where should i go?

[datasuspect]

i've recently stumbled on some cash.

a little about me:

-haven't had a full time job since 2003. not averse to work though.

-lead a very low impact life, everything i own now fits in a backpack and messenger bag (reduced from backpack, messenger bag, garment bag and decent sized rollable suitcase.

-have lived primarily in chicago and texas since i've been alive.

-prefer living in ghettoes and bad neighborhoods.

i don't really want to do the chicago thing, which would be easy, because i know the ins and outs of the place and know where to start up in weekly living arrangements in flophouses.

thought about houston, which is 100 miles east of the shithole town in southeast texas where i currently live. this would allow me to do two things: ease of getting a job that pays decent enough and getting back into school (cheap in state tuition).

thought about austin, but don't know the cheap venues for immediate housing without paper trails. the last time i lived there was in the early 90s when i paid 386/month for a decent two bedroom a few blocks from zilker park.

anybody got any ideas?

[mark414]

1. travel overseas

and if yer interested in working on organic farms around the world...check this out:

http://www.wwoof.org

through this organization, i'm spending 3.5 months this summer traveling and working on farms in spain, france, the netherlands, and ireland. it's legit, and it's gonna be great. most of the places don't pay, but you can stay with most for as little as one week, they put you up, feed you, etc. etc. etc. - so you could take a break, do some work, meet some locals, learn a thing or two, and you wouldn't have to spend any money in the process.

[greatauntoftriplets]

2. When was the last time you were in Chicago?

City neighborhoods are being yuppified with new construction condos at an alarming rate, even neighborhoods where you'd never expect it to happen. Old apartment buildings are being gutted and redone for more yuppie condos.

When I had to move last year, I escaped to the suburbs where the prices and real estate taxes were affordable. But I hated leaving my old neighborhood.

Have you thought about New Orleans? The crime rate is alarming, but I hear there's work to be had.