When it comes down to it if living in New Orleans was a dream that important to you, you wouldn't need to ask this question.

Haha yeah but the salaryyy

It's not like NOLA isn't important to me but my practical side is telling me I should take it.

ask sbvyl hes knew and can give unbiased advice

Of course you should take the job :p

Damn it, man, if you wanted New Orleans that much you wouldn't even be considering that job offer. Be grateful that you are one of the privileged few who get to decide between two good options, and then take the one that you were really always going to take anyway.

Where are the fittest birds, that should be the deciding factor?

hahaha thanks oct but i don't know which one i was always going to take.

i'm trying to be objective about this decision. i think the desire to live in new orleans just seems hard to justify to others, especially if i'm taking like a 60% pay cut to do so. hard to describe.

What is your motivation for wanting to live in New Orleans? Can none of those things be accomplished in VA?

BTW you're still very young. Even if you take this job, there's no reason to think you'll never make it to New Orleans sometime in the future.

I know I know. The place I've paid a deposit on is hard to come by though - it's in the French Quarter - living there has been a dream for a long time.

And not to say I'll never have another chance to go there, but probably, I won't. Nothing much related to my career happens in Nola lol.

So in a sense you are all right that I could just go another time, but in a sense, I don't think I realistically would.

Also, what could I not get in VA that's in NO? New Orleans itself, I guess. I'm just in love with that place.

Do you have a job lined up in New Orleans yet?

What are the actual salary amounts? That's something that's more objective that we could give you perspective on. The issues of wanting to live a dream or in a location are much more subjective, so we'll really only be a sounding board.

I don't read much of the forums, but from what I recall being a copy editor wasn't your career goal. So that career "relevant" may be a stretch. Of course take opportunities to get your foot in the door. But this seems like passing up a sure desire (live in Nola) for a stepping stone that may open doors for a true desire.

Also, copy editing may be something you can do by telecommunication. Maybe offer to do it from NOLA.

My gut reaction is that if any perspective is needed, it's likely that salary isn't as important as you think. Both in life and professionally, you'll want to be gathering experiences now. Invest in those experiences and salary will come later. It doesn't cost much to get a muffuletta an enjoy NO.

My gf absolutely loves Ireland. I honestly don't get it, but that's not the point of this story. She lived there for a year and then moved back to the states. She misses it quite a lot, but it simply doesn't make sense for her career to live there. Plus, she would need to leave everyone behind. Anyway, she takes 1-2 week vacation there every other year and that's enough to quench her thirst for Ireland while still doing everything else she wants to (career, relationship, etc).

Perhaps something like that would be a good compromise?

Copy Editor? Damn, I missed that party. Fuck that, dude. Go live your dream in New Orleans.

but moneyyy

@Thucy

Our generation simply doesn't have the luxury to follow its dream to the fullest as our parents' generation did. Sad, but true. In fact, I'd say that for roughly 90% of the world's population, the scenario you describe of going to Virginia is something they'd sign up for without blinking an eye.

Good advice all, I guess I can give more information:

The copy editor job is career relevant because it's UN peacekeeping training documents, and also because most of my skillsets and experience on my resume are writing and research, so this would add to that.

Additionally in terms of my long term plans the next year or two is mostly for earning money and as JCbryan said, getting experiences (in a variety of senses). After that I have other plans, including travel, peace corps, grad school...

So really the main concerns are money saved and what I do with the time outside of work.

For comparison I'm looking at like 20k/yr vs 40k/yr

Agreed, red. It's a fantastic opportunity.

You need advice? Really?

It's obvious. Take the job.

If in doubt, go without.

I mean, is it obvious? I'm getting conflicting advice from you guys. lol

The choice is between 40k just out of college in Williamsburg verses no job in New Orleans. Seems pretty obvious to me.

Good jobs are scarce and getting scarcer. Take the job opportunity while it is on the table. New Orleans will still be there when you get laid off.

"New Orleans will still be there when you get laid off."

Unless it's not. Global warming and all.

I would agree with Invictus here that it's a pretty obvious one. Factoring in that the distance between these two places is substantial, but can be overcome with some effort and factoring in the terrible state of the world economy and the uncertainties it now contains, taking that job would be a very wise decision.
Playing safe isn't always the cynical thing to do. Life isn't an endless feel-good-movie. You can build in these moments, even long ones, but building in long stable periods where you can build something up (a career, some savings, some business relationships) is by no means a bad idea.

Thucy - tough choice, but life is what you make of it wherever you are. The dream of New Orleans...it will be the place you live and work once you are there. I have friends that live a coule miles from Disney in Orlando...this was the dream, and it started with the dream job AT Disney. The job was just a job, it turns out...Mickey Mouse didn't ever give her a foot rub, and Goofy turned out to be just some jerk earing a dog costume. Orlando was excitign when they got there...but now it's teh neighborhood they live in, the stores they shop at, etc...i.e. it's jut another place they have lived.

You are young, and if N.O. is in your future, it will still be there in the future. It will be easier for it to be there in your future if you kick off your career with a good job, making decent money - there is nothing wrong with making good money, especially if you are young, because it will set the precedence for what you make for the decades of work to come, assuming your pay only goes up from here. The money will give you the ability to do things you might not otherwise, be it travel, or be it being able to be generous to those in need - something I think is close to yoru heart.

Williamsburg is a great place - and a great region of the country - so I think you would do well to land there - and visit New Orleans as a special place early and often!

Whatever happens - good luck to you Thucy.

Here's two case studies for you involving two different individuals: myself and a friend of mine who graduated at the same time, same year, same age.

I moved to TN to be with my then-GF/now-fiance who is in grad school. I was out of work for a few months, but I ended up with a pretty great job that I enjoy a lot, although it wasn't what I had in mind coming out of school, its kind of related but still fun, even though I don't make a ton of money. What I did do, though, is get away from home, have a lot of fun meeting new people, had new experiences, and got to do something different at a time when a lot of my friends are starting to settle down in the same zip code where they grew up.

My friend decided to take a paper-pushing Dept. of Labor job back at home. He lives with his parents, hangs out with other high school friends who never left town, and generally is fairly miserable. He did, though, pay off his student loans and has traveled quite a bit. He's 27, has no debt, and a Master's.

To sum up, you're basically in a win-win situation. It depends on what your long term priorities are. Getting a job in your career field with a great salary is HUGE, and you probably won't realize how important and necessary that is for a few more years. However, moving to NOLA, living in the heart of the city, and having fun is what being in your 20s is all about. I have zero regrets about moving away and taking a lower paying job. I could have stayed at home and paid off my loans while working a job I didn't like, but that's the tradeoff.

I would take the good job. I'm being a bit inaccurate in some places but it's about the sentiment, don't take this stuff as fact, or do so at your own risk :P

Most places are much more fun to dream of/visit than to actually live. That may not be the case for you, but maybe it is. With that 40k salary I bet you can afford a month or so off to go to the place you dream of. I mean, it's not just more, it's double. That means that if you can make a living in New Orleans, and you live just as expensive in Williamsburg, you can retire after half a career and go to New Orleans without working the other half. Again, that's not very accurate, but you get what I mean.

The world needs ditch diggers too.

Having fun in your twenties...can be had anywhere...as long as he is on his own and makes good friends, which I suspect he will, given that Thucy seems a decent enough fellow. With fat cash from a good job, he'll be able to take some sweet road trips and do plenty of 20's-style damage to his heart and liver.

"living in the heart of the city, and having fun is what being in your 20s is all about."

It's what you're early twenties are about. As in 20, 21, 22 till you graduate. Then your twenties are about balancing fun and work, with work having the bigger slice. How can you expect a successful future when you wait till you're 30 to get serious about a career?

You've got to take this job, Thucydides. You're picked a very specialized field for yourself, and I doubt opportunities like this come along often. Take the job. I have a friend who has a finance degree from Loyola in Chicago and his job right after college was selling office supplies door to door. You need to realize how good you have it and pounce on this chance rather than chasing some hipster dream of living wild, young, and free in New Orleans.

It's certainly a personal choice.

But New Orleans is the right answer... ;P

40k in Williamsburg is not going to make you rich. What are you possibly saving up for with that plan? That "moneyyy" won't make you happy or get you access to anything you don't already have. It seems like a lot to you now, but it is not. And it's importance grows smaller when compared to your desires.

And if you take the job, get a better title. At least be a 'glorified copy editor'. Again, this may not the opportunity you think it is. Find advertisements for future jobs/opportunities and see if they include this as a requirement or desired experience. Talk to other professions and see where copy editing is with them. Ask journalists, publishers, and other media types. Talk to the people you want hiring you years down the road. Do they find it hard to get copy editing experience? Do they find it hard to find someone with ce experience? Is ce training docs enough to be familiar with them? This will depend on what you want--maybe it's enough, maybe not.

If grad school is a future plan, talk to them. It's silly, but do it. A professor will eventually answer their phone and talk to you for five minutes. Say you want to get a degree later and have to decide between personal opportunity or career advancement in the form of being a copy editor. Again I could be wrong, but I think they say it doesn't matter. It won't make-or-break your application to degree programs and won't affect your job prospects after getting the degree.

One last thing: life is short, invest in your future but enjoy today.