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Quit Your Job & Move to Key West
Tired of working? Sick of the Rat Race? Feel like leaving it all behind? Your are one step closer just by picking up this book. Quit Your Job And Move To Key West is your complete guide on how to do it by people who have made it happen.
- GenresNonfiction
128 pages, Paperback
First published November 15, 2003
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117 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
January 27, 2018
Reason to Quit #48: For vacation this year I cleaned the garage.
Reason to Quit #12: The closest I've come to being surrounded by water is sitting in my bathtub.
Reason to Quit #6: Everybody stares at me when I drink margaritas at meetings.
Reason to Quit #46: My hobbies include brown-nosing and road rage.
In all honesty, do you really need to know why I decided to read this book? 🤣
My husband lived in Key West for years and it's one of his favorite places in the United States. I'm looking forward to going one day!
A couple of fun facts about Key West:
The ceilings of porches on conch houses are painted blue to keep evil spirits away. It also works for wasps and mosquitos.
Key West has its own Sasquatch known as the Skunk Ape. People have claimed to see it running through the mangroves.
Key West is famous for its cats with six or more toes. They may look cute, but the extra digits are a result of inbreeding. Scientists call them polydactyls. We call them one big happy family.
Reason to Quit #12: The closest I've come to being surrounded by water is sitting in my bathtub.
Reason to Quit #6: Everybody stares at me when I drink margaritas at meetings.
Reason to Quit #46: My hobbies include brown-nosing and road rage.
In all honesty, do you really need to know why I decided to read this book? 🤣
My husband lived in Key West for years and it's one of his favorite places in the United States. I'm looking forward to going one day!
A couple of fun facts about Key West:
The ceilings of porches on conch houses are painted blue to keep evil spirits away. It also works for wasps and mosquitos.
Key West has its own Sasquatch known as the Skunk Ape. People have claimed to see it running through the mangroves.
Key West is famous for its cats with six or more toes. They may look cute, but the extra digits are a result of inbreeding. Scientists call them polydactyls. We call them one big happy family.
February 14, 2010
As someone who DID quit my job and move to the Keys, I can tell you that anyone considering doing so should read this first. There's a lot of silliness thrown in, but hey, there's a lot of silliness in the Keys. Enjoy that part, but take the advice they give very seriously - as a "local" I can tell you it's all true. I think these guys hit on all the important issues, though perhaps too lightly in some cases. The only thing I'd add is that the job market is very limited (the majority is either hospitality/tourism related or local government), so secure a job before you go quitting the one you have.
The Keys are more expensive than wherever you live now, unless you're in NYC or LA. The rule of thumb I've used is to take what you currently pay for a mortgage and double it to rent a place half the size and with a tenth the storage space - and that's if you're lucky. All the necessities of life are more expensive - gas, groceries, utilities, etc. - so be prepared for that (the Keys don't export anything, so when a truck brings supplies in, they have a 100+ mile return trip with nothing to show for it...prices go up accordingly). But if you want to live in paradise, so you will accept that. For as long as you can afford to, that is. Too many of my friends ended up working two (or more) jobs just to get by, and then not being able to enjoy the island life you moved there for - they didn't stay long. If you want to stay, and you don't have a trust fund backing you, your only option is to reduce your standard of living requirements and be happy doing so. After all, your quality of life will go up exponentially! If you can shed your desire for material goods, be flexible on housing and transportation, and are willing to do whatever job happens to be available, you'll do just fine, and you will love the island life.
You know you've assimilated when you have more swimsuits than dress suits, "formal attire" means your "good" flip-flops, "the good dishes" are any you don't toss after using, and you start planning your next Fantasy Fest costume as soon as your hangover from the last Fantasy Fest wears off. It's a wonderful, crazy world.
The Keys are more expensive than wherever you live now, unless you're in NYC or LA. The rule of thumb I've used is to take what you currently pay for a mortgage and double it to rent a place half the size and with a tenth the storage space - and that's if you're lucky. All the necessities of life are more expensive - gas, groceries, utilities, etc. - so be prepared for that (the Keys don't export anything, so when a truck brings supplies in, they have a 100+ mile return trip with nothing to show for it...prices go up accordingly). But if you want to live in paradise, so you will accept that. For as long as you can afford to, that is. Too many of my friends ended up working two (or more) jobs just to get by, and then not being able to enjoy the island life you moved there for - they didn't stay long. If you want to stay, and you don't have a trust fund backing you, your only option is to reduce your standard of living requirements and be happy doing so. After all, your quality of life will go up exponentially! If you can shed your desire for material goods, be flexible on housing and transportation, and are willing to do whatever job happens to be available, you'll do just fine, and you will love the island life.
You know you've assimilated when you have more swimsuits than dress suits, "formal attire" means your "good" flip-flops, "the good dishes" are any you don't toss after using, and you start planning your next Fantasy Fest costume as soon as your hangover from the last Fantasy Fest wears off. It's a wonderful, crazy world.
June 5, 2014
You are going to laugh at my thoughts on this book.
This is a nifty little book. It's thoughtful. I would recommend it for three groups:
1. People looking for all-you-really-need-to-know-about-Key-West travel guide.
2. People thinking about turning their favorite vacation/relaxation spot into their full-time residence, but who still need to earn a living.
3. People who want to see what self-awareness about ones motherland looks like in real life.
Not gonna win a Pulitzer or Nobel prize, probably, but still valuable use of time. Easy to read and entertaining.
This is a nifty little book. It's thoughtful. I would recommend it for three groups:
1. People looking for all-you-really-need-to-know-about-Key-West travel guide.
2. People thinking about turning their favorite vacation/relaxation spot into their full-time residence, but who still need to earn a living.
3. People who want to see what self-awareness about ones motherland looks like in real life.
Not gonna win a Pulitzer or Nobel prize, probably, but still valuable use of time. Easy to read and entertaining.
August 4, 2021
Cute, funny, informative and well-researched, but repetitive in some spots-it could have benefited from some quick editing to remedy the redundant topics that appeared in different sections. This book was passed on to me from my mom (who is not moving but "downsizing" her stuff). I think she got it while visiting family in KW, or it was left in her room while she was staying there for bedside reading. Now that I've finished with it, I will pass the torch by leaving it in our guest room nightstand when we have visitors to our home (about 2000 miles from Key West) along with some of my Hemingway books.
June 5, 2017
This is the primer for moving to Key West. A brief history of the Island and its mores. Contains population statistics, tips about where to visit, and living full time on the island. Bits of humor injected here and there by first time authors.
Tips on how to leave your job gracefully and information getting your utilities connected is less useful but still readable.
This is my fourth trip here and I found several pieces of information I didn't know before. Great book to read in a beach chair with your favorite beverage.
Tips on how to leave your job gracefully and information getting your utilities connected is less useful but still readable.
This is my fourth trip here and I found several pieces of information I didn't know before. Great book to read in a beach chair with your favorite beverage.
August 15, 2017
Light, lively
fun read. If you really do want to quit your job and move to Key West, this book might be for you....a little dated however. For those who need a moment's respite from daily doldrums, this is especially good. Good sound advice as well....good reality check for those who know their limits but enjoy the yearn.
fun read. If you really do want to quit your job and move to Key West, this book might be for you....a little dated however. For those who need a moment's respite from daily doldrums, this is especially good. Good sound advice as well....good reality check for those who know their limits but enjoy the yearn.
September 5, 2017
Good, learned a few things.
Good quick read. Lots of good tid bits for the tourist or relocator. I like all the fact captions located throughout.
Good quick read. Lots of good tid bits for the tourist or relocator. I like all the fact captions located throughout.
March 14, 2019
Fun read. Now do it
March 16, 2021
Kind of cool if you've never been to Key West.
July 5, 2022
An interesting read but not a whole lot of substance. It wasn't really what I expected. I own this book, got it used, but I recommend taking a peak inside before purchasing if interested.
April 25, 2023
My review of this book can be found on my YouTube Vlog at:
https://youtu.be/SE7ShPgXmNw
Enjoy!
https://youtu.be/SE7ShPgXmNw
Enjoy!
November 18, 2012
Fun read. I purchased this for my husband on our last trip to Key West when he was quite disgruntled with his job. He dreams of moving to Key West someday, but this book did provide some practical insight into the fact that it won't be as wonderful to live there full time as it is to visit. The hubby is still disgruntled with his job but hasn't quit yet (I won't let him). I decided to go ahead and read this myself in preparation for our next trip to Key West next summer to see if I could find some new suggestions on things to see and do and I actually did learn a few new things.
August 14, 2011
This book was partially a guide to the island, partially a self-help book, and partially just an informative and often comical look at what lving life in the Keys is REALLY like...This book asks the questions 1) Are you ready? and 2) Can you handle life in Key west?
A great end-of-vacation read that filled me in on some of the facts of life on the island of Key West that I otherwise wouldn't have known from just a short vacation stay.
A great end-of-vacation read that filled me in on some of the facts of life on the island of Key West that I otherwise wouldn't have known from just a short vacation stay.
November 2, 2011
I would love to do this but the authors make it clear it's not easy to move to paradise and make it and they do it with lots of humor. This was such a fun and fast read. Wish they had made this book longer but it did touch on all the basics of life in Key West so it satisfied my hunger...for a bit. I still want to move there!!
May 8, 2013
Most importantly Quit Your Job and Move to Key West allowed me to escape for a few hours. Despite wether I ever find the courage to up and move, my brain did for a brief time. My only complaint with this hysterical how to was, that like a brief vacation, the book was too short.
January 1, 2015
Loved this fun filled guide on how to quit your job and move to Key West. It was spirited and quirky. It had lots of great insiders views and also lots of hard to hear facts about the logistics of moving to an Island that is 2 miles by 4 miles.
April 14, 2024
I've read this book so many times that the cover is starting to peel. It's a good one, full of fun facts and history and jokes (without trying too hard)...!
And yet, it doesn't seem to work. Because I still haven't quit and I still haven't moved there!!!!!
And yet, it doesn't seem to work. Because I still haven't quit and I still haven't moved there!!!!!
December 8, 2012
Although I love my job, I read this book every year!
June 28, 2013
My parents are huge key west fans so this was a hand me down, light witty read
Great pick for non committing
Great pick for non committing
March 12, 2015
PERFECT!!!! Made the thought of moving to Key West possible and real. And gave you realistic incite on doing just that. One day I will refer to it for real. Great Read!
April 2, 2008
very interesting with a lot of useful info...
...also, i don't have to quit my job to move here :)
...also, i don't have to quit my job to move here :)
April 29, 2017
Fun little "tan extender" for your vacation when you get back home. Quick read. This book is for sale all over the island.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews