Bozeman vs. Livingston vs. Three Forks areas

[argon99]

We live in Livingston. Yes it gets windy here but it's really not a bother. Yes it does snow and get cold but again it's not something that will stop you from going anywhere. It does make life easier if you have a snow blower, we don't, but a snow shovel works very well. In the dead of winter, in the evening hours, it will get very cold. The coldest I remember is 40 below. But I went out in it to fix a window and I was fine. The only time I felt the cold was when I had to take my gloves off to work on the window. And then only when I touched the window. There is very little water in the air so it doesn't transfer heat from your body as quickly as other places I have been. I have felt colder in the San Fransisco Bay Area at 30 degrees then at 40 below because there is so much more water in the air in SFBA.

We also homeschool and are the founders of the Park County Homeschool Network. We had one student in the network do so well he got a free ride to Harvard. My daughter took her PSAT's at 15 and scored a 237 out of a possible 240. She is now 16 and a student at MSU Bozeman. And in the honors program getting straight As. We are using MSU as a high school. The school system here is the pits. The local high school in Livingston has the highest drop out rate of the state. So homeschooling is the way to go.

There are two main grocery stores, Town and Country and Albertson's. Town and Country is a local store with better prices, but less selection, the Albertson's. But Livingston is so small you can shop at one and go to the other withing five minutes, more like three. There are three auto parts and welding supply stores. One liquor store. About four gas stations and the best scenery of this part of Montana. And we have two hardware stores. And many restaurants. But I have to say the food here stinks. I came from the SFBA and I am used to very good food. There is none anywhere here. Meaning Bozeman, Threeforks or Livingston. And yes we have tried places in Gallatin Gateway. There is no food but you can pay a lot and have nice surroundings but the food is still poor. And good fruits and vegetables are hard to find. Frozen and canned are your best bets. But we do go to costco and wallmart in Bozeman about twice a month and get good food.

Livingston is much prettier then Bozeman or Three Forks. We have a number of parks and the Yellowstone River flows right along the town. World class trout fishing is a walk away. But to be fair to can get to easy access to fishing from Bozeman or Three Forks. But you can't easily walk to it. Livingston is about 60 miles north of Yellowstone park. It is my opinion that Livingston is much prettier then the park. But Yellowstone really isn't know for it's beauty it's know for it's uniqueness.

I came from a large urban environment so one would think I would like Bozeman better. But I don't, I like Livingston better then them all. We have friends that came up here before us. The wife was over visiting and our kids were playing in the park. She looked at us and said "It's better here then in Bozeman." And she lives in Bozeman. So I recommend coming here.

[leavingidaho]

I want to relocate to the Bozeman-Three Forks-Livingston etc area next spring 5-2012 I have been to the Sheridan/ Ennis area and I love it but further north is where I would like to relocate...via the internet however I am having a heck of a time looking for jobs and apts.....I am a Jill of most trades so if anyone has any suggestions on where to start and maybe offer a little guidance along the way that would be Great!...thanks Ready to leave Idaho

[rangerider]

Originally Posted by argon99

...But I have to say the food here stinks. I came from the SFBA and I am used to very good food. There is none anywhere here. Meaning Bozeman, Threeforks or Livingston. And yes we have tried places in Gallatin Gateway. There is no food but you can pay a lot and have nice surroundings but the food is still poor. And good fruits and vegetables are hard to find. Frozen and canned are your best bets. But we do go to costco and wallmart in Bozeman about twice a month and get good food.

And this is something that has puzzled me for some time. We noticed a decrease in the quality of food, especially fruits, about 10 years ago and really noticed about 6 years ago. I actually pinned down a couple of produce managers at two of the local grocery stores and asked them why about the only good things to be had consistently were potatoes and carrots. Both were non-committal, though another section manager at the second store overheard the conversation, stopped to chat with me after the first left, and said I wasn't the first one to notice that fresh produce had drastically decreased in quality the past few years.

That said, there are some fairly decent small local produce suppliers around but be prepared to pay handsomely for it. The best bet is to raise a good garden if you have time and a place, and, like my Mom used to say, "Eat what you can and can what you can't." Canning is getting to be a more common practice again. And we have some local Hutterite colonies that raise some darn fine produce, too.

Find a local rancher that culls some youngsters off every year to go on grass, and split one with another family. This is a good way to get good meat, as the culls won't have any money spent on BGH or even penicillin. If they make it, good, if not... We do this with some friends who have a ranch near us and the grass-fed beef beats anything you'll find in any store. Same goes for chicken, mutton, or whatever.

And I'd throw in for Livingston for a place to live; we'd like to find a place to retire around there. That town and the Shields valley are home to me; I wound up in the Gallatin valley for work but if I had to do it over..

[Reziac]

Originally Posted by rangerider

And this is something that has puzzled me for some time. We noticed a decrease in the quality of food, especially fruits, about 10 years ago and really noticed about 6 years ago. I actually pinned down a couple of produce managers at two of the local grocery stores and asked them why about the only good things to be had consistently were potatoes and carrots. Both were non-committal, though another section manager at the second store overheard the conversation, stopped to chat with me after the first left, and said I wasn't the first one to notice that fresh produce had drastically decreased in quality the past few years.

This is because the better quality produce (and some of the better meat) produced in the U.S. is being exported to Europe, where prices are considerably higher. So we get what's left, the dregs of our own ag industry. Ain't fair, but with middlemen controlling the market, it's what we've got.

[rangerider]

Great...yet another thing to make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside -

[Reziac]

That's from the moldy produce.