Don't be sucked in by the hype of the Upper Valley
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5/9/2017
If you want an honest opinion, please keep reading. In total, our family has lived on and off in this area 10 years, first on one side of the river, then on the other. This means we spent part of our lives in VT and other in NH.
First off, the area has gone down hill in these ten years with crime becoming a major issue. I feel it probably ALWAYS was some sort of problem because these Northern towns breed discontent thanks in part to a multitude of factors. It's the same in any place where the good jobs have fled and all you are left with is a handful of haves and the rest "the great unwashed" living on the edges.
Drug crimes is all over the Upper Valley with a large number of people in Lebanon getting arrested for using or selling. It's also disconcerting to see a lot of unemployed men 20 plus years old walking around the area up to whatever because they can't get jobs. There are also a few mentally ill or "sedated" people who wander around and it's heartbreaking. I think this area has become a dumping ground for "people no other cities want."
Lebanon is a typical ex-mill town and no matter how they like to spin it on the Green, unless you have very niche skills or know Old Hirum from church, you are not going to get a good job.
Retail jobs seem to employ the majority of people and good luck in getting one of those because the people one step up--store managers, restaurant managers, HR, whoever, have a very condescending attitude toward applicants.
The better positions (these have dried up over the years) seem to go to someone who falls into a politically correct category so places like the local college or hospitals can tick off a box since there is so little real diversity here.
Bullying at jobs (and bullying by exclusion in social settings) seems quite common and if you are not from here or some other part of New England, you will be shunned or have to prove yourself over and over.
It seems like being dour is a badge of honor and frankly it's depressing.
I speak as an educated person with 2 degrees. I could never break into a job paying more than $10 an hour and even that is generous by the standards of the area. I have spent most of my time here unemployed after chasing down even part time jobs. There seems to be a preference to hire "local" or hire "less" ( think the dirty applicant who wears camo) over anyone else so they can easily be abused and underpaid.
I've tried to volunteer at several places in the Upper Valley and have been treated terribly.
It's just typical of my experience here. I think financially most people are suffering here and this is the reality of life in 2017.
I hate it here and I feel like I have turned from a friendly, outgoing person to a miserable and angry sour face like my neighbor across the street who scowls at me for no good reason. There have to be better places and I intend to find one.
M | Lebanon, NH