Cabin in the woods - just me and her and her

“Wolfman's Bro., it's complicated to live here. Very simplistic in alot of important ways, but eeking out a living gets messy.

It's not that there isn't good, professional jobs, but they are few & far between. I've thought about this alot and even considered trying to write a book about it. I'm proud of the people who decide to stay in MT and figure out how to pay the bills. I think it takes a certain something inside a person to be willing to "just" get by in trade for some of that simplicity. Especially, when we live in a society that is caught up in the "gotta' have it syndrome," that Bpbaby mentioned.

Lots of people I know make daily commutes (rain, snow, or shine) of a 100 or more miles for work or edu. I know only a handful of people who own homes that cost more than $200,000, but I know plenty of people that have 100's or 1,000's of acres of land. Often that land has been in the family for gens. and they're still trying w/ all their might to make a living off of it. I know, literally, almost everyone in the town I live (and grew up) in.

There is a certain vague suffocation of living in a rural, economically depressed area. It gets really bad if you spend too much time watching glamour-type TV or reading about all the "must-have fall fashions" in Cosmo. It is also like a life-jacket at those times, though.

I can walk into the grocery store and someone will ask if my sister and her husband(pregnant w/ twins & on bed rest) need a hand w/ anything or a casserole. I can go to the bank and the mother of one of the boys I went to school w/, asks how the "terrible commute" to school is going for me and asks my daughter, by her name, if she wants a sucker. My third grade teacher (same one who also taught all 3 of my siblings) still knows exactly who I am and in the post office, she told me she looks forward to hopefully teaching my daughter and my sister's kids.

Those things fill me up and then I'm not so worried about what I might be missing out on in the big, fancy world. The "life-jacket" aspect of living here comes into play and I feel save that my head will stay above water.

I'm aware of the reality that I may not be able to remain in MT and use my degree to support my daughter. But I'm going to try really hard. What I get instead of a high paying job and lots of bills is ease of mind, simple pleasure (as cliche as that is), and a very deeply rooted sense of community, which I hope to pass on to my own child.

I know this seems cheesy and overly sentimental, but I really feel this way. I also don't mean to paint an over-simplified pic. There are bad pts. too, but right now the good ones out weigh them.”

“Sheesh! Sorry about my long post.”

“Very well said newgirl. Too bad more people don't have similar values.”

“Newgirl, your post reminds me a little of the movie with Diane Keaton "Baby something" I can't remember the whole title. She has this high powered NYC life and then inherits a baby from a deceased cousin. She moves to a farm in Vermont and learns all about the stuff that you talk about, in a humorous way. I don't know if I could handle living in extreme rural poverty but I think that I would love to try ordinary rural living. Maybe someday.”

“None of you guys will get THIS... maybe Dunadan. And that's OK. The rural Midwest rules.

If you're looking to get away from it all, well, no one thinks of here. Then again... some do. We have an influx of people in my area. But not so bad as the places everyone WANTS to go!!!

Would I love a piece of land in Colorado or Utah? sure... But the reality>> hahaha

To get away, truly get away, you're gonna have to go somewhere where no one else wants to go (and usually there's good reason for that). Good luck.”

“Yeah I suspect that that is very true, lizs. If no one lives there, there has to be a good reason. But tell us again, why do you live where you live?”

“To get away, truly get away, you're gonna have to go somewhere where no one else wants to go (and usually there's good reason for that).

Yeah, like Fairbanks in the winter. Ice fog, -60F, fan belts breaking, batteries failing, 3 hours of daylight keep a few people away.

”

“Once I was driving on a cross country interstate in southern Colorado from Ouray to Colorado Springs. There was occasionally a ranch to be seen, but for the most part the area looked like uninhabited forest and mountain. My husband and I thought that the reason so few people lived there was that maybe there just wasn't any water. But it is possible that it was just that we are used to the east coast where every acre is owned and used or preserved as parkland. Maybe people don't live in that part of Colorado because they want to be around other people, near towns etc. I don't know.”

“Yeah the three hours of daylight would be the clincher for me.

NOT!”

“Lyndy, that is the next area of Colorado that is booming. What you are seeing now is big ranches... OR federal or state-owned lands (forest, parks, BLM)

As it becomes too expensive to farm, small subdivisions come up for sale. I know a gal whose mother is in real estate in Denver. She said stuff in southern Colorado is now the hot ticket.

And when any place starts facing development, BOOM, the counties will enact tougher zoning laws to keep what is perceived to be the main draw.... OR what is needed for the economy.

I cover Fillmore County, MN... within 35 miles of Rochester, MN. Heck, Mayo Clinic runs a BUS to Preston (town I work in) to provide better transportation for its workers. And this link leads to the website for Lanesboro, another town I cover. People are flocking to this old-fashioned (now TOURIST-FILLED) town in droves. Some locals appreciate the business; a lot don't. This town was basically DEAD in the 1970s.

Lanesboro, MN

Urban sprawl is really spreading here. It's a beautiful county in areas: hills, bluffs, valleys and rivers. Karst topography that was unglaciated.

The county commissioners (which I cover for our paper) just passed a new zoning ordinance to regulate urban sprawl, while saving the traditional farmland. Only 2 homes per quarter-quarter section (40 acres). Say you bought 30 acres 10 years ago, intending to build a retirement home. You just might be screwed. Or if you own 80 acres, but there's already two homes in the 40 acres, again, you're screwed.

The counties with land like to protect it. City people need to check zoning ordinances like crazy to make sure of what they're getting into. They may not realize the country (or counties) can be highly regulated in trying to keep city types out. In most cases, it's not just country bumpkins that city people are buying land from.

And that's my say on people coming into a quaint area, trying to buy land. Not wrong, not right. Just how it is. There was a great article back a few months ago in Outside magazine, about some guy who bought his "dream" property in Montana, I believe, and all the hell that went with it.”

“OK, next rant. lol...

Why do I live where I live? I was born here. Oh yeah, I hated the rural life up until my late 20s... early 30s.

Then I started to get more interested in outdoor activities. Ya know what? There's tons of things to do outdoors where I am.

Not the high mountains -- just 200-400 ft. rolling hills.... Nasty, beautiful bluffs.... Whatever American Indian Mounds that haven't been plowed up.... One of the first rivers nominated for Wild & Scenic River status (although those damNed farmers in our next county over squashed that, concern over the feds owning all the farms).... State DNR land all over the wazoo that only hunters and fishermen know about.... Plenty of caves.... Mississippi River within 45 minutes.... Great mountain biking and hiking (although Crazy Mike would disagree about Yellow River State Forest)

And then there's the stuff Newgirl mentioned. You know everyone and everyone helps each other out.... A real sense of family and community.... shorter and much better commutes.... lol, etc.

I love it here. Took a long time to come to that conclusion. But it's true. Not saying I would never move, but I think people miss out who snub the midwest. But then again, that is juuuuuuuuuuuuust fine. hehehe”

“The corridor between Albuquerque and Denver is one of, if not the, fastest growing area of the country. They should put high speed rail service in NOW!”

“Okay, lizs, but tell me what you REALLY think!

I appreciate the beauty of the midwest. I just have spent very little time there. When people mention the midwest, though, I usually think of places other than Michigan and Minnesota. I guess that there are northern midwest states, which seem to me to be quite different to me from the southern midwest states.

But lizs, I thought that you lived much more south than where you actually do. And I know that I could never move into a small town like your town or Newgirl's and become a local. But a small town is where I would like to live someday. And I don't want to do it like a city person. I would just want to quietly blend in if possible.”

“Thanks for the post newgirl. I spent a year in the Rockies(Fraser,CO) working at Winter Pk. ski resort about 7 yrs. ago. It was SO beautiful there. I'm afraid to go back though because it was just starting to blow up there-(massive building). I remember a McDonald's being built at the time and it caused much fervor amongst the locals who didn't want it. The one good thing about Winter Park (and probably keeping it from becoming the next Vail)is the frequent avalanches that take place on the pass which makes it difficult to get to at times.”

“hhehehe... yup, I'm on a rant.

It's interesting cuz the people from the cities usually do want to move in and just blend in. Some do; some don't.

Many start rallying to keep what it is they moved here to get away from. Ok, I'm NOT for factory hog farms. But there are small ones around here. Farmers greatly fear city people moving in who will file nuisance suits about smell, etc. The "outsider" city people coming in and making the lives they've lived forever a living hell. Cuz the city people want things to be like it was in the city.

They want nice swimming pools, new libraries, updated or new schools etc, etc. And soon enough the locals are "fighting" off throngs of people who do not have the long-time roots in the community, who want to raise the taxes on their farms sky high to pay for these things.

Or they buy their "summer" homes, which sit empty 8 months of the year, depriving a community of year-round income and taxes that could be coming from that property.

It's tough to hit a happy medium. On the other hand, I heard this quoted recently, that someone's new $300,000 home will bring in more tax dollars than a farm. It's quite a dilemma. It's interesting to see it played out in the areas I live and cover as a reporter.

I liked life better when I was younger and could truly argue for one side only, cuz it's all I knew. I see both sides now. It's tough.

Meanwhile... hmmmm, interesting thoughts on Midwest. I am in NE Iowa. To me, the Midwest is and always will be: Wisconsin, Illinois, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, N. Dakota, S. Dakota, Nebraska and Kansas.

Maybe those states to the east should be the Mideast. lol”