[_lm_]

I live in a ruralish area--20 minute drive from the local university, but I'm surrounded by farms. I like the solitude and the space. I can't see any of my neighbors--the closest I get to that is seeing their utility pole light through the trees in the fall/winter. For the same price/month as a 1-bedroom, 1-car garage condo in town, I get a 3-bedroom house + drive-in basement + pole barn. Couldn't care less about the house, but the space in the basement is nice for bigger projects. I see a lot of folks out this way with backyard shops too.

I keep a few chickens; if I wanted I could have a huge garden too. Plenty of people keep cows, horses, chickens, etc.

Power is through a co-op; in my experience it's both cheaper and more reliable than the in-town utilities. Well water tastes good and works as long as I have power.

Internet I get through a WISP, it's not fast nor cheap but it's better than satellite (and, at the time, cell service). I did put up a 50' tower for that, which was quite an adventure.

I'm a grad student; the university is perhaps the biggest employer in the area but there are still some factory jobs and also some commercial science jobs in the area. My landlord used to be the butcher and farmed/raised cattle in his 'spare' time. Sadly, there's significantly fewer local businesses in the area than there were a decade or two ago, according to folks who have been here that long.