Someone else posted an identical query recently here or in the Providence sub? And someone answered that the tattoo shop on Gano in Providence is doing one. Can't recall the shop name, sorry, but it's the only one on Gano.

>Are Rhode Islanders entitled?

Transplant here. No. Not in my experience. At all 🤷‍♀️

I moved here on my own from elsewhere too (decades ago). So you struck a chord: sorry you haven't connected with anyone yet. m

For me what worked was a chance encounter at a laundromat; got talking with someone else doing their laundry and bingo! Had some interests in common and through him I met a pretty large friend group / community. He was a multi-gen native Rhode Islander.

That's the thing here: because "everyone knows everyone" once you make one connection, it can lead to more.

Nobody seems to frequent laundromats like they used to. So, how about checking out the r/CozyRhody crew?

That got started by a RI newcomer during the pandemic to make friends while cleaning up trash (literally) -- they've posted pics a few times. They seem like a friendly bunch. Again, all you need sometimes is a start.

Good luck 🍀

Oak Hill just on the border in Pawtucket is adorable

East Side, Fox Point.

You know what I love about it here? The wildlife! I regularly see squirrels (duh!) but nearly as often rabbits. On walks I see turkeys, chipmunks, raccoons, and ground hogs. More rarely opossums. Twice I saw a pair of wild minks, and once an otter 🤗

Lots of old established trees. It really doesn't feel like any city I've ever lived in (unlike the Silver Lake neighborhood, or Federal Hill 😣). Yet I can walk downtown in about 20 mins (or be there in 10 riding one of those accursed scooters lol)

Safety: I'm female. Never felt unsafe. Car break-ins happen. Even home break-ins (far more rare these days). But on the whole, the East Side is extraordinarily safe for a city.

Gutted

I'd been looking for him every day, and then two days ago came back from doing that and was hugely relieved to see he'd been found.

Went on my usual walks yesterday full of relief that I didn't need to keep an eye out, that he was safe.

Never occurred to me that "found" could mean dead 😣

Will you have a car? Even without one, you could uber over to Roger Wms Park to the glassed-in botanical gardens (cross the threshold and you're in Tahiti; the citrus trees will be in bloom by then). Then hike over to the Natural History Museum and Planetarium, then hike out the Elmwood entrance to eat at Apsaras, then uber back downtown.

Other non-uber activities: RISD museum. Hike the length of Benefit St for the architecture and stop at Prospect Park for the view.

If it's nice out, hike from downtown up Wickenden to the pedestrian bridge into India Point Park on the bay. Wander through that toward the Seekonk River reading the historical placards along the way and wind up at the brewery there at the edge of the park, then make your way from there (short walk) to Ives St and choose any of the little eateries there.

Foul weather: RISD Museum then Athenaeum then the John Hay Library at Brown. If you're into swords and armor, ask there if the AnnMarie Brown Memorial collection is open.

Enjoy your visit!

Yikes! 😳

!solved 😆👍

>Oh that’s cool. Do you know if I’m allowed to just walk in there to take a look?

While you're there, check out the pair of Gettysburg "guns" in the rotunda. (They look like small canons.) One still has a round stuck in its barrel. They were last fired on the epic third day of battle at Gettysburg by a truly heroic crew; the squad leader died beside the guns, having refused to leave them after he was mortally wounded.

Same -- could it be the marble? IOW: is the Capitol's made from granite or some other stone?

Ikr? Another newcomer to RI mentioned recently on this or the RI sub that they were shocked to discover the dearth of in-unit washer/ dryers here.

And reading here, I've learned how much harder it's become to find an apt that allows dogs, even small ones.

When I first moved here from MA years ago I was pleasantly surprised by how much easier it was here to rent with a dog than MA had been.

No more.

Why should a landlord allow pets when the market's this insanely tight that they have their pick of tenants? 😣

Last stat on it I've seen is that for the state, we're at 2% available housing? Anyone know if that's still the case?

OP, just so you are prepared: it's never been this hard to find housing in RI.

Lol same: my pupper's on the job 24/7, no days off 👋😆

Celiac 👋 .. along with the others already mentioned, we have a few good Indian restaurants and many items on the menus are gluten-free.

🙏

Dr. Susanne Saslaw at the Wickford Veterinary Clinic in N Kingston. I live in Providence but she's well worth the drive.

My adult rescue dog came to me with disastrous teeth and eventually had to have all removed, a few at a time 😣 ... the last surgery was an exceptionally tricky one to close a fissure going through to his sinus cavity 😱 -- she managed to get it done and my dog had such an improved quality of life afterwards.

BTW Same dog had a freak accident in which he dislocated his hip 😱😱 and she managed to get it back in place without needing to resort to orthopedic surgery.

Best vet ever

We had a huge colony in Rhode Island too but I think they were "moved along" elsewhere -- a loss imo

Just to play devil's advocate here:

I moved to RI as a single woman with a dog. Knowing what I now know about RI, I would recommend Riverside over Portsmouth.

Now, I don't know much about Portsmouth because like most people here, I've mostly only driven through it. It doesn't have any "destination" activities, places or restaurants worth seeking out. It's basically a dull, barren suburb with nothing to do.

Yes, you can go to Newport. But half the year that's crawling with tourists and partiers. Hell to park or navigate through its traffic during the season. Having grown up in a similar place, that gets annoying. And is not particularly safe for a woman on her own.

Let's consider Riverside. It's a cozy quiet neighborhood next to all that Providence and its East Side have to offer. Bike path, parks, amazing restaurants by the dozens, and esp relevant to you, OP, who will need to find things to do alone 50% of your time, the Greater Providence area offers much more than the bedroom-community of Portsmouth where I cannot imagine it's easy to make friends.

Libraries, glassblowing and other arts classes, university-hosted events, music, museums, outdoor cafes -- in a totally different atmosphere than Newport that's either pretty dead off season or insane with partying tourists in-season.

Also, way better for doing things with a dog. Just compare the number of parks big and small. There are lots of charming little neighborhoods on the East Side to explore with a dog (as I do every day; I live in Fox Point). If you will have a car you can bring doggo over to Fox Point / East Side, park and just amble through College Hill neighborhoods, down to either river or the bay. In Riverside itself you have the bike path for walking too. It's a spectacular asset for a woman walking a dog.

In season in Providence there are outdoor markets with artisans and farmers. Lots of specialty markets big and small. If you are interested at all in food, OP, there's no comparison.

Just in terms of being a stranger knowing no one who will be alone 50% of the time, Greater Providence will be a lot less lonely than being marooned in Portsmouth.

>visiting a “developing country” with better roads than our state

Most of those places don't have our winter weather which is apparently peculiarly perfect for creating potholes as some expert once patiently explained in this sub but I didn't retain the details. If we were farther north or farther south or farther inland, it wouldn't be anything like as bad, I gather.

(My rescue dog came from a remote village in central Mexico. As a one year old, he was driven a 1000 miles to the border, then in cargo from San Diego across country. Met him the next morning and he was sunny as ever! -- until the last short leg, from Warwick to Providence in my friend's van hitting every pothole that rattled the shit out of him, poor chap 😣)

Roger Wms Park Botanical Gardens (Tahiti!) + Natural History Museum + Planetarium then out the Elmwood exit to Apsara's.

Bundle up and park on East St and walk across the pedestrian bridge into India Point Park and start with the placard near the Community Boating shack, read all the placards to the last one at the other end on the Seekonk River tip of the park then circle back, hit Narragansett Brewery for a beverage, then fetch your car and drive up Ives, pick an eatery from Noodles to burgers to Mexican to Thai.

Drop in on the guys at Gather on Atwells, see if you might want to try glassblowing some time.

If you want to get out of the city, think it's just about the time of year you can go seal watching from shore?

Haruki in Wayland Sq

So sorry! 😢

In my neighborhood (Fox Point) they don't take the stolen cars far -- the closest school parking lot where they toss through the contents for easily-pawned stuff then abandon the rest. If you have anyone who can check nearby parking lots, it might be worth a look.

Hate to say it but if they got your keys it would be prudent to get a locksmith to change your house / apt locks 😣

Oak Hill is awesome 😍

It was great, wasn't it? I was actually part of a Poetry Slam team that performed one year at the Cable Car (RIP).

I was really sad to learn that it just petered out in Providence, well before the pandemic. There just wasn't the critical mass of people who supported it.

I feel badly about the people posting here and on the RI sub asking about what to do on NYE.

Someone did suggest fireworks at Rocky Point Park. Might do that. But First Night was really something at its peak.