Whats it like where you live

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When I read the posts some times I wonder where you live, I know you don"t want to give out information, that would lead some one to your house. just general will do. What is it like, what is there to see? I travel up Melissa"s way about ten years ago, It was wonderful. I live with in driveing distance of the gulf coast, and a stone throw"s of Lousiania. We have swamps with alligators, and tall cypress tree"s, The spanish moss hangs on the old oak trees. You can take air boat rides in the swamps, which is lots of fun. There is a lg. fleet of shrimp fisherman. You can buckets full of nice fat shrimp, when the boats come in. We eat lots of Gumbo, and boudin, crawfish, And cajon music is everywhere. There is lots of french spoken here. The people are friendly, and very self sufficient. We grow okra, and sweet potatoes, and watermellon, and everyone still gathers together for Sunday picnics. Lots of music, eating, In fact I will be haveing a big get together at my farm memorial weekend, probably at least 40 people. Will get the big bar b que [ smoker] and slap on a couple of brisket, It will be fun. Tell us all about your neck of the woods.

-- Irene texas (tkorsborn@cs.com), March 17, 2002

Answers

Irene /I live in the middle of the Flint Hills of Kansas & it is cattle country--- It is nothing but hundreds of acres of bluestem grass growing on the rolling hills---

In the next few week will be the annual burning of the old dead grass off & getting ready for the thousands of head of cattle that will be shipped in & put on these pastures. (you can go to www.prariefirefestival.com and get an idea of what the pastures will look like when being burned)---

When they burn off the pastures there will be thousands of acres of fire---at night it is beautiful!!!! As all you can see for miles & miles are the pastures on fire---

In a few weeks & hopefully after a nice easy rain----the pastures will turn green with new grass---& the cattle will soon be shipped in & turned loose in the pastures for grass season----which usually is from April 15th to Oct. 15th.

Those rangie looking cattle will fatten & get slick as the season goes on -----

I was raised in these Flint Hills on horse back takeing care of those cattle & pastures & doctoring cattle & fixing fence---etc/etc/etc/---

It still takes my breath away-----

There is nothing in this world more beautiful to me than the sun comming up in those pastures as you are on horse back & hearing the sounds of the prairie & smelling the fresh air & tending cattle---

We see more Pick Up trucks than anything else around here---everyone wears cowboy hats & boots & spurs----it is not uncommon to see the men dressed even in their spurs as they may stop for lunch a the small dinner----

It is very relaxed around here---& you wave at every car & truck you meet---& usually you know everyone by name even the dog--ridding shot gun-----

This is a friendly area---life is simple & good neighbors are honored & friends are cherrished!!

Come & visit us sometime---if you want more web sites with more information about our area---just e-mail me----Sonda in Ks.

-- Sonda in Ks. (sgbruce@birch.net), March 17, 2002.


We live in South Central Kentucky. It is gorgeous, very steep hills, narrow hollows and lots of rivers and creeks. The long growing season is a new thing for us, but we are enjoying the sweet potatoes, melons, etc. that were harder to grow in the U.P. of Michigan. Every area has it's drawbacks, but for the most part, land is stil reasonable, very few restrictions, and is as fine a place to homestead as there is. jean

-- jean from ky. (dandrea @duo-county.com), March 17, 2002.

Hello Irene,

We live in Ozark County, Missouri, (the true Ozarks). The mountains are small but, the valleys are deep. We live in one of the deep valleys. A creek runs through the property which we can see in the winter and hear year round from our house. There are lots of Black Walnut, Redbuds, Dogwoods and of course Oaks in the area. Every place you drive in the Spring becomes a scenic route.

The roads are narrow and curvacous. One side of the road is usually mountain and the other side is valley. No guard rails, so you have to drive at your own risk. Most of the automobile accidents here are single vehicle and they are usually where someone runs off the road. Some are fatal. We have had 11 this year in our county.

There are little churches everywhere, most have just a few people per congregation. They are left over from the times when the county use to be all dirt roads and traveling was difficult. There are a few General Stores still working but, most of them have closed since the roads were paved back in the late fifities and people started shopping in the cities.

In this county alone there are four grist mills. They were all built around the turn of the 20th century. One is now a bed and breakfast, it is just about three miles from my home. Another is being restored as a museum and it is just about 3 miles from my home too. Another one which is twelve miles from my house was converted into a Trout Farm and Hunting Club. And finally the last one, which is about 18 miles from my house is a restaurant.

Most people drive either very old cars from the seventies or pickup trucks. When you pass someone on the roads it is customary to wave, and many do. The only exception is if it is a woman and usually they would be consider "flirting" if the waved to you.

In is common to see "town folk" walking around in the town square in old boots and coveralls. The ranchers wear cowboy hats and cowboy boots. Nearly everyone "chews" or "smokes" tobacco.

The bank knows everyone by their first name, just as most of the merchants and the supermarket. You can still buy lye and the supermarket along with hunting gear, fishing gear, and a wide selection of outdoor things.

The nearest school from my house, (which is about 10 miles away) had a senior graduating class of 28 students. That was the largest number they have ever had. The school in one large building and it teaches grades 1-12.

Here where we live we get occasional visitors usually riding 4-wheel drives, 4x4 motorcycles or horses. Our road dead ends on our property and drops 300 feet in 4/10ths of a mile. At the bottom of the hill is a handmade bridge that crosses over the creek. This road is hardly navigatible by anything less than a pickup truck, (with good tires). The last visitor we had came about three weeks ago by horseback. We weren't here at the time and miss them. Since several people visit this way, I just looked at the hoof prints and wondered who it had been.

When I want to go hunting, I just walk out my backdoor and wander into the woods. There is plenty of game except beaver. The beaver moved away a few years ago. Squirrels are everywhere along with deer and rabbit.

If I want to go fishing I just follow the creek downstream about a 1/2 mile until I get to the river that it flows into. Trout (probably from the trout farm) are usually visible in the river.

At night there are a zillion stars in the sky. Since the nearest cities are over 3 hours away, there is no cityscape light visible on the horizon. When the moon is full it looks like I can almost touch it. It lights of the valley better than any flashlight could.

In the Spring we forage for Morels,Puffballs, and Deer Antler mushrooms. I have yet to find Ginseng but, they tell me it is here. We harvest Watercress from the creek, Dandilion flowers from the hillsides and many other types of wild foods.

Also at night, you can hear the coyotes. They bay and my dogs bay along with them. Sometimes I go outside and join in, just for fun! We have an Owl nearby whom is always asking his endless question of WHO. I keep telling WHO I am but, he just doesn't seem to care. I haven't seen the bear this year....I guess she is still hibernating up in the caves above my house.

We leave peacefully down here and I guess we will stay. In the couple of years we have been here only once had the Sheriff come this way. He was looking for some loggers that had cut a lock on a gate about three or four properties south of us. It was this first time anybody had been down here except our friends and of course on very quick visit from a van full of Jehovah Witnesses. The dogs scared them off!

Sincerely,

Ernest



-- http://communities.msn.com/livingoffthelandintheozarks (espresso42@hotmail.com), March 17, 2002.


I live in Eastern Washington.....the desert side of Washington state!! Where we live in the Clumbia Basin there is lots of sand, and sagebrush. I live near the Columbia & Yakima rivers which provides much of the water for irrigation. We have both irrigated and dry land farms in this area. We get a wide variety of tempatures during the year, we definately have 4 seasons. Summer can find us up to 120 degrees and 0 degrees in the winter. (knock on wood though last 3 winters haven't been bad at all!) What most people don't like about this area is the WIND it blows much of the time, you either get used to it or as many people do leave because of the wind. We are convinent to the Blue Mountains (90 minutes) or the Cascade mountains(2 hours) or even the Pacific ocean is about (6 hour)away if you want a change in landscape! I would like to move to a more rural spot eventually as this area is getting to big, but for now jobs and kids keep us here. The 3 acres we live on is what is left of my Grandparents farm that they settled when they came here. Denise

-- Denise K. (Rabbitmom2@webbworks.com), March 17, 2002.

Hi Irene, I live on the other side of Washington State from Denise, in the north west corner.Its very green and lush here. We are right by Puget Sound and also very close to the Cascade mountains. There are many dairy farms in the valley, and timber and salmon fishing are still done although not the major industries they used to be. We are backed up to timberland and beyond that is national forest so we have quite a bit of wildlife to see. Across the road from us is a fishing lake which my sons enjoyed a lot when they were growing up, and now my grandsons can enjoy too. There are 3 more lakes within 2 miles of here and we have a salmon creek on our property. There are also many islands in Puget Sound just a short ferry ride away and Canada too is just up the road. On the down side, it rains----a lot!

-- Judy S (wawoman@home.net), March 17, 2002.


Hi Irene,

Well, I live in Indiana. About 20 miles southwest of Indianapolis. It can be nice. Best time of year is spring and fall. There are lots of trees here, and rolling hills. Nothing like im use to though. We live in what the people around here call a rural area... HA... where im from we lived 55 miles from wal-mart, or kroger, or a gas station. The people here are not as friendly as their state motto claims. I quess you could see I hate it here.... LOL.... But itll have to do... God is the decision maker in our house. Your places all sound real nice. Im glad to hear of others blessings, takes my mind off my troubles.. hehehe...

-- Kristean Thompson (pigalena_babe@yahoo.com), March 17, 2002.


Although I have never met her I think Judy and I may be neighbors from her description. Ronda in western wa

-- ronda (thejohnsons@localaccess.com), March 17, 2002.

Well here in SE Ohio, it is just about perfect as far as I can tell. Not too cold in the winter, not too hot in the summer. 4 almost perfectly apportioned seasons, just as you start to get tired of one a new one starts. Nice growing season, just enough rain where we never need to water our garden or plants.

I live in a rural area, our township has about 1000 people and I know most of them. It is hilly with lots of wooded areas and small creeks and streams. Right below our house the beavers have made a dam. The kids have walked down to it, and said it is big, but I haven't yet. There are plenty of deer, wild turkey, (I see about 20 daily in the field next to our house) there are rabbits galore, squirrels, and some grouse, although they are not as plentiful as they used to be. Some neighbors have seen bears the last few years and they say they are moving this way, but I have not seen one yet. We have many coyotes and at night they howl upa storm. All in all it is a beautiful place to live.

The mighty Ohio River is not far from us. I remmebre when I was a child and we would travel, I was always happy when we would reach the road that traveled along the river. Felt like we were close to home then.

Our area is pretty poor financially speaking, yet I feel rich. Around here if you make $20,000 a year that is considered a pretty good income. There are the steel mills, and a few coal mines still in business. Most people work in service industries, medical, hospitals, nursing homes, restaurants, or the local mall. Our school district has about 1600 kids, in 3 buildings, Elementary, Middle and High School. Most people are very family oriented and life is surrounded by family, church and community activities.

The government has really not found us yet, in a way. There are few regualtions on building etc... unless you live right in town. Man is still pretty much King of his own castle. There are many Amish people moving into our area. Most of them work in construction, gardening, or timber and saw-milling. Many also make baskets for a pretty good income.

That is about all I can think of right now!

-- Melissa in SE Ohio (me@home.net), March 18, 2002.


I live just south of downtown Indianapolis, Within walking distance to work and everything else. It's inner city so not a very attractive place to live, I am hoping when the kids get older to move out of the city to somewhere a little more peaceful. I enjoy going to my mom's just to get a way from the hustle and bustle, don't tell my mom though she'll have me moved down there before you can say homesteading.

-- Melinda (speciallady104@hotmail.com), March 18, 2002.

I live in Southeast Kansas. Before we moved 6 miles south, Little House on the Prairie was my back yard, litteraly. I live close to several historical places. There is the Dalton Gang museum and Brown Mansion in Coffeyville. The longest Yellow Brick road and Museum in Sedan. Big Brutis the biggest crain up east, north east. The Tom Mix Museum and Wolarock Museum in Bartlesville Ok.Every summer we have Chuck Waggon Races and a big blow out the last weekend in May.It is a pretty quiet and remote area. Neighbors are your friends and everyone waves to everyone. If someone needs help, everyone comes. I feel blessed to live in a truely old fashion place. When younger I couldn't wait to leave, now I never want to go any where!God BLess

-- Micheale from SE Kansas (mbfrye@totelcsi.net), March 18, 2002.


Hi Irene - I'm new to this forum, and really love it. I live in Central NY state, about 45 minutes from Albany. We're in the foothills of the Catskill mountains, an area filled with old dairy farms. This place was built up a long time ago - it was the breadbasket of the American Revolution, and the farmhouses are old and gorgeous, the creeks wind through fields that have been under cultivation for two hundred years, and every so often you see a bald eagle floating overhead. We live between two small hills, and there is a pond (sadly, not ours) across the road. In the summer, a heron hunts there and flies over our yard with long, great flapping swoops each morning. Everything is very green (water isn't a problem even in the midst of several years of drought) and the daffodils are just coming up. We love it here, love the willows hanging over the creek and the wild apple tree behind the barn. We have glorious snowy winters, warm but bearable summers and falls in which the whole sides of the mountains turn to fire. We think we live in paradise.

-- Sharon in NY (astyk@brandeis.edu), March 18, 2002.

Well, here in Oklahoma we can travel three hours in any direction and be in a totally different world. Three hours south and you are in Dallas (When they say "A whole different country", they MEAN it!) Three hours east and you are in Tahlequah, the hills and beautiful green everywhere. Three hours west (give or take half an hour, it's been awhile) and you are in the grass prairie where if there's a bump 12 feet high you can see it for 20 miles! Three hours north and...okay, so I confess to not going north for a long time, probably since I was in college. No offense to Kansas, just don't have any relatives there and so haven't had a reason to visit.

Right here in our neck of the woods we are where the regions all meet according to the gardening magazines. I can't remember what they are all called, but four of them (one is the desert southwest, I remember) all meet basically right in the middle of Oklahoma County. It's said that we are the dividing line between the two Oklahomas; the western - cattle and flat prairie part, and the eastern dense brush and mountains part. I would have to say I believe it. If you go five miles west of my house it is all flat farmland, and if you go five miles east of my house it is dense underbrush, scrub oak, rocks and hilly (at least where it is undeveloped with housing additions). Personally, I prefer east!

-- Christine in OK (cljford@mmcable.com), March 18, 2002.


Forty miles south of Minneapolis, St. Paul Mn. Rolling farmland, lots of small creeks and wetland. Lots of small woodlots and wooded creek bottoms.COLD winters nice the rest of the year. Lots of wild animals to get in the garden etc. Pre settlement days it was Oak savannah. Lots of oak, elm, sugar maple, and basswood in the woods. We have 17 acres in the CRP program that is now native prairie grasses and forbs, lots of pheasent and turkey.Three miles from a small town that had 300 people in it until a few years ago when the developers found us, now with new housing going up the population must be three thousand or close. The next largest town was 5000 about eight miles away and it has to be eight to ten thousand now. Our little local village is now considering going in with the next little village and hiring police, before we just had the county sheriff. Not far enough out. Land has quadrupled or pentrupled(is that a word) in 6 years.

-- John in Mn. (nospam@mywork.com), March 20, 2002.

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