Seeking Advice from Vermonters

[dehmunk]

Hey everyone, I was browsing through your forums and it seems like the community is made up of some cool people.
I live in the midwest U.S., but I plan to leave soon. I have a friend who moved up to Vermont and tells me it is a nice place to live. I'm looking for a quiet, scenic, and relaxed place. I would probably work at a restaurant or department store.

-Would it be difficult to find an inexpensive place to live? Small apartment?
-Could I get a job?
-Is finding green a daunting task?
-Most importantly, do you like living in Vermont?

I welcome and request all input...I'm trying to make a logical decision, so your help is greatly appreciated. Thanks!

[Shovelhandle]

it gets cold here. otherwise it's a nice place with cool little cities and towns and lots of country.

[stinkyattic]

Dehmunk, I will tell you about my experience trying to move to Vermont.
You will have a HELL of a time finding a job unless you bring a profession with you- Agriculture, forestry, medical, mechanical, and construction trades are desirable. Teaching is too.
Retail and restaurant work, and even resort management postitions, are going to be hard to find as a tourism-based economy founders in this recession. I was up there a decade ago with some college but no degree and found a crappy bartending job and couldn't even get an INTERVIEW at convenience stores because they had a waiting list of applicants already. I worked as an intern at a fish hatchery, which was not a full time year round position- or paid, lol.
LAtely, I have been keeping an eye on the papers for promising jobs. My field is environmental chemistry, and there are some jobs in that, but competitive. There are a lot of manufacturing jobs- if you like factory work, try a paper mill or lumber/millwork company. I assume since you say retail/restaurant you don't have a degree? Manufacturing is going to be more stable when the tourists fail to appear this year. Don't expect to be able to find food service work once the market is flooded with locals who are looking to replace a job at a restaurant or resort which laid them off.

If there is a possibility of going to school for something like nursing or even just a CNA that will let you get an entry level job at a rehab facility or old folks home, that puts you in a more secure place. Brattleboro (in the SE corner of the state) is a really cute and friendly town with a lot of medical offices and hospitals.

Anyway. Good luck.
Oh- it's easy to find green. Look around. They don't call them the Green Mountains for nothing. You want pot? Just plant some.

[dehmunk]

Thanks for the replies, Shovelhandle and Stinkyattic. I plan to definately move up there, but I suppose I'll try to get some education out of the way first. (I just got out of high school.) I'd also love to try growing, it seems like it would be a merry thing to do in my free time.
-I appreciate the help, have a great day.

[stinkyattic]

Why don't you go to a college in Vermont so you can get the education and also the VT experience together, and decide if that is the place to make your home?
Lyndon State in Lyndonville up in the Northeast Kingdom is a neat, small school in a stunningly beautiful area. Depending on your grades and how much you want to spend on college, UVM, Middlebury, and Bennington (similar to Hampshire that it has no formal letter grades, and costs an arm and a leg, hahaha) are also options, as well as the other state schools.

[Shovelhandle]

CCs are definetly a good deal if you have to pay and work too.

[grow1964]

I've been looking at Vermont myself. Always loved it up there. great part of the country especially if you like winter activities. Now that Ma just changed the laws though I may stick it out here for a little longer until my next move which is SE Asia on an Island where I can live in Sativa heaven.

[Shovelhandle]

Hey, good luck with that! and don't forget your friends here! :hippy:

[scootersage]

i lived in Walden in the 70's. what a great place to be. I love the state, the winters and the cold. Had the railroad not gone under i might still be there.

[imfukinbaked]

lol you mean "The restaurant or the General Store" or maybe you can become the 5th Sherif" lol the Weedtokin one...

[sp3ct0r802]

i lived there for a bit, its amazing, cheep bud and good people.
you will be hard pressed to find a job, but the schools are easy to get into, all but the university of vermont, burlington is the closest thing to a city you will find, but it is chock full of head shops and accepting people. the housing is cheep throughout the state but it is COLD in the winter, my first day living there it was -30 f, if you dont have a good 4 wheel drive car or somthing that can make it in snow you wont get far in the winter.

i would say if you like the woods and cold, and being broke go for it.