take a very humbling job and I do it because the alternative is to have to go back to my hometown which has NOTHING for me. The only way to even get by in my hometown is to own a small business, which is what my parents and grandparents did and it's NO PLACE for a single guy.
2 months to find a job that at worse will pay for food and gas and some fun here and there and at best will allow me to save money and maybe chip away at the loan I take out -- that's too hard?? REALLY??? Is this fear talking or is there some factual validity to back this up because that just seems to contradict any experience I have had in life up to this point.
What Im looking for is a place that has a fair amount of clubs that are cool and busy that charge 20 or less to get in the door. Every city has it's fair share of bars so Im not as concerned about that but I've never lived in a place that has good sized cool clubs that play lots of great music that makes you want to party all night. All we have around here is dinky little clubs playing hip-hop and top 40 with a 20 foot dance floor.
As for Miami
If the people who plug lauderdale over Tampa are including Miami than thats not a fair fight, I realize Lauderdale + Miami = better nightlife than Tampa. The problem with Miami for me is that I am forced to blow 100+ dollars to go out (sometimes just to get in the door) if I want to go anywhere really hip. Also Im not looking to hang out with millionaires, although I wouldn't mind that. lol. I'm looking to hang out with friendly people having fun and cute horney women.
I have lived in both Fort Lauderdale and Tampa, and I have to say that for nightlife, I ENJOY the Tampa nightlife over Fort Lauderdale...in regards to clubs with great music and little cover, ive never spent more than $10, NEVER, in some of the nicest clubs in Tampa(The Kennedy, Hyde Park Cafe, Jacksons, Prana, Amphitheater(called something else now), Venue, Vintage, PUSH, Floyds, Blue Martini, Czar, Castle, Honey Pot, GBar, Banana Joes, Velvet, Aja) - and those are just some of the bigger clubs. I like how Tampa has Ybor City, an enclave of numerous live music venues, clubs, bars, bistros, cafes, for EVERYONE and ANYONE...then Channelside District and downtown, and then Hyde Park's South Howard Avenue(SOHO) and Village and the smaller South Tampa neighborhoods liek Palma Ceia, Bayshore Gardens, Bayside West - home of the orginial Green Iguana; and lastly the Westshore district...and thats all just in Tampa. Downtown St. Pete holds its own for LOTS of entertainment choices downtown. Its just a little more down to earth, attainable for the everyday person...
Tampa is defintely NOT Miami/South Beach....but thats not my cup of tea...just again, an personal preference....but I do believe Tampa can hold its own over Fort Lauderdale for nightlife. Fort Liquordale has their Riverfront(similar to Channelside, yet last I was there, lots of places were closed), and small Himmarshee district downtown with a handful of places; Las Olas Blvd, mostly retail; and the Beach Front, which has changed dramatically from the good old days(at least Elbo Room has survived)....Wilton Manors for aleternative stuff, other than that, the other places are very spreadout....
I know of highly educated people who spent over 9 months trying to find a job........it really depends on the industry/company.....you're just going to have to apply and hope for the best and most of all convince an employer that an out of state candidate is better that any of the locals they have lined up at their door....this is not fear talking....this happens everyday to a lot of people, I know several architects who are unemployed for months...and this is just in my field.........
Sorry with just 3K in your pocket and a student loan my biggest concern wouldn't be the nightlife.
$3,000 may sound like a lot when you're in your 20's but it goes quick. Someone who seems to enjoy going out "clubbing" is going to go through that money very quickly.
OP mentioned restaraunt work, there are laid off white collar workers now competing for those jobs with those who actually want the server jobs.
At a restaraunt we frequent there is one fairly new waitress, it took her 3 months to land this job, and she only got it because someone had just been fired the day before she walked in and applied.
But 3K can be gone in a few months and that is if your conservative with the money, going out to clubs and drinking costs money.
JMO, but you sound more focused on where to have fun and school is a distant second.
I have lived in both Fort Lauderdale and Tampa, and I have to say that for nightlife, I ENJOY the Tampa nightlife over Fort Lauderdale...in regards to clubs with great music and little cover, ive never spent more than $10, NEVER, in some of the nicest clubs in Tampa(The Kennedy, Hyde Park Cafe, Jacksons, Prana, Amphitheater(called something else now), Venue, Vintage, PUSH, Floyds, Blue Martini, Czar, Castle, Honey Pot, GBar, Banana Joes, Velvet, Aja) - and those are just some of the bigger clubs. I like how Tampa has Ybor City, an enclave of numerous live music venues, clubs, bars, bistros, cafes, for EVERYONE and ANYONE...then Channelside District and downtown, and then Hyde Park's South Howard Avenue(SOHO) and Village and the smaller South Tampa neighborhoods liek Palma Ceia, Bayshore Gardens, Bayside West - home of the orginial Green Iguana; and lastly the Westshore district...and thats all just in Tampa. Downtown St. Pete holds its own for LOTS of entertainment choices downtown. Its just a little more down to earth, attainable for the everyday person...
Tampa is defintely NOT Miami/South Beach....but thats not my cup of tea...just again, an personal preference....but I do believe Tampa can hold its own over Fort Lauderdale for nightlife. Fort Liquordale has their Riverfront(similar to Channelside, yet last I was there, lots of places were closed), and small Himmarshee district downtown with a handful of places; Las Olas Blvd, mostly retail; and the Beach Front, which has changed dramatically from the good old days(at least Elbo Room has survived)....Wilton Manors for aleternative stuff, other than that, the other places are very spreadout....
Well then. That definately settles the nightlife debate. That is MORE than enough for me to stay happy and then if I do get bored I still have short commutes to St petersburg, Orlando, and Sarasota. Miami and Lauderdale are not out of the question for a getaway here and there either. Now my main concern is the job situation and that will take more research.
I know of highly educated people who spent over 9 months trying to find a job........it really depends on the industry/company.....you're just going to have to apply and hope for the best and most of all convince an employer that an out of state candidate is better that any of the locals they have lined up at their door....this is not fear talking....this happens everyday to a lot of people, I know several architects who are unemployed for months...and this is just in my field.........
Fair enough but this is the kind of thinking that I was trying to dispell in my last reply to you. I'm not a lawyer looking for a specific nitch job. Im not an arcitech. Im not a CEO. Im not an insurance sales agent who must get an insurance sales job. Im going to be a college student with a wide range of experience in several different entry level fields trying to pay my bills and hopefully save up a little money.
@seain
Where I settle in and live I want to be able to have the option to have fun yes, but obviously finding a job and getting my situation stable is my first priority. Trust me Im not stupid enough to blow all my money when I have no job.
What people don't seem to be listening to when I talk (type?) is that I don't NEED to get a certain type of job. That's the endgoal of course, but to be able to relocate and survive is all I need to feel confident about. It feels like you guys keep saying:
"It will probably take more than 2 months to find a good job in the field that you want."
I realize that as a possibility, but telling me that I may not find ANY job even if I look every day until I find one just seems to be total speculation, just doesn't seem accurate. Again if someone wants to give me something valid and concrete that proves this I would appreciate the heads up but right now it's just not even something I take seriously.
Fair enough but this is the kind of thinking that I was trying to dispell in my last reply to you. I'm not a lawyer looking for a specific nitch job. Im not an arcitech. Im not a CEO. Im not an insurance sales agent who must get an insurance sales job. Im going to be a college student with a wide range of experience in several different entry level fields trying to pay my bills and hopefully save up a little money.
@seain
Where I settle in and live I want to be able to have the option to have fun yes, but obviously finding a job and getting my situation stable is my first priority. Trust me Im not stupid enough to blow all my money when I have no job.
What people don't seem to be listening to when I talk (type?) is that I don't NEED to get a certain type of job. That's the endgoal of course, but to be able to relocate and survive is all I need to feel confident about. It feels like you guys keep saying:
"It will probably take more than 2 months to find a good job in the field that you want."
I realize that as a possibility, but telling me that I may not find ANY job even if I look every day until I find one just seems to be total speculation, just doesn't seem accurate. Again if someone wants to give me something valid and concrete that proves this I would appreciate the heads up but right now it's just not even something I take seriously.
Eagle, there are only a couple people here telling you how hard it is to get a job here. It is my feeling from reading your posts and how tenacious you are, and not particular about jobs, you will have no problem at all getting something to at least get you by. There are plenty of success stories on this forum where people landed jobs in no time at all, good ones even. This is a great region of Florida to be in, in my opinion it's the BEST region all things considered (of course I'm partial to my home town area! ) - there is a lot going on in this metro area.
Fair enough but this is the kind of thinking that I was trying to dispell in my last reply to you. I'm not a lawyer looking for a specific nitch job. Im not an arcitech. Im not a CEO. Im not an insurance sales agent who must get an insurance sales job. Im going to be a college student with a wide range of experience in several different entry level fields trying to pay my bills and hopefully save up a little money.
@seain
Where I settle in and live I want to be able to have the option to have fun yes, but obviously finding a job and getting my situation stable is my first priority. Trust me Im not stupid enough to blow all my money when I have no job.
What people don't seem to be listening to when I talk (type?) is that I don't NEED to get a certain type of job. That's the endgoal of course, but to be able to relocate and survive is all I need to feel confident about. It feels like you guys keep saying:
"It will probably take more than 2 months to find a good job in the field that you want."
I realize that as a possibility, but telling me that I may not find ANY job even if I look every day until I find one just seems to be total speculation, just doesn't seem accurate. Again if someone wants to give me something valid and concrete that proves this I would appreciate the heads up but right now it's just not even something I take seriously.
Ill just add that if it comes down to it, I always see postings for jobs at Busch Gardens, restaurants, cafes, bars/nightclubs, the Airport, Publix, Target, banks, call centers and the like...this is where you see alot of students trying to survive AND have fun! And just reading your posts you do seem like you have a very tenacious attitude, which helps in finding any type of work.
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) - there is a lot going on in this metro area.
