Try the on-line job sites for specific communities you might be interested in moving to. There are a surprising number of jobs available in rural communities if you are a warm body, reliable, and have a work ethic. Northwest Arctic and North Slope have a lot of them- just maybe not "premium" jobs. and some specific-skill jobs, as well.
My wife un-retired herself (she bores easily) for the second time and took a School District Admin job here in Kotzebue, moving up from our permanent home on the Kenai in June 2010.. So I retired, and came up in August for the hunting and fishing ops (which so far in my opinion have been very sadly neglected - I'm only giving away about 75% of my catches,,, if I had more time available, I'd shoot for plus 90...
). For an anti-social SOB, I have way too many relatives and friends who like free/ almost free (to hem) wild meat and fish...
But she insisted I find a job. I applied for a dozen or so, landed one at the local liquor store @ $20/hr but she convinced me I was to have no part of that- much of which effects she has to deal with in her job, Still, 20% off on employee purchases.....
I was shortly thereafter accepted for a 20 hour per week job with Alaska Airlines @ $15/hr. starting. And bennies. Perfect. In theory. ( I'm up to $20/hr now. Not great. Barely livable for one person here if it is one person's sole income. But there are bennies...)
I moved here in mid August after tying up loose ends, spent part of every day on the computer and filling out forms, walking the dog, bullshitting with locals, picked blueberries, slept in, killed a moose in late September up the Noatak, but was unfortunately employed by mid-October... It's been downhill from there.....
They lied about the hours.. For the next 2 years I worked 40 to 80 hours a week what with call outs for "called in sick" - often from camp , vacations, short staffing, and arranged work trades, sometimes for 6 weeks at a time without a day off. FINALLY I got on full time at 40 hrs per week... That is still hard on the hunting and fishing time... But I am getting more sleep.
We came here with a plan to stay 1 to 3 years, on my wife's year-at-a-time contract (they tried to get her to sign a 3 year contract last year. NFW!) We are now going into our 5th year. We might have psychological issues...
Our house down on the Kenai is feeling ( and showing) a bit neglected... even with working visits every few weeks. (If you think you own a house, you have it bass-ackwards!). I'm gonna re- retire there sometime in the next few years...
5 months after jumping thru all the hoops for Homeland Security ("you are done, we'll call you"....) when I was job-applying in Kotzebue, they FINALLY contacted me to ask me if I was still interested in a TSA job at the OTZ terminal... UH, NO - I have a much better deal going with the airline...
Not that I mind searching through women's under wear....
TSA is still looking for locals, or not, to staff here - all dozen or so of our TSA agents are 90-day contract imports from elsewhere. Some last as much as 3 years, others are gone after the initial 3 months.
Just a sample of out-of-the-box/ not-in-my-field opportunities if you ain't picky and maybe riding the wife's coattails...
Or vice versa. Kotzebue is a hub for a dozen other, smaller villages, most of whom are advertising for homecare, custodial, teacher's aides, and other not so premium jobs on a regular basis. If one of you has a survivalist-level job say as a teacher, these lesser paying jobs are do-able.
You ain't gonna get rich in anything but life-experience.
This is my third multi-year byway into the Arctic since 1973. It's addicting. Wouldn't have missed it for the world.
