Image: becauseican.co.za We’ve all said it at some point: Maybe I should pack it in and move closer to nature. Well, I did. And here's a few thoughts that might help you in case you've been hemming & hawing about taking the "crazy new shit" road. . . Today: my top 5 reasons why this was the best idea ever. [To provide balance, tomorrow I'll list the top 5 things I miss about living in the thick of things.] Top 5 of Country's Awesomest: 1. THE FIREPLACE I'm sooooooo in love with the fireplace (which, by the way, comes with a room with a magnificent view). So if you have a fireplace AND a view in the city, you can scratch that off the list. Photo: Clinton Desveaux 2. THE LAKE Is there really anything to explain here? Swimming in pristine, warm waters all summer on a lake that hardly anyone else ever uses. Skating in winter. If you're living downtown, have a working fireplace & your house fronts a lake, you're on the wrong blog. 3. SOUNDS There's a stream that runs through our backyard and empties into the lake; and while the summer's all about the lake, the fall is all about the rustling of leaves and the flowing sound of that stream. There's also a train track on the other side of the lake. Now, instead of an alarm clock, I wake up to the whistle of the first morning train - I happen to LOVE trains. No idea yet what winter & spring will bring to this symphony, but I sure don't miss the traffic, the honking, the sirens & I especially don't miss the drunk couples who feel the need to scream like bloody banshees while arguing on the way home from the bar at 3 a.m. If you don't mind those sounds, the city may be for you. Starry Night: Vincent Van Gogh 4. THE STARS Everyone who knows me has likely heard about my own notorious scream in the night: "I LOVE CAMPING!!" (which came some time after I appeared at my city door for a camping trip carrying a silk pillowcase, an electric toothbrush and clothes on hangers -- I know, I know I'll NEVER live that down:) The truth is I was always a sucker for staring at a starry night (I mean who doesn't love Van Gogh's?). So no matter what city downtown you live in, there's NO WAY you get to enjoy the best light show on earth every night. If moving to the country is out-of-the-question, I seriously advise you to make friends out there. 5. MY HEALTH, EMOTIONAL & SPIRITUAL WELL-BEING For years now, this tiny, squeaky voice inside my head was whispering that despite what everyone said: "YOU? You wouldn't last a week. You're a city girl. OBVIOUSLY. Just look around you." It was true. Our place in the city couldn't have been more cosmopolitan if we'd tried. The paintings on the walls (nudes no less), the multicultural soirees, the daily jaunts to the cool cafe, our favourite neighbourhood pub, etc. etc. . . . and yet, the squeaky voice kept growing & growing, till it was squawking. So, the learning here, I think(??), is that no matter where I'm the happiest, healthiest & most balanced I've EVER been,-- What matters is the voice in YOUR head. One thing that's true is that if I had to join the morning commuters to work, I probably would have only lasted here a week. Fortunately, at least for the time being, I'll be working from home. If and when that changes, well, I'll cross that bridge when I have to. Tomorrow, I'll confess to what this writer does miss by not living downtown. Till then, Hope everyone's enjoying their weekend, TartanFrog (aka Dina)
2 Comments
Marie Lucille
11/24/2012 10:58:43 pm
That is a super cool write up!!! Certainly sounds like you & Pete made the right decision when you decided to "go country"!
Reply
TartanFrog (aka Dina)
11/24/2012 11:45:50 pm
Thanks Lucille. And yes, it was. Granted, if someone handed me a plane ticket to Paris with a paid pied-à-terre near the 6th arrondissement, I'd be like George in the Seinfeld episode, the one where he was running down children and a woman in a wheelchair.
Reply
Leave a Reply. |
Welcome to my Blog! Archives
December 2015
© 2010 - 2012 Dina Desveaux. All rights reserved.
Search through the categories below:
All
|