Homestead mailing list

[Gene GeRue <genegerue AT ruralize.com>]

On Oct 24, 2008, at 3:20 PM, bob ford wrote:

> Gene, I have a serious question.  Missouri is beautiful, water is  
> plentiful, land is reasonably priced.  But, the land that interests  
> me is always in out-of-the-way places, like Zanoni.

I need to know more about you before I invite you into the Zanoni  
area. Did I mention that my neighbor-buddy is six-four, as are his two  
strapping sons? Did I mention that we all have big guns and know how  
to use them? We also have dogs.

But I digress. We are really sweet people.
> What do you do for culture?

I make my own culture; I read, write, design, garden, landscape,  
build, travel the world via the Internet. Chris and I listen to music,  
watch DVDs and talk to each other. We visit friends and relatives and  
they visit us.

>  My wife has lived in the city her entire life.  Where would she  
> make friends with other women.

That is up to her but I would think in places that have activities of  
interest to her.

>  I can stay alone, if left alone to my own devices, and not care.   
> My wife goes to strabucks, and to the museums.  She is not as bad as  
> many women, but, I just can't see her being happy without a group of  
> women friends with which to do stuff.

I don't think what you described is bad. She sounds like a pretty  
normal city woman.

Does she love you enough to follow you to a remote place?

Do you love her enough to be happy with a few acres within a few miles  
of a town that has what she wants?

Have the two of you each made your own criteria lists and then  
compared them and talked about what compromises you are willing to make?
> I own a piece of land near willow springs.  I'm looking at another  
> piece, now.  But, I'm not sure I,m being realistic.

I got paid big money for moving idealistic dreams to reality. It is a  
huge job and usually the wife ends up hating me. I think each of us is  
a sovereign being and we must be true to ourselves and this often  
means limiting compromise with girlfriends and wives. Did I mention  
that Chris is my fourth wife?

Follow Davy Crockett's advice: be sure you're right, then go ahead.  
Making decisions is your responsibility; no one can get inside your  
brain and lead you to your right decision.

>  Maybe I should try to find a place in a small progressive town.

Or at the outskirts. Bicycle distance, horseback distance, wagon  
distance, car distance--it's a choice.

>  But, what I really want is to be completely off the radar.  I don't  
> even want a G-d d*amn address ......bobf

Close to impossible. Go read the story on the Back Home Magazine web  
site about the couple who bought a place on an unmarked road in  
Colorado. It will be instructive to you.