Hi there. My name is Maggie and I am currently residing in Northeastern PA. I grew up here, went to college, moved to NYC for about 1.5 years, then moved back about 4 years ago and have since gotten married and my husband and I own 2 homes here.
We have deep family, friend, and professional roots here. He owns a small construction business (taken over from his father so business has been around for 30+ years with a minimal amount of sub-contracted employees) and I am currently working for my father's small technology business, with underlying assumption that I may take over the business in the coming years as he is nearing retirement age. We enjoy the outdoor activities that are available in relatively close proximity, as we are avid outdoor enthusiasts.
All sounds great on paper; however, to put it simply, we do not like it here. There is a significant lack of culture, the attitude of the local people is negative and backwards thinking and they are generally miserable to put it harshly. We are forward thinking, progressive minded people and feel like our creativity, motivation, and good energy is stifled constantly. We have talked about re-locating pretty much for the 4 years we've been together, but feel as if we are finally at the place where we've "had it", with this area. Originally we tossed around the west coast, but we are both very close to our families and couldn't realistically swallow being that far away from them.
It will be some time before we can sell our two homes, sever ties with our current businesses, and actually make the move, but for hope and sanity's sake, I personally need to start laying the foundation of starting a new life elsewhere.
We would like to live outside of a metro environment for certain, with some land. Close enough to a smaller city/town to get there easily. I am a yoga teacher, so a strong yoga/activist community is very important to me. I would like our future children to be home schooled or attend an affordable private school as I have many quams with the public school system. My husband is very skilled in the construction field. I have a degree in hospitality with lots of work done in customer service, some sales and marketing experience as well.
A former colleague of mine mentioned moving to Keane once so I googled it and found this forum.
Any information or support that can be provided to me would be much appreciated.
Thank you in advance.
Hi Maggie,
My grandfather grew up in a cabin in Scranton. He got out of there long ago. Family ties are still keeping me from emigrating to NH. I've visited many times, and my youngest daughter is now a young adult, so maybe soon. You should visit there. Maybe check out the upcoming NH Liberty Forum.
Keeping your kids out of the public schools is one of the best things you can do, not only for them, but for all of us. Hope that and the rest of your plans work out.
In Joy,
~K'neth
[quote author=Maggie1211 link=topic=6871.msg62264#msg62264 date=1354551803]We would like to live outside of a metro environment for certain, with some land. Close enough to a smaller city/town to get there easily.[/quote]
That describes much of NH. You can go from "urban" (well, as urban as exists in NH) to "rural" in 20 minutes' drive time, or less.
The general "best advice" is to explore first, and potentially rent for a while, before making a final decision on where to live. A number of folks have remotely decided upon a town, moved there, then found out there were things they disliked about that town, or other towns they would prefer more.
[quote author=Maggie1211 link=topic=6871.msg62264#msg62264 date=1354551803]I am a yoga teacher, so a strong yoga/activist community is very important to me.[/quote]
Proximity to one of the major college towns probably has a meaningful impact on how much work there would be for someone in the alternative health fields. Hanover/Lebanon has Dartmouth College. New London has Colby-Sawyer. The seacoast may also be a good option, as well, due to the proximity to Boston.
Not that Keene may not be a good fit, but my first instinct when someone says, "yoga," is to think of those two towns. Like I said, your best bet is to explore a bit, first, before settling on a destination.
Welcome! 8)
Hey Maggie,
I would agree that research & visiting helps. When I was planning my move, I was looking at Keene and Manchester. SO I set up a visit with some interviews. Came up for a couple days, and just fell in love with Keene. I call it my Goldy Locks Zone, not too big, not too small, just right. Then I got the job I wanted in Keene & moved up a week later in August of 2011.
PorcFest is a great chance to network & you could do visits in different locations on your way to or from PorcFest.
http://ladiesinkeene.com/