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Thread: AK vs. PNW

  1. #51
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    Quote Originally Posted by DBdude View Post
    hard to make $$$$$$ in Bellingham

    seattle environs are awesome for those inclined to snow sports
    and for those inclined to be stuck in traffic twice a day 5 days a week.

    PSA: If you're going to move to Seattle, please don't drive to work. We have above-average public transportation and some of the best bicycle infrastructure in the world.

  2. #52
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    Quote Originally Posted by SkreeDaProw View Post
    Teacher salaries wouldn't really be much different between Seattle and Bellingham.

    What do you teach, F.D.V.?
    History mainly...but I also have a host of electives.
    Quote Originally Posted by splat View Post
    It's the same argument for prostitution. There's a lot of people in this world who won't be getting laid unless they pay big bucks or fuck an artificial life form. No amount of consolation, pity or comiserating is going to change that reality.
    Slaughter is the best medicine.

  3. #53
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    https://www.tetongravity.com/forums/s...Seattle-vs-SLC

    Can't believe you missed this ^^ one.
    I think the Seattle area has the most underrated skiing in the US. BUT it's crowded expensive and the gild is off the lily here.

    One place that's nice is La Grande, OR.
    There's not all that much for lift served with Anthony Lakes 1k vert lift served(and fantastic 2k+ vert cat skiing/touring off the backside into Crawfish Basin) or Ferguson Ridge outside Joseph.

    But the touring, fishing, hiking/backpacking options are pretty sweet.

    The Wallowas have some great huts and fantastic day tours out of Salt Creek Snowpark or McCully trailheads. The Elkhorns are vast and untouched.
    Red (Rossland) and Whitewater (Nelson) in BC are around 6+ hours away. It's affordable and has some character AND there's Eastern Oregon University there.

    You could live in North Powder, Oregon. Hows that for a name?
    Merde De Glace On the Freak When Ski
    >>>200 cm Black Bamboo Sidewalled DPS Lotus 120 : Best Skis Ever <<<

  4. #54
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    yeah good luck finding a job as a history teacher up here...

    We just cut taxes on the most profitable corporations in history, and 500 teaching jobs.
    Its not that I suck at spelling, its that I just don't care

  5. #55
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    Quote Originally Posted by pipedream View Post
    PSA: If you're going to move to Seattle, please don't drive to work. We have above-average public transportation and some of the best bicycle infrastructure in the world.
    Hmm i guess you've never been to Europe... In DE/CH/AT for exp there are paved bike paths near every road, or dedicated bike lanes. Never saw that in my years of living/working in Seattle. Might as well play russian roulette, one day youre gonna get hit, espec if youre riding in the mess that is downtown during rush hour traffic.

    Seattle is crowded. Not sure what the commute is like in denver, but you'd better enjoy sitting in your car for a couple hours in traffic on a cold rainy day if you want to live in Seattle.

  6. #56
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    Quote Originally Posted by Alkares View Post
    In DE/CH/AT for exp there are paved bike paths near every road, or dedicated bike lanes. Never saw that in my years of living/working in Seattle. .
    Aw c'mon. The Burke-Gilman is there! And Redmond has The Pedestrian and Bicycle Advisory Committee.
    Merde De Glace On the Freak When Ski
    >>>200 cm Black Bamboo Sidewalled DPS Lotus 120 : Best Skis Ever <<<

  7. #57
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    The last 4 yrs has seen a dramatic increase in bike dedicated lanes in the city through re-striping, some barrier separated, and dual purpose. Great for those that choose to bike, but sometimes at the detriment of motorists losing a travel lane and home owners living along routes that have lost the use of street parking in front of their homes. More are being planned to expand bike traffic and attempt to separate cars and bikes on the road. The commuting can be a drag but it's not a deal breaker compared to commute times in other cities especially when combined with the relatively easy access to skiing and year round outdoor opportunities. Since there are virtually no schools in downtown Sea complaining about the commute times doesn't hold up.

    I think I'd dig living in AK for the mountains and the skiing, but there are almost no jobs in my field up there and I probably couldn't persuade the Mrs to make the move either.
    Move upside and let the man go through...

  8. #58
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    Quote Originally Posted by Alkares View Post
    Hmm i guess you've never been to Europe... In DE/CH/AT for exp there are paved bike paths near every road, or dedicated bike lanes. Never saw that in my years of living/working in Seattle. Might as well play russian roulette, one day youre gonna get hit, espec if youre riding in the mess that is downtown during rush hour traffic.

    Seattle is crowded. Not sure what the commute is like in denver, but you'd better enjoy sitting in your car for a couple hours in traffic on a cold rainy day if you want to live in Seattle.
    Definitely meant to say United States, not world. D'oh!

    And apparently I should put my foot in my mouth regarding our public transit system, since if it doesn't find a way to bridge its current funding gap, they're going to hack and slash it back to 1997 levels of service

    As for the "sitting in your car for a couple hours in traffic on a cold rainy day" statement, that depends on how you play your cards. If you work on the Eastside, while everyone else is sitting in their cars waiting to go back across the lake, you can just go the other way and be lapping pow underneath the lights all evening. The commute really isn't that bad if you can find a way to work outside of the stereotypical 9-5. I like to either get to work after 10 and leave after 6 or get to work before 9 and leave before 5. If that's not possible, I see out alternative transportation options that let me either get my exercise in for the day or get some work done while someone else drives in the mess.

  9. #59
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    There are trade offs
    You either are down with it or you will move back
    -lots of Joeys move here for 2 years...

    this is the site you would use for a HS teaching job
    http://www.alaskateacher.org/

    Contact University of Alaska about their Community College satellite campuses

    pm if you want more specifics

  10. #60
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    Quote Originally Posted by Alkares View Post
    Seattle is crowded. Not sure what the commute is like in denver, but you'd better enjoy sitting in your car for a couple hours in traffic on a cold rainy day if you want to live in Seattle.
    Quote Originally Posted by pipedream View Post
    The commute really isn't that bad if you can find a way to work outside of the stereotypical 9-5. I like to either get to work after 10 and leave after 6 or get to work before 9 and leave before 5. If that's not possible, I see out alternative transportation options that let me either get my exercise in for the day or get some work done while someone else drives in the mess.
    Eh. Really, that's what everyone's trying. Now we have rush hour on Saturday at noon. Or Sunday at 8pm. And God forbid the sun comes out on the weekend, because then the surface streets are eff'd too with everyone and their mother trying to get to the dog park. Consider Tacoma or Olympia, roam Crystal and the south cascades. Enjoy life. That's my plan.

  11. #61
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    If you're interested in the PNW, check out Wenatchee. Some decent skiing nearby. You can have drier eastern WA snow, or crap-tons of wet western WA snow - depending on which direction you want to drive.

    Weather is much better than the I-5 corridor. Hot and dry in the summer. Low cost of living. Lots to do when the snow melts: hiking, biking, boating, etc.

    Wenatchee has a community college, too.

  12. #62
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    Quote Originally Posted by skimaxpower View Post
    If you're interested in the PNW, check out Wenatchee. Some decent skiing nearby. You can have drier eastern WA snow, or crap-tons of wet western WA snow - depending on which direction you want to drive.

    Weather is much better than the I-5 corridor. Hot and dry in the summer. Low cost of living. Lots to do when the snow melts: hiking, biking, boating, etc.

    Wenatchee has a community college, too.
    Second for Wenatchee. Two ski areas nearby, mountain biking from march-late october. Houses are affordable. Wenatchee as a town reminds me of many of the "cool" mountain towns before they filled with hippies. Lots of neat stuff starting to happen downtown too. And there is a strong agriculture community so great produce all spring/summer/fall. And there are still dudes walking around the grocery open carrying holstered pistols so you can get the taste of AK too. It's pretty hard to beat.

  13. #63
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    Anywhere else if you prefer chair lifts to the top, AK if you want BC.

  14. #64
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    Leavenworth is awesome from what I hear. So is Bellingham. If I was going to move somewhere it would be in Washington. It also has a balanced guy to girl ratio, kind of a big deal as far as quality of life as far as I'm concerned, the ratio thing changes the social dynamics for sure.

  15. #65
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    I don't know how a person could beat No OR or So WA for proximity of 8-10 hrs to Shasta, Tetons, Coastal range and Rockies of CA (and all in between that).

    gotta believe there is huge difference in travel infrastructure for getting around. Never been to AK but guessing unless you have a chopper/plane or fleet of heavily maintained land vehicles you prob stay home a lot.
    Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Natures peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while cares will drop away from you like the leaves of Autumn. - John Muir

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    suck it up princess" - XXX on getting off mj

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  16. #66
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    I don't stay home unless I have too much going on with kids and work, and no fleet or planes just a 97 Subaru impreza.
    But Ellen kicks ass - if she had a beard it would be much more haggard. -Jer

  17. #67
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    Don't move to Juneau. The college here sucks and the mountains are tiny. The ski area here sucks and has no backcountry what so ever. There is no tree skiing and my buddies will try to fuck your wife. Everyone is so damn insensitive and it's so damn backwards that we drive on the left side of the road.

  18. #68
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    ^^^You forgot to mention that it gets about 15 sunny days a year as well...

  19. #69
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    Quote Originally Posted by Scotsman50 View Post
    If you are married and going to AK and your wife is relatively hot....one thing you should consider is that every guy in the area that you settle is going to try and fuck your wife. This will be a persistent effort over many years and may or may not succeed. There are so few women in AK( and it additionally attacks the less attractive since" there they shall be treated like queens) that the old saying is , " you're merely taking YOUR turn, for the present."

    I love AK, visit often, have 75% of my business in AK, have an office in Anchorage, and love to ski there..live there?...no fucking way...full of misfits, pyschos and those trying to escape from something....plus they will try and fuck your wife.
    This guy is a teacher, not working in the oil patch. You just described all the Okies and Joe-Bobs who populate that line of work and their marriages. There are actually plenty of people there who want to be there and aren't bat shit crazy. The census data from 2010 proved that there are actually more women in Anchorage than men now, however this isn't the case outside of SC AK.

    I looked into a teaching masters while living in Anchorage. The program director at UAA pretty much told me unless I was going to teach math or science (my background was not in either) I would have a difficult time getting a job in Anchorage, Eagle River or the MatSu Valley. Haines is a tiny ass, poor town where work is hard to come by. I would personally consider Valdez over most other places, but its rural. 5 hour drive on mostly frost-heaved roads to Anchorage. I'm willing to bet those jobs are hard to come by too. Teaching in the bush is an option, but a tough one, especially with a family.
    I lived in Anchorage for five years and would be happy to provide more info to you, pm me.

    Good luck.

  20. #70
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    Quote Originally Posted by telebobski View Post
    ^^^You forgot to mention that it gets about 15 sunny days a year as well...
    Yep. No sun ever. You'll never see the mountains at all. It sucks more than your wife will while you're at work.

  21. #71
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    Quote Originally Posted by sometimesdylan View Post
    Yep. No sun ever. You'll never see the mountains at all. It sucks more than your wife will while you're at work.
    Wow. That sucks a lot!

  22. #72
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    I spent 17 years living in the land of the midnight clouds after growing up in the foothills north of the Napa Valley. I lived in Fairbanks, Mentasta, Tok, Tetlin (yes Tetlin), Los Anchorage and Palmer/Wasilla. I love going back to visit and ski but would consider it tough luck if I had to move back. I love the PNW (Spent a year in OR and traveled around WA quite a bit) but there really isn't a market for my line of work up there so I've never gone back. If I had to choose one of those two regions, I'd take the PNW over AK just based on accessibility to other parts of the country, AK included.

    I have friends that absolutely love AK and friends that feel exactly like I do. I would say that if you feel that pull, give it a shot but know that AK is not simply another state. AK is another country and it's a real commitment to make that move.

    Have you looked at other options right here at home? My Brother is a teacher in CB which might just be one of the sweetest gigs in that town aside from Trustafarianism. I know there's a pretty good market for teachers here in the four corners area as well.

    Me personally, I'm looking at a job option in Wyoming with the long range plan of moving right back here in a few years. CO is home to me and I can't fathom wanting anything that this state doesn't have to offer.
    The police never find it as funny as you do.

  23. #73
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    I'd move to the PNW. If you like drunk polar bears roaming cities, no sunlight, complete darkness, no trees, lots of suicides, lots of guns, and really pissed off anti-government moose ambushing patagucci wearing kids on local trails, and snotcicle inducing cold for 8 months of the year move to AK. It sucks in AK. Stay away and live the good life.

  24. #74
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    If you like living in the SLV, then you will do fine in AK. Both are odd places and lifestyles; in my opinion that's in the best sense. The pros (when you have a partner and can make a living) outweigh the cons. Don't underestimate, though, access to a road system.

  25. #75
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    No chicks and people trying to fuck your wife... sounds like every ski town.

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