Correct answer and I don’t get why people arguing with you. You gotta be out of your mind or have the Stockholm syndrome of the RU screw that as a whole “state schools in NJ are cheap”.

You’re right in bringing up merits of SUNY system, there’s a lot of conventionally good schools there that don’t exactly break the bank as bad.

Idk I get state pride and all that but yeah there’s more out there.

Oh yeah PNW is fucked and erroneously gets a rep that somehow the upticks in homelessness is all drugs and vagrants when there's a fuckload of common as can be working people over time getting slapped up with prices being absurd with quite literally no where to go or sensible setup for living.

For NJ it already doesn't make a ton of sense to stay here if you're just not taking in a certain amount and honestly I would not be shocked if just things further evaporate and all that's left are archetypal situations of stacking in an apartment strength in numbers style complete with a commute that makes no sense whatsoever.

Not sure if we'll get a bombed out period and crime wave though but then again after a certain point what's really stopping someone in such dire desperate situations from crossing the line to felonious acts to survive, y'know?

Having graduated in a immediate post recession year and initially having a hard time getting work locally when NJ had some of the highest unemployment and no shortage of laid off veterans workers filling stuff way below their pay grade, I really do empathize with people in the trenches at the moment because of how ungodly narrow the window of opportunity is and just even reading these comments, the current state of stuff is just such a different story for things.

It’s wild looking through listings of areas prime for “conventional fresh out of college+ roommates cheaper living” and coming up super short or everything is overpriced “luxury” gentrifier grey monolith where it genuinely makes no sense to be shelling out what they’re asking.

Even places in “cheap for a reason” areas are goofy as shit.

I don’t have any good answers other than fuck the blowhard employers who complain how nobody wants to work whilst the wages continue to not catch up for the times especially in an expensive state as such.

Also we all owe it to ourselves to shut the fuck up and stop talking about what the state has to offer, we let in way too much riff raff from NYC who thinks Denville is the next Williamsburg because they read a NYT article.

Absolutely, didn't help how Christie had that win on the record of putting the Kushner dad away either .

I feel this to a degree despite taking some pride in very distinctively NJ things. I spent some time growing up in near the northern parts of Morris, doing woodsy shit and all that and have definitely found more similar kindred spirits with people from parts of Northeastern states who realize I'm not stereotypical city kid or yuppie who decided to make outdoors stuff their personality later in life.

You'd be surprised, the arms race in potency has flipped some stuff on its head a bit, but ultimately it's a slight "it depends" person to person mixed bag situation.

My one friend got a full zip of nuggets what the grower was calling "mids" for $100 and unless you were some super particular A-level stony baloney who needs to be put down like a tranquilized elephant to feel anything, there really wasn't anything particularly bad with this weed. Nothing laced or exotic oregano or old timey classic shit tier Rutgers dealer ditch weed that tastes like the inside of someone's musty sweatshirt pocket.

I know it sounds really weird and it's not to say there is no bad weed or bullshit ripoff markups with non official sources, but it can be such a different story if you have memories and frames of references of say 10-20 years in the past when there was a lot of garbage and it was that or nothing.

I don't think you're being salty just realistic. NJ can still be insanely segregated despite having physical diversity.

I just am fascinated in what world you live in where Jersey City or Hoboken is somehow anything like Atlanta or Portland.

> the Jersey city, Hoboken area

> It’s similar to Portland or Atlanta

Uhhhhhh?

I believe it, it’s gotta be disheartening hearing from someone like a relative who was in trades saying how bad you’re getting fucked over and how it’s nowhere close to as cushy as it was when they were in it decades ago.

Not many people just starting out now are ever going to get close to be a proverbial uncle with the classic cars in the garage at the second house in Palm Beach.