reply to a fellow writer overwhelmed by technology, modernity and the bigcity:
Hi,
You might be happier and less befuddled by technology & modernity if you move to rural Ontario. I chose to retreat to the boonies 25 years ago after living in TO for around 18 years. I loved the multiculturalism, sophistication and overall arts scene in TO, and sadly most of this is missing in rural Ontario. But as a fellow writer, you can practice your craft in calm & beautiful (& cheap) surroundings out here.
If you own a home in TO, you can cash it in before the inevitable bubble again bursts, retire out here & live mortgage free. That's what I did in 1989 - sold my substandard shitbox semi in the east end for $150 K (paid $45,500 for it 4 years earlier), & haven't had a mortgage or rent due since. If you rent, well you can probably afford to buy in rural Ontario, & if you still prefer renting, well, rents are a lot cheaper!
There are gorgeous trails everywhere. Rural people prefer driving to walking, so it's rare to meet another human on the trails. I do see a lot of deer and rabbit tracks, & have also had interactions with pine martens, porcupines, blue herons & even a lone grey wolf and a panther! This list doesn't include the ephemeral & discarnate spirits I've encountered (yeah, sounds a tad crazy), but live out here for a few decades wandering the trails & woods at all seasons, & you'll be amazed at the peacefulness you'll enjoy and the strange encounters which will become almost normal ; )
It's barely a 2 hour drive from my rural village to downtown TO, which I visit as often as possible to sample multicultural food (Little India, Hanoi 3 Seasons, sushi from T&T on Cherry, etc. etc.). Also visit the AGO, see a play (often by a friend), maybe a poetry reading or 2 (also compatriots), walk The Beach(es), Cherry Beach, Bluffer Park, Taylor Creek Ravines, etc. etc. Then boot it back to my rural heaven. I even have my own riverfront (well, creekfront) retreat now on the Upper Moira River.
Rural ON is a geographic Whos Who treasure map of CanLit - less than an hour's drive from here is Al Purdy's A-frame (now a writer's retreat - first in ON), Susanna Moodie's grave, the sites of Susanna & her sister's pioneer homesteads, Farley Mowat's childhood home, Marian Engel's cottage & Robertson Davies's newspaper domain, as well as Bon Echo Park, Petroglyphs Park, etc. etc. again.
Hit me up if you'd like some suggestions & info on how to escape the confusion of the big city & tips on rural relocating & survival.
peace & poetry power!
Chris
Hi,
You might be happier and less befuddled by technology & modernity if you move to rural Ontario. I chose to retreat to the boonies 25 years ago after living in TO for around 18 years. I loved the multiculturalism, sophistication and overall arts scene in TO, and sadly most of this is missing in rural Ontario. But as a fellow writer, you can practice your craft in calm & beautiful (& cheap) surroundings out here.
If you own a home in TO, you can cash it in before the inevitable bubble again bursts, retire out here & live mortgage free. That's what I did in 1989 - sold my substandard shitbox semi in the east end for $150 K (paid $45,500 for it 4 years earlier), & haven't had a mortgage or rent due since. If you rent, well you can probably afford to buy in rural Ontario, & if you still prefer renting, well, rents are a lot cheaper!
There are gorgeous trails everywhere. Rural people prefer driving to walking, so it's rare to meet another human on the trails. I do see a lot of deer and rabbit tracks, & have also had interactions with pine martens, porcupines, blue herons & even a lone grey wolf and a panther! This list doesn't include the ephemeral & discarnate spirits I've encountered (yeah, sounds a tad crazy), but live out here for a few decades wandering the trails & woods at all seasons, & you'll be amazed at the peacefulness you'll enjoy and the strange encounters which will become almost normal ; )
It's barely a 2 hour drive from my rural village to downtown TO, which I visit as often as possible to sample multicultural food (Little India, Hanoi 3 Seasons, sushi from T&T on Cherry, etc. etc.). Also visit the AGO, see a play (often by a friend), maybe a poetry reading or 2 (also compatriots), walk The Beach(es), Cherry Beach, Bluffer Park, Taylor Creek Ravines, etc. etc. Then boot it back to my rural heaven. I even have my own riverfront (well, creekfront) retreat now on the Upper Moira River.
Rural ON is a geographic Whos Who treasure map of CanLit - less than an hour's drive from here is Al Purdy's A-frame (now a writer's retreat - first in ON), Susanna Moodie's grave, the sites of Susanna & her sister's pioneer homesteads, Farley Mowat's childhood home, Marian Engel's cottage & Robertson Davies's newspaper domain, as well as Bon Echo Park, Petroglyphs Park, etc. etc. again.
Hit me up if you'd like some suggestions & info on how to escape the confusion of the big city & tips on rural relocating & survival.
peace & poetry power!
Chris
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