There is no right or wrong to city vs. country living. Only what is right or wrong for each individual. I have known people that got bored looking at a beautiful mountain setting, and was far more comfortable in a shopping mall or night club. That is when I knew I married the wrong woman for me.
For the past 3 years, I have lived in both worlds, city and country. I spend about half my time in my long time home in Vancouver, and the other half at my “cave”. For me, the experiment is over; I have less stress and far more peace of mind in the country. I plan to sell my Vancouver home and move full time to the country. But with most choices in life, there are compromises.
The size of the county where my cave is located (Clearwater Country, Idaho) is one of the largest in the entire USA. The county is larger than some states. However, the entire population is less than 10,000. The little village I am part of only has about 400 people, in the entire zip code. The nearest Wal-mart, McDonalds and Home Depot are a 1 ½ hour drive away, “IF” the roads are clear. You would think supplies are hard to come by, not so, with a little planning.
One day a week we make a trip to the county seat that has decent supplies. We load up on fresh veggies and other items needed, and have a nice restaurant meal. We make a day of it. Then once a month we make the 1 ½ hour drive each way to Wal-mart and other large stores.
But that is not the end of the story. With the internet, we can order many items and have them delivered to our home, often freight free, and at better prices than the big city stores. Then there is a lot of small town sharing. Need eggs, contact the neighbor that raise chickens. The next time they drive by they will deliver farm fresh range chicken eggs to my cave. The freezer is stocked full of fresh elk and venison meat.
I could go on, but remote country living is not that difficult. The biggest problem I have had is with the deer. They keep eating my fruit trees and berry plants. It cost me more than I wanted to put up a high enough fence to keep them out.
Oh, and my cave is really a comfortable stick built home with 3 bedrooms, two baths, large kitchen and large laundry room, all with 6” walls, plus several large out buildings. I call it the cave because it does not have internet, TV, or phone service. Another experiment that taught me much about what I need and what makes me happy. I could have all of those things, but not sure I ever will. My life is so much better without all of the distractions and interruptions. I read/learn instead of watching TV. Communicate via email, I go to the library (on my ATV) a couple of times a week to take care of computer stuff.
I am not going to miss city living, but will miss some of the good people living there. However, they can always visit me in the country, and take my ATV for a drive on the endless trails through some of the most beautiful country in the world, without malls, and NO TRAFFIC.
