Let's talk about Country Living

Frog Gigging....yes frog hunting, thanks. My kids love going out to the edge of the pond at night and grabbing, netting, gigging some half pound bull frogs. They bring them home and skin 'em out and fry up the legs in a fish cooker, very good eatin'. My wife is a good sport about it as long as they don't trash the kitchen too bad. One night we came home and they had cleaned 20 frogs and some rabbits under our carport. She had them clean up fast because we were having out of town company that night. They also love catching and cooking fish. That's another country thing I like, my kids learned to clean and cook anything they bring home from hunting so it's not just sport, it's for food.



Rusty....thanks, I forgot all about the bonfires and paintball!!

Selective neglect....love it! I need to start my list today.

Sledge...I also hate mowing. Our 1.5 acre of grass right around the house gets mowed, the rest is field, pasture or woods and gets cut around with a bushhog occasionally. If my wife would allow it, we'd have goats fenced around the house. She just doesn't think it would be fun shooing them off the top of her car every morning...go figure.

If you move out here, there's some rules. Be a good neighbor and don't tell city people that it's nice out here. No TV, no indoor plumbing, snakes, fire ants, coyotes howling at your back door, mosquitoes, no night life and anything else you can think of. We don't want the cities to be deserted and a steady stream of people moving in the country. We are just bending the rule for you 'cause we like you.

I'm actually really glad there are different places to live. My step brother lives in Austin TX and wouldn't live in the country if you paid him even though he spent his teen summers here with us and loved it. Lots of people love the city life and I like to visit and check it out, but wouldn't really be happy living there. To each his own, but it is great that you're looking for information before diving in/out to something new.

Last year some city people bought 10 acres beside my Mom where I grew up playing in the woods. They fenced it and put up Posted Private Property signs every 100 feet. One odd thing is they had to be on my property without permission to hang the signs. I wouldn't have cared if they are there, just not too stoked about the signs. They open and shut a gate to go home every day and hide in their trailer fearing????? Neighbors, maybe, I don't know. The problem is they are missing out on some of the most wonderful people around. I grew up around all these people and they are so nice. ALL of them will wave if I come by now on the road and will even flag me down to try to give me food or something...lol. My Mom has a garden that yields more than she can possibly eat just so she can feed everyone around her with squash, okra, tomatoes, cucumbers, blueberries, figs, pecans...etc. Another neighbor grows potatoes and beans. Another grows sweet corn and peaches. I don't think they planned that on purpose, but it's worked out great for all with trading veggies. Not exactly trading because if you live nearby, you'll get offered some of all of it for free. Yet the newcomers hide and don't participate.

I think if you get serious about buying some place, first take Jon's advice and make sure it's not a heavily restricted area. Then, go visit the neighbors surrounding the place. Let them know you're not a hostile coming in to make their life miserable or change everything. You'll find out quickly if it's a good neighborhood and you might just leave with a sack of field peas for your visit.