Pajiba

Not Detroit.

Not NYC.

Yeah, I second the Austin love. Not San Francisco, for sure. Property values and rents have gone down but they're still ridiculous for newcomers and youngsters.

Philip may chime in, but Fayetteville, AR ain't bad at all, and NW Arkansas is really growing. Low cost of living plus a mini-population boomlet, cool college town with fun stuff to do, and probably lots of teaching jobs.

Oh yeah, for a month earlier this year we had the nation's lowest unemployment rate.

I grew up in MA, now live farther down the east coast, but if I had to do single all again, it would be Las Vegas. I love that town with a passion. Great weather, the property values have come down to reasonable, and you can't beat the diversity of entertainment options. Mr. Lower and I go once a year without the kids and have the most amazing time. There is so much more than just gambling.

Music City, USA baby! Come to Nashville. It has a happnin singles scene, plenty of celebrity spotting and the Metro school district could use some good teachers. There is also ALOT of private schools. Nashville is the Athens of the South!

Mr. Pug and I honeymooned in Madison, Wisconsin. I don't know about the hiring situation, but it was one of the most beautiful and vibrant places I've ever been, and I've at least set foot in 43 of the states.

If you don't need a "big" city, I recommend Bloomington, IN, or State College, PA.

Oh yeah, I was going to add something about how ridiculously affordable housing is in the Midwest. And the autumns, oh Sweet Jesus, the gorgeous gorgeous autumns. And springs. Seriously.

I moved away from Philly 2 years ago but, for the 10 years I lived there, they went on and on about how badly they need teachers. It's a great city (great enough that I intend to move back eventually) with generally great people and it's only about 2 hours from everywhere. Don't know how the economy is affecting them though.

Yeah, not Maryland, we're busy getting rid of teachers here too.

Nashville sounds like a good suggestion. It's on my list of about four cities that I could find a job in once I get my Master's Degree (Music Business and Entertainment Industry) so I might be there in a year or two.

Any small town in Saskatchewan, Canada. Low cost of living and Masters earn low 50's. As an added bonus, you wold be a local celebrity and automatically the most eligable bachelorette in town. Although that is because you have a different last name from everybody else. we have the lowest unemployment in the country

I would say anywhere in Texas- Dallas, Fort Worth, Austin or Houston. I went to school in Oklahoma and almost all of my friends that were education majors moved to Texas immediately after graduating. Texas teachers made more money (at least more than Oklahoma ones) and I know from friends that the benefits are really good.

My first choice would be Austin though followed by Houston (where I live now). Austin is just the coolest, prettiest town there is.

Rio de Janeiro. It's great.

I second the love for Dallas-Fort Worth. You want culture? I have personally sung in the choruses of the Dallas Opera and the Fort Worth Opera. They are both awesome!

And Fort Worth is the only place I've lived that has, in the paper's weekend guide, both listings for Opera and Opry!

This is a great place to live!

-Ralphie

As a Canadian reader, I feel alienated.

you know, my heart wants to say New York City. But my brain says don't. This city is going balls up over its education system now. If you can stomach politics interfering with your teaching plan, then maybe this might be the city for you.

I just saw a documentary that says that New Orleans has a completely broke education system that is in dire need of young enthusiastic teachers.

Don't move to my home, New Mexico. There's no jobs, massive debt, a most likely corrupt Governor, and the whole gang problem thing. And if you have to move here, don't move to my town, Los Alamos. There's absolutely no work here, and the economy was centralized, and we've been in a recession since 2004, unlike the rest of the country.

If I were you, I'd dump this country and move to Canada. There's no gangs up there, there economy is recovering very nicely, and as long as you can put up with the weather, you'll have the legal marijuana to make up for it.

i too offer a firm vote for AUSTIN, though i will save you all from all my waxing poetic! having also lived in the recommended cities of nashville and dallas, they exude suburban couple haven...

I've enjoyed the few times I've been to Atlanta, but that's probably not far enough from Florida. How about the Carolinas? I've heard nothing but good things about the area, Strom Thurmond aside. And I'm pretty sure he's dead.

OK, just in case you were still considering the NY public school system, there is this.

Honestly, while we're not known for our public school systems, North Carolina is steadily improving its education. The Triangle area (Raleigh, Durham & Chapel Hill) is full of colleges, doctors, computer nerds and southern hospitality and there are plenty of public and private schools looking for teachers (I believe). I also happen to live around here and love it. While I'm not in the best place for bars and such, Raleigh and Chapel Hill have a great night life. Like I said there are tons of colleges and educated folks around here so we're not a bunch of hicks. In turns of location, we've got the mountains to the west and the beach to the east and it's about a three hour drive either way. Other good cities around here include Greensboro, Asheville, Asheboro Wilmington and of course Charlotte, which is the most metropolitan area.

We also have a kick ass hockey team. GO CANES!

Hey, since y'all are throwing out locales for job seekers... Anyone know of a good place for marketing, advertising that's relatively low living cost? I'm pretty much resigned to the fact that I'll have to live in the area until I get on my feet enough to have enough money to move somewhere else, but I'm trying to look long term, too. I'd love to live in LA, but the last thing they need is another out of work 20 something.

I agree to skip Louisiana. We've had to move around to get our children a decent education in a public school since they both have dyslexia. Plus, the pay here for teachers is horrible. Wisconsin is pretty well-known for their education systems, but I would imagine the job market is also pretty competitive to match. It's also very cold there, but the single life there can be pretty sweet. I will second (or third) some of the Texas recommendations - Texas sends a lot of recruiters here to Louisiana to snatch up our teachers and they pay them better than we do.

Try Gwinnett County, a suburb of Atlanta. The county is rapidly expanding, the pay is good, and they are opening up a ton of new schools. They need 1000+ new teachers. Gwinnett is conservative, but because the county is relatively affluent, the schools are good. A trip into Atlanta is only 30 or so minutes.

If you are looking for anywhere, how about an International School? They are often looking for teachers, because there's a high turnover rate, and a lot of them are quite nice. There's a non-profit, the Council of International Schools, which places teachers with schools (www.cois.org). I work with the Higher Ed part, so I don't know very much about the School division, but I do know they do placement, and only work with teachers with education degrees.

I'll throw in another word from the international community. First, it's incredibly easy to get an English teaching job in many countries, though I doubt that's what you're looking for. However, it's possible to get slightly higher-up jobs writing curriculum and things like that, if you're into that. You just need to find the right school/company.

Also, here in Tokyo there are countless international schools for ex-pat kids. And their parents are generally quite well off, having been sent overseas by their companies, so they're looking for top caliber teachers and pay well.

Of course, not everyone wants to make that kind of leap, but just thought I'd throw that out in case it tickles your fancy...

I hear they make hella cookies in Tegucigalpa, Trouble. You might try there. Can't speak to the pay.

Mmmmmmmm ... What's in 'em babies, figgy?
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Kayanne,

I have a niece and her husband and little boy live in Asheville (well, closer to Black Mountain), and coincidentally she's a teacher. She says her school's pretty rough, I guess she gets a lot of the white trash kids and some of them are heart-breaking -- mom's a druggie and dad's in jail, that sort of thing. I like the city, it's way cool, but I'd sure talk to a lot of teachers before I moved there so I'd know what I'm in for.

Also: Your Canes are only going as far as the Penguins allow them.

Not Memphis. The public school system is horrific. My best friend is a school councilor outside of Memphis and has horror stories from her practicums in the city.

The mention for NW Ark isn't bad. Fayetteville is a nice college town. I don't know about teaching jobs. Phillip would be the person to ask about that. I live in the central part of the state. I might know of some jobs. Hell, as long as I've been in college I should know a few teaching jobs. Arkansas is a pretty cheap place to live and has some kick ass outdoorsy type things to do.

As bad a rep as it gets, Alabama is actually a really pretty and decent state to live, especially in Birmingham, or the other metro areas (though I'm still partial to my hometown of Athens, AL, which is a modern-day Mayberry). Our education system is abysmal and in dire need of new blood, which is where you could come in. Move to an underserved area and be a part of the solution. And did I mention that Southern boys are HOT?

Butter. Lots and lots of butter.

Buttaaaaaaaaaaaaaah....

sorry am tired.

Do not move to LA. No one is hiring. Also probably shy away from Kansas. Education there is... well, not a priority (went through the public school system there).

Maybe try Alaska.

I think New Mexico is pretty much always looking for qualified teachers. The state leans liberal (if that's important to you), the weather is fantastic (no humidity!), and the people are incredibly nice. Albuquerque is affordable and has a fair bit to offer. Santa Fe is a little bit more stuck up. There's also an incredibly gorgeous landscape so long as you're not on the eastern plains.

It is a "poverty state," but the unemployment levels here are a lot lower than the rest of the country. Also, last I read, our economy was one of the last states to show any slowing of growth. I don't know anyone who's been laid off yet.

Ugh. Could we NOT advertise for Morgantown, W.V. please, Bucdaddy? I mean, I really like it here - it's where my immigrant grandparents settled, where I was raised, where I went to college and it's quite lovely but...
THERE IS ENOUGH FREAKING PEOPLE HERE ALREADY!
I've got apartments and townhouses and condos springing up all around me and I'm ready to start building a fort, stocking it with weapons and unleashing Armageddon on my new, unsuspecting neighbors.
Don't come here, folks. Or you just might find yourself with a grenade up your ass.

Chuck it all in and come to Melbourne. The people are friendly, the weather is mild, and we use a sensible system for weighting and measuring! Plus there are always positions available for teachers. There're about a million other reasons why Melbourne is great, but I'm sure you're capable of learning more on your own.

Cary, NC, just outside of Raleigh, is very laid back and beautiful. It's about 2 hours from the mountains and the beach and less than a day's drive from your old friends in Florida. Cary ends up on many lists of best places to live, and it has a nice balance of crazy college atmosphere and family-friendly stuff. If you're looking to get a teaching job at a college, it's lousy with great ones (UNC, Duke, NC State, Wake Forest, and on and on).
San Diego is beautiful (lived there for five years), but Steven Lloyd Wilson nailed it about the teaching jobs. My aunt is kind of a big deal in the education system in SoCal and she's been fighting the lack of jobs for years. Plus there's all that ESL crap to deal with, and real estate is very expensive, and the swine flu ravaged it, and the craphole of LA is an hour away . . . you get the idea.

Thanks for the suggestions, guys! I'm looking into several of them now. Since I'm from Florida (and was born in the D.R.), I may have to pass on the places that are too far north. Florida weather turns your blood to broth.

As for jobs, I would love to find something in education, but it's not a requirement. I just gotta get out of Florida!

The international stuff sounds the best so far...

Not sure what the job situ is here in Indiana, but the cost of living is low, and the weather is a new surprise every day. Opening day at the track? Weather report says partly sunny, only a slight chance of rain---NOPE!!! Pisses rain HARD all friggin' day long! 80 one day, 30 the next. But, housing is pretty cheap and we gots lots a' Wal-Marts!!!!

formerly bucdaddy Pittsburgh is #2 for you? Really? I lived there and wouldn't recommend it to anyone who wasn't mobbed up.

Don't come here, folks. Or you just might find yourself with a grenade up your ass.

Posted by: AbbyNormal at May 8, 2009 4:04 AM
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Now, now, people with huge inferiority complexes like ours are never rude to guests. And this isn't just a guest, this is another Pajiblet we're talking about. This is quality. Trouble could single-handedly raise the state's IQ by a point. We should welcome him/her with open arms, not armaments.

I hear you on the apartment/condo hate, there's a city being built across the valley from me, but somebody's gotta live in the damn things or I gotta watch them fall apart, so ...

I just know that not so long ago the state was warning of a huge teacher shortfall due to pending massive retirements/everyone else bolting for the higher pay across the border. So there's that.

Where you hang, Abby? (Like your handle.)

Snuggiepants, hurrah!

I've been teaching art for 7-10th graders for two years here, so I'll need to get a teaching certificate first. And I think I might try Elementary next time. Those middle schoolers aged me 10 years.

Aw, Bucdaddy, I should be nicer considering it's another Pajiban but I'm a bitch and I just don't care. That's another car for me to sit in traffic behind and then watch as they steal my parking place.

I don't know about there being a huge teacher fallout though. My family is filled with teachers, professors and BOE employees and they're always talking about how hard it is to get on here. That is, if you don't have any seniority.

I mostly hang around my house - off Dorsey Ave. somewhere, but I'm always running all over the place. As for like, clubs or bars? I try to avoid downtown thurs, fri, and sat nights like the plague. Every once in a while I can be persuaded to go to the Brew Pub or Keglers but that's about it. I ran into a friend of mine yesterday who decided that we were going to get dressed up and go dancing at Bent Willys next week so we shall see how much kicking and screaming happens. Last time I was there I had to drag my sister's alcohol soaked body out of there and then over to Eat 'N' Puke to shove copious amounts of bread down her throat. Bachelorette parties are not for me.

Thanks for the handle love. It's a lil reference to one of my favorite movies - Young Frankenstein.

Even though I'm a native, I can't say I recommend the Triangle area (Raleigh, Durham, CH) for an up and coming teacher, considering that our new gov just cut their pay and many schools around here aren't guaranteeing full-time pay for teachers next year. I've got several friends who are teachers who are scrambling to find supplemental income and fast.

Not to mention, this place has become lousy with transplants from all over the country (mostly Northerners looking for better weather and cheaper housing) and our transportation system can't handle the influx of people. You take your life in your hands driving around here and we have no mass transit.

It's a good place to be if you're in IT or biotech, and we have amazing research hospitals, but otherwise, it's not your best bet.

And whoever mentioned Cary as a cool place to live? Sure, if you like being told exactly how tall your grass is permitted to grow, to the millimeter. You can't pay me to set foot in that town.

Yay! More Canes fans! *high fives MG*

The rat's here in Los Angeles, too. There's lots of 'em. Give LA wide berth.

especially being a UNC fan

Well now I'm just going to have to ignore you. I'm from the north Raleigh area, but you're right, the Triangle is fantastic.

GO CANES!

MG,
Cary does have a lot of areas with Neighborhood Assocations, or whatever they're called, that remind you to mow your lawn and pick up your dog shit. It's a total fucking nightmare to live in such a nice area.

Sorry, Agent Scully, but SF is a bad idea. housing (a studio) and parking cost me around 24k a year.

Although katy's idea of living on the border between Oregon and Washington is actually an awesome idea, since in Washington you don't pay income tax and in Oregon you don't pay sales tax.

Trouble - I have a friend who was born and raised in P.R., went to NYU for her undergrad, and then moved to Portland where her husband is from. It took her a while to get used to wearing sweaters and rain jackets in the winter, but she loves it here now. I see it this way, there are two seasons in Oregon, deck season and fireplace season. They both have their merits. But yeah, you'd have to get used to not seeing the sun for about two months out of the year. That seems to be the main drawback for newcomers and locals alike.

Chicago is great. I'm from Mississippi originally and I adapted to the winter, so I'm sure you can too. The food is tops, the public transportation is second only to New York, and the people are a bit calmer and friendlier than New York (mostly) without the flaky factor of the West Coast. And we have the prettiest skyline.

Downsides include a high murder rate (mostly on the South Side, so stay away from there) and the corrupt government of legend. But hey, it gives us character.

Another vote for Austin, especially if you don't like cooler weather - we had a COLD winter here this past winter, which means it dipped below 32 degrees all of 7 days, nonconsecutively.

But as a former Chicagoan - there is a part of me that misses the snow, proper Autumn afternoons, and well... sidewalks.

All you folks talking about Portland are making me REAL itchy to up and move, because Orego sounds right up my alley. But the job market being what it is... I guess I'll stay in Austin.

three foot long roaches that fly

I've seen flying roaches in Texas. I was in Arlington. Ewww....

College Station is the epicenter of George H.W. love. His presidental museum is on the campus and he graduated there.

A couple words of caution:

Cleveland: Whoever said they've heard good things about Cleveland obviously doesn't know about the education system there. It's a mess and has been for 30 years. Lots of good private schools, though.

Madison, WI: I went to grad school there, and it's wonderful, but it's like Athens, GA -- people graduate and never want to leave. Hence, they take any low-paying job they can find just to stay. Seriously, there are too many really well educated people there vying for the few jobs available. And the winters really are BRUTALLY cold.

Gwinnett County, GA: Good real estate prices but very generic suburban sprawl. Soulless. Atlanta is close, but you might think twice if you're a single woman -- LOTS and LOTS of gay men. You might have trouble finding dates -- unless you're gay yourself, in which case head straight for Decatur, where lesbians abound.

The summers in Texas canNOT be worse than the ones in Florida. Or the D.R. for that matter.

Logar, am I hot? I like to think so, but then again I'm pretty vain. I clearly can't be trusted to give an honest opinion.

Texas sounds great from everyone who has said so, but on my few visits there (Killeen and Austin), I wasn't impressed. I'll have to take another look...

Is Pangaea still in the running?

Bucdaddy, first off, HA! because I didn't know about the Brew Pub but secondly, I've been to 123 a bunch, I just didn't think to mention it.

I'm definitely not going to Gene's. It's my uncle's hangout and I just don't think I could be comfortable there.

I actually don't want to get out more, now that I think about it. Having to socially interact with others is more effort than I'm willing to put in.

Abby,

If your uncle was at Gene's last night he was rockin' ASS and having a great time at Aaron's 30th b-day. Don't pigeonhole the place as an old-man bar.

Get thee to 123 on Friday for 85 Flood and the Sneakies. I have friends in both bands so I'll be there midnightish. Look for the old guy.

Patchfire,

Thanks for sending us FOX Japan. Seriously.

http://www.myspace.com/foxjapanband

Nashville is VERY Republican as is the whole state of Tennessee.
Avoid Memphis at all costs. I went to Vanderbilt and I know what I am talking about.
And, good luck...

Trouble,

Despite your hotness, in all seriousness, stay away from Cali in general. Too many education cutbacks, and a ton of teacher lay-offs.

I'll jump on the Dallas/FtWrth bandwagon- I've got a buddy that lives out there who says many good things. Very good cost of living, and a decent place to live... in some parts at least.

Good luck to you!