i haven't used this blog to discuss much in my personal life but this post will be an exception. j recently graduated from law school and last week, we received the wonderful news that he passed the bar. and just yesterday, he received two job offers - one in trenton, nj, and one in biloxi, ms. we know NOTHING about either of these two locations and are feeling really nervous and anxious about the whole thing. even more so because we are being asked to make a decision by tomorrow at 5 pm!
if any of you have any suggestions, advice or opinions on either of these locales, i would be so hugely appreciative!! we've been trying to research like mad and asking everyone what they know and still can't decide!
and does anyone know if it would be possible to commute from a suburb of trenton to nyc? i was thinking about the possibility of finding a job in nyc but i have no idea about the commute -- if it would be brutal or if they have trains and everyone does this??
and, of course, this changes our wedding plans big time. i can't decide if we should move and plan a long-distance wedding or change our venue and have it in one of these two places.
HELP!
update!
we received an extension until friday to make a decision. right now, we're leaning toward biloxi/gulfport. as much as i'd looooooooooooooooooooooove to be an hour from manhattan, there's a lot of things weighing in our favor to move south.
& many thanks to those that offered advice and suggestions! i value them all.
i think you can find positives and negatives anywhere you live ... but i can honestly say i'd be excited to live in either of these new places.
we're migrating.
Oct 30, 2007 |
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Trenton is not a very nice city, I work there as well. But there are amazing towns around here. A good town for you to look into his Edison, NJ or New Brunswick, NJ. Very nice towns, half way exactly between Trenton and NYC. My Fiance and I are also on the Trenton NYC train line commute. If you want more info email me MyeM14 at yahoo dot com. BTW I love love NJ. So much to do here.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately I will not be able to help you too much in deciding the location... but perhaps offer a little advice with the wedding...
ReplyDeleteI think it would be a lovely idea to have the wedding where you choose to move... for the following reasons:
-Destination weddings are such fun! Sure, it won't be a destination for you- but it will be for your family... which makes it that much better-- you will have the convenience of local vendors and the excitement of a weekend of festivities!
-It will give you the motivation to get out there and start scouting places of interest in the town... you will be more inspired to find the really cool parts of town and more adament about meeting the locals because...The destination weddings that I design typically go something like this:
Day one: Everyone gets into town and there is a casual welcome party for everyone that evening
Day two: A day of fun discovering the town with planned outings to get everyone aquainted with eachother and the surroundings
Day three: Bridal party is off getting dolled up while the guys are doing boy-stuff... and guests are able to have a little time to sight-see and really get to know their surroundings better-rehearsal dinner that night
Day Four: wedding and reception
Day five: farewell brunch
-Lastly, you will find that it will be delightfully comforting to have your whole family and friend circle there to wish you well in your new life... How often will some of them really visit you otherwise? It will be one of those times when everyone came to YOU and that will be oh so very special!
---Alright enough from me... you've got a move AND a wedding to plan...
im a jersey girl and can attest to the fact that its so easy to get from nj to ny...there's ferries, the PATH train, buses, etc. i agree about not wanting to live IN trenton, but there's plenty of nice places around.
ReplyDeleteI would also encourage you to check out Philadelphia. Yes, there is no place like New York City. No place. But I've often heard Philadelphia called the sixth borough for it's cultural and culinary offerings. Plus, the cost of living is so much more manageable. Good luck and keep us posted!
ReplyDeleteI used to live outside Princeton, about 20 min up the road from Trenton. Every day on my 10 min. drive to the train station, I passed a horse farm and a Christmas tree farm and fields of corn -- it finally helped me to understand the "Garden State" name for NJ! And yet, all the chi-chi businesses of Princeton were also 10 min away.
ReplyDeleteLOTS of people take NJ Transit from the Princeton area (assume Trenton is the same) to NYC every day. I used to ride to Newark, which was about a 45 min trip, and NYC is maybe another 15 min further on. You get on early enough that there was almost always a seat, and from there you just work or read till you hit your stop. With monthly passes, you can also ride the Amtrak local trains -- they're faster and nicer, but you're less likely to get a seat. (Picture small knots of people in business suits sitting on the floor....)
For social and cultural life, that area is nice because Philedelphia (these days a hopping city in its own right) is also close by in the other direction.
Good luck, and congrats to your fiance on passing the bar and on his job offers! (PS Which bar did he take, and would that also play into the calculus? I originally took only the NY bar, and later had to take the NJ bar when I moved to a Newark firm.... Taking additional bars is do-able, but definitely something to avoid if possible!!!)
Well if your looking for a big city then Gulfport is not the first choice, but it is a great place. Alot has changed since Katrina and the whole coast is growing. The housing market is definitely in your favor if you move down there! Let me know if you want more info!!
ReplyDeletei live in philly, work in princeton. where you live depends on what you do and what you value - so it's hard to give you an opinion. i like philly b/c it's affordable, but still has great restaurants, culture and shopping. the train to trenton isn't bad. you can try to split the diff btwn nyc and trenton, but i think it's hard way to live. no connection to your hometown and a commute? that's not fun.
ReplyDeleteon the other hand, there are gorgeous wedding venues in the area -- i.e., look up grounds for sculpture
I agree with the previous posters that you probably don't want to live IN Trenton, but there are nice areas nearby. My in-laws live in Hamilton township, which is a very nice (suburban) community. Princeton is a little more hip, though also more pricey.
ReplyDeleteIf you are living somewhere near Trenton, you could commute for work to either Philly or NYC, which leaves a lot of options open. As much as I love the south, I don't know that there would be as many opportunities in that area.
I live near Gulfport/Biloxi...I can give you lots of info if you are still interested. It is small town, slower pace of life. I am originally from MA, have lived here in MS for 30 years now. I love to visit the northeast but would not move back there full time, even after going through Katrina here. This is a beautiful area and the people here are genuine, sincere, gracious, and love life.
ReplyDeleteI would avoid Mississippi because of hurricanes, white trash people, and Biloxi is just a town full of crappy casinos. Pros: cheap housing
ReplyDeleteNew Jersey is known as the armpit of the Northeast; however at least it is close to NYC and Philly. there are some nice parts of Jersey for sure, I agree with the above posters on Princeton, and some not so nice parts. Pros: lots to in the city and surrounding areas
I would go with Jersey.
Wow what a lovely comment, its nice to see people are giving friendly constructive advice!! Hopefully this anonymouse person lives in one of the Walgreens commercials where everything is perfect all the time!! As most people know there are trashy people everywhere you go and if it were not for those "crappy casinos" the Coast would still be struggling.
ReplyDeleteI find it disgusting that someone would leave a negative post on a blog that is a positive place. I hope that people see that post and just feel sorry for the author, not agree with him/her.
Unfortunately I can't give you much advice on either place, but just wanted to say congratulations to your fiancé on passing the bar and getting two job offers! I'm sure everything will fall into place regardless of what you decide. Very best wishes to you both.
ReplyDeleteYes, I quite agree that many congratulations are in order. In this kind of economy to have TWO job offers, god bless! Being a NYC girl, I have to admit NJ is the way to go. Maybe bias, but you'll be a hop, skip and a jump from both Phili and NYC - and what could be better than that?
ReplyDelete