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Falconeer
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on: August 25, 2016, 07:47:17 AM

For good. To Colorado at first, then who knows.

I don't drink alcohol, I don't do drugs at all, and I have part about sex in public covered, so let's move on.  why so serious?

But seriously, give me your three best pieces of advice. Topic: everything USA.

schild
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Reply #1 on: August 25, 2016, 07:51:05 AM

1. Americans care about denim, but not as much as the Italians.
2. Enjoy working til you're 80 instead of retiring when you're 16.
3. BBQ.
IainC
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Reply #2 on: August 25, 2016, 07:51:38 AM

Don't take naked photos of people in school sportsgrounds. Even if it's ~art~.

- And in stranger Iains, even Death may die -

SerialForeigner Photography.
rattran
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Unreasonable


Reply #3 on: August 25, 2016, 07:51:51 AM

Don't go to the South, avoid political conversations, tip your waitress.

And if you don't do drugs, why are you going to Colorado?
Yegolev
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2/10 WOULD NOT INGEST


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Reply #4 on: August 25, 2016, 07:56:18 AM

Don't go to the North, either.  California is on fire, so don't go there either.  Stay out of the Southwest.

Why am I homeless?  Why do all you motherfuckers need homes is the real question.
They called it The Prayer, its answer was law
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Nebu
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Reply #5 on: August 25, 2016, 08:01:50 AM

1. Assume all Americans are stupid until proven otherwise.
2. Don't get sick.  EVER.
3. Don't eat anything you don't recognize. Americans put sugar in EVERYTHING!


Colorado is a great choice.  I'd move there tomorrow if I could find a job. 
« Last Edit: August 25, 2016, 08:03:39 AM by Nebu »

"Always do what is right. It will gratify half of mankind and astound the other."

-  Mark Twain
IainC
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Reply #6 on: August 25, 2016, 08:09:59 AM

Don't go to the North, either.  California is on fire, so don't go there either.  Stay out of the Southwest.
Colorado will probably be in fire too in the next few weeks.

- And in stranger Iains, even Death may die -

SerialForeigner Photography.
Chimpy
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Reply #7 on: August 25, 2016, 08:26:47 AM

My advice: Don't do it.

 why so serious?

'Reality' is the only word in the language that should always be used in quotes.
HaemishM
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Reply #8 on: August 25, 2016, 08:49:27 AM

If you go to the South, wear breathable underwear. Also, be prepared to be called an EYE-talian. Do not eat what we call Italian food down here. Seriously, just don't.

Wait, fuck it. Why are you coming here again?

kaid
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Reply #9 on: August 25, 2016, 08:52:15 AM

For good. To Colorado at first, then who knows.

I don't drink alcohol, I don't do drugs at all, and I have part about sex in public covered, so let's move on.  why so serious?

But seriously, give me your three best pieces of advice. Topic: everything USA.


Do not carry large sums of cash on you when moving. Civil forfiture is the poop.
Lucas
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Further proof that Italians have suspect taste in games.


Reply #10 on: August 25, 2016, 09:23:49 AM

For good. To Colorado at first, then who knows.

I don't drink alcohol, I don't do drugs at all, and I have part about sex in public covered, so let's move on.  why so serious?

But seriously, give me your three best pieces of advice. Topic: everything USA.

But, but....Think about Barbarella:



And, and..... :


But anyway, best of luck In The Land of the Free...



Ciaone, proprio  Oh ho ho ho. Reallllly?

" He's so impatient, it's like watching a teenager fuck a glorious older woman." - Ironwood on J.J. Abrams
Merusk
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Reply #11 on: August 25, 2016, 09:57:07 AM

He didn't even tell you the best part: what his new job will be.

Anyway, Falc:

1) Healthcare & Retirement - You're getting old, try to stay healthy. Do preventative even if it's out of pocket cuz you'll be fucked otherwise. You aren't a citizen so I don't think you can do social security. Even if you can it only counts for years you've been working, so you'll get next to nothing. Start saving bucks or plan for moving back out of country when you want to stop working.
2) Tipping - We tip at all restaurants. Get used to it or cook at home more.
3) The Truckstop hookers WILL shiv you. Don't use 'em.

The past cannot be changed. The future is yet within your power.
Teleku
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Reply #12 on: August 25, 2016, 10:00:44 AM

Ok assholes, he actually wanted some real advice instead of endless political jokes I'm sure.   tongue

1.)  Learn the tipping culture where ever you go.  It's stupid but it's a big thing here, and people survive on it (also, will lead to problems if you don't tip right).

2.)  Do you have plans to get a car?  You're going to need a car in the west.  If you go to a big city, you can get by, but your life will be a lot easier in Colorado with a car I'm sure.

3.)  Recreation:  in Colorado you will be in driving distance to some of the most spectacular National Parks in the US.  Obviously need the car.  What US lacks in historical buildings, it makes up in natural beauty.  Take advantage of that while your out there (especially since you don't drink or do drugs :p).

I'll think of another three later for another post.

"My great-grandfather did not travel across four thousand miles of the Atlantic Ocean to see this nation overrun by immigrants.  He did it because he killed a man back in Ireland. That's the rumor."
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Goumindong
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Reply #13 on: August 25, 2016, 10:15:13 AM

Also you're in Colorado so your car should ideally have high horsepower, especially if you want to go into the mountains. You're starting at probably 5,000 feet(1500 Meters) elevation and might drive up to about 10,000 feet(3000 meters) or higher and this will absolutely crush the power you can get out of an engine. Ride height and AWD might not be an issue but they also might be if you're into winter sports or are further out in in the boonies.
Merusk
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Reply #14 on: August 25, 2016, 10:20:02 AM

They're not political jokes if they're true.

He does need to know about the costs of healthcare, retirement and tipping. Those are VERY different from his homeland. If he were from S. Korea I'd also be telling him, "get used to slow internet."

Good tip on the car. It's so ingrained in those of us still stateside that it didn't even occur to say, "Start car shopping now, you'll do nothing without one."

The past cannot be changed. The future is yet within your power.
shiznitz
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Reply #15 on: August 25, 2016, 10:21:39 AM

1) I hope you like to drive.
2) Get a car that is comfortable and start googling National Parks
3) Buy a gun!

I have never played WoW.
schild
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Reply #16 on: August 25, 2016, 10:39:58 AM

Don't buy a gun. Only assholes buy guns.
ShenMolo
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Reply #17 on: August 25, 2016, 10:53:26 AM

As an Italian(?) moving to Colorado as winter sets in I would recommend:

1. Buy a good pair of leather/waterproof boots with good traction on the soles. Also a warm, waterproof jacket. And a hat.
2. Be on the lookout for a all wheel drive / 4 wheel drive vehicle. Subarus are good. Various 4x4 crossovers, I think even FIAT imports one now. Look for one that gets 20+ miles per gallon of gas. There are a few out there. Distances in the West are enormous, especially compared to Italy. Trips are measured in hours driven, not miles.
3. I lived in CO for a year after living in the Southeast all my life. The thing that struck me most was how much more of a role weather & nature play in your life. You might go weeks in the East without ever looking at the sky. Be prepared for amazing, jaw dropping skies to become a regular occurrence. Snow & ice, thunderstorms, floods, forest fires, tornados, droughts, wild animals, etc. all have the potential to directly impact your life. It's both awe inspiring and requires you to be more prepared, resilient, & self sufficient.

Bonus: Prepare yourself for how polite people can be. Random drivers will wave at you. People will smile when you make eye contact. Most people you meet will offer a polite greeting. It may come off as insincere, but it is common courtesy to compliment people and ask how they are doing. The farther you get from big cities, the more it will happen. Don't be afraid to ask for help if you need it.
rattran
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Reply #18 on: August 25, 2016, 11:04:12 AM

Bonus: Prepare yourself for how polite people can be. Random drivers will wave at you. People will smile when you make eye contact. Most people you meet will offer a polite greeting. It may come off as insincere, but it is common courtesy to compliment people and ask how they are doing. The farther you get from big cities, the more it will happen. Don't be afraid to ask for help if you need it.

Are you sure you were in Colorado? People drive like they're all high as fuck, and alone on the road. If you're lucky, they'll have one hand on the wheel as they drive and text/surf the internet/catch pokemons with the other. If you use your horn on the fucktard drifting into your lane, a one finger salute will be your answer. Up in the mountains there are simply less people, still driving like shit though. Protip: anyone with a coexist or Fish worshipper bumpersticker will drives more aggressively than the norm.

The Parks and scenery are nearly without compare. And be prepared to see lots of wildlife in unexpected places.
Father mike
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Reply #19 on: August 25, 2016, 11:06:27 AM

If you're buying a house, read the Home Owners Association rules VERY carefully.  Yes, they actually enforce all that shit.  There will be at least one retired person in the neighborhood whose only joy left in life is to catch HOA violations.

To expand on buying a car, learn the driving culture of each area you're commuting thru.  Some places are fine with you driving 10 MPH over the speed limit while others enforce all traffic regulations to the letter.  Also, when buying a car -- if buying used -- try to find one from the South; they'll have a lot less rust and salt damage.

Speaking of MPH, Become fluent in American units of measure.  Nobody has any idea what the metric units even mean.

Before signing up for a cellphone, ask people how good the coverage is for various networks in the areas you will frequent.  In the urban cores, it doesn't matter.  In the sprawling suburbs, it can get dicey (moreso with Sprint and Tmobile).

I would like to thank Vladimir Putin for ensuring that every member of the NPR news staff has had to say "Pussy Riot" on the air multiple times.
ShenMolo
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Reply #20 on: August 25, 2016, 11:11:48 AM

Bonus: Prepare yourself for how polite people can be. Random drivers will wave at you. People will smile when you make eye contact. Most people you meet will offer a polite greeting. It may come off as insincere, but it is common courtesy to compliment people and ask how they are doing. The farther you get from big cities, the more it will happen. Don't be afraid to ask for help if you need it.

Are you sure you were in Colorado? People drive like they're all high as fuck, and alone on the road. If you're lucky, they'll have one hand on the wheel as they drive and text/surf the internet/catch pokemons with the other. If you use your horn on the fucktard drifting into your lane, a one finger salute will be your answer. Up in the mountains there are simply less people, still driving like shit though. Protip: anyone with a coexist or Fish worshipper bumpersticker will drives more aggressively than the norm.

The Parks and scenery are nearly without compare. And be prepared to see lots of wildlife in unexpected places.

Yep, Telluride. Granted it was 20 years ago, things may have changed!
Trippy
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Reply #21 on: August 25, 2016, 11:42:00 AM

The US has a working bureaucracy and service industry* and you will not need to make a dozen different contingency plans to deal with the inefficiencies and time wasting some European countries including Italy are famous for. E.g. if you mail a letter in the US you can just assume it will arrive at its destination on time. Or if you call your electricity company for service they will show up within the scheduled time period.

US banks will not give you the runaround if you try and open a bank account. In fact they will likely shower you with gifts if you do so (shop around for the best shower). Getting a US-based credit card may be a bit more tricky since you won't have a US-based credit score but you can get a "debit" or "bank" card (in fact when you open a bank account they'll ask you then if you want one) which you can use instead of cash but the money is withdrawn immediately from your account.

You will probably have to cook your own pasta if you want a proper plate/bowl of it. You may need to do the same for a proper cup of coffee (i.e. espresso) though our coffee has improved tremendously over the years so you may be able to find something you deem acceptable if you search around.


Things you probably already know from your previous time here but I'll mention anyways:

Showing up late for things is frowned upon in the US.

Talking with your hands will be a dead giveaway you are Italian.

You don't bargain for purchases here except in a limited set of circumstances like car purchases and flea markets.


Edit: *cable companies are an exception to this
« Last Edit: August 25, 2016, 11:50:57 AM by Trippy »
Merusk
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Reply #22 on: August 25, 2016, 12:05:24 PM

US banks will not give you the runaround if you try and open a bank account. In fact they will likely shower you with gifts if you do so (shop around for the best shower). Getting a US-based credit card may be a bit more tricky since you won't have a US-based credit score but you can get a "debit" or "bank" card (in fact when you open a bank account they'll ask you then if you want one) which you can use instead of cash but the money is withdrawn immediately from your account.

On this topic; don't do Banks. Find a Credit Union and use them instead. I'm not sure how easy it will be as they're regional and I have no experience in Colorado, but your employer should have a few references for you.

The past cannot be changed. The future is yet within your power.
MrHat
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Reply #23 on: August 25, 2016, 12:32:07 PM

You will probably have to cook your own pasta if you want a proper plate/bowl of it. You may need to do the same for a proper cup of coffee (i.e. espresso) though our coffee has improved tremendously over the years so you may be able to find something you deem acceptable if you search around.

Stuff cooks weird at Denver altitude FYI.

You get by pretty well in the Denver/Boulder area with no car.  It's not as freeing, but Uber+Buses are pretty great.  There's also a ton of services up into the mountains/RMNP as well.

Enjoy the fuck out of the nature while you're there. You will regret it if you do not.
Falconeer
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Reply #24 on: August 25, 2016, 12:51:21 PM

Do not carry large sums of cash on you when moving. Civil forfiture is the poop.

See, that's great advice! I thought that stuff only happened in Chicago according to third season of The Good Wife.

I'm moving to the USA because 1) I need to visit Shermer, Illinois. 2) Because North America has the best eighteen wheelers and so it's the best place to become a truck driver, and 3) because someone has to stop Trump and you are all clearly doing a terrible job at it.

Colorado, because my primary partner (  why so serious? ) works in Vail so that's where I get my beginner kill ten rats and work 60 weekly hours at minimum wage quests.

Thanks Lucas for the meme and the heartfelt goodbye  Oh ho ho ho. Reallllly?

Anyway, yes I plan to retain my EU privileges when it comes to health and growing old, which is a vague way to say that if/when shit will hit the fan I'll go back to the country with public healthcare that I paid taxes to for 24 years. And where my son will hopefully have done well enough to be able to offer me a roof and feed me a bowl of soup. More seriously, I actually plan to retire in Italy when the time will come. In a specific place in the mountains where life is very cheap and simple and easy. That's a story for 2040 though.

Other random things:

- I've been to the USA many times so at least I know about tipping. What I hate is when I tip in places where you put money in the jar by the counter, but the server turns around for a second when I do so when they come back they think I didn't tip. It's a minigame apparently, I had to learn to only do it while they are watching. Weird.

- Probably not gonna get a car in Colorado because we are staying there only until May, and what we need there is covered by buses (This is Nathalie's third season there). Then we are gonna take care of some family stuff flying between Florida and Europe over the summer, and then October 2017 I am gonna start trucking school, so we'll see where that brings me.

- I am NOT gonna buy a gun. If that means I'll be robbed, stabbed, maced, mugged, arrowed, killed, then fine.

- Certainly not gonna be able to buy a house for a long time. I might buy a trailer or a motorhome though.

- Good tips on cars and phones. As I said I am probably not gonna worry about a car for now just because we are gonna be in Vail only for a short time and the next year is gonna involve some flying more than driving, but I am aware that at some point I will need to get one. Phone stuff is super important, and so will be internet stuff. Heh.

- The "credit" part is gonna be interesting. Obviously as Trippy pointed out I don't have any credit score and I wonder how much time it will take for me to achieve any and be able to access the magical world of Credit Cards.

- I am NEVER late. That's what usually convince people I am not from Roma.

- I NEVER bargain, so that works for me.

- Gesturing, hah, I'll work on it. I wish for people to be confused about my origins.

- Cooking: I do not want to live in a world without pasta (you can keep the pizza), so I do plan to cook my own as much as possible. However, one thing that makes me all teary-eyed and happy when I think about it is nachos. A huge heavy bowl of nachos is something I often dream about. And I have pretty much given up meat -not without issues- so some of my previous favourite foods are off-limits now.


If I haven't addressed your post, it's not because I haven't read it or I don't appreciate it. In fact, I'll print AND save this thread and I'll update it every year. It's gonna be "fun".
But thank you all for taking the time to post, really.

NiX
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Reply #25 on: August 25, 2016, 12:54:52 PM

Credit is easy. Just get a secured credit card and you should be fine.

Just do your prison time in the U.S. so you can be released into freedom (Canada)!
Falconeer
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Reply #26 on: August 25, 2016, 01:02:06 PM

Nix, trucking might also be my gateway to Canada! As you know I had no leverage to get residency there, but apparently truck drivers are in such high demand in the True North that it's not impossible to get a work sponsorship as long as you have done enough years of experience in the USA.

Chimpy
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Reply #27 on: August 25, 2016, 01:32:50 PM

There is not actually a town called Shermer Illinois.  DRILLING AND MANLINESS


'Reality' is the only word in the language that should always be used in quotes.
01101010
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Reply #28 on: August 25, 2016, 01:50:25 PM

There is not actually a town called Shermer Illinois.  DRILLING AND MANLINESS




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Hammond
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Reply #29 on: August 25, 2016, 01:52:40 PM

Truck driving is what is bringing you to the USA? I have a few buddies that drive truck and really love it. Word of warning driving truck in the northern states in the winter is a special kind of hell. The stories they have told me about the conditions they are expected to go through are simply unreal.

So my advice is more for the trucking side.

1. Try for a short hauling company the smaller outfits tend to pay better than the large nationals like Swift. Long haul sucks in general unless you goal is simply to see the country.
2. Be prepared to get flipped off, cut off, and in general see a side of humanity that is just terrible.
3. As a trucker it is hard to stay healthy. Eating right, exercising are not really part of the culture. The food at truck stops and that is available near interstates is pretty terrible (as is the coffee). Investing in a refrigerator for your truck and bringing your own snacks / dinner is both cost effective and far healthier.
4. Bonus! Be prepared to not make a ton of money initially. Until you get some hours or go for a specialty there is not a ton of money in trucking.

Threash
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Reply #30 on: August 25, 2016, 02:06:48 PM

1.)  Learn the tipping culture where ever you go.  It's stupid but it's a big thing here, and people survive on it (also, will lead to problems if you don't tip right).


There's really nothing to learn.  Tip, always, everywhere.  20% or so.

I am the .00000001428%
Rendakor
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Reply #31 on: August 25, 2016, 02:39:00 PM

The 20% rule works great for restaurants, but there are all sorts of other random places that people tip at. We had a thread about it last year.

"i can't be a star citizen. they won't even give me a star green card"
Teleku
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Reply #32 on: August 25, 2016, 02:42:16 PM

There's really nothing to learn.  Tip, always, everywhere.  20% or so.
And see, there we have it already.  Where I'm from, 20% is what you tip for a steak dinner served by a guy in a tuxedo as you gossip with a Kennedy.

15% always.  10% if they sucked.  20% if amazing and/or at super nice restaurant.

"My great-grandfather did not travel across four thousand miles of the Atlantic Ocean to see this nation overrun by immigrants.  He did it because he killed a man back in Ireland. That's the rumor."
-Stephen Colbert
Falconeer
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Reply #33 on: August 25, 2016, 02:51:03 PM

I actually had this conversation about things that are not food related a while ago. For example, apparently people tip tattoo artists in the States. That I really don't get.

rattran
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Reply #34 on: August 25, 2016, 03:43:33 PM

Truck driving is a weird industry, jobs are plentiful in it, but good jobs are scarce. That said, there are places in Colorado that will send you to fast trucker school as they are desperate for people stupid desperate enough to drive through all those passes in the winter.
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