Thursday, March 13, 2008

Thursday Thirteen 3/13


Ahh, since the new house is out in the country, I thought my Thursday Thirteen should be 13 things about living in the country.

1. The lack of noise. The first night it nearly drove my hubby crazy. He is a city boy, born and bred. We now have a fan running in the bedroom at night so he can sleep. We slept with the windows open last night. I heard a few cars around 10 pm, but after that nothing.

2. The dark, or the lack of light. There are no streetlights. Our bedroom at night is pitch back. I love it, he hates it. Don't blame me, he wanted to move out here. There is a night light in the hall now.

3. The neighbors wave. Seriously, people are more friendly in the country. There is this thing you do when driving in the country. When you meet an oncoming car or more likely truck, you lift a couple of fingers on your left hand and acknowledge that there is a human being in that machine just feet from your own vehicle.

4. I can take the dog out in my pajamas, and no one can see me. If I go out the back door, the only thing to see is my back yard and a heavily wooded hill, that is also mine.

5. There is a yard. A totally fenced in yard. If I want to vacuum or mop and the dogs are underfoot, I can open the door and put them outside. And they will play until I am ready to let them in.

6. It smells cleaner. I can smell grass and fresh air, not pavement and exhaust.

7. I grew up in the country. I loved it. I want my kids to grow up in the country.

8. There is no trash pickup. (I didn't say it was all good.) There is a convenience center a few miles away with recycling and household trash. Works for me, I just take the trash out on my way to work in the afternoon.

9. The only food we can get delivered is pizza, which I don't like. So I guess I can cook dinner more often. (This is a good thing.)

10. No cable TV. So we got satellite, which will get rain fade when it storms.

11. We are 10 miles from the nearest grocery store. And if I don't want Kroger, be prepared to go 15-25 miles for Publix or Wal-mart.

12. My commute to work is now about 50-60 minutes, depending on traffic. It used to be 20-25 minutes, but I only usually work 3 days a week. Hubby's commute is down from 65-85 minutes to 15 minutes, so I guess it makes up for it in the end.

13. We have a septic tank. Which necessitated a long conversation (argument) about scrapping any food (including chip dip) off your plate before you put it in the sink, and the purchase of some draino. I think this might be the biggest adjustment for him. I grew up with one. What can and can't be flushed. Grease gets poured in a jar before the pans go in the sink. Flushing Rid-X once a month.

18 comments:

Jennifer McKenzie said...

Oooo congratulations!!!!! I'm so glad you guys are out in the country. I think it's better.
I would miss my trash pick up though.

Tempest Knight said...

Awww... sounds like you found paradise. :)

Debbie Mumford said...

Nice! Congratulations on the space & quiet...condolences on the commute.

Anonymous said...

LOL on the dark and quiet. What gets to me is when I'm in a place where traffic is rare and then to have a car go by at like 3am. Wakes me everytime.

Ms Menozzi said...

I am insanely jealous. Seriously.

I'm going home for the summer and I can't wait to enjoy the same sort of stuff - silence, privacy, air conditioning and pizza delivery!

But I'll be without the hubby for eight weeks! Aaaarrrgh!

It's a trade-off, sure - but I probably won't be doing it next year...

Unknown said...

I really miss the country life. I've settled for the small town instead. Happy T13!

R.G. ALEXANDER said...

My husband is a country boy and I am a city girl-and we've decided our favorite places to live are small tourist towns. You get the best of both worlds. We definitely need to move soon.
I'm glad you are loving your new home.

Dana Belfry said...

I love trees! That's the one really sucky part about SoCal. The only trees you really see are strategically placed!

Anonymous said...

The country is nice - I love that my neighbors wave...and I love hearing all the birds too! Good luck with the new place. :)

Lia said...

The birds are what really got my husband the first night. After all that silence, at 6 am a bird starts singing from the bush right outside our bedroom window.

Kaige said...

I miss living in the country. Like you, I grew up with a septic tank and I'm still not used to the disposal in the sink. Weird. Sounds like you're starting to settle in!

Happy TT!
http://impulsivehearts.wordpress.com/

Chloe Devlin said...

I never would've guessed about some of those things. Shows what a city girl I am.

Heather said...

Aside from the septic tank and no garbage pickup, I think I could be very happy amid the dark and quiet of the country. ;)

Shelley Munro said...

Country living is great. I was brought up on a farm.

Tawny Taylor said...

The good still outweighs the bad in my book! I'd love to live in the country!

Tara S Nichols said...

I also live in the country. It is most definitely a paradise, except when the goats get out.

Bethanne said...

Yay for the man, 15 minutes must make him happy even if he IS a city boy. Show him what he can do... on the creek bank. You might change his mind.

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