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But, I hear about water rights-which sound worrisome at times, especially when buying a home. I wonder, is that why they are selling, is there a problem with water?
I wonder about full time employment opportunities. Seasonal jobs are more abundant, I'm sure, with Wyoming's tourism. But full-time?
I've read that the suicide rate is higher in Wyoming than other states. Is it a result of loneliness? Or, rather do some people move to Wyoming to 'get away from it all' - already in a state of depression from previous life circumstances?
To the folks living in Wyoming, if you have also lived elsewhere- how do you compare it? Do you feel more freedom? Is there a kinship with others who enjoy the spaciousness?
All depends upon your situation and how you deal with it.
You can buy remote/rural properties, with a lot of physical space between you and your neighbors. That doesn't necessarily mean that you are alone or that you aren't being observed. Indeed, what you do in these circumstances can be more closely watched than if you were to blend into the crowd of a metropolitan area.
But, I hear about water rights-which sound worrisome at times, especially when buying a home. I wonder, is that why they are selling, is there a problem with water?
Water is a valuable and oft times scare commodity in portions of Wyoming.
Potable water can be difficult to obtain in some places where the groundwater isn't good. Sometimes, there simply isn't a reliable water source to support a residence.
In other places, it's not a problem. Houses on municipal water systems generally don't have an issue.
For some folk, having to deal with the domestic water supply can be an issue ... such as having to have domestic water delivered, or having a well/source with a very limited output. It's possible that this is a reason why they want to move on.
Keep in mind that there's a big difference between domestic water use and commercial/industrial/agricultural water use. Each is permitted for the specific use. If you're only concerned about domestic water use, it's a lot easier than dealing with ag irrigation permits and supply.
I wonder about full time employment opportunities. Seasonal jobs are more abundant, I'm sure, with Wyoming's tourism. But full-time?
All depends upon what you do for a living and where you want to live in Wyoming.
Seasonal and full time jobs are available all around the state. A bigger concern for some might be whether or not the available jobs pay enough money to achieve the standard of living you need or want to have.
I've read that the suicide rate is higher in Wyoming than other states. Is it a result of loneliness? Or, rather do some people move to Wyoming to 'get away from it all' - already in a state of depression from previous life circumstances?
"rate" is a statistic. In a state with a very low total population, it doesn't take too many suicides to create that calculation. You can speculate all you want as to the "why" of folk doing this, their circumstances, their mental conditions, etc.
I've only known of one person who committed suicide here ... despondent over a family situation, he parked his vehicle out of town on a county road and shot himself. It made a local newspaper mention and the family placed a memorial at the scene of his shooting, although he died later in the emergency room after the first responders had him airlifted to the hospital.
OTOH, I've known more than a half-dozen people in Colorado when I lived there that committed suicide. Most had clinically diagnosed mental issues and had several failed attempts on their lives before their successful suicide. Several simply had financial problems and chose their way out.
To the folks living in Wyoming, if you have also lived elsewhere- how do you compare it? Do you feel more freedom? Is there a kinship with others who enjoy the spaciousness?
Wyoming presents it's own unique combination of open spaces, services, recreation, entertainment, professional services, shopping, restaurant options, climate, business and employment opportunities, social interactions, communities, economics, travel requirements, etc.
Whether or not and how Wyoming will appeal to you is a very personal decision.
I've seen folk move here because they thought something was here that was the overriding decision maker for them ... sometimes they've been disappointed, sometimes they've found (most of) what they were looking for.
I've seen folk move here because they thought all of Wyoming was the Big Horns or YNP, and thought that all of that beauty was available while taking for granted all of the good aspects of where they were moving from. They've made sizable assumptions which weren't true and it caused them a lot of distress. Some adapted to Wyoming and made the mental/financial/social shifts, some didn't ... and moved away in short order. Some got what they'd wished for and when that became the reality, they realized it wasn't really what they wanted.
IMO, if you are really interested in making your home here, you need to come visit the areas of interest and check it out for yourself ... jobs, housing, climate (a good idea to visit in the winter months), economics, recreation, etc. It's certainly possible that Wyoming has everything that you need and expect. But only you will know if the combination of what you find here is the key to your happiness.
As with everything, everywhere... it depends. There's Technically no more or less freedom than anywhere else in this country, just less people to call you out or give you grief about the small stuff (but Much more aggressive approaches if you're infringing on someone else as well). Ditto with privacy, actually I'd argue that there's less because you can't be lost in a crowd ~ fewer people means you're going to stand out and be recognized. Act poorly and the entire community (in the towns smaller than Casper, Cheyenne and Laramie ~ maybe there too) will know about it.
But water rights are only a concern for those who farm/ranch. Live in a town and it's such a non-issue that you just kinda shrug when others talk about it. Jobs are like everywhere else, the more people you have the more jobs. Find any town of 40k people that's NOT a 'burb or bedroom town of a city and you'll have similar job outlooks (both full time and seasonal). No clue about the suicide rate...
As for living there vs elsewhere? I was born and raised in Lander, left for college (Bozeman, MT) and then lived away for the next ~decade (Bellingham, WA, Washington DC, Phoenix, AZ, Atlanta, GA, Kayenta, AZ) before moving back with my wife. I love WY for the landscape (at least in/around Lander ~ I'm a mountain guy), for the live and let live attitude. I love that drivers still wave at passing vehicles on the highways (though it was down drastically from 1992~2005), and stop to see if there's anything they can do to help when you're stopped. Others may love the sense of community if they're included on that community (which essentially falls into kids/school and religion/church), but having neither children nor 'faith', we didn't experience it. But mostly I simply loved the way of life/quality of life. There's very little rat race going on. The climate allowed for year-round outdoor activities (and sheesh do I Miss that living in GA were there's maybe 30~40 days a year where one can enjoy outdoor activities).
But what I love about WY probably doesn't mean a dang thing to others. I remember hearing my parents generation talking when I was a kid (especially to out-of-state visitors), saying that Wyoming was then what the rest of the country was like 30 years prior. And they meant that in a Good way, that neighbors were not just the people physically located next door, but people you could count on and probably even call friends.
I hear people talk about the freedom they imagine I have living in Wyoming. I think it is overstated. I still have bosses, laws, taxes, family obligations, etc. All the things that encroach on my time and resources that people living elsewhere have.
I do find I get to be (have to be?) more self-reliant living here, which I like. Fewer tradesmen. Fewer stores in the places I choose to live. Fewer government freebies and charity services. I like all of that.
Suicide is tragic where ever it happens. I don't have a definitive answer as to why person A commits suicide and why person B does not. Neither does anyone else it seems, having read studies.
Water is a big concern as sunspirit explains.
I have lived in the southeast states and north central midwest for work. I don't care for trees very much, so I like the plains and prairie country, which is a good thing as most of Wyoming is plains and prairie and high desert and to live with a mountain view is very expensive. I don't mind wind and it doesn't keep me from doing the things I like to outside. That is also good.
I agree that coming to visit (in the winter is a must) is a good idea. I also recommend having a job that pays a livable wage before moving here. I have a good job and a house, an still take on side jobs for the recreation and additional saving that I want.
We have a great deal more freedoms than most think about. Having a boss to report to has nothing to do with freedom. Start your own business and then you won't have a boss. That sort of thing is going to be found anywhere.
I don't have to have permission from anybody to carry a concealed weapon. I don't have to have permission to carry a gun openly. I enjoy half of the state to hunt in, not needing permission from a landowner, because I am the landowner. I have thousands of miles of hiking trails, streams to fish in, thousands of miles of snowmobile trails, 4 wheeling, horseback riding, etc. All at no cost. Hunting is abundant with all the places you can imagine.
No state income tax.
No, we don't have any freedoms. What do you call those?
There are 4 other states with unrestricted carry, and even those with a "shall issue" are really a non-issue (just as was the case in Wyoming up till 2011 ~ it was more restrictive before that than here in GA). Most of the states in the Rockies are wide open to hunting, fishing, hiking, snow machining, etc... but that's just Access, not freedom. I'm 100% free to do the same here in GA, it's just that the locations where I can (or want to) are Very limited ~ all with no cost.
Same story with taxes, there are 6 others with zero income tax plus 2 more with no Wage income tax.
Could be that those specific freedoms don't mean anything to any given individual though, or the price for them is too high. Wyoming is the least populated state for a reason.
Having a boss to report to has nothing to do with freedom. Start your own business and then you won't have a boss. That sort of thing is going to be found anywhere.
When you own your own business your customers are your bosses.
The culture of "Live and Let Live" seems stronger here compared to other places I've lived and worked. And more people have a strong work ethic than I've seen in some other areas.
I also like the type of vegetation we have, the geology, etc. I like the challenges that the weather sometimes presents. I like all of it. I don't mind driving 40 or 50 miles on dirt to do some business. I don't mind that my road is sometimes days getting plowed.
My best advice (for what it's worth to anyone who cares enough to 'take a swig and wash it around in their mouth a little bit' to savor it) to anyone wanting to pack it in, sell the house and 'bolt' here to Wyoming to 'get away from it all' is as follows:
If you're REALLY wanting to 'get away from it all'...then Wyoming pretty much is one of VERY few places left, where you can do just that...
...but you have to LEAVE IT ALL BEHIND you.
DON'T BRING ANY OF IT WITH YOU.
And that would include the hyper-sensitivity to ANYTHING that bothers you, where you currently are.
When you see the sign: 'Wyoming - Like no other place on earth' you can believe it, because it's true...
...and that's EXACTLY the way WE (ie: those who already live here) would rather keep it.
We don't want outside influences coming in here 'tweaking' (whether consciously and or un-consciously) our ways.
Leave the nervousness behind; leave the 'it's all about me' mentality behind; leave the 'entitlement-mentality' behind; leave the "what if" mentality behind.
Lead, Follow, or get outta the way...is the way it works out here.
Yes, it's beautiful out here...but there's also 'high-desert'...and lot's of it.
A wise man once said: "Nothing lives in the desert....and NO man needs nothing".
Words to consider, before throwing everything away to "finally live your dream of a Wyoming-Lifestyle"
Say I were a house wife. My husband is the sole breadwinner. And we were happy this way.
You will find many other families make the same choice for their own various reasons.
Will I be called lazy? noncontributing?
As long as you can support yourselves without being a burden on others, nobody else will care about your choice.
Do you all really mean live and let live? or would I be judged for this?
Really, the biggest problem I see here is that you're so concerned about what others will think about your choices. Nobody really gives a damn about how you chose to spend your time and resources as long as you're not imposing upon theirs.
Ltdumbear above captured much of the situation: "the hyper-sensitivity to ANYTHING that bothers you, where you currently are."
PS: If you are really that concerned about being judged by others, than you're not likely to enjoy any small town/rural location in Wyoming.
Last edited by sunsprit; 10-14-2014 at 06:33 PM..
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