Bikes are expensive right now. What MTB do you have? Might be worth more than you think. But also the road bike will consequently cost more than you think especially for a lightweight one. If your MTB is good spec and you're looking for a trade in the. Try Airline Cycles in East Hampton or Storrs Cycle Center. You won't get a great bike for sub $300 but they should do you alright on a trade if yours is decent or they might help you find something they're really good guys at both stores.

You can use your UK license for 6 months (7 years ago, that might have changed now). You will need to take a pointless 8 hr safe driving class where they show you videos. You will take an easy classroom test and the driving test here is a joke compared to the UK. It's easy just a hassle.

If the J-1 counts as a student visa and you maintain a residency outside the US then you can use your valid UK license while you're here.

You could ask at the DMV. As much as people complain about them I've found most of their staff to be fairly knowledgeable.

I actually don't mind this tax I think it's better than the deposit. The deposit is a tax on people who have their recycling collected from their homes so it's a bit unfair. But if you're buying nips you're not doing it because of price as it's the most expensive way to consume liquor it's because you want to throw it out of the window. I have no problem with towns making money from people who do this, littering is not just disgusting it's completely avoidable too. It's not hard to throw trash away, and if you're hiding alcoholism stop by a dumpster on your way home. They literally have them outside some liquor stores and people still throw their trash out the window.