[middle-of-nowhere]

just don't try to sneak those Swedish meatballs through the border and you should be fine

[Dwatted Wabbit]

Originally Posted by annawolfsong

Dwatted Wabbit, the answer is simple. Vermont is home. I grew up in the NEK in my childhood and in New Hampshire. While New Hampshire might be a fine place to live as a child, I find the extremely high property taxes difficult to swallow. I much prefer a balanced tax system. I will be semi-retired and tend not to be much of a "consumer" so my income tax and sales tax burden tend to be lower than usual. That leaves property tax which in Vermont is about the same as it is in Idaho.

I am soooo darn tired of this high mountain desert living. I have lived in the west now for 23 years and I am drying out like an old boot! If I want to keep my youthful good looks my choice is to bathe in serums and lotions or move to a humid climate. I'll take door number two.

Property values in Idaho Falls have skyrocketed in the eight years I have been here. I will double what I paid for this house. I can take that to the NEK, buy a very nice home, albeit smaller which I prefer, but more land and work part time (I am self employed and ply my trade there), grow my own food without massive irrigation efforts and enjoy the bucolic life.

I'm not a "go out" type of person, preferring the stay at home life but I do enjoy a sense of community. I was reading the Barton Chronicle today and the amount of things to do in the area was astonishing!!! All small events but many of them.

I already have "met" people with my proclivities in the area (I'm a rabid knitter) and have sussed out not one but THREE knitting groups *swoon*

All in all, it's a day to day countdown towards getting this house ready for sale, selling it and moving EAST!!! Of course I *am* going to have to get stilts for the Corgis.... the snow is definitely deeper there.

AnnaMarie
Princess of Pink

Thanks for the details, Anna. I wish you well in your move.
I think the NEK shows lots of promise. I'm more familiar with NH, having lived there until my teens and then again for two years a few years back.

I'm planning a separate post about cultures, to post in the VT, NH, and ME boards.
But I found NH...odd. My family goes back many generations and there are even numerous distinguished figures in my line. But when we returned there in the early 00s we found many of the folks there quite provincial or clannish.
One of the oddest things I noticed immediately was the reaction--or not--when entering a room where two were engaged in conversation. In NH the conversation would continue unabated, with narry a nod or wink at the intruder. I've never been anywhere else where this was the case, and it's quite rude IMO. You could stand there for minutes without acknowledgement.
The lack of common courtesy in returning phone calls is another oddity.
The lack of accountability or interest in serving the taxpayer of the Concord government is another nonplussing factor.
In another state, I've called the attorney general's office or other state or city functionary regarding legal or regulatory issues. Often I've been put on hold until an actual staff attorney could get on the line. In NH, I was told to "hire a lawyer." Live Free or Die, indeed. I don't think that's exactly what Patrick Henry meant.
I called the DMV numerous times regarding a title problem we were having. Never before have I phoned state offices where the phone would just ring and ring. On the odd occasion where I'd get the recorded message, with assurances that my call is very important, I'd not get the odd callback. I guess the meaning of important can go into the bag along with the meaning of is regarding flexible definitions.
I wrote a letter to the Concord Police Dept. regarding cemetary vandalism, a few years back. Never a response. Fine. I know people don't write letters any more.
Recently I phoned them to see what they knew. To make a short story shorter, nobody at Concord PD, or the Monitor or the Union Leader (reporters...story...local interest...?) bothered to return calls. You have to catch them live. I know the Concord Monitor is a lost cause courtesy-wise from previous non-returns, but I'm a bit flummoxed about the blanket lack of common courtesy. Am I missing something regarding the folkways and mores of NH folk?
Anyway, I'm drifting here, but what we're looking for in New England is a section where taxes are reasonable, folks have a modicum of courtesy, and where the furriner is not viewed similarly to how lots of southerners see the evil Yankee (not a baseball reference).
Perhaps the NEK is such a place, where land is reasonable and so are people.

[OhBeeHave]

Originally Posted by GypsySoul22

Yes, it's a Swedish firm I believe. They do simple, clean looking furniture.

Clean looking and somewhat modern. No colonial or traditional.

Someone else on the board mentioned the Ikea in New Haven, CT. From where I am located in VT (Chester/Andover) it is about a 2.5-3 hour drive straight down I-91.

As far as traveling to Ikea in Montreal or New Haven: what is your time worth? The cost of gasoline? Tariffs? The savings might be reduced by the time and gas invested in the trip.

[goatwoodward]

There's a dollar limit as to how much money you have to spend on stuff to bring back to the US before they'll make you declare it and even then, if you declare a few things, they won't hassle you about the rest. Especially in Derby, the border patrol officers are pretty friendly.