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I got a job in California and I need lots of advice!! O_O

raynefyre

raynefyre

Taste the Rainbow
So, I've been applying to jobs for about a month and I finally got one. The thing is.. it's in California!! Holy Cow! I don't know where to begin. I'm just a small town girl from Ohio with no clue as to the living expenses, snake keeping laws, etc. for living there. Does anyone have any advice about moving across the country? Is it worth it? I'm not going to be shy, the job is only $18/hr but will (hopefully) be more than 40 hours per week. Anything knowledge people are willing to share would help me out substantially.
 
Well, we just moved to another state for the sake of a job. I know some areas of California do have pretty strict laws against boas and pythons, but I think for the most part corn snakes are okay. I used kingsnake.com to search local laws in the new area... there's a lot of tedious reading to do, but you can usually get all of the information you need from the links they provide. The link for California reptile/amphibian regulations is here. As far as living expenses, I would expect them to be higher than in a small town anywhere, but that also depends on which part of CA. What city is it that you're moving to?

General advice:
- Always have a backup plan in case things don't work out. Don't get yourself stuck in a new city with no way out.
- Visit the area at least once before committing to the move. Give yourself a few days to look around, especially for places to live.
- Have a residence setup before the move. For example, go ahead and pick the apartment and have the lease signed before you move all of your stuff. It's a good thing to do during that visit before the move.
- When visiting and looking for a place, bring someone with you that is experienced with such a thing, like a parent or good friend. Even if you are comfortable doing it yourself, it's always good to have a second opinion from someone on your side.
- The lighter you move, the easier it will be. Now is a good time to figure out if you really need everything you own. Or if you do bring it, have a yard sale after unpacking; it's a good way to get rid of stuff, make a few extra bucks, and meet people in your neighborhood.
- If you go through with it and make the move, it's going to be lonely for a while until you meet some people. Look for local groups or activities you'd be interested in, for example a herp group, just in case the people at your job aren't the type of people you want to hang out with.
- Good luck, and have fun!
 
Thanks for all your help! :) The job is in Orange, California.

My boss plans on having me visit for two weeks to "test run" the job and how I like California. I'll probably be having someone come with me to do like you said with looking around.

Does anyone know what the economy is like in Cali right now? And if anyone knows the Orange County area well can they recommend a decent place to live? I imagine commuting in California is atrocious.
 
Do you know Tim, T&J? He lives kind of by there. It's probably easiest to get a hold of him on Facebook.
 
raynefyre said:
Thanks for all your help! :) The job is in Orange, California.

My boss plans on having me visit for two weeks to "test run" the job and how I like California. I'll probably be having someone come with me to do like you said with looking around.

Does anyone know what the economy is like in Cali right now? And if anyone knows the Orange County area well can they recommend a decent place to live? I imagine commuting in California is atrocious.
Click to expand...

Well I'm from Northern California and I can tell you that the CA economy is in the tank. There are ares with VERY high unemployment (central valley) and most of the state has a high cost of living. Commuting, especially in Orange County isn't going to be fun. Also, be aware that gas prices are going to seem ridiculously high for you, but they are about on par or even less in comparison to the median income. Also, expect higher state and local taxes than you're used to.

All that being said, I love California, and as soon as I'm done with school here in Kansas, I'm going back.
 
Nanci said:
Do you know Tim, T&J? He lives kind of by there. It's probably easiest to get a hold of him on Facebook.
Click to expand...

I know of him but nothing much more than admiring his snakes and a few pleasant comments.


vliberatore said:
Well I'm from Northern California and I can tell you that the CA economy is in the tank. There are ares with VERY high unemployment (central valley) and most of the state has a high cost of living. Commuting, especially in Orange County isn't going to be fun. Also, be aware that gas prices are going to seem ridiculously high for you, but they are about on par or even less in comparison to the median income. Also, expect higher state and local taxes than you're used to.

All that being said, I love California, and as soon as I'm done with school here in Kansas, I'm going back.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info. I'm very nervous about going out there and losing all my savings. I'm trying to weigh the positives versus the negatives. I can't decide which way to tip the scale. It almost seems more like a place I would rather visit than live.

I guess the BIG question has to be.. do they have an LGBTQ community there? I'd hate to move somewhere where I would not feel welcome or comfortable. I've, sadly, been in many situations like that before.
 
You're close enough to LA/Anaheim that the LBGTQ community should be relatively large. Since it's a major metropolitan area, there's a lot of tolerance towards that there too.

As far as your savings, I didn't mean to scare you with the state of California's budget/economy. It's like that here in Kansas, and from what I've read in the paper/online, it seems to be similar to the rest of the country. You're not in the central valley (contra costa, san joaquin, stanislaus, merced, etc.) I'm sure that you'll be fine. The last thing I would say is do your research on where to live and don't spend outside your means. If you do that, there's no reason you should lose all of your money.
 
You can't buy/sell/trade local breeds (kings/gopher/rosy boas/garters)
but you keep any of them.
Unlike Florida we can have Boas, pythons, anacondas etc..
(Prehistoric pets in Orange county is one of the largest retic breeders anywhere)
The economy is not great and gas prices and DMV fees are insane, but
I have always lived here.
Cost of living in orange county is higher than some areas, so you are better
off commuting to work.
People from the board in so cal are plentiful, and have a variety of animals.
Moving here from Ohio will cost a bit too..
 
I haven't lived in SoCal for about 12 years, so glad Gene jumped in. What I do remember Orange are is expensive. Commuting a nightmare unless you can take public transportation, my sis that for many years and liked it. I guess I wouldn't in general trust the eco in SoCal, jobs are hard to come by. Being alone in a state you don't know could be pretty harsh.
 
Go for it!!!

What a wonderful opportunity!

But still be cautious. Maybe if the 2 week trial goes well, consider doing a "roommate" situation in which you don't have to move EVERYTHING out there until you find out if it will work long term. But I think it will be worthwhile even if it doesn't work out long term. You will get to live in a different environment than you are used to, make new contacts, and maybe get to travel to some places that you don't even know about right now. It may open doors that you never knew existed. Getting out of your comfort zone and meeting this challenge will make you grow as a person. So look at it as an experiment that at best will start a new life in a new place - OR, at worst, in which you will learn a lot, meet new people, and be more knowledgeable about yourself and what opportunities may await you, even if you decide to eventually go back "home". As long as you carefully think through your choices, how can you lose?

I would suggest that you also post this in the SoCal member forum, here: http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=71. It might be more likely to catch the eye of more people who actually live near the area you will move to. Instant corn buddies nearby - what a bonus!!!!

Congratulations, and good luck!
 
I lived in Southern California my entire life and I can tell you that there is good and bad. I owned most everything I have now there except venomous without issue. There are some counties that may be more restrictive. The cost of living, especially in Orange County is extremely high. An $18/hour job will not get you a dump of an apartment to live in unless you get a roommate. My husband and I combined pulled in almost $100,000 a year and paid the bills and had a house, but that was it. Retirement, even with planning and saving was not going to happen. this was one of the reasons we moved. We can retire here and we could buy a larger house with horse property for a little more than what we paid for our 986 sq. ft. home without horse property in Santa Clarita. A job is better than no job however and if it has room for advancement and raises you might do okay. There are many opportunities there but right now, California's economy is amongst the worst anywhere. I'd make a list of pros and cons, including a back up plan if it doesn't work out. I don't want to sound pessimistic but I KNOW California well and I was in the work force there for over 25 years before we moved back East.
 
Orange County

I would go for it, I live about a hour away. I travel even further every day to work,but for the weather and everything else I think its worth it all!
 
I lived in South California several years back. I'd take the chance again. Check out the job first and see if its all that and a bag of chips.
 
$18 an hour in SoCal is going to be tough. Period.

My brother lived there for 20 years - Santa Clarita. Apartments are pretty expensive, even one bedrooms.

Check it out, though. Keep us posted.
 
DaGiant said:
NOT!

You just have to shop around for less expensive places for rent.
The rest is easy, and as Stephen said, the weather beats it all!
Click to expand...

I suppose acceptable standards of living and locations differ. Which is why I moved from L. A. back to East TN. And you, living there, do know better than I do. Thank you for the correction.
 
I did live there for 42 years....$18 an hour will not get you a very decent place at all...especially in orange county where everything is higher. You might swing it with a roommate but otherwise, paying rent, insurance on a car, gas, food.....no...
 
$18 a hour will make it out here you can get a studio or 1 bedroom in a decent area from $500 to $1100 u just have to look around. Orange is expensive but within 20 miles u can find many other cities to live in. Like any new place you move to it will be hard at first but once u get the hang of it no problem. Good Luck
 
So after working in Cali roughly two weeks I've decided to move out here! It's such a blast! :) I love my new job and am going to be getting a house with two of my coworkers who seem like family to me already. So here's my next big issue..

I have a snake rack and a boa cage (each at least 4'x2'x2') along with my clothes and two cats that I need to move across country in a hatchback that only has about 5'x3'x2' in packing space. (Not counting my front passenger seat that my mom will be occupying.) I plan on taking the tubs out and putting the cats in carriers, but my main issue remains in how to transport my boa/his cage. Is it possible to ship large packages across country? Should I bring his huge cage and just ship my clothes instead? I really don't want to have to sell him unless absolutely necessary. He is my special boy and I have been in love with him since I got him almost two years ago.
 
Congratulations on your job and move!

How about putting the boa in a smaller cooler for transport? Then you could wrap the cage in a tarp and tie it to the roof. Or, if you can put a trailer hitch on the car, you can buy a platform (sometimes called Hitch Haul) that fits into the hitch and you can put the cage there - less wind resistance than the roof. Even a small car should be able to handle it, I think. Or could you take the cage apart and find space for the flat panels in your car?

You could also put an ad in craigslist under "Rideshare" asking to pay somebody to transport it for you if they are going that way.
 
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