| > A bunch of people immediately ask if I work for Amazon with a hint of disdain after I state my occupation. So it hasn't felt super welcoming so far. I moved to San Francisco ten years ago with $700 in my pocket, to stay with a relative, who kicked me out pretty soon because, well, having an adult man stay in your guest room when you are accustomed to pre-teen daughters, even if you really direct your misplaced desire for a son at your broke ass nephew, is hard. I lived for years under the poverty line and basically today, when I meet someone in person, this is exactly my experience. First, some advice I have a hard time taking: Don't let it get to you. Second, get involved with your community. When you detect this disdain, tell people (and mean it, and research why you should), that you are concerned about what is happening to the community and that you are rightfully afraid of the things that you admire in the community being driven out. Find ways to help. I'm sorry, software is not eating the world, Marc Andreesen's brain is eating his soul, there can be utility and benefit to what we do, but working folks who use their hands and muscles and mouths for a living in ways we likely can't imagine are rightly upset about being pushed out. I fucking promise you do not want to be in a city or neighborhood ruled by tech folks. People who moved to SF in the past few years are already facing their rents doubling. You want to know what it's like to live on a third of the salary you make? Start paying exorbitant rent. [I can hear you saying that you already are, wait until it doubles. My rent is currently 5x the inflated mortgage of the house I grew up in.] Who the fuck is Owen? |
I've lived paying 70-80% of my income to rent. That was unpleasant and not sustainable. My conclusion was this: own a house that you can afford.