Living where you want to

gnar_whal

gnar_whal

Active member
So right now I live in Michigan. It sucks. The weather, the skiing, the state itself. Right now I'm 15 and I've always wanted to live somewhere out west when I grow up/get older. I know a few people who had the same plan as I do ( planning to move out west) but they never got there like they planned/wanted to. I'm asking for helpful suggestions on ways to make a plan for eventually living where you want to live. AKA planning for the future. Has anyone been in my situation? I'm sure some of you have.
 
The desire to move west is far greater than any plan. If you want to, you can make it happen.

I moved from MN to WA 8 years ago and haven't looked back. I was intending on going to school in CO and leaving MN after high school, but I stayed in MN for school and moved to WA 2 days after school.

If it's that important to you, you can make it happen. You have plenty of time as well, so don't stress it too much. Visiting various places you are considering is the best advice I can offer. Ski trips, or just summer vacations; get a feel for your prospective city before you dive in head first.

Good luck!
 
To be honest man it's not that you didn't do something you desire to do, it's that desires change. Priorities change and responsibilities change. If you get to be 18 or 22 or 25 or how ever old, and you still want to live out west, there is going to be nothing to stop you. It might be the only thing you can think about right now but in time you might not even want to.
 
besides the cost of the plane ticket/bus ticket/gas money moving out west is about as complicated as moving out of your parents house and finding a job after high school. It's not like you're going to a different country and have to deal with work visa's, different languages and other stuff the complicates moving. You can work anywhere in your country and, for the most part, everything is run the same. Save up enough money to pay for a months rent and three weeks to a month of food, and a week or so's expense of living at a hostel when you first get there and that's all there is to it.

 
figure out what you want to do and then go

i moved out to whis when i was 19 and had gotten all of my instructor certifications before so that i could get an instructor job. just be smart and don't go out without a plan
 
I'm in pretty much the exact same situation. I'm 15 and wanting to move somewhere like Colorado/Utah exept for I live in Iowa. So ya know, more corn. My parents support me in doing it as long as I don't ask them for money all the time. I doubt I'd ever get enough cash to move out of state for college. If you look into universities like Colorado and Utah state they have a lot of scholarships if the cash is your problem. Other than that all I can think of is not to ski too much and forget about ya schoolin
 
Its easy. If your true passion is somewhere else, money comes second. I've learned that living within your means is the simplest way to make changes. If your means are simply food, skis, and a place to hang your hat, then you only need pennies. Don't spend money on some janky rice burner or some silly new sweatshirt, but save that shit and think of it as grocery money for a week. If you want it, you'll do it
 
this is spot on. When I was in HS I wanted to live out west too. I'm from new jersey, and I went to school in Colorado (Boulder) and after doing the whole college thing and living here for almost 6 years total…I just realized it wasn't what I wanted after all.

Being away from your family is really hard, at least for me it is. Anyway, my priorities changed and I wanted to be able to see my family whenever I felt like it and I missed my life back east so I moved back to the east coast. Just like Timmi said, desires change.

BUT, if you want to live out west, the best possible advice that I can give you - is to do really well in school. Do really well in high school, and do even better in college. College is so pivotal man, there is no reason not to get great grades in college, and if you do, chances are that it will open doors for you and let you get a job you want WHERE YOU WANT to be. I know it sounds corny but I'm telling you, I'm 26 years old right now, and good grades got me things I never thought I could have. Make school your top priority and be the best version of yourself possible. You'll be able to move wherever the fuck you want to if you can do that. Good luck!
 
Your best immediate plan is likely to focus on being 15/16/17 in Michigan. Seriously, you should be having fun regardless of where you live.
 
Wish I could have done this with salt lake city. I'm from Maine and am finding it hard to relate to people here, most people don't wear carharts and flannels and never have chopped down a tree or experience most things like in maine. I also hate the inversion. The feel of the area feels like it goes for ever. Boston is tiny compared salt lake and I'm more of a person that needs trees and space. The powder though is epic as fuck and you will huck so much shit.

With that said I'm probably moving to Montana next winter.
 
You want to make this happen?

Work your ass off in school. Join clubs. Organize shit in high school. Play sports. Have fun. Work hard.

When you hit your junior year of high school (some counselors wait till senior year and it's horseshit cause you don't have to) start looking for scholarships. Any scholarships. There's an ASSLOAD of money out there, some of which never gets used, just waiting for students to take it for college.

Apply to schools where you want to live. Get accepted. Get scholarship money. Live long and prosper.
 
Michigan is awesome. You should try to enjoy it instead of telling yourself everything sucks compared to places you have never been. You're 15. What you think you want now will almost certainly change in the next few years, so instead of wasting time wishing for things you don't currently have, go out and have fun with what you do have.
 
Spending my first year out west. What I did was save up from March to November then I just left and eventually found a job while I've been out here. If you don't have the opportunity to save like I did you can always just save up around $3000 and have a job lined up before you leave.

It's really easy to move out just don't fuck up spending all your money and make your parents rescue you.
 
michigan isnt bad at all. it just gets a bad rep cuz of the city is all. its a great state. go out and enjoy it. go play some pond hockey or haul ass across a lake on a snowmobile.
 
One comment, look into college where you want to go, but keep in mind how much money/debt going out of state versus in state will cost you. Graduating with a lot of debt isn't worth it.
 
Don't get me wrong, Michigan does not completely suck, it has a lot of great places. We have TONS of lakes, and there are beautiful places all around the state. I live in southeast michigan, which I don't like that much, compared to up north, it's really fun up there. Michigan just isn't a place I want to live my life in really. I want to live near the mountains, not garbage dumps like Detroit.
 
I'm in that conundrum currently.

It sucks having rad parents and friends that you move away from to go to a better spot. Thats my biggest problem with where I moved to.

Im from the North East and moved to Utah. Utah is rad for skiing, Weather is great most of the time but SLC and the surrounding desert like areas just don't do it for me. Between the smog and the grid I get real homesick for backroads and backwood style living.

Plus getting to the point where I'd like to start thinking about becoming a home owner it hard to decided where id like to do that first.

Hate to say it but, the grass is always greener is right most of the time.
 
It sucks do not listen to ARdickrider hes almost 30 and still in college.

The world is full of people who say they want to do shit like this and never do it. If you want it bad enough you will gtfo of michigan. Make new friends and keep the old you never know you might find someone similar in the next few years who wants to peace from Michigan too and you won't have to go alone.
 
As someone who is from/lives in Michigan (Muskegon) I'd say I've always wanted to move out west and plan on doing so after I graduate college. My suggestion is to go to school in the UP. Get your degree. and then get a job out west. The UP is completely different there is great skiing especially at Mount Bohemia which currently has the most snow of any place in the U.S., I go to Michigan Tech and I get to ski for free everyday and I love it where I'm at. Plus, a lot of people get really good jobs that pay a shit ton and then they move out west. One of my friends just signed a contract with an engineering firm in SLC and they bought him an Epic Pass as a welcome gift. Hope this helps, send out love to the Mitten!
 
Also to add on that if anyone says there aren't mountains in the UP they're on crack. Mount Bohemia is some gnarly terrain and is fun as hell. Plus, no crowds
 
you are on crack. it is far, far from gnarly.

To the OP- As was said before, desires and priorities change as you mature and get older. Therefore the bes thing you can do now is give yourself every opportunity you can. this means killing it in school to allow yourself to pick a school of your own choosing, and getting and learning a useful job/skill so that if school isnt your thing you have a solid employment background to fall back on.

Just try and remember that what you want know could very well be different from what you want a few years down the road.
 
Just don't give in to escapism."I'll be happy when I get out of high school... I'll be happy when I graduate college... I'll be happy when I move out west... I'll be happy when..." Be happy now.
 
A few things...

1. You're 15. How often are you even in "garbage dumps" like Detroit? I'm guessing you're just repeating the same shit you read online and hear from people on TV.

2. You have already acknowledged there are beautiful places all around the state. Why are you in such a hurry to get out of it? Have you ever even been out of the state? How do you know you'll even like it out west?

3. Every 15 year old thinks their life sucks and wants to live some pipe dream fantasy where they ski all day and party all night. Do you even know what this takes? Why are you even worrying about this now. Go do something. You live in SE MI (if I had to wager a guess, I'd say Oakland County), which means there's tons of shit to do all over the place and your parents are probably rich. Stop worrying about what you're going to do 5-7 years from now.

To TahoeRondo, or PepperAnn, or whatever the fuck your name is now: I understand that you hold a grudge against me for making you look stupid repeatedly, but just give it up, man. Better yet, why don't you tell this kid what happened to you when you chased the "out west dream." Oh, that's right...you failed miserably, are flat broke, and live in your mom's basement. You don't have a job, so you try (and fail) to scalp tickets to sporting events instead of doing something worthwhile with your life. Living the dream, bro. Living the goddamned dream.
 
I think OP should still move somewhere though even if its where you are now to the other end of the state. Its still a good thing to experience.
 
Wait until you finish highschool or turn 18. I always wanted to live out west and ski everyday. 2 years ago, I got up and moved to BC. I was 24 then. Im glad I waited to make sure I had cash and a good sustainable life before moving.
 
I was 18 and going to school so it wasnt that bad, living on your own and working/skiing would probably be a little more tricky, but its definitely doable.

Don't keep pushing it off, you'll never leave. That's how most of my friends back in the mitten are, sad but true.
 
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