Two more weeks here in Shreveport then making the big move north. How many Texags do we have up there?

You at Barksdale? I've been in Shreveport the last 4 days, and I played golf out at Olde Oaks in Haughton yesterday. You ready to get out of Shreveport?

Just got here yesterday; I know of 2 other Aggies here

I'm ready to get up there and get to my squadron, I'm not looking forward to the cold or the move, being a Texas boy all my life. I know one or two aggs up there, I'm hoping to make some non military friends too. What can you tell me about life up there compared to aggieland? Is my Texas accent going to stick out like a sore thumb?

Jock are you an E-1 guy? What do you do?

I was stationed in the Dak for three years, nine months, four days, twelve and a half hours. Quite honestly, it is what you make out of it. The first thing you'll notice is the sheer isolation and flatness of the terrain. It will be better for you if you are a flier because you'll get tdys off base. However, if you are a missile jockey, like I was, the winters will be cold, dark and long. I would advise you to stock up on goretex boots and gloves. Also, prepare to stock up your car with a winter survival kit consisting of a :

- lightweight space blanket. Don't do wool because if it gets wet from perspiration, you'll just end up freezing even more
- an empty coffee can
- a candle to place inside the can. You'll be surprised on how much heat can be generated by the candle.
- an extra bottle of water
- some granola bars
- extra socks and gloves
- a flashlight and spare batteries
- a flare
- a spare cell phone battery.
- cigarette lighter
- set of car jumpers

Also, invest in a block heater for your car. You will need to plug your car in at night, so you can start it in the morning. Also, make sure that you get a garage for your apartment as it will make all the difference in the world. If your car locks up in the winter, use a lighter to heat your keys and then open the door with the heated key. Depending on the circumstances, it is not unknown to leave your engine running while you are shopping inside a store. Otherwise, your car may not start up. Finally, when you are given a choice of parkas to be issued, get the long one with the hood. The short waist one may look cooler, but that doesn't do you much when you are freezing your butt off, literally!!

As for entertainment, go up to Winnepeg for a decent night life. Norma Jeans is a good bar with a lot of live bands. A lot of the big rock groups from Canada started out in Winnepeg. In the summer, Sturgis, SD has a mass rally of bikers. It is a wild ride, but it can be fun. Just make sure you go with a bunch of buddies for that.

Sorry, not trying to scare you, but those are things the base welcome kit won't tell you. Good luck. I was in Grand Forks, but that wasn't much difference than Minot.

Here are some phrases you will need to learn:

- why not Minot? Freezings the reason.
- ND, where you can stand on a six pack of beer and look across the state.
- ND, where the state bird is a mosquito, the state flower is a crushed beer can on the side of the road, and the state tree is a telephone pole.

[This message has been edited by txagcol1 (edited 10/7/2008 1:15p).]

Yeah I'm an E-1 guy & doing missiles. Both of the guys I know here are 17 guys. I'm sure the Texas accent sticks out as I've been told it has since ASBC. Minot isn't as bad as it was made out to be to me. The BW3 is almost done and the realtor said that hooters (although they have to change their colors here to match Minot State's color) & Wings N Things are comming to town.

[This message has been edited by Jock 07 (edited 10/7/2008 6:52p).]

thanks for all the info Col. It is nice being a flyer, so yes I will get out of there every so often. Jock I know a couple of aggie Missile guys up there, 1LT Andrew Marshal is a sq.17 05. Jock have you found a good apt. up there yet? I haven't seen anything online or in the newspapers, I'll be looking for a two bedroom condo or apt. with a garage on a 1LT salary. Let me know if you see anything.

HA! Hey Ryan, this is Cody Moore. We went to field training together.

flyin, instead of a condo, I would seriously consider buying a house, while you are in ND. Since there is such a large transient population at Minot, you can either flip it when you pcs or turn it over to a management company to rent it out to another servicemember. That way, you can build up some real equity without having to pay an arm or a leg like the rest of the country. Also, since you will be on tdy often, save that money to further pay off your mortgage. If you play it right, you'll have the start of a nice nest egg. The other thing you should consider is to start working on your masters. Frankly, there isn't much to do socially in Minot. You might as well use that time to be productive and to get your masters. Are you married? If so, it is tough to get a professional job for your wife. The two areas where most of my squadron buddies had their wives employed were as managers for apartment complexes and teaching at the local schools. Just remember, if you are stationed there, so is your wife, so make sure that she is also taken care of during your stay.

Jock, I was an L-1 guy, hence my screen name. Co L-1. However,lol, I'm a bit older. Class of 89, here.

Col, I'm looking at starting my MBA in the spring, and no I'm not married. I just started looking at buying something up there, you're probably right on that being the way to go. I'll let yall know as soon as I get up there.

flyin,I would also make sure that you have a good laptop. Since you fly, you'll be on a lot of tdys, which will play havoc with your graduate work. Having a laptop to take with you will allow you to do your work and research while you are deployed. The other thing is to get your SOS out of the way as soon as you can. I've been out of the AF since 97, but back then, they allowed 1LTs who were Capt selectees to take SOS.

They're sending about 95% of aircrews to SOS, but you have to complete it by correspondence first. I hope to be finished with my masters before I have to go to SOS.

Even if they send you in residence, you should still take it by correspondence while you are taking your masters. There is a RIF coming down the pike and the more protection you have, the better.

Just FYI it snowed last night and is supposed to again tonight

Hey guys I'm looking to move to Minot early next year. Does anybody know of a good way to search for rental houses up there? (besides obviously going up there)

housing market is tight; eveyone is having a problem trying to find places. One of the guys I work with is buying a Condo & I'm going to live with him for ~ 6 months to a year. Then I'm going to try to buy my own place. I'd just run google searches for rental properties

I haven't had any luck looking online. I'm gonna wait till I get up there and hope to find an apt. I here they just built some nice ones.

I've seen some fairly new ones. Most of them are filled up. They have some really nice ones going in that look about 3/4 way done right next to the mall. Someone said that rent was going to be ~1100 month I think

[This message has been edited by Jock 07 (edited 10/23/2008 10:37p).]

This is the only decent ND website for apts I've found

http://www.immapartments.com/

How would yall say the cost of living compares between Houston and Minot?

You made it up here yet?

[This message has been edited by Jock 07 (edited 11/1/2008 11:26a).]

I got up here a little more than a week ago. I'm deploying in December, so no need for a place to live just yet

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Does anybody know of a good way to search for rental houses up there? (

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www.militarybyowner.com is usually a great site you can use throughout your time in. It has for sale and for rent