So I live in the countryside. When I was younger I used to think I wanted to settle in a city "when I grew up," but as I grew up that ideal changed. I realized I liked a quieter pace and that being in close proximity to amenities wasn't as important to be as being near a big open green space. Now I have that in abundance, with apple orchards, empty fields, and sheep out by backdoor. Although I do live in a village so I can also walk to the grocery store, post office (even if it is only open for a few hours three days a week!), and hair dresser. A pub and restaurant would be nice additions to the village, but we make do and make our own fun. Have you ever seen Northern Exposure? Sometimes village life reminds me of that, but with Irish accents. We have our town meetings where everyone complains about speeding and there is an annual award for best kept garden. I guess what I'm getting at is that on the way to take these pictures we got blocked by a ton of tractors. Like SO MANY tractors. Turns out it was the annual tractor run at the local church. Which is where all the local tractors do a parade and then enjoy tea, tray bakes, and good craic. It was quite the spectacle; tractors in all colors and increasingly monumental sizes and after much honking (from the tractors--they were social honks, we were on foot) we did eventually get to where we wanted to be. See, even small towns have traffic jams...
CONVERSATION