[vter]

Enough of the bickering guys....thanks. Lets keep this thread on the rails.

[scoobydew]

Okie Dokie

[LeahP80]

I'd go with Burlington. The people are fairly nice. That said, if you are planning to stay as a musician, you may want to go to someplace warmer than Vermont.

[Wanderlust Wisdom]

Originally Posted by scoobydew

I second that. Although I might use the word standoffish rather than stoic. And the only variance to standoffish seems to be a fake overly done "friendly" which is similarly off putting.

There also seems to be resentment for people who don't come from Vermont; even for other New Englanders. Most New Englanders are not quick to warm-up to outsiders and require more time to trust strangers, so to speak. But even though we are initially cool, we will eventually allow people to know us once trust is established and assuming the other person is willing to invest the time and be genuine enough so that trust can be established. But Vermonters seem to be particularly chilly and reluctant to let you get to know them, even if you are real and try to develop the trust. It just doesn't seem to happen unless you are another Vermonter. Of course these are general observations and there are exceptions to all.

I've spent significant amount of time in all New England states and in my opinion Vermont is an anomaly to them in many ways. I have several theses on why this might be, that I won't get into in this thread but they relate its rural nature as well as the differences in migration and culturalization that other NE states saw during the Industrial period, which were different in Vermont.

The only variance to standoffish seems to be fake overly done friendly to the point of being off-putting?



Well you just described Seattle, Portland(OR), San Fran and Los Angeles to a T. The above sentence I just paraphrased from the quote is why the West Coast is a loser nowadays and to be truly unemcumbered by such ill-fated social graces, one must truly strike out and blaze a fresh city-dwelling trail.



The West Coast = socially and soulfully in its death throes as of 2014

[scoobydew]

Originally Posted by Wanderlust Wisdom

The only variance to standoffish seems to be fake overly done friendly to the point of being off-putting?



Well you just described Seattle, Portland(OR), San Fran and Los Angeles to a T. The above sentence I just paraphrased from the quote is why the West Coast is a loser nowadays and to be truly unemcumbered by such ill-fated social graces, one must truly strike out and blaze a fresh city-dwelling trail.



The West Coast = socially and soulfully in its death throes as of 2014

Yeah that can describe a number of places these days. Especially places where mainstream yuppies and their boring brand of group-think and fake personalities congregate.

[VT'ah]

Originally Posted by Ulysses61

I'm a native Californian but I've spent a great deal of time in VT over the years. I'm a loner, am not social, a partier or someone who wants to be chummy with neighbors. I will always be respectful and friendly to most everyone, but I want essentially to be left alone.

I like Vermonters. I don't want back slappers or people who invite me over. I would imagine a really social partier would not be happy in Vermont. Southerners bug me, they are overly friendly and want you to go to church, baptisms, etc.

I now live in the South. When I return home I find the people to be very rough around the edges with a certain level of redneck edginess-anger and unhappiness. Southerners seem more happy and laid back. Many indeed define their ideology though by what the priest tells them on Sunday which I find rather ignorant.

What I like about VT is folks advocating for ones rights...Down here we are going on 10 years for the highway outer loop to be built and they just closed shop for the year because of the impending 60 degree weather on the way...its almost winter they said and too cold to lay pavement. If something like that were to happen in VT people would be raising hell. As for a Southerner, they do not get involved in those type of social issues...to even talk about it could label you as a rude Yankee.

I suppose we all can learn a thing or two about being happy social human beings and perhaps work on our own qualities to better who we are...

[voyager977]

As a fairly recent transplant to Vermont, I say welcome!

We've been here for just over 2 years now and couldn't be more pleased. You didn't mention where you are coming from but I will give you the benefit of the doubt that you know what to expect for winter!

We live in the Champlain islands and have made many friends both here and in Essex, So. Burlington, etc. where some of our kids play sports and attend high school.

I have found most people to be engaging and welcoming. Be sure to check out local places like Arts Riot on Pine street to get a foothold in the music and arts scene. By the time you get here, the weather may have turned cold enough for the Friday night Truck Stop behind Arts Riot to be done for the season, but it's worth the wait 'til spring if necessary.

Be open to others and they'll eventually be open to you. Some may take to you right away, some after a bit, some perhaps never! But, hey that's life and probably their loss.

If things work here for you that will be great. If not, you'll have more experiences on which to continue building your life. Good luck.

[darky]

Sounds good
I've been in the South for almost 4 years and haven't made friends... While I have plenty of good friends back up north. That is one of the reasons why I'm moving my family up there. I'm kind of worried about my husband though... He is an older musician who was born in the Southwest... But we'll have to figure it out by ourselves

[Searching_for_quiet]

My wife and I just spent a few days over Thanksgiving up in the Brattleboro area. We're poking around for possible retirement locations and find the area appealing.
As an active musician we asked many people we met where we could go hear live music and kept getting the response that "theres not much of a scene up here in Vermont, aside from the ski areas".

Is that really true? Aren't there places that professional / amateur musicians congregate and play regular gigs? I find it hard to believe that almost any city can't support at least one venue that would have music every night of the week.....even in a pub type atmosphere. The type of music we're most interested in would be termed "Americana / folk / bluegrass / rock or even jazz. Down here near Boston the scene is just continuing to grow (not that there is a ton of money to be made) and there are many places to go out and meet others and play almost any night.

Any input from locals would be appreciated. I'm not trying to hijack the thread, but haven't seen too many others about this topic, so I hope this is an appropriate place.

Thanks!

[vter]

Burlington has a very active local music scene offering many venues. You'd be certain to find live music any day of the week there.