Homebase: isolation or small town?

[kaw1972]

Originally Posted by tnfarm_35acres

ALL to true -- really great advice. Something similar happened to me. Plan all you want, but be prepared to change directions mid-stream. Life just seems that way for some of us.

Yup. I was dreaming about moving to New Mexico. I love the desert--just gorgeous. But even the high desert gets pretty warm in summer, and I have pretty severe heat intolerance from sudden onset of probable MS.

This also somewhat tempers what I could realistically handle in terms of a homestead. I am moving to a rural area from a city and plan to have basic garden, and some chickens eventually, but beyond that, running a business and being a single parent I can't see myself pulling off an experience like Missing. Although I *love* reading her posts here. The peace and quiet of a situation like hers really appeals to me, but I know I need to consider possible worsening of symptoms, and also losing more vision. Not that it would be impossible--there probably is a blind single mom out in the backwoods someplace making a go of it== just not advisable.

So for me, given my vision loss and the possibility that my time as a licensed driver may be coming to an end in the near future, I need to opt for in or near a very small town. I have to acknowledge that I can make plans to be self-sufficient, and do what I can in terms of preparation, but for me that also is going to include walking distance to some amenities and building relationships with nearby family members and neighbors. If I woke up blind and unable to walk one morning (which could happen), and was several hours away from help with a small child, we'd be FUBAR.

[stonecypher5413]

I have to weigh in with the limitations that age and declining health do force upon you, as much as you might try to work WITH and AROUND it.

I'm 63, grew up on a big farm with all the old-fashioned homesteading activities, truly DID walk over a mile to catch the school bus, and internalized a deep-rooted love of the land and the outdoors.

Naturally, husband (a city boy, of course), career, and LIFE got in the way of getting back to a farming lifestyle in a rural area for over 30 years. I don't have the energy, flexibility, stamina, and breath control to leap tall buildings with a single bound any more, even on (what I consider) my paltry two acres. I'm lucky in that I have no kids to worry about, and hubby is very supportive for my "mini" homestead plans of raised-bed gardening, chickens, a small pond, and an even smaller orchard.

What makes it DOABLE for the both of us at this stage in our lives is our DETERMINATION -- and the financial ability to hire help if we need it. For instance, our chicken coop is in the final stages of completion, and a fellow veteran is helping hubby build it and the outdoor run for "eggs for life" and a very reasonable lump-sum cash payment that we can afford. In every area, there are both retirees and teenagers who are looking for part-time work, and each age group has different skills and abilities to offer. (Example: The fellow veteran says to hubby, who's mechanically challenged, "The hinges on the gate there, buddy, have to go on the INSIDE if you don't want the raccoons to reach them.)

So I say assume you can do MORE than you think you can and follow your heart. Even if it leads to a big lot in a small town with your cherry tomatoes in containers on the back patio. Good luck, and keep us posted, Indigo!

I highly recommend these two sites for further input:

self-reliance | homesteading | backwoods | home | magazine
Homesteading Today - getting back-to-the-land practicing sustainable, agricultural, ecologically sound, energy efficient, self-sufficient lifestyles

[Submariner]

Originally Posted by stonecypher5413

... I highly recommend these two sites for further input:

self-reliance | homesteading | backwoods | home | magazine


Homesteading Today - getting back-to-the-land practicing sustainable, agricultural, ecologically sound, energy efficient, self-sufficient lifestyles

Yes good forums.