Part II of Pie In The Sky (Cupertino: homes, university)

[aslowdodge]

Originally Posted by opossum1

My understanding is that termites are quite an issue in the South, speaking about bugs, and one has to do a lot of treatments and maintain a contract with pest company, generally. This is what I was thinking about when I mentioned bugs... and ticks in the yard, I guess people do spray yards for them.

I would imagine termites are a problem everywhere. I do an in home spraying of ortho home defense about every 8 months. Nothing outside except for some ant stations.
I guess it depends on your yard. Some people literally have a forest for backyards so I can see where bugs could become an issue. I’m thinking perhaps so many of my neighbors spray for bugs that I kind of get the benefit from all of them. I’m trying to avoid spraying because of the bees and I love the fireflies in the summer.

[dc_woman]

Yes. I agree. Not an infestation. The bugs live in the woods and come into homes looking for water in the summer. Make sure that you have window and door screens, sprinkle some boric acid powder on the floors (not a good idea if you have pets or kids), pour some diluted liquid bleach down your kitchen and bath drains. Get an exterminator contract. Or get a condo on a higher floor and you'll never see palmetto bugs.

[dc_woman]

RoadLessTraveled - No city is going to be as progressive as SF and the surrounding burbs. Maybe NYC? I don't know.

If you want uber-progressive, be prepared to shell out crazy rent money or get a roommate or two or three. All very doable if you have a high income or a trust fund or are younger. I work in HR, my income is not high but I can live comfortably on it without roommates in the Southeast. ITP Atlanta and the surrounding inner suburbs have enough progressive people for me to not feel like a fish out of water. Same in the Research Triangle Park (Chapel Hill, Cary, etc.). There is enough Asian diversity and there are enough progressive people in these areas. One of my best friends in the Atlanta area is a Baptist preacher's daughter. Very sweet person. Our religion and politics don't align but we are very good friends. I try not to talk about politics or religion with anyone in the South. I look at the person and if we get along, then that's all that matters.

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by dc_woman

Hi Ruth - I have moved back to the Southeast. Moving to California (south bay, east bay, any bay) is not on my agenda. I just don't have the enthusiasm or the energy to pack up and move to the other end of the country, drive for days, look for a dependable roommate and a job, shell out crazy amounts of money to pay for dingy housing, or work crazy long hours in an overcrowded and built up area that is prone to earthquakes, fires, droughts, and power outages. I would totally do it if I were 22 or even 32. Right now, I just have some travel and a job search (9 to 5 type of job) on my agenda.

It just seems like a huge pain in the backside to go through that ordeal of moving to Silicon Valley for a little bit of sausage :-)

I hear you, loud and clear. It's so sad that it's come to this (I'm thinking--the fires & the related issues, especially). And yeah; after a certain age, having roommates is something one is less willing to tolerate. Good luck, I hope you find the life you're looking for!

[opossum1]

Originally Posted by aslowdodge

I would imagine termites are a problem everywhere. I do an in home spraying of ortho home defense about every 8 months. Nothing outside except for some ant stations.
I guess it depends on your yard. Some people literally have a forest for backyards so I can see where bugs could become an issue. I’m thinking perhaps so many of my neighbors spray for bugs that I kind of get the benefit from all of them. I’m trying to avoid spraying because of the bees and I love the fireflies in the summer.

You mean a problem everywhere in the South? In the North, Midwest or West they're much less of an issue than in the South, definitely. I know that say, in Arkansas, one can't really sell a home without demonstrating long-term pest contract with history of regular sprayings (very unusual for other regions) - homes that don't get treated on a regular basis get eaten up by termites. Spraying every 8 month is very frequent...
In many places you never really have to spray (for termites), unless you find evidence of their activity, which doesn't happen a lot. I avoid pesticides myself.
I also know that in a few Eastern States (say, Illinois, Kentucky, Maine, all over the place) they spray yards for ticks (or put pellets into the grass), and the further South you go, the more ticks you usually see.

[marcopolo666]

Originally Posted by dc_woman

Hi everyone,

The confusion about whether to move to the Bay Area continues and I have some questions:
{...}

Originally Posted by dc_woman

Hi Ruth - I have moved back to the Southeast. Moving to California (south bay, east bay, any bay) is not on my agenda. I just don't have the enthusiasm or the energy to {...}

It just seems like a huge pain in the backside to go through that ordeal of moving to Silicon Valley for a little bit of sausage :-)

Ah, so the topic of discussion (moving cross-country to 'find' a man) is now at a close? This thread is now dead?

[dc_woman]

Thank you, Ruth. I did get my "coastal" experiences while I could and had to return to my Southern roots.

A few years in the D.C. area, three weeks in Silicon Valley, a week in NYC (thrice!). I can't say that I enjoyed D.C. too much. It was good for my career but soul sucking (weather, people, traffic, men) in every other way.

Three weeks in Silicon Valley were fun but I saw enough to realize that I didn't want to deal with the housing stock, cost of living, and the lack of trees.

Three weeks in NYC were also fun but the rats, noise, buildings, and weather are not for me in the long run.

I think I'm happier in the South now that I've experienced what else is out there. It's like dating. It helps you understand yourself and your needs better.

[silverkris]

Originally Posted by dc_woman

Thank you, Ruth. I did get my "coastal" experiences while I could and had to return to my Southern roots.

A few years in the D.C. area, three weeks in Silicon Valley, a week in NYC (thrice!). I can't say that I enjoyed D.C. too much. It was good for my career but soul sucking (weather, people, traffic, men) in every other way.

Three weeks in Silicon Valley were fun but I saw enough to realize that I didn't want to deal with the housing stock, cost of living, and the lack of trees.

Three weeks in NYC were also fun but the rats, noise, buildings, and weather are not for me in the long run.

I think I'm happier in the South now that I've experienced what else is out there. It's like dating. It helps you understand yourself and your needs better.

Good for you - only you can determine what you like and what fits you.

[RationalExpectations]

Originally Posted by dc_woman

I spent three weeks in the Bay Area and I liked the weather and the vibe but the cost of housing scares me.

I looked up salaries for HR Business Partner jobs

Here's an anecdote you may appreciate:

In the middle 1980s, I was a hiring manager in high tech in Silicon Valley. One candidate I was interested in for a job as a PME & to whom I extended an offer was a woman with an undergraduate EE degree from Carnegie Mellon and who was just graduating from Kellogg with an MBA.

She had narrowed her job search to two companies: the one for which I worked, and Microsoft up in Redmond.

Microsoft did something VERY smart, unbeknownst to me. At their expense, they paid for this woman & her husband to travel to Silicon Valley on a Friday evening, and they set them up with a Real Estate Agent to spend Saturday looking at starter homes within commute distance of Cupertino. They then flew the couple up to Redmond, and set them up with a Real Estate Agent to spend Sunday looking at starter homes within commute distance of the campus.

On Monday morning, she called me to tell me she was taking the job at Microsoft.

[opossum1]

Originally Posted by RationalExpectations

Here's an anecdote you may appreciate:

In the middle 1980s, I was a hiring manager in high tech in Silicon Valley. One candidate I was interested in for a job as a PME & to whom I extended an offer was a woman with an undergraduate EE degree from Carnegie Mellon and who was just graduating from Kellogg with an MBA.

She had narrowed her job search to two companies: the one for which I worked, and Microsoft up in Redmond.

Microsoft did something VERY smart, unbeknownst to me. At their expense, they paid for this woman & her husband to travel to Silicon Valley on a Friday evening, and they set them up with a Real Estate Agent to spend Saturday looking at starter homes within commute distance of Cupertino. They then flew the couple up to Redmond, and set them up with a Real Estate Agent to spend Sunday looking at starter homes within commute distance of the campus.

On Monday morning, she called me to tell me she was taking the job at Microsoft.

Let me bet it happened outside of long and brutal Western WA rain season
Even if it was raining when she visited Redmond... few months there give quite a different perspective (including on the brevity of life/needing to spend every day of it where sun does shine and other philosophical matters)