Good-morning South Dakotans...I have a few questions. (Rapid City, Watertown: place to live, farmers)
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The Black Hills. If you like rural & quiet there are a number of small towns you can select from. The further south you go, in the Black hills, the less touristy it becomes. If you want something that is just a little urban, then Rapid City is the place to go to.
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What Uncleharley said. In South Dakota, the Black Hills area would be an easy pick. It's a little cooler than eastern SD and doesn't have the high humidity that you'll find anywhere east of the Missouri River. Iowa is hot and humid late July-August, much like Ohio. For still drier air and cooler nights, you might consider Wyoming. Its higher elevation provides that.
Thanks. I'm pretty laid back and could use the rest. Definitely don't need five million half empty restaurants and crowds, I'm good, plenty of that BS right here. Workable would be nice. The kind of place that is not stirring u til 8 in the am kind of feel.
The black hills look gorgeous. Pretty friendly in the south so getting along with strangers is a past time. I've read a bit on some of the cities out west, looks intriguing. To Sioux falls credit, reading about it evokes the feeling that people have civic pride and LIKE where they live. Cold winters and all. Commendable.
Seems like you have some cool and unique things the whole city turns out for.
Thanks for the references, I'll read a bit more on rapid city and other towns in the west part of SD.
I lived in MA and miss NE a lot. South Dakota will have you feeling land locked and missing out on great NE food. Would go to Maine frequently and just can't beat the views and going to the ocean.
With not having state taxes here, we pay more for groceries and eating out than most places we ate out in NE. I am still in shock every time we go out to eat here or grocery shop at what the bill is.
There are pros and cons to both SD and Maine, but you have to really take a look at what you think is why you need to move from Maine and if it really is the location or if you need to do some more soul searching in that no matter where you are that things may just not still feel like "home"
You're right, the school are not universally terrible and I apologize for that blanket statement. I'm fortunate enough that my kids are in some of the best school districts in Rapid. That said, housing costs significantly more to get your children in those districts. And attracting and retaining the most talented teachers is challenging when teacher pay is among the lowest in the nation. It's necessary to do some careful research when selecting which district you will be in. And when the legislature is considering a bills that would allow creationism to be taught in school under the guise of "alternate scientific theory", it makes me cringe.
My mother taught biology and anatomy for many years, winning many grants for her district including those that provided for a computer lab when there was no budget, and gaining national recognition for bringing DNA splicing into the classroom when it was new in the 80's, amongst other accomplishment. Her work with USD basically gave her an unofficial instant acceptance into medical school for the single referral she would make each year. Yet her work with local farmers and meat packing plants allowed for greater depth into subjects. I'm still amazed when I return home and people will come up to her and thank her for her efforts and the impact they made on her life.
Politicians are just that. They have no business dictating what's taught in the classroom. On this subject, she kept neutrality by teaching with the utmost brevity and succinctness. In the opening of teaching evolution she would open the floor that some believe in creationism, and that she had no doubt any God loving person would have already taught their children this, so there was no need to cover it in the classroom. What today would introduce is an alternative theory of evolution.
So, that whole debacle took 2 minutes of classroom time tops, though it was bigger outside of class. Later in conferences, especially with one local politician, they might broach the subject, and it became a game of absolutes in faiths. Nobody in town ever challenged her faith of commitment to her church, so it became a parental failing for not finding God. Fight fire with fire.
Don't let this narrow issue drive away the fact that SD consistently ranks in the middle for performance, while spending significantly less per pupil and whose schools are by and far much safer than many others.
Thank-you,for the detailed answers. I need to, eventually, start making a plan to leave Maine. Due to your answers I have more of an idea of where I am going. South Dakota, the Western part of the state sounds like a good place to start researching thoroughly. I was thinking of Idaho, but I cannot put my finger on why Idaho is not an option for me. On paper it looks good...but...
Thank-you,for the detailed answers. I need to, eventually, start making a plan to leave Maine. Due to your answers I have more of an idea of where I am going. South Dakota, the Western part of the state sounds like a good place to start researching thoroughly. I was thinking of Idaho, but I cannot put my finger on why Idaho is not an option for me. On paper it looks good...but...
Cour' D'alene is absolutely beautiful. However, when I read the threads for the place the people seem a little less than happy.
I spent a couple of weeks in Boise. Nice place, nice river. Growing city. The place seems to have some Mormon influence. Not Mormon so much, just the influence. Mostly a good thing I think.
I also spent ten weeks in Oregon. For me, Oregon, southern and central Oregon, is probably my place to live. But, the trees! All those trees! I couldn't see anything for the trees! It was great to get back to eastern Wyoming and South Dakota and be able to see forever.
I would take a job in Rapid City in a heart beat. It is big enough but not too big.
Quazulight, were you able to see the forest for the trees?
;-)
LOL,
No, to many trees!
I like the Dakotas. "See over there? See that big forest, gotta be at least 12 trees!
Cheers
Qazulight
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