Earlier quoted context omitted.
Sounds like a place I wouldn't mind working if I can find a remote position again. I'm a big introvert, and I would like to move somewhere more greener (getting tired of living in the middle of a bland hot dessert)
At some point, many people start thinking about things like access to good healthcare, various types of trades, ability to travel without it being a huge hassle, etc. Doesn't mean you need to live right around a big city but I doubt I would want every task or appointment to be a big undertaking.
A $10k stipend is available for anyone moving to Cumberland, MD
161–170 of 181 posts
Re: A $10k stipend is available for anyone moving to Cumberland, MD
#162I just got back from a visit with family in Cumberland. It's the epitome of rust belt. What used to be a thriving manufacturing area has become an abandoned service-sector economy with low-wage jobs. Property values are dirt cheap, even for nice houses. There isn't much nearby, you have to travel hours from Pittsburgh to even get there by plane. Tales of theft of items like power tools from relatively remote farms ar…
Sounds like a place I wouldn't mind working if I can find a remote position again. I'm a big introvert, and I would like to move somewhere more greener (getting tired of living in the middle of a bland hot dessert)
Re: A $10k stipend is available for anyone moving to Cumberland, MD
#163Earlier quoted context omitted.
I doubt it. Physicians (and nurse practitioners, etc. at urgent care clinics) could arguably do more remotely but I'm not convinced that reducing the involvement of trained humans would be a positive move.
Think you missed the implied /s here :-)
Re: A $10k stipend is available for anyone moving to Cumberland, MD
#164Earlier quoted context omitted.
(desirable coastal cities with young people and vibrant entertainment)
It's a lot more than that but, as you get away from at least medium-sized cities, things get scantier especially if you need specialized care.
Re: A $10k stipend is available for anyone moving to Cumberland, MD
#165Earlier quoted context omitted.
You can get always get starlink if the fiber/cable is bad.
Sure, if you don't mind regular drops while you're handed off between satellites, and many areas being oversubscribed so badly that people are getting performance worse than DSL.
No one's getting worse than DSL performance in the US especially not with regards to speeds
Re: A $10k stipend is available for anyone moving to Cumberland, MD
#166Earlier quoted context omitted.
2 hours from a central hub I'd actually consider a plus. If you travel for work it's bad, but for any personal trip, skipping a connection is pretty valuable. Not just in time, but generally international / longer flights are higher priority, and are less likely to be randomly delayed or canceled.
I was on the far edge of relatively convenient airport access when I was working and traveling a lot (and, at some point, decided my employer was just going to pay for a private car whether they complained or not, which they didn't). Now I travel somewhat less but take fewer discrete trips so just pay my own transportation out of pocket.
What you don’t appreciate is that it’s not just the added distance, it’s all the extra uncertainty. Losing an extra hour due to getting stuck on the highway behind an accident is a thing you have to account for.
So in the end you end up having to leave like 4 hours or more before your flight.
I live 400 miles in a straight line and I can drive to downtown Atlanta faster than I can fly to the Atlanta airport.
Re: A $10k stipend is available for anyone moving to Cumberland, MD
#167Earlier quoted context omitted.
> built on much flatter parts of those areas Seattle was MADE flat by literally using fire hoses to flatten hills and mountains [0]. That said, I disagree with the role geography has with developing a tech industry - most of it can be directly related to investment put during WW2 and the 1950s into innovation clusters. For example, Seattle and aerospace (Boeing), Bay Area and computers+electronics+nukes (HP, IBM Alma…
I saw an interactive exhibit at Museum of History & Industry (MOHAI) in Seattle. It showed how different sections were regraded and you could push buttons where that section of hills and lakes would get lifted or dropped down. This wasn't a computer display, this was a real physical model of the city. The Bay Area really benefits from Stanford and Berkeley being there. You need a steady stream of educated new grads t…
Love that museum. Paul Allen really made Seattle such a great city - amazing museums, good sports, amazing biotech research, strong entrepreneurship scene. It's like Boston but better.
> Bay Area really benefits from Stanford and Berkeley
Also UCSF (major biotech hub) and SJSU (major electronics hub - imo EE@SJSU makes EE@Stanford look like child's play).
Re: A $10k stipend is available for anyone moving to Cumberland, MD
#168I just got back from a visit with family in Cumberland. It's the epitome of rust belt. What used to be a thriving manufacturing area has become an abandoned service-sector economy with low-wage jobs. Property values are dirt cheap, even for nice houses. There isn't much nearby, you have to travel hours from Pittsburgh to even get there by plane. Tales of theft of items like power tools from relatively remote farms ar…
How good is internet access there?
They also have various speakeasies fully in the classic unlicensed since but for obvious reasons I won't say where. I would call it a "deregulated" region. Whereas in most of MD you have vehicle emissions and all that redtape, none of it in cumberland.
there are methheads about but police force and community are hand in hand and highly functional
if you're in cumberland proper all you could want is walkable, including an amtrak station that links you directly to DC and chicago, walking distance
there is an aspect of xenophobia but generally if you live there a while, well, if you're willing to live in cumberland that's good enough for most people to welcome you. it does have a small town vibe as far as saying hello to everyone on the sidewalk as such
the other point people who visit may miss about appalachian culture (it is appalachian culture very much so, not maryland culture) is everyone dresses like a methhead, even people who aren't methheads, so take appearences softly.
Re: A $10k stipend is available for anyone moving to Cumberland, MD
#169Extrinsic monetary incentives are among the worst ways to stimulate growth. Anyone who would uproot their life for $10k is likely not the right personality to restore prosperity. Other strategies have worked to gentrify depressed neighborhoods, like attracting bohemians or entrepreneurs with lower rents and tax relief, based on a strict qualification process.