Hi Lon I find myself ordering more things online now too. And I have a Kindle so I check out books from the Houston Public Library (they allow non-residents to purchase library memberships, very cool). I haven't had a bad experience yet, good quality, prices, and return policies if something is wrong Pretty handy if you have a small choice of places to shop nearby, or if it's hard to get out as often. I don't even like driving in this, small area. Crazy people, and I'm one of
We live in a town that has everything we need; but both Bobby and myself would be much happier to live in a smaller town again, although not a really small one because it is important to have good doctor and hospital facilities just in case it is needed. Mostly, we don't drive very far around town, because everything that we need is close to us. When I was younger and more capable, I loved living in the country, and lived for several years in a rural setting in Missouri, not very far from where @Frank Sanoica and his wife lived. I had about 40 acres with 3 ponds, two barns and other outbuildings, and a creek that ran across the road just a little ways down from us, plus some out in the back pasture that fed the catfish ponds when it rained. I went fishing and horseback riding almost every day, and had a wonderful garden in the summer (fertilized with good horse and llama manure), plus fruit trees and grapes. I still think about it; but then I remember all of those bugs, snakes and ticks that Frank mentioned, as well as having to haul in wood to keep that pesky wood stove going all night long. I also got bitten by a copperhead, and thought I would surely die; but when I got to the hospital, they would not even look at me until the gave me one of those tests for tuberculosis. Then they gave me some medicine for the snake bite, some antibiotics, and warned me to keep the leg elevated because it was going to swell up. They were right ! So......over all, I guess we will probably stay right where we are now.
@Kitty Carmel "Did you bring the train with you?" Sadly, no. I tore up the 750 feet of track, though, and managed to stuff that in our truck. I advertised the locomotive for sale in "Live Steam Magazine", got innumerable inquiries, sorted them out, took 3 deposits contingent on acceptance by first, second, then third party. First one bought it, a doctor from Iowa, who bought a 1-ton Chevy Van purposely to haul the loco and tender home from our farm in MO. Second guy in line told me I could have easily gotten twice my asking price of $10,000. It took 9 years to build it, and I so badly want to build another, but fear it would remain unfinished when my "time" comes. Here's another pic or two: During Construction: Ditto: Our old farmhouse in the background:
@Yvonne Smith "I also got bitten by a copperhead, and thought I would surely die....." Like this one?
When I lived in Anaheim, the part of town that I lived in was kind of like a small town. Anaheim was made up of neighborhoods that were pretty much self sufficient. So although I was living in a city that wasn't so small, having Disneyland and a Major League ballpark, there were restaurants, stores, dealerships, and everything I needed within walking distance. So I had a choice of restaurants where people would actually know who I was, and I could buy a motorcycle at a local dealership. In fact, our church had a block of tickets to Angels games so when I went to a ball game, I could sit near people I knew, and who weren't likely to be spilling beer all over me. For a city, Anaheim wasn't bad.
@Clare Smith Are you shocked? I did not mean to frighten, sorry. Being relatively new here, you would not know I posted this before, quite some time ago. My wife & I had just gotten back from our evening walk along our road, it's visible behind me in the pic. Approaching our gate, on the other side of which were thick flowers growing, my wife suddenly stopped me. She had heard the rustle, I did not, she said "Something's in the flowers". Just then, it slithered out, right in our direction, only about three or four feet in front of us. I waved her back as I pulled my 9mm pistol from my waistband, carried always since often vicious dogs could be encountered (there were no laws concerning this, and even if there were, no one around to ensure compliance). At that moment, realizing it indeed was a Copperhead, it had stopped, and my first shot grazed it, but the second went through behind it's head. Even dead, I was reluctant to handle it with my hands (chicken!), and carried it away using the hoe my wife fetched off the front porch. There were surely Rattlesnakes about also, but we never saw one in 13 years there. I would not kill a non-venomous snake, and this particular poisonous one might very well have bitten one of us. High leather boots offer protection; snakes rarely strike high up. My shoes would have offered little protection. Copperheads were common thereabouts, often sunning themselves on the road in cold weather. Frank
@Frank Sanoica Thank you very much for the additional pictures. I can't even imagine the knowhow to build something like that. So sorry you did sell it. I hope they took good care of the train.
I'll be interested to know what area you decide to settle on. It's a hard decision with advantages and not to both rural and more urban. I think these decisions can be hard. Internet shopping is certainly popular no matter where someone lives it seems.
Well, I'm REALLY afraid of snakes, Frank. When my ex- husband, my son and I moved to this house 27 years ago, it was kind of wild. There were fewer houses here then, and we would find long snakes, big black hairy spiders and scorpions. I had a Dalmatian who killed a snake once, and a German Shepperd who also killed another one a couple of years ago. However, last year I killed two scorpions inside the house. It was summer time and they look for cooler places. So, which is the best place? Clare's home, of course. Anyway, we just have to be extra careful about many things here, including reptiles, insects, and spiders. Always check the shoes inside and always wear gloves in the garden. I tried to find the meaning of 'copperhead' in the dictionary, but they only exist in North America (as there are specific ones just in Brazil).
@Clare Smith This is most interesting to me! I never imagined Brazil as having the arid climate anywhere conducive to scorpions and such. Is it quite dry in your location? We receive about 4-5 inches of precip., all rain of course, per year. Our Monsoon season is about to begin, and while temps. may moderate some, the humidity will be on the rise. We have a natural population of several kinds of birds, and knowing the degree of difficulty of life in the Desert, we think their presence accounts for how few scorpions we've seen (2 in 5 years now), or other objectionable denisons, even though we live on the edge of untold miles of natural, undeveloped Desert. We often see a Roadrunner moving about with some tidbit in it's beak, often a lizard. Below, this one was intent on following me into the garage! We should be seeing Tarantulas for example, but so far not a single one. We do see an occasional big spider, here commonly called a "Wind Scorpion", misnomer though, as they are not Scorpions but rather a kind of spider. Their leg-span is about that of a Silver Dollar. Not venomous, but fearsome-jawed, they can inflict a painful bite. Second pic shows one devouring what appears to be a grasshopper. Note the jaws! We spray our doorsteps only with Raid, but still I spotted one in the kitchen, acting rather groggy, which I dispatched with the flyswatter. Frank
@Kitty Carmel How nice of you to say that! There is an amazing (to me, especially!) story behind why I endeavored to build the locomotive, and why it took over 40 years of my life to finally undertake it. I hate to think of boring others with a story I've told before, but very much would enjoy telling it again, if you are interested. I would use a different thread though, as it does not "fit" here. Frank
@Frank Sanoica There are always new people on the board. I haven't heard the story behind the train. Would love to hear it if you would like to post.