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Well, reading all the above I could not agree more with the postings! Having escaped from Oregon to return to my birth-state of South Dakota, it WAS hard! Most of the family is still out west & we knew not one soul here in Spearfish when we got here, had no jobs lined up, nothing. It WAS expensive to move (as my adult son so thoughtfully pointed out upon our informing him of our plans!) BUT---- we had a little bit of cash (now gone!) a whole lot of heart and even more gumption! We found a rental online before we left Oregon(craigslist-unbelievable!) and have been here nearly 5 months - both are employed - wages ARE LOW, ($8.50 hr. starting for the wife & big bucks @$13.00) but so are our bills. We have met people we can call friends, we have found a church full of friendly, lovely folks, we are enjoying the seasons & exploring our new home and truly enjoying being here. It was different being away from the family for the holidays, BUT because our hearts were HERE, it was not "tragic" to spend the holidays with new friends, or just we two. We did a LOT of research before coming here & when we felt the time was right, we just had to go for it. We are in our early 50's and some people think we are nuts for doing this & others, I think are totally envious of our fear-less-ness in leaping off the cliff & into the unknown! I grew up in SD, but my spouse had never even been here until this last year! We came & we were aggressive in our job search, both of us are hard working & not afraid to do new things, or to take a lower paying job until you proved yourself worthy of a raise!
So, all that to say we are glad we are here! We are blessed to be here! It was worth the effort to get here & there is no going back!
Follow your heart & don't be afraid to step out, but in the same breath - be WISE!
WOW....that was touching! I have a feeling the post will be mentioned to people over and over again in the future facing the fears and wonders of "should I go or not?" I LOVED reading it! I am happy that you and your wife were able to make the plunge and have everything fall into place. I LOVED Spearfish. When I worked for Midcontinent I did lots of installs there. That town was incredibly friendly. A really nice family town. I will never forget the incredible smell of pine in the air in the mornings.....awww.....remembering it now....so jealous of you living there! lol
I've never had a job when relocating, and it has always worked out. I always felt as long as I could get by in the cheapest rentals a place offered I could also be less picky on the job end. Once established a bit more, a better job would come along and then I could find/afford better housing. I prefer to interview an employer probably as much or more than they interview me, doing that from a distance can be difficult and traveling back and forth isn't cheap either. If your current location is an option to return to, consider storing your stuff their while moving yourself with necessities. If you move without a job, at least have researched what is available and cross reference it with what you could do. The longest I've ever went without a job is 2 weeks since 1988 between Colorado and South Dakota. Right now, although unemployment is low, jobs are tougher to come by than they used to be and many get filled word of mouth before even posted. Weigh the risks and don't let fear guide you. SD is a right to work state which in part means in the first 90 days you can be fired for no reason, so having a job in advance is less important IMO than doing the one you get well. Keep in mind South Dakotans are competitive and many work 2-3 jobs when necessary.
Just to chime in here about South Dakota. First and foremost - wages are low, REALLY low. Funny how you put that South Dakotans are competitive and many work 2-3 jobs when necessary. I'd say working two jobs in SD is the norm b/c they have to, b/c SD employers are too darn cheap to pay a living wage.
Having said that, there are a qualities in SD, that outsiders would find positive. Low crime rate, less humidity in the summers. The winters can be frigid. Sioux Falls is an expensive place to live, the town where the most jobs would be. Believe me, it's a stereotype when South Dakotans like to brag that the cost of living is less there. Maybe in some dinky town in the middle of nowhere it's less expensive, but then there are no jobs in a tiny town in the middle of nowhere.
Also, you need to enjoy desolation and flat prairie and a LOT of windy days (aside from the Black Hills) if you're going to live here.
Just to chime in here about South Dakota. First and foremost - wages are low, REALLY low. Funny how you put that South Dakotans are competitive and many work 2-3 jobs when necessary. I'd say working two jobs in SD is the norm b/c they have to, b/c SD employers are too darn cheap to pay a living wage.
Having said that, there are a qualities in SD, that outsiders would find positive. Low crime rate, less humidity in the summers. The winters can be frigid. Sioux Falls is an expensive place to live, the town where the most jobs would be. Believe me, it's a stereotype when South Dakotans like to brag that the cost of living is less there. Maybe in some dinky town in the middle of nowhere it's less expensive, but then there are no jobs in a tiny town in the middle of nowhere.
Also, you need to enjoy desolation and flat prairie and a LOT of windy days (aside from the Black Hills) if you're going to live here.
You talk about some of these things as if they were a bad thing...I guess it just depends on your perspective. I agree with the wages being low, but I have lived a lot of other places in the country, and I would say a lower wage is a fair tradeoff for the things I *don't* have to put up with anymore...the hour long commute (I drive 5 minutes to my office, at 25 MPH - not 75 MPH. I could walk on days when it's not cold, but I have a child to get to school, so that cuts my time short). There is no state income tax here - after living in two states that try to tax their residents to death, I am thinking a lower wage is a fair trade off here. I actually come out about the same, since I am not having to pay and arm and both legs in state taxes. There's this thing called a budget...but, I digress. Sioux Falls isn't the only place in the state with jobs, or even the place with the most jobs (Caterpillar just opened up an operation in Rapid City, and the Sanford Lab project in Lead, SD, promises a lot more jobs to come). However, it is the only BIG CITY in the state, for those who are so inclined. Those of us who live here, well, we DO like the desolation of the plains, we DO like that we aren't falling over our neighbor when we walk out to the car in the morning, we DO like that the sirens don't go screaming past our houses a dozen times a day...but these things have been discussed before in other threads.
And the weather...well, the weather is the weather. If you don't care for it today, it will be different tomorrow. It will probably be windy, but it's windy in a lot of places. I actually chose to live here based on the weather, but again, to each his own.
People who ask questions on what it's like to live here deserve honest answers, and the most honest answer is that it's not for everyone (otherwise, everyone would live here, and a lot of US would be looking to move!). If you have questions, ask them. Those of us who live here and love it promise to answer truthfully, but we don't promise to answer without bias!
I live in a state with a progressive income tax and I honestly don't feel the hit at all taken out of my paycheck and I'm making twice as much as I was in SD working the same job.
If people weren't so anti-union in SD they could bargain and get better wages, but they're afraid of unions.
I live in a state with a progressive income tax and I honestly don't feel the hit at all taken out of my paycheck and I'm making twice as much as I was in SD working the same job.
If people weren't so anti-union in SD they could bargain and get better wages, but they're afraid of unions.
Unions have outlived their usefulness 50 years ago.
That's just the sort of comment I'd expect to hear from a South Dakotan. There are still productive unions that work for better wages and working conditions.
If South Dakotans weren't so naive about unions they would realize that they've really been jipped.
That's just the sort of comment I'd expect to hear from a South Dakotan. There are still productive unions that work for better wages and working conditions.
If South Dakotans weren't so naive about unions they would realize that they've really been jipped.
Really? Ask GM about unions. Wonder why the goverment had to bail them out? Think about for more than a minute.
Yes, everyone knows about the GM fiasco. I agree the govt should not have bailed them out.
There are still unions around where I live that people swear by. That's all, that's all. It's like everything else, moderation is best. Unions aren't all bad, and there's been some bad ones, but the guys around here, such at the Electrical workers, Teamsters, have that affordable decent health insurance, that decent living wage b/c the union bargained. There's not that power anymore and that's a sad thing.
I think collective bargaining is a bad thing. Do a good job and are relable you should be compensated. If you do a poor job that should be reflected as well.
Insurance and other perks yes that can be a great advantage. Most business' that have more than 20 employees offer insurance and retirement plans. No need for union intervention there.
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