Free State Wyoming Forum
Prospective Free State Wyoming (FSW) Members and Interested Parties => Prospective Free State Wyoming (FSW) Members and Interested Parties => Topic started by: Pumpkihn on June 23, 2008, 09:52:47 PM
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hello,
I am originally from Texas, but moved to Iowa 9 years ago. I was looking for a less oppressive state and came across the FSW Web site. I was interested in the free state project, but when New Hampshire was chosen, I dropped the idea. Well, my desire to move out west combined with the FSW project have made Wyoming the leading state. I am 35, married and 3 children. I am a homeschooler. I work in electrical and electronics trades. My wife stays home with the children, therefore we have no money. ;D
I guess first off, to convince my wife to make the move, I have to have a pretty darn good job waiting for me. So, who's hiring and for what. I guess I'm not extremely picky about what area of Wyoming to which I move, but I guess I'd like some scenery...something nearby at least.
I'm just tired of taxes and taxes and laws and taxes and more laws. I've had enough, and want the best for my family.
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Pumpkin, sounds like your story is similar to most on this forum. I finally made the move to WYO this year, after 3 years of hesitation. I am now building a house and running my online business from the farm.
I don't yet have enough business to justify hiring anyone, but there are jobs out here.
Where I am, the scenery is beautiful, the land and water are good, and we are only 75 miles from Billings, where there is all the shopping you need, an airport, and no sales tax.
I'm not sure if you have the funds for a visit, but I would strongly suggest that you visit WYO before taking a job here. It is not for everyone. Most folks don't stay.
If you plan a trip here, let me know and I will try to meet with you if you come near Powell or Cody.
Fran
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Welcome aboard pumpkihn,
Hope you find something so you can make it out. Lots of work if you know where to look. Talk with Shawn and Biathlon, they're both electricians.
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Welcome! We have quite a few transplants from Iowa and Texas. Hope they will post here to greet you.
Lots and LOTS of work of all kinds around NE Wyoming. Gillette and all of the surrounding areas are in full boom mode and skilled workers of all kinds are in high demand. The beautiful Black Hills are right here, and the water is crystal clear and delicious where I live in Newcastle.
Plan to come to our campout at the end of August so you can meet some of the FSW folks and take a good look at the country around here. Most of us here will do whatever we can to help you make it happen.
Please encourage your wife to read the forum, especially threads like these:
Womens' Views on Moving to / Living in Wyoming
http://www.fundamentalsoffreedom.com/fswforum/index.php?topic=5352.0 (http://www.fundamentalsoffreedom.com/fswforum/index.php?topic=5352.0)
Making the Case for Moving to Wyoming
http://www.fundamentalsoffreedom.com/fswforum/index.php?board=6.0 (http://www.fundamentalsoffreedom.com/fswforum/index.php?board=6.0)
And encourage her to send a PM or email to FSW ladies. I'd certainly be delighted to talk to her and tell her the story of my move to Wyoming. Here is the story on my blog. http://www.fundamentalsoffreedom.com/fswblogs/mamaliberty/?p=4 (http://www.fundamentalsoffreedom.com/fswblogs/mamaliberty/?p=4)
I'm afraid time is short... hope you can come soon.
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Pumpkihn,
Yes indeed, your story is not much different than mine. Sick of more and more laws, mostly even though they never effect me directly. It's the principle of them wanting to regulate every aspect of our lives.
I've been in Crook County (NE corner) now for 16 months or so. I love it here. I'm retired, so don't care about work, but if you look around this forum you'll see that everyone says there's plenty of work.
Re: getting gov't off your back, here in Crook County there are no zoning laws, no land use regs, no permits required for electrical work on your home, plumbing work, construction, grading, etc. I just put a house in and the only thing required was a permit from the state for the well and a permit from the state for the septic. Nothing else. The cities are a little different of course, but I see no reason to live in a town. Live outside and enjoy the freedom that comes with it.
Mac
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Check out wyomingatwork.com (http://www.wyomingatwork.com)...137 jobs posted in Wyoming with search term "electric" ALL ONLY within the past 14 days. Varied locales, experience needed & pay scales...
Both philosophically & employment-ally, I wish I had gone to trade school or just went into an apprenticeship in lieu of "the new American way" of debt-loaded, Collage Ed-u-cajun (at least I got out before you needed the degree to bartend or wait tables :-\)...if only high school hadn't been so e-zzzzz...de Univer-sitah wouldn't have let me in and I would've been better off. ;)
But now that we've found alternatives, we are currently working hard to downshift out of the corporate world and open a lot more options in "hands-on" Wyoming & the Mountain West region. Sounds like you've already got that covered....welcome aboard.
MANUMIT
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Howdy Pumpkihn glad you found us. Ever been to Wyoming ?
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Howdy Pumpkihn glad you found us. Ever been to Wyoming ?
I have only been from Boulder to Cheyenne to get on I-80 and go east. So, not really. I've spend a fair amount of time in the Colorado Rockies. Leadville, Buena Vista area.
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I'm afraid time is short... hope you can come soon.
What does that mean? Are we all gonna die?!?!?!? :)
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Hi! I am the wife of Pumpkihn. He asked that I take a look at this website and give the idea some consideration. So that is what I am doing. I am not nearly as devoted to the idea of moving to Wyoming as my husband is. But since he moved to Iowa for me, I am willing to consider the idea.
As Pumpkihn stated, I am the stay at home mother of three children (7, 5, & 1) plus anywhere from 1 to 4 extra children that I babysit. I do not particularly enjoy babysitting other peoples children and look forward to the time when I do not have to do so. We are starting to homeschool our children this fall and so I have spent many hours researching all this will entail. I also have a small business that I run out of a local farmers' market. I have enjoyed (mostly) this endeavor. I was recently asked to help with the weekly emails and press releases and have discovered that sending out emails to 2500 people is a very time consuming task, but I am hopefully getting it streamlined.
I would love to have a small farm and it is for this reason mainly that I am considering the idea. I have read the gardening thread and it appears the land is very different from here in Iowa. I have been giving it some idea what exactly I would want to grow/raise.
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Electricians are in HUGE demand here and you should be able to find good wages just about anywhere in the state. I have a Wyoming Masters license and would be glad to assist you in any way I can. Welcome to FSW.
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Electricians are in HUGE demand here and you should be able to find good wages just about anywhere in the state. I have a Wyoming Masters license and would be glad to assist you in any way I can. Welcome to FSW.
I am not an electrician, at least not with any licensing. What I do amounts mostly to Design, building, Testing, and installing electrical control panels for water and wastewater plants. I work with votages up to 480V and PLC's. I am not opposed to being a licenced electrician, but I really don't know the ins and outs of it.
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Not a problem. If you're familiar with 3 phase 480 and plcs you'll find plenty of work here. Do you have a resume?
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I'm afraid time is short... hope you can come soon.
What does that mean? Are we all gonna die?!?!?!? :)
It just means that as the economy contracts, the "money" is worth less and less, and the feds (as well as each state) create more and more "laws" to limit your options, travel and privacy... moving to freedom will become more and more difficult and costly. If you can get your assets out of Iowa soon, you'll have something to work with getting established somewhere else. That's especially important with children, of course. Alone you could start from scratch if you wanted to.
In the end, we will all die of something. It's what we do in the meantime that is important.
Let us know how we can help. I'd love to have you as a neighbor. :) MamaLiberty
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Hi! I am the wife of Pumpkihn. He asked that I take a look at this website and give the idea some consideration. So that is what I am doing. I am not nearly as devoted to the idea of moving to Wyoming as my husband is. But since he moved to Iowa for me, I am willing to consider the idea.
As Pumpkihn stated, I am the stay at home mother of three children (7, 5, & 1) plus anywhere from 1 to 4 extra children that I babysit. I do not particularly enjoy babysitting other peoples children and look forward to the time when I do not have to do so. We are starting to homeschool our children this fall and so I have spent many hours researching all this will entail. I also have a small business that I run out of a local farmers' market. I have enjoyed (mostly) this endeavor. I was recently asked to help with the weekly emails and press releases and have discovered that sending out emails to 2500 people is a very time consuming task, but I am hopefully getting it streamlined.
I would love to have a small farm and it is for this reason mainly that I am considering the idea. I have read the gardening thread and it appears the land is very different from here in Iowa. I have been giving it some idea what exactly I would want to grow/raise.
Dang. I didn't know you had such fine-lookin' women on this board.
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I want to kinda dig deeper, but I just can't seem to narrow down where the place for me in Wyoming could be. I get the whole Crook county thing, and it looks very nice, but that might just be too rural for my family. The Sheridan Area (Decent size town close to MT) or the Laramie area (Not far from a major city) are looking pretty enticing. Gillette looks like there's a wealth of opportunity, but the terrain looks pretty blah. I'd really like to be able to see the mountains from somewhere near my home. Pinedale was another consideration, but property seems sky high, and I'm not cut out to be a gas field worker. Haven't looked into the Cody and Powell area yet. Bottom line is, where can I make money. I only survive on what I make now because we're sharing a house with my Mother-in-law.
I know you all probably will root for your own town, but there's a lot to consider. If, through this board, I could find a way to make it in Crook or Weston, that's probably what I'd do, but I'm seeing very little industry.
I'm hardly an expert on the geography of Wyoming, so if what I just said made no sense, forgive me.
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Do you have a resume?
Not current, but I could probably whip one up pretty fast. I've been at my current job for four years, and in that time I have not really been looking.
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I've gotten a lot of generous and kind responses. I am really impressed with the community here. You really seem to look out for each other. It would be nice to be around a better class of people than what I'm around currently.
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I get the whole Crook county thing, and it looks very nice, but that might just be too rural for my family.
I am not a city person, but if I were, I might choose Newcastle. Last I heard, the population was around 3000. There is a movie theater on main street and more than one grocery store. To me, it has the feel of a small city fifty or sixty years back in time.
The houses we looked at a few years ago were priced between $50K and $100K (depending on age and condition). That has probably changed somewhat due to the new jobs.
There is a refinery in town, and while my wife said she could smell it, I could not. There is also a fair bit of train traffic through town, too. One of the houses we looked at was probably within a hundred feet of the tracks.
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There is also a fair bit of train traffic through town, too. One of the houses we looked at was probably within a hundred feet of the tracks.
I live right across the street from the tracks here, and we get 70-80 trains a day. In good weather when the windows are open it gets real old.
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You don't want to live in town... for many reasons. The train goes right through the center of it and they blow the dumb horns for every crossing...
But I live outside of Newcastle about a mile and behind a small hill, so I don't hear much of it. On a warm summer night, the windows are all open and I can hear it some, but I've gotten so used to it I don't notice.
There are several places for sale out in my area - the Painted Hills - all reasonable. One has a giant garage/workshop that would be ideal for some home industry or business. No "license" required here outside city limits.
Take a look at these: http://www.homeplaceusa.com/Listings.htm (http://www.homeplaceusa.com/Listings.htm)
There is one across the street from me at a different realty place. It is 5 acres, older mobile home plus addition and some outbuildings, well kept. Fence and garden areas. Last I knew they were asking $70,000. Might make a good deal or you may get them to take a contract. Worth looking at.
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So, I talked to my wife again tonight about the move. She thinks we should plan on moving in about five years. That may be more reasonable than my one year, but I'm impatient. Maybe gas'll go down by then.
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Maybe gas'll go down by then.
:D :D ROTFLMAO :D :D
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Just a little update from Iowa. This week the statewide smoking ban went into effect. It is now illegal to smoke in any public place. This includes any place of business. This includes company vehicles, bars, farm machinery, everywhere. Exceptions include: The Iowa State Fair (state run), Casinos (Huge state revenue generators) and Veterans Home.
Also, it was proposed this legislative session that farmers selling their products as "Iowa corn" need to pay the state for the use of the word "Iowa."
Yet, my wife insists that we should stay here because the soil is so much better for growing. Blood is shooting out of my eyes.
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Yet, my wife insists that we should stay here because the soil is so much better for growing. Blood is shooting out of my eyes.
You might remind her that gardening is not usually allowed in prison... so if you all get sent to prison for whatever prohibition they think of next (think of something she likes to do), it won't matter about the soil in Iowa...
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Yet, my wife insists that we should stay here because the soil is so much better for growing. Blood is shooting out of my eyes.
You might remind her that gardening is not usually allowed in prison... so if you all get sent to prison for whatever prohibition they think of next (think of something she likes to do), it won't matter about the soil in Iowa...
Exactly
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The train goes right through the center of it and they blow the dumb horns for every crossing...
We are near a track where the trains blow their horns to cross a driveway to a farmer's property. ::)
I'm just tired of taxes and taxes and laws and taxes and more laws.... I get the whole Crook county thing, and it looks very nice, but that might just be too rural for my family.... Bottom line is, where can I make money.
There is a little problem here. The more opportunities (which means, the larger the town), the more laws and regulations and taxes there will be. People in Cody (for example) just voted to tax themselves an extra percent in the sales tax just to upgrade the library. I call it "$6 million worth of sheet rock"! :(
Probably you want to hit a sweet spot in selection of a town. Say a town like Powell; 5000 people, agriculture based (not much tourism which gives rise to more regulations). There is work in Powell, also in surrounding areas. But it's not so big that the "improvers" have ruined it and controlled everything. If you live outside the town, so much the better (although I don't know what codes exist in town - maybe very few). People tend to ignore codes when working on their own stuff anyway.
I'd definitely look at Crook/Weston Co., that is Sundance and Newcastle. Cody appeals to women and if you live outside of town (a bit expensive these days) you avoid much of the bureaucracy. Take a look at Powell, Thermopolis, Buffalo. Sheridan has much the same problem as Cody (too many "improvers"). Other possible sites: Torrington (best garden area in the state I think). More down south but I'm not familiar with them...
Wyoming cannot match Iowa in agriculture, other than things like cattle. But then, Iowa has no mountains or amazing wildlife. :) Also, greenhouses work well here. ;)
A good thing to do in Wyoming is to generalize. Wear many hats in your work. It does not make sense to specialize because most towns are small and far apart and small towns do not support specialized vocations.
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I love it, Iowa as an Orwellian state. ;) Ah, how things have changed in the 17 odd years since I left.
Fair odds that the smoking ban will not last, the PWTs in the Waterloo area will no doubt violently revolt
and probably hold a cigarette warehouse hostage. ;D
You might want to try your kids on the public school thing for a little while, exposure to crushing boredom
will probably help over your first mountain country winter when the power goes out.
Beyond that, some exposure to extreme middle of nowhere places might help as a trial run. There a
little sheep farming dirt hole town called Audubon, Ia. Try staying there for 2-3 days, failing that WY
might not cut it for you guys.
If that works, try smaller and smaller towns, say Manning next, and then West Bend. Once you get to
the West Bend stage, ask yourself, what if this was the closest outpost of civilization closest to my home
and gas was now $8 a gallon, would I go raving insane ?
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I live in a town of about 800, but I work in Ames (pop. 50,000) . I certainly don't want to live in town. I'm not too keen on next door neighbors anymore. I think what my wife has in mind is a nice size vegetable garden, and she wants to raise animals for fiber (wool, angora, etc.) It is sooo humid here right now. I'm dreaming of the mountains every time I go outside.
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Hmm, sounds pretty close to my old stomping grounds so to speak. So I guess you are used to small towns,
the next phase would be crazy hicks. Fairly close to Ames is a place called State Center, on what was
old highway 30 just a short ways from the town is a gun shop/skeet range/target range.
If it's still in business, chat with the loons running the place. I doubt in all this time they have become
any less insane, they also have a nifty collection of exploded gun barrels, and probably a pack of hunting
dogs raising hell inside of their business.
I figure those guys are the acid test for rural craziness. If they don't phase you in the least, going
farther west will probably pose no challenges. ;D
Seems like Ames had a fairly small but diverse army/navy surplus and camping gear store, wonder if its
still there. Kind of funny thinking back, Ames to me now is just a tiny little cow town, but way back then
it was kind of a "big" city. Of course when I was around 8 Mason City and Ankeny were major metropolises
, you couldn't even walk all the way across them without stopping somewhere for a snack. ;)
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hello,
I am originally from Texas, but moved to Iowa 9 years ago. I was looking for a less oppressive state and came across the FSW Web site. I was interested in the free state project, but when New Hampshire was chosen, I dropped the idea. Well, my desire to move out west combined with the FSW project have made Wyoming the leading state. I am 35, married and 3 children. I am a homeschooler. I work in electrical and electronics trades. My wife stays home with the children, therefore we have no money. ;D
I guess first off, to convince my wife to make the move, I have to have a pretty darn good job waiting for me. So, who's hiring and for what. I guess I'm not extremely picky about what area of Wyoming to which I move, but I guess I'd like some scenery...something nearby at least.
I'm just tired of taxes and taxes and laws and taxes and more laws. I've had enough, and want the best for my family.
Depending on which electrical and electronics trades you have experience in, you could find work in the energy business in Gillette, although I think you said something about the gas fields around Pinedale.
I don't know what it is, but one of the local companies is looking for an I&E technician. The railroads are looking for help, maybe a signal technician?
I used to be a broadcast engineer in the 80s, but transistors, then ICs chased me out. Few things break, and many can be replaced by a DJ at RadioShack:-) Now that there are high power solid state FM transmitters, anyone who can replace a module with a red LED on can do broadcast engineering, on the day to day level.
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Hmm, sounds pretty close to my old stomping grounds so to speak. So I guess you are used to small towns,
the next phase would be crazy hicks. Fairly close to Ames is a place called State Center, on what was
old highway 30 just a short ways from the town is a gun shop/skeet range/target range.
If it's still in business, chat with the loons running the place. I doubt in all this time they have become
any less insane, they also have a nifty collection of exploded gun barrels, and probably a pack of hunting
dogs raising hell inside of their business.
I figure those guys are the acid test for rural craziness. If they don't phase you in the least, going
farther west will probably pose no challenges. ;D
Seems like Ames had a fairly small but diverse army/navy surplus and camping gear store, wonder if its
still there. Kind of funny thinking back, Ames to me now is just a tiny little cow town, but way back then
it was kind of a "big" city. Of course when I was around 8 Mason City and Ankeny were major metropolises
, you couldn't even walk all the way across them without stopping somewhere for a snack. ;)
I live in Colo, IA just a few miles from State Center. I know the place you're talking about, but have not been there. That store in Ames is still there. The problem with ames is that it's very liberal and thinks sh*t don't stink there.
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You might get in touch with Adecco.
I signed up with them this morning, when I found out that they now place CDL holders.
They place a lot of technical professionals, so they might place your niche.
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I dunno about your opinion about Ames, personally I never confuse stoned and hung over with being
simply liberal. ;D And really, if you'd ever been to the left coast you'd appreciate the fact that you can
drop half a dozen N bombs inside of ten minutes in Iowa and not get kicked out of your average bar.
I think if you want really right wing, try Newton, Ia. But to be honest, Newton is dismally small. Marshalltown
is pretty centrist, and also pretty clueless. Waterloo is probably going to be your version of a gang infested
urban warzone. These days I see it as hillbilly infested and backwards.
Cherokee is probably a good place if you want to be left alone. I suspect they might even leave the
vultures(probably only turkey vultures) to nibble on your dying body while you were injured on the side
of the road. :P So maybe that makes it a reasonably libertarian type of place.
Parkersburg, well, I suspected it was a den of socialism and people with wrecked trans ams up on blocks
in front of their trailers. But, from what I can tell from the news its gone now. And probably people I knew unless they had the sense to duck and cover.
Ah well, time rolls on, and maybe someday Iowa will progress enough that it won't seem so impossibly small
and stuck 30 years behind the times culturally.
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Ah well, time rolls on, and maybe someday Iowa will progress enough that it won't seem so impossibly small
and stuck 30 years behind the times culturally.
Jeez. I'd hate to hear your opinion of Wyoming.
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Don't sweat it, Pumpkihn. I'm a current DesMoiniac (eww.) and can't wait to get moved myself. We are headed out WY way for a few days next week to visit a couple of places and do some more legwork on our purchase out there.
Colo isn't so bad; I drive though there at least twice a year on my way to a buddy's that lives towards the SC rose garden. The Mrs. & I just moved back down to DM from Perry about 18 months ago...if ya wanna talk small & 30 years behind, that's Perry.
Glad to see another Iowegian on here.
PM me & maybe we can grab a chat sometime.
Michigan Escapee; you must be referring to the blue building with the old MTA bus out front- it is still there and you can still pay to shoot.
Polk City is a MUCH nicer range, though.
http://www.olofsonrange.com/ (http://www.olofsonrange.com/)
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So, I talked to my wife again tonight about the move. She thinks we should plan on moving in about five years. That may be more reasonable than my one year, but I'm impatient. Maybe gas'll go down by then.
Gas is a very tiny component of such a decision.
Why is five years more reasonable then one year?
If we knew more about your line of work, we might be able to help you find something now.
I'm a truck driver, but Adecco is looking into putting me back into electronics, as a computer repairman, at $17-20/hr.
Given the shortage of technicians in the oilfields, that is pretty interesting.
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Not sure what they called the range in State Center, it was cheap though, and fairly close to
where I lived at the time. Their big thing seemed to be the skeet/trap range behind the main
building.
I might sound a little down on Iowa, but for me the place grew too small too fast. When you
seem to know everyone in a smallish city of 26-28 thousand, its time to bail out.
Now ramp that up to a city of 110,000, maybe 250,000 in a three county area. After 15 years
you run into people you know all the time, and that can get annoying fast.
Up in the northwest however, there's plenty of turnover, always something new. 7-8 visits to Bellevue
inside of 2 years, and even the skyline changes between visits. ;D Maybe now and then a crane falls
over and kills a microsoft lawyer, but I can totally live with that. >:D