ixnay is moving to THE BIG CITY =O

[ixnay]

Yes, in case you haven't heard, tomorrow I pack my bags, spend my last day in Montana for the next few months with my friends, and then catch my flight to San Diego in the evening, where I'll be living with my girlfriend for the summer. ^_____^ That is of course assuming I can find a job, which shouldn't be too tough (and even if I don't, I'll be staying down there for a month anyways). I anticipate that I'll be in for a bit of a culture shock, having lived in Montana my whole life, and now I'm moving to a rather large city.

So give me advice and well wishes, and I shall read this thread when I get to SD.

[Lancer]

Don't get involved in drugs.

[Skanky Burns]

Good luck.

[Frozzy]

Find out where your local amenities are soon (e.g. groceries, job centre etc.) and get to know your neighbourhood.

I don't really know much about SD, but only 3% of a city are unscrupulous people, so don't get worried about thugs and pickpockets...

Good luck.

[MRT144]

clean yourself up...haircut and a shave

[Andemagne]

Good Luck

[orange]

sounds cool Good luck buddy

[Asher]

Good luck ixnay.

This'll be a summer to remember.

[SlowwHand]

I didn't know anyone actually lived in Montana.

[DinoDoc]

You can see devilmuchkin.

[JohnT]

Dress warmly!

Your cost of living is going to go up by 50%, easily, so if you were expecting to make $25,000/year in Montana (Billings) you would need $36,000 to maintain the same standard of living. However, employers generally only pay 15% more for the same position, making your $25,000/year job only worth $28,500 in San Diego. In other words, I would only move down there for a promotion... and a mighty hefty one at that. If not, you'll actually be in the hole $7,500/year if you want to live like you currently do.

Source: www.salary.com cost-of-living wizard (comparing a $25,000/year relocation from Billing MT to San Diego, CA.)

[monkspider]

I went from a small city to a big city as well. It is quite a culture shock as you say. Don't give up!

[PLATO]

Buy sun Screen and sun glasses.

[Zkribbler]

The biggest culture shock of moving to a big city is, ironically, the danger of feeling isolated and lonely.

The natural reaction to being surrounded by a pluthera of people is to build up pschological (and even physical) walls to keep them out. As a result, there's a much greated danger of feeling lonely in the big city than in a rural setting such as Montana. It's good you have a girlfriend there. You'll also be able to make friends at work. So it's not all gloom and doom; it's just something you should be aware of.

Oh yeah, traffic jams suck.

[Narz]

Buy a bicycle and/or get familiar with the public transportation system, CA gas prices are ridiculous and also biking is the best way I know to quickly explore and get to know one's neighborhood.