New York State Job Advice- Early Days

[RexAll]

So as I admitted in a few earlier posts, I've been out of a job for about 9 months. I just heard of a job in New York State. I don't know much about the job yet. But I'd like to see what people feel about the area. It's in Orange County about 45 to 60 miles from Manhattan. Looking it up on Wikipedia- the county has a population of about 360,000. I'm assuming that I will need to live in the area- commuting in from NYC is probably not possible. So while being that close to NYC would be great when I am off on the weekends- I wonder what it would be like spending most of my time in what seems like a rural-ish area composed of small towns-in respect to finding gay friends and considering I don't really know anyone in NYC-and would be moving there by myself. Being close to NYC sounds great- but if gay life is not really in existence in Orange County- I can't just live for the weekend- can I? I'm thinking it would be difficult to make friends in NYC proper when I don't actually live there. By maybe I'm wrong. My knowledge of the Northeast is almost nil.

 

There also might be a job a available in Pottsdam, PA- fairly close to Philadelphia- so same questions about this place.

 

Thanks,

 

Rex

[gallahadesquire]

I don't know what kind of job you're looking for, or which specific community, but my sister has taught in Washingtonville, Orange County, NY for about 18 years and has nothing good to say about it.

 

You would need to live locally. My sister lives about 40 miles away, to the south, and hates the commute.

[+ Charlie]

It would be possible to commute to Orange County by car from the northern reaches of Manhattan--say, Inwood--but it would be a schlepp, and not cheap because of tolls, but at least you would always be commuting against traffic. It's practically in the Catskills; I think it would be boring to live there, unless you really like the country, and not convenient if you want to do things in the city in the evenings (that's even true of Inwood). When I was a lad, there were actually a few gay bars in Rockland County, patronized entirely by locals and therefore pretty quiet, but that was a half century ago, and I haven't been back there for a long, long time.

 

Are you sure you don't mean Pottstown, PA? (I never heard of Potstdam). It's a similar type of commute from downtown Philly, maybe a little easier because you can drive to Norristown and take public transport into town, but it presents the same problem if you want to do things in the city in the evening. I once tried living in Norristown, but quickly realized it was not for me and moved into Center City. King of Prussia, near Norristowm, has become a kind of exurb--I even managed to hire an escort who was living there once, but he didn't stick around long--but most gays out there are are domestic types.

[Justice]

There is train service -- via Metro North's Port Jervis line -- from parts of Orange County to NYC. It would be a very long and expensive commute. You would also have to change trains in Secaucus, NJ. because the Port Jervis line's diesel trains terminate in Hoboken, NJ. (Diesel trains can't go through the tunnel under the Hudson River and into the City.) (http://as0.mta.info/mnr/schedules/sched_form.cfm)

 

Newburgh, NY is the only sizable City in Orange County. My guess is that Newburgh is also probably the only part of Orange County that has a sizable gay presence. (I'm not sure how big it is.) http://hudsonvalley.metromix.com/facets/bars-and-clubs/loc.hudson_valley_market.orange_county.newburgh_area.newburgh/topic.bars_clubs.bar_type.gay_lesbian. Newburgh is on the Hudson River. You can drive across the bridge and catch a train from Poughkeepsie to Grand Central Station. Orange County is very big, so taking the train from Poughkeepsie rather than using the Port Jervis line (and changing trains in Secaucus) may or may not be an option.

 

There's a Potsdam in upstate New York. It's the middle of nowhere. It's near the Canadian border. It's probably closer to Toronto then it is two New York. Both would be several hours away. Google maps says that Potsdam, NY is about an hour and a half from Ottawa, Canada. Ottawa is the capital of Canada so there's probably a gay presence there. (I have not idea how big it is.) I'm also not sure if I'd want to make that trip in the winter. Upstate New York winters can be severe.

 

I have str8 friends who live in Pottstown, PA. It strikes me as being your typical suburb. It's a suburb of both Philadelphia and Reading, PA but it's closer to Reading then it is to Philly.

 

 

Good luck with your job search.

[Samai139]

Potsdam, NY, is much closer to Montreal, Canada, than it is to Toronto. But Potsdam has very little to offer other than a smallish State of NY University College and VERY cold weather in the winter.

Know next to nothing about Orange County, but as an earlier poster said, the county is very large and travel to NYC could be expensive and tricky---living expenses in both NYC and surrounding counties are high.

[RexAll]

It would be possible to commute to Orange County by car from the northern reaches of Manhattan--say, Inwood--but it would be a schlepp, and not cheap because of tolls, but at least you would always be commuting against traffic. It's practically in the Catskills; I think it would be boring to live there, unless you really like the country, and not convenient if you want to do things in the city in the evenings (that's even true of Inwood). When I was a lad, there were actually a few gay bars in Rockland County, patronized entirely by locals and therefore pretty quiet, but that was a half century ago, and I haven't been back there for a long, long time.

 

Are you sure you don't mean Pottstown, PA? (I never heard of Potstdam). It's a similar type of commute from downtown Philly, maybe a little easier because you can drive to Norristown and take public transport into town, but it presents the same problem if you want to do things in the city in the evening. I once tried living in Norristown, but quickly realized it was not for me and moved into Center City. King of Prussia, near Norristowm, has become a kind of exurb--I even managed to hire an escort who was living there once, but he didn't stick around long--but most gays out there are are domestic types.

 

Yes, I am sorry I did mean Pottstown, PA. And see this is my dilemma--it's hard enough--at least for me--moving and making friends at 52. It seems at my age--most people have lived wherever they have lived for years and have their friends. I think this would most likely be true to some extent even if i were straight and single. Being gay just seems to exacerbate this. Living near NYC or Philly would be great because of the cutural advantages of living in the area which I could get to on the weekends or on my weeks off. But I'm really leery that I'll move to one of these out of the way places==and they will be just close enough to "civilization" when I have free time to go---but would be incredibly lonely if I can't find other gay men to be friends with during the week. Actually living in NYC or Philly or even Washington DC--is like a fantasy--but for my field--the salaries are just too low and the cost of living too high especially when you consider that I've grown up in the south and Midwest--and at 52, I expect more --or at least hope for more than an un-airconditioned 500 sq ft apartment at $1800 or more a month.

 

Rex

[+ Charlie]

I think you have a very realistic view of your situation. It is hard for any middle-aged single, gay or straight, to start over in an outer suburb of an area where he knows no one and has no experience. It helps to have some special interest--a hobby, sport, religious affiliation, etc.--which might give you an entree to meet people there, or a job that enables you to meet new people, but being gay is not usually that kind of interest. I think you really have to love your job, or really need it, to be happy in those circumstances.

[rickp]

Orange County, NY is an absolutely beautiful place! I go hiking up there quite a bit during the warmer months and it's an easy 2 hr ride to/from NYC by metro north.

 

The hudson river valley would be a great place to live if you're an outdoor person. The hiking, kayaking, etc are great up that way.

[trilingual]

As far as I know there are gay people in Newburgh and Poughkeepsie. If you Google around for gay bars and community groups I'm sure you'll find some (look under the county names and also Hudson Valley). Vassar College is in Poughkeepsie. It's now co-ed and has active gay groups.

 

To be honest, even if you were in the City but working full time the chances are that you wouldn't be going out most weeknights. So working and living in the outer suburbs of New York wouldn't be very different. If you want to go into the City on weekends the drive certainly isn't impossible (traffic is usually not horrible on weekends) and the suggestion to take the direct train into the City from Poughkeepsie is a good one. Just check the Metro North schedules to see what hours the trains run so you know how late you can stay in town if you take the train without having to stay up all night and taking the first morning train! The area is terrifically scenic -- the Hudson Valley is really beautiful. For long weekends you're close enough to all of the big Northeastern cities that you can easily drive to one for a change of scenery. You're also only about a 6 hour drive up to Montreal from Orange County. I'd say go for it. Yes, it's always hard to start over in a new community, but you won't be the only gay person in that area so if you just start looking for gathering places, local LGBT organizations, and LGBT-friendly churches you should be able to start making friends pretty quickly. Good luck!