small town naivety (lakes, mountains, cost of living, electricity)
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Sorry, but not "every square inch of the USA has ...internet". Our county government is currently trying to partner with a private enterprise to provide internet services to people who don't have it in our rural county. Many of these residents use the local private library to gain internet access, otherwise they wouldn't have access at all. It seems ridiculous for a county with one of the largest and oldest Naval R&D bases in the country not to have this access available to all citizens, but it's also the reality for many.
No satellite available? I have no options where I am other than satellite. No cable, no dsl or other. There is a fellow that had a blog.. still is on Facebook I believe.. Duane Ose. He lives in Alaska, 205 miles from the nearest road. The last homesteader in Alaska. He is a fur trapper, married a mail order bride close to 50 yrs ago. Lived in a dugout for 9 yrs while he hand built a log home. He has internet. Satellite dish and he provides his own electricity. Where in this country can one not get satellite service? I know that some places .. particular homes, trees can block the signal but trees can come down. I'm in a Nat'l Forest and have a 20' clearing around the house... the dish is on my roof.
If the library is getting internet... why can't they?
Well its my 10th year in a small rural town and one thing that strikes one the most about rural people is their utter naivety about the real world,Sure you can criticize big city living for all the noise congestion crime rude people, but there is one thing that living in a big city does is it give you experience in how to survive and compete in the real world. When you grow up in rural america,unless you want to work in the local gas station walmart or your family owner business you have no choice but to move to a big city, no problem for most, but for rural folks that is a problem , they are now faced with a world they are just not prepared for,some survive , other come back with their tales between their legs.Its not just the big city but its the fact they have to deal with people of different races political persuasions, religions and yes even sexual orientations.scary, scary stuff!!One good example happened a few years ago,a guy I knew was an amazing artist he loved doing tatooes but was working in some dead end very low paying job at a local business. I persuaded him to get a job in the city at a well know tatoo parlor, he did, and was making very good money,and had a nice apt but it didnt last long.After a year his health went down the drain, the last time I saw him he had lost so much weight I didnt even recognize him, he quit soon after words and nobody has heard from him since. Local store owners are just as naive,
I walked into our local goodwill and saw a lady who had two of the clerk occupied asked all sorts of dumb question,I immediately felt something wasnt right, when I walked to the back of the store I found the lady's partner in crime shoving merchandise into a very large handbag.Its amazing how oblivious these people are to something that is so obvious to me and you.Just the fact you are walking into a store with a very large empty handbag should arouse suspicion.
Good grief move already.
I don't know what you consider small rural town and big city, but yes often young people in small rural towns must relocate to go to a university or to find jobs in their career field. But then again, this happens all over, small town, big city. Thing I see is those young folks who moved away come back when they retire. Even folks for "big cities" far away are moving into rural areas.
I live in a unincorporated community so there is no population number. There are two gas stations/markets (owned by Indians) and a small diner. The closest town where there is a post office has a pop. of ~2500. Probably more with the influx of illegals. There is a university in the next town about 15 miles away pop. ~40K and a larger university about 100 miles away, pop. ~200K. I attended the closer university where I met mostly out of state students and students from India, Taiwan, Germany, Venezuela, and Poland. That was about 1990.
As far as jobs, yes, one usually must commute a bit. I drive 60 mile round trip but that is because my place of employment moved out in a rural area and I moved the opposite direction to more rural. While the very small rural towns don't have much as far as employment: restaurant, schools, doctor office, city employee, factory, there are good jobs in the larger towns about 15 minutes away.
And, no, small rural communities are not as diverse as big cities but I don't know anyone that has "to deal" with people of other races. My area has not had a single racial issue that I'm aware of. Believe it or no there are also lots of interracial marriages and even gay couples. While Baptist is the predominant denomination in my area we have Catholic churches, a Buddhist temple just out of "town", a small group of Wiccans, atheists, that's all I'm aware of locally.
So my experience is much different than yours. Its a give and take and a matter of preferences. Sorry you are so unhappy with where you live but your free to move.
Just had door kicked in on one small town property I bought. Had everything stolen when just 4-5 things were in it but didn't put up curtains yet. Wouldn't think the thieves would look in the laundry room window in back either but yes. Then realized both door frames were new and no trim on either door so town probably has some thieves...Population 1500.
Other small town community I purchased in had 3 contractors and all were crooks. He even mentions later he has been to court 4+ times as defendant and court lets him win...Some left town after he screwed them. Explains why I've seen job ads for contractor to travel to small town for 4 weeks to finish up renovating houses. Cannot get a sober or trustworthy local contractor. Can't even get a furnace guy to answer in some small towns even if you call an hour away, no one returns phone calls for days. GAWD, remember you have to be self reliant and have backup heat or sure friends with mentally stable, sober furnace guy who doesn't pick fights. Don't buy anything rural and fixer upper unless you can do the work yourself or you have family/friend you can trap into helping. Another population 1500..
REALLY cannot leave a bunch of stuff in small town houses unless you get to know the neighbors. Was told as city kid if you move to country, needed to remain in the house at least 6 months before you are gone for more than full day at work. Small town people will steal everything that is even hooked down unless neighbors like you enough to call sheriff on them.
Town of 10k is so nuts in some spots, can do kidnappings of unwelcome to harass them or hit someone over head during the night trespassing and these don't get in trouble with cops. Little *hits are running around like looney tooneys...Sheriff is so filthy in spots, lots gets covered up...
Gawd, don't even want to mention some of the employment scams I've seen in some small towns. So much BS at some employers, they just bring in new people to get look at new women and screw them out of job within a few months. Others are shuffled through the town's jobs against employee's will if you are broke and probably end up getting charity tank of gas back to your family out of state when you wind up homeless if you won't latch onto the local male (read POS) who offers to "help".
City is easier to people. Left in your employment too in city most of time. Don't get angry over weird stuff or threats...Be cool in city and is just easier than dealing with the new country sticks any more. Looked at multiple country houses someone just walked out in middle of remodel or painting, dropped paint brush. Told by neighbors they went back to where they came from after whatever...Also get to see LOTS of country or small town FOR SALE ads with kitchen door barred shut and braced.
Thanks for the laugh. I live in a town of 10,000. From day 1 we leave our door unlocked when we go somewhere. We've even left it unlocked when we left for a weekend trip. I know several contractors that I wouldn't hesitate to leave alone working on my house and know the job will be done right. Kidnappings? hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha As far as employment, most jobs in a small town are good jobs. Plus, is something comes up and you have to leave for a few minutes, your boss will tell you to go ahead and do what you need to do.
I don't know what "small town" you were in, but I'm glad I haven't lived in one like that. 10,000 population is the largest I have lived in for any period of time. I prefer small towns. The wild tales you described above sound more like bigger cities
Well. Wow. ROFLMAO. I guess for self-preparedness I would rather be in some small town or rural community because in the big cities people do not always know how to work the land. There is a difference between an urban garden or growing vegetables on the top of the apartment complex and having a farm. Plus livestock is illegal in the city. Plus, if there were ever Marshall law or anything, you know.
And I'm from the city born and raised but I could see the outcome in major cities once they come for people's guns. Should be interesting.
...Sorry you are so unhappy with where you live but your free to move.
This of course is the sensible advice, for most of us - whether urban, rural, or anything in between. It would be obdurate and dumb to dismiss such advice. However - and there is always a "however" - challenges obtrude.
Any move is an uprooting. The OP, assuming that that was a serious post (and not mere provocation) has lived in his/her present locale for 10 years. For some of us, it's been 20 years, or 30, or more. Having moved from the city to the town, it was necessary to adapt, and now the adaptation has revised our own selves. Our emerging struggle is less with the town, the people or their values, but with ourselves: with what we ourselves have become. I am my neighbor's neighbor. It is not with my neighbor with whom I have a problem, but with my neighbor's neighbor. Dealing with this, accepting this, is the real source of invective and chagrin.
This of course is the sensible advice, for most of us - whether urban, rural, or anything in between. It would be obdurate and dumb to dismiss such advice. However - and there is always a "however" - challenges obtrude.
Any move is an uprooting. The OP, assuming that that was a serious post (and not mere provocation) has lived in his/her present locale for 10 years. For some of us, it's been 20 years, or 30, or more. Having moved from the city to the town, it was necessary to adapt, and now the adaptation has revised our own selves. Our emerging struggle is less with the town, the people or their values, but with ourselves: with what we ourselves have become. I am my neighbor's neighbor. It is not with my neighbor with whom I have a problem, but with my neighbor's neighbor. Dealing with this, accepting this, is the real source of invective and chagrin.
Be that as it may, the OP has posted a series of threads lamenting rural living. I don't recall the OP stating a reason he could not relocate. If one is that miserable it would behoove them to do something about it. It really isn't a Ray Bradbury short story.
Small communities and rural locales are as much the real world as urban centers.
My brother's ex-wife grew up in Lake Clear, NY, which is in the (very rural) Adirondacks. When he brought her down the Albany the first time and took her to her first Grateful Dead concert back in the early 1990's, it was the first time she had been in a crowd that big; The Dead used to sell out the (formerly known as) Knickerbocker Arena whenever they played there.
The experiences really vary from town to town and region to region.
In some cases, people in small towns are indeed more relaxed and blissful than their bigger city counterparts when it comes to not watching their backs all the time.
In others, that's not really the case. Those are the towns that have experienced a decline in their economy, brain drain (where the best and brightest leave once they are old enough to be on their own and don't come back), an uptick in crime, and an uptick in drug and substance abuse issues. In those towns, trust has been eroded. And when people don't even trust their neighbors, let alone strangers in the community, the atmosphere just isn't the same or as welcoming as it once was.
I for one admire, and respect the farmers/ranchers, and those that support them in my new small rural town of 2,000. Where would we be as a nation without our hardworking food producers. Thank you all for your diligence.
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