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Or perhaps the question should be about maintaining one's sanity.
Do you, those who have lived out in the country for a while, use a room that expands on the solitude or one that has the links, such as the computer and the Net, to the rest of the world?
I don't think it is a case of country living shock, where six months after arrival one is wondering "My God, what have I done?", but rather, just more of being an outsider from being a life time grave yard shift worker.
So for those who have lived out here for a while, what room of the house do you pick to reflect in?
My living room which I call my "glass tree house." My living room has two large picture windows, one facing south toward the majestic mesas which make up Mesa Verde National Park and one facing west which gives me a view of the Sleeping Ute Mountain Range. Plus, I have all kinds of trees around my house - enough to make things shady and green, but not enough to block the views. I could sit at my desk or relax in my recliner and watch the mesas and the mountains and the natural world all day long. I drink in the solitude and only tire of it sometimes in the winter. My bedroom is small and at the back of the house, so I use it only to sleep in. The kitchen is just where I do my cooking and other household chores. The glass tree house is the best room ever! I generally stream music or sometimes National Public Radio. This allows me to feel in touch with the world and very remote from it at the same time. Works for me! But then I've lived in this area for more than half my life, so the solitude feels very much like home to me.
There is a tree outside my den window which makes me feel like I'm on the savannah of Africa. I can't see all of it as I have boxes and screens up for privacy, but I see the top of it.
AS THINGS GO, after I wrote that post, I shut down and prepped my computer to come into work (where I am now) and wrote about 5 pages of notes in the den which did get me in a relaxed mood, Evanescence playing from the great room. I then went out to the great room, did dishes, made my first try at scrambled eggs with Stevie Nicks "Shangri-la" on, then got ready for work with HEART's "Little Queen" playing in the bedroom .............
.................I think I just needed to totally disengage from the Net and get some music going.
The window in my to be dance room is low to the ground and has a view into the protectorate forest that obscures the house from small country road. I have visions of having pillows there where I can read and sip tea (and have a cat in some form of intrusion).
One of the notes I did write down was to get away from the standard escape from reality through the Net and to use my ranch instead. I am anxious to get back to it each day, I am reluctant to leave it each night...........
..........just that those old habits of living in the city, in technology, are tough to stop doing, doncha know?
My co-worker said her wife doesn't want an acreage because she'd be "bored" and she likes the bars and socializing. Needless to say I don't know what the feels like. I wouldn't use a room to write my notes, I'd sit out on the hammock in the hard on a sunny summer day with a smile on my face at the peacefulness of it all, not having to listen to people praddle on about superficial gossip.
TS, just try different places. If you're like me, you'll find that you will have different moods for different projects. For example, when I write non-fiction, it's in the home office. Creative stuff seems to work better in the living room, I don't know why.
TS, just try different places. If you're like me, you'll find that you will have different moods for different projects. For example, when I write non-fiction, it's in the home office. Creative stuff seems to work better in the living room, I don't know why.
You should blog about this topic at some point!
Blog eventually yes but for right now, I am honestly curious about how other solitary people approach the issue.
As it is, I am trying to make the loft the place where I resume writing from; the view up there is of the rolling hills. It's a little stuffy, however, but I haven't opened the window up there yet because of cat concerns.
Last night, I was going to take my note writing out into the great room but two things. First of all, once I got the laptop shut down, what worries I had were quickly replaced with my diary writing. There was also the point that by then, I was firmly into the night.
Dusk right now is not an easy time for me thought I don't think it is because I am out in the country but just rather the signal that soon I will have to leave the ranch and go to work.
The other thing was that the standing desk in the great room was covered with crumbs! I use that as my dining table and it wasn't ready for me to write on it. It did get cleaned up when I did the dishes, though.
Once I got to work, got the music going, wrote my notes, had a cat on my knee, things calmed down and I was doing pretty well until moments before I was leaving for work. Then, I heard voices. At first, I thought maybe I misheard something mechanical like the ceiling fan. Then I heard them again and they were clearly English...............
...........I had "butt dialed" the alarm Fob in my pocket and the system was in count down.
As it is, I am trying to make the loft the place where I resume writing from; the view up there is of the rolling hills. It's a little stuffy, however, but I haven't opened the window up there yet because of cat concerns.
Lofts are great! So are DIY stores and hardware aisles. I find things like screen inserts that'll cat-proof the open window:
I would like quiet and a nice view. A comfortable temperature and a no distractions. For example, I wouldn't want anything in the room like a box that needed to be unpacked, or a basket of laundry that needed to be put away.
Blog eventually yes but for right now, I am honestly curious about how other solitary people approach the issue.
It has never been an issue for me or anyone I've known. I assume that people who have problems living in solitude return to an urban environment rather quickly.
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