Considering Wisconsin (Madison, Appleton, Oshkosh: 2010, home, job market)

[BacktoNE]

I'd like to say hello to the guy from Maine. I love New England and have considered moving there. My grandfather grew up in Dorcester Mass. I've been to RI, Mass and Conn but missed going to northern NE and I regret that. NH, VT and ME are very nice. If you read this, what do you think about the deal with Lewiston and Auburn?

Just for the record, I'm not a guy By "the deal with Lewiston and Auburn" are you referring to the Somali's? If so, they did create quite a stir when they first arrived but I haven't heard anything recently. My family lived in Auburn when I was a very small child but not since. We were north of there in the Waterville/Winslow area mostly. My husband is from the Bangor area. If we were to find ourselves in the LA area, the Somali's wouldn't faze us. We were both raised to be color blind and judge people by what's on the inside.

If you are considering Maine as well as WI, check in on the Maine City-Data board too. They are extremely friendly and helpful to people who are looking at the State as their new home. There are also several recent transplants there who will happily provide you with information based on a newcomers POV.

[KateDaum]

I love the cold. We were at the Packer game today and it was awesome. Cold but so much fun.
We relocated here from the NE last year. I have also lived in Missouri, Il, upstate NY, Iowa, and Montana. We love WI. There is so much to do and the people are wonderful. We could not have made a better choice.
But the summers can be humid. We live in a small town but there is a good mix of people here. People seem to be more open minded then they were where we lived in NH.
Come and visit and I bet you will also fall in love with WI.

[KateDaum]

If you decide to come buy Under Armor. For the Packer game today we wore a layer of Under Armor, a turtleneck, a fleece liner and then a Packer jersey. On my feet I wore 2 pair of socks and warm boots, gloves and a wool hat. Perfectly comfortable. I hate bulky parkas and I was comfortable without one. We left our house this morning and it was -10 but no wind.
I walk outside almost everyday regardless of how cold it is.

[KateDaum]

I found the people on the WI board to also be very helpful and friendly. I have met a few of them in person and they are great.


Quote from below:
"If you are considering Maine as well as WI, check in on the Maine City-Data board too. They are extremely friendly and helpful to people who are looking at the State as their new home. There are also several recent transplants there who will happily provide you with information based on a newcomers POV.[/quote]

[115db]

Originally Posted by susancruzs

Research, research, research plus spending time in Wisconsin, definitely in the winter, January would be good. You will need warm clothes, layered, a good jacket plus boots, gloves, hat, scarf!

I moved to Wisconsin from NE Illinois last year, weather issue wasn't a problem and I'm alone so I did not have other people to consider. I've adjusted very well and would never go back to Illinois other than to visit and I'm so happy when I'm driving back here and leaving the congestion of Illinois behind.

Bring the whole family and come visit this spring/summer, too so your wife can get an idea what it's like and whether this is really doable. Wisconsin is very different from Georgia and "hotlanta".

I had a friend who moved from California to Georgia and she never adjusted to Georgia. She tolerated it but was not happy. She had to move due to a job transfer, it was very hard for her.

Just make sure the whole family is on the same page and onboard with a move.

I went there once in the spring and once in the late fall and both times it was very pretty. Id like to go in the summer sometime just to see what summers are like there. Heck, maybe I should just move there, lol, you wouldnt hear me complain!

[daifukumochi]

I came from FL earlier this year, and I must say, below zero isn't that cold, but, I dress for it and it is still very early :P Thermals, a good (snow resistant) jacket, and snow pants/boots and I went out playing in the snow for hours. Gloves and a scarf and a thermal beanie to protect your sensitive hands and face ... something unheard of where I was from in the winter

Driving in the snow is fun ... get a shovel

The people are so friendly. I have found what is considered a 'ghetto' up here are pretty darn nice, so that lets you know the innocence (naivety) here, and how nice it is. I haven't heard one car with crazy bass now that you mention it, which I admit is quite nice.

I read a lot before I came and the bad stuff I haven't come across ... I read many times that non-natives aren't accepted and such. There are a lot of bars, but, there is much more to do than that, and the bars seem more calm than the ones from the south, though some open at 6 am!!! They joke about being cheeseheads and brat fanatics ... but, it isn't as dominant in everyday culture as I was led to believe before coming here :lol: ... and there are packers fans, but, have you been to central FL and seen the gator fans?

Plenty of hiking, biking trails. I love overcast skies and shorter days, so, I don't get the depression others talk of, I am the opposite, heat and sunshine depress me, and I will never miss 100 F 99 humidity I don't drink and I still find plenty to do.

My work gave heat breaks for two months during the summer, a few weeks of low to mid 80s, maybe a day or two a spike around 90, that is it. humidity can get a bit up, but I am near the lake, and, it still never got as bad as after a rain in FL - yuck. I have sweated more stepping out side for 5 minutes on a bad day in FL than I did pretty much the whole summer here

I say come on up and you will love it. There are plenty of small towns if you want quaint ... St. Cloud is like stepping back in time and very small, Then you have the bigger cities, and plenty of mid sized ones. You will be sure to find something you like.

But ... the U.S. has lots of beautiful places and great people if you look hard enough. I can just say, in my experience, this is the best placed I have been, and it is now my home, they will have to kick me out :P

I say it is also better for your health up here ... more exercise ... since before and after work you scrap ice and snow off your car ... shoveling snow ...

good luck to you

[yo vanilla]

Originally Posted by FormerCaliforniaGirl

If you read through some of the threads here about relocating to Wisconsin, you'll get mixed reviews.

I've posted in a couple of threads about my experience relocating to Wisconsin, but I'll post here as well since you might not see my other posts.

I moved here two and a half years ago from Southern California (and I live in the Fox Cities), and while I do have some valid complaints about the Fox Cities (lack of good restaurants, downtown areas that are in decay, and a very high smoking and drinking rate), overall, I really like it here. I'm happier here in Wisconsin than I had been in Southern California for years.

But don't understimate just how COLD it is here in the winter. And winter lasts a looooong time. You have to adjust to the bitter cold, the treacherous driving conditions, and having to be indoors for months on end. And while that sounds negative, it actually isn't all that difficult. This is my third winter here, and I've found that I love catching up on movies I've been wanting to see, reading books I've put off reading, and trying those great recipes that I've always wanted to try.

Curious CA girl, which city do you live in? I can see your point of view about the run-down downtowns, and the smokin' Joe 6-pack type residents of the smaller cities like Little Chute or Kaukauna, or even up to Green Bay. But Appleton doesn't fit that description; we've had alot of great improvements in our downtown (and so Jeff knows, Appleton is the only city in the Fox Cities with a smoking ban). There are a lot of good restaraunts in our downtown. Kaukauna, not so much, lol. I actually hardly know anyone who smokes, but I suppose that's also part of who you associate with.

But winter, yeah, I don't know what I can say about winter. It's cold. It's long. It's a PITA to find a place to throw the snow about halfway through. You drive to and from work in the dark. People here aren't the most attentive drivers to begin with, but in winter HWY 41 is like the set on a disaster movie, lol. IMO, there's nothing you can really do to prepare for winter. Just plan for survival! Summer and fall are terrific. Spring is usually up n down, could be warm and suny one day then you get a blizzard the next.

Jeff, search my username; I've had alot of (good) things to say about Appleton here on the forum. Also check out appletondowntown.org to see some of the restaraunts, etc. I grew up in Fond du Lac, lived in Oshkosh a few years (both a bit south of here), and I've explored all the surrounding areas. IMO Appleton is the best place in this part of the state to live (and some of the surrounding cities are nice too, Neenah for instance). Low cost of living, low low crime, good schools (my oldest starts school next year, in fact, so we've read up on the school system a bit).

[FormerCaliforniaGirl]

Yo vanilla....I live in Oshkosh. Overall, I love it here. But the downtown area desperately needs a facelift. I've heard the Appleton downtown area is much better, but I haven't really gotten up there to check it out.

Oshkosh also has a hig number of "adult" video/bookstores and "adult" bars. For such a small city, 4 adult video stores, and 2 adult bars seems a bit extreme. And it kind of brings the city down a level, in my opinion.

And yes, the smoking and drinking is extreme...at least compared to where I'm from. I see so many young women in their 20's who smoke (something you rarely see in Southern California), and I just can't believe that people actually still start smoking at that age!!

[Justplainjoe]

Hmmm, glad I found this forum. I am 48 and my wife is 46, we have two sons one of which is leaving for the navy in early 2009. I work for the govt and may have to take an early retirement due to an injury. So, now that the background is all set....We were thinking of moving to wisconsin maybe Ladysmith or Rhinelander area. I am from New England (MA) originally so I have had some dealings with the snow (although not in a few years). My wife loves the cold and snow. My youngest son hunts, fishes and all that sort of thing so he too wants to go. SO, here's my questions: (ya'll knew THAT was coming, right?)

1. Are either of these places a decent place to live for kids, family etc.
2. What is considered a reasonably comfortable income? (I have researched it but I would rather hear it from someone who is actually there)
3. How about amenities? Do these areas above offer some?
4. We thought we might rent first to see if we can live with the cold etc, any ideas on that?
5. Last but not least, if there are better areas (in your opinion) than the ones mentioned above, feel free to let us know!

Thank you all in advance,

JPJ

[yo vanilla]

Originally Posted by FormerCaliforniaGirl

Yo vanilla....I live in Oshkosh. Overall, I love it here. But the downtown area desperately needs a facelift. I've heard the Appleton downtown area is much better, but I haven't really gotten up there to check it out.

Oshkosh also has a hig number of "adult" video/bookstores and "adult" bars. For such a small city, 4 adult video stores, and 2 adult bars seems a bit extreme. And it kind of brings the city down a level, in my opinion.

And yes, the smoking and drinking is extreme...at least compared to where I'm from. I see so many young women in their 20's who smoke (something you rarely see in Southern California), and I just can't believe that people actually still start smoking at that age!!

Well... why didn't you say so? That's Oshkosh in a nutshell . Even the residents don't like it, lol. Besides the college being respectable, especially in the business school, there really aren't many nice things to say about Oshkosh. You're right, there's no restaraunts, shopping, etc. All that's there is a bunch of bars and decay. I lived there for about 4 years, and unfortunately I commute there for work. Lots of smokers in Oshkosh, for sure.

Please don't let your image of Wisconsin get distorted from Oshkosh The Fox Cities are much better!