[vladinecko]

After several years of bitching and moaning about Shitzburgh, its weather, its poor job market, its dying social life, departure of youth and energy, I am finally moving to San Francisco, CA.

I got a software engineering job at CNET Networks, a very respectable and technology-driven company. I'm really excited as this is a really good opportunity for me.

I'll be taking a road trip with my girlfriend, taking the southern route. Hitting St. Louis, Oklahoma City, Albuquerque, Las Vegas, Death Valley, Yosemite, and finally San Francisco. We're making a vacation out of it so the whole trip will take us about 6 days, 2,800 miles. I have just received my Valentine V1 so I'll be hardwiring it and hope for the best when I speed through the Death Valley.

Anyway, I just wanted to share the news. Pittsburgh, no offense, but I can't wait to get the hell out of here.

All you NoCal people, expect me at your next meet!

[Greeney]

Well congrats dude!

[18LLC]

welcome to the city, dude.

[Ryan.M]

Congrats San Francisco's a cool city Good luck with the new job.

[just4kickz]

haha welcome to the Bay area... the hayward fault also says hello.

[18LLC]

Originally Posted by Ryan@Eisenhaus

Congrats San Francisco's a cool city Good luck with the new job.

not only cool, but also cold. man. -6.5 degree C at midnight this week. damn it.

[SoYank]

Congratulations on the new job. Is it in San Francisco or Sillycone [sic] Valley?

Don't be in such a hurry to get to Las Vegas. You might consider an extra day or two through northern Arizona. Maybe take in drive through Petrified Forest National Park near Holbrook, the meteor crater in Winslow, that big ditch called the Grand Canyon, the Painted Desert. Not only is it a vacation, but it's also a good learning experience. And you don't have to be young to learn something.

[vladinecko]

thanks! i am looking for apartments now. CNET's offices are on the 2nd street so i'm looking somewhere near so that i can take the bus in a relatively short time. currently, russian, potrero, nob hill and pacific heights are on my short list of areas to stay.

[vladinecko]

Originally Posted by SoYank

Don't be in such a hurry to get to Las Vegas. You might consider an extra day or two through northern Arizona. Maybe take in drive through Petrified Forest National Park near Holbrook, the meteor crater in Winslow, that big ditch called the Grand Canyon, the Painted Desert. Not only is it a vacation, but it's also a good learning experience. And you don't have to be young to learn something.

you have a good point there. i'll need to consider that and see how long it would take us to take that kind of detour. i love AZ so i wouldn't mind driving through it at all.

[DFW_M]

Darn it, should have paid attention more in my programming classes...
Good luck, stack up those miles, then trade it for the 335 when you get there...

[hkj]

Awesome.. another Pittsburgher moving to CA. I went to CMU for 4 yrs and I still miss the place some times.. But trust me, NorCal is a much better place to live than Pitt. See you at the next NorCal meet!

-hkj

[just4kickz]

Originally Posted by hkj

Awesome.. another Pittsburgher moving to CA. I went to CMU for 4 yrs and I still miss the place some times.. But trust me, NorCal is a much better place to live than Pitt. See you at the next NorCal meet!

-hkj

wow for real? haha my friend goes to CMU too... lives in Mr. Roger's neighborhood. i was considering on going there... but decided not to.

[nightkhan]

welcome to the bay! damn...that's one heck of a road trip!

[picus]

Congratulations; you'll love San Francisco. I lived there 10 years and totally miss it. It's got it's vices, but it's an awesome city to be in. Enjoy it.

[e30klassic]

Welcome to the Bay Area !!! See you around at the next meet & good luck with your new job.

[007e92]

cool i work in downtown SF also. just wanted to say welcome to the BAY AREA!! - hopefully see ya at the next NORCAL meet.

btw, notice downtown SF in my signature below

[txusa03]

GL with new job. Hey since you are taking the trip, how about dipping down to Tennessee for the tail of the dragon drive. Man, cannot pass that. You are already heading in that direction. Look at your map.

[dejav0o]

Congrats on the new job and on moving here. All the areas you listed off are very nice parts of the city. Just make sure you get ready for some very very steep hills.

If you ever need help in and around the city, let me know.

[longtran]

congrats!!! welcome to the west coast...

[Viral]

cost of living in SF is crazy, esp. compared to Pittsburgh. I hope the new gig pays mad $$$

[vladinecko]

Thanks guys!

one thing that worries me at the moment is my insurance. i just called my ins company, thinking it would be a formality, and they told me my insurance is going to go from $2,000/year to $5,500/year!!!! now, i excepted some kind of increase in my premium but definitely not over 5 grand a year!!?? wtf?!?!? :mad: :mad: i've never been in an accident, have a clean record and am 2 months shy of being 25. seriously, what the fuck?!?

i looked at some other insurance companies as well and they all quoted me about the same with progressive sticking out with $6,600/year. monthly, that's almost twice as much as my car payment.

is this normal?? i was giving them zip code for downtown san fran. do you guys think that other areas might be a little more reasonable?

[vladinecko]

Originally Posted by Viral

cost of living in SF is crazy, esp. compared to Pittsburgh. I hope the new gig pays mad $$$

yeah, i got a very nice pay-raise, but as i mentioned above, i don't think i wanna throw away money this much. i was OK with paying $1,800 - $2,000/month for rent, more expensive gas and groceries but paying almost 6 grand for f-ing insurance, that's a very tough pill to swallow.