(post by Jason) Since many horse people live in urban or suburban areas one of the first things visitors say when they get out of their cars upon arrival at our farm is how peaceful and quiet it is. Some probably love the idea of emulating our life and others probably can't wait to get back in their cars and make tracks for places less rural than this. To each their own, right ?!
I'll step right out and say that rural suits me in nearly every way. Most of the time if I had my way I'd choose an even more rural location than the one in which we live. Except in short doses I can't abide crowds of people, clogged up traffic, high levels of background noise or lights that prevent me from seeing the stars at night. I like the idea of neighbours so long as I can't see or hear what they're doing. Our nearest neighbours are about a half mile (1km) away. We are surrounded by thousands of acres of farmland and pasture.
This suits my personality perfectly. I can shoot at a rabid opossum without rising from my kitchen table if it suits me. If my truck breaks or one of the tractors decides it needs mechanical assistance we are well covered to get that looked after locally. Similarly if your horse requires veterinary assistance there are several practitioners on whom we can call. Farm supplies, basic services and basic groceries are all reasonably easy to come by without leaving the county. Since on most counts I'm a basic kind of guy I don't find many gaps in services available locally. The gaps that do exist (fancy restaurants, opera, performing arts theatre, good bookstores) can be remedied by driving to Nashville, about 60 miles/100 km away.
There are a few things that even I find unhandy and inconvenient. When something important breaks that requires expert technical assistance (think computer or certain appliances) nobody is coming to your house to fix the important item. You're going to have to take the item to them and it's going to cost you time to get it done. Internet services are slower and far more expensive than than the cable or fibre internet connections available in more urban settings. Similarly doing anything that requires sending or receiving something from beyond the borders of the US is certainly going to require a drive. Mailing items to Canada from my local post office has been a frustrating experience at times. Since my immediate family is scattered across Canada this happens more frequently than you might guess. Still, for me living in a rural place is more than worth the trade offs that come with it.
I'm curious as to how our readers feel about this topic. Where do you live now ? Are you happy about it ? Where would you live if money/jobs/family obligations permitted you to move ?
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Sam, Happy, Blue and Nemo
Calimba and MyLight
Rip and Convey
Remmy and Merlin
"oh hey, we're just standing here"
Griselle and Bonnie
Traveller
Clayton under a pretty sunrise
Norman and Cuffie having an early morning grooming session
Duesy, Walden and Fabrizzio
Cino
Cino had to grind his face into the ground over and over as well
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9 comments:
One of the primary criteria in our land search 14 years ago, was that we didn't want to hear either of the two interstates that intersect in our valley--and we succeeded! Our little one mile road had only six homes on it (two since we moved here), and we have more tractor traffic than cars. Our closest neighbors are bovine, but the human variety are close enough to help if we need it, but mostly far enough that we don't bother one another. We love it.
My mother, before she passed, would claim, however, that it was entirely too quiet for her!
I live in a suburban area. On the one hand, I really like having easy access to all the things you listed above, plus it has lax enough laws that I'm allowed to have backyard chickens. I'm lucky enough that I live near a park so I have access to trees and wild plants. My ideal home would have at least a few acres for animals and gardening, but I loathe commuting even if there's not much traffic.
Well, apparently my post was too long :-/
I wrote so much I'm out out time to edit it to be shorter. I will try to do so in the next day or so, apparently I had a lot to say!
We live in the country but are only 20 minutes away from a small town for groceries, etc. Then we can drive about another 35 minutes to a large town for big shopping, doctors, see our grandkids, etc. It was what we wanted. marsha@tubbslanefarm.com
We live on 12 acres 20 minutes from downtown Lexington. We moved here in 1991. Our jobs required this proximity to the city. We have 5 horses, mature trees, feed the birds year round and enjoy herons flying by our kitchen window on a regular basis. We are now retired and looking for more land, less house, further out from the city. As long as I have internet, phone service, and UPS delivery I can live anywhere rural. I often wonder how long I could remain in rural isolation before I would seek social interaction. But since I am 60, not sure I have the time to complete this experiment so will just settle for a peaceful natural place to live out my days.
I found myself wondering if you were an introvert. I am, and I think that is what makes being in solitude so lovely.
One day a city friend got out of the car at Mom's farm, looked around and breathed a big sigh "I just love it out here. It's so peaceful.... no responsibilities..."
Well maybe not for YOU!
We live outdoors as much as we live indoors. If there is no work to do we will probably create some. Good fences make good neighbors and neighbors should be seen and not heard.
We have 16 acres on a dead end road half a mile from the city line. And we have learned that there are two kinds of people who move to the country: those who want more room for peace and quiet, and those who want more room to make a lot of noise. Unfortunately those tend to get mixed up.
The ideal place to live is smack in the middle of a hundred acre lot with wood edges as a buffer and a really good snow plow.
We live in the Town of Sweden, which is about 4 miles from the center of the Village of Brockport. We only have a little over 5 acres but it suits us just fine. I love being here and there are times when I don't leave the farm for days. But unlike those of you who are keen to stay in the country, I am very interested in our community and participate in many ways. There are only 4 horses here now and my husband and I are totally retired. That means I have time to play bridge, participate in African Drumming, attend Sunday afternoon jam sessions with my baritone ukulele and get used to my newly elected position as a Town Board member. I have had horses for 37 years (6 of my own for much of that time) and would not trade that for anything. I have had an online Journal for 8 years and am never without my camera. Life is good...and yes, it is very peaceful here...inside and out.
I have 12+ acres out in BFE. The closest neighbor is only a quarter of a mile away and my north border is National Forest. It's quiet here and always will be. We're half hour from town and my Vet is an hour and 15 minutes away. Hubby is retired and I work an hour away. My friends love long weekends and when they get to 'escape to the mountains' for a weekend. I go home to the mountains every day. The sanity that I have is worth the drive. At times, I wish I were further out...
I love being rural. Albany is 45 min from here. Boston is 3 hours. No there isn't a lot of opportunity locally...but it's a great place to raise kids.
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