Life in the Country

I really like our WV place. For many reasons, one of which is the fact that we built it ourselves. During the process, I sometimes hated it. Like when temperatures were in the nineties and I was pouring 80-pound bags of concrete-like stuff into the mortar mixer. Or when we realized the wind had destroyed the tar paper we’d applied to the roof the previous weekend. (And then there was that ginormous spider I discovered the following weekend when cleaning up said tar paper.)

There were quite a few not-so-great moments. (Linking you to all of them would take me until 2011. If you are really interested, you can READ MORE ABOUT THE CONSTRUCTION PROCESS.) There were lots of good ones, too. And now that the place is done, it’s awesome to be able to come here and enjoy life in the country. Even if I do have to work while here.

By suburban standards, our place is remote. (View Romney, West Virginia on this map.) All the essentials are here for the most part. Or nearby.

Of course, “nearby” is relative. We have a big grocery store (Food Lion), which was recently remodeled, but the nearest Walmart is about a 45-minute drive. There aren’t a lot of great restaurants to choose from. There is one Mexican place we love, El Puente, but it’s in Capon Bridge, 45 minutes east of here. The closest movie theater? Yep, 45 minutes. (Not that we ever got to the movies.) Closest big hardware store, i.e., Lowe’s? Closest Panera Bread? Large chain restaurant? All 45 minutes.

One thing I never thought about was shipping a package via UPS. From our MD place, there are any number of UPS Stores or shipping facilities. Heck, I could drive a package to BWI Airport in 15 minutes.

The other day, the IT guy that works for my employer told me returning my old laptop would be fast and easy. “Just take it to the nearest UPS Store,” he said. I laughed. I told him I doubted there were any close by, but I didn’t really know.

So I decided to check.

There’s one UPS Drop Box that is supposedly a half mile outside of town, which would only be about a 20-minute drive for us. But it will only accept “UPS Shipments not exceeding 16 X 13 X 3 inches.” And honestly, based on this map and its accompanying directions, I have no idea where it is.

There’s another drop box in Keyser, West Virginia that I could probably find. But that’s got the same size restrictions as the drop box on “the road” in Romney.

The closest authorized shipping outlet? It’s near our favorite Mexican restaurant, El Puente, in Capon Bridge. Another 45-minute drive.

I’m starting to realize something here. Whenever anyone asks, how far to the nearest anything, I just have to say 45 minutes. It can be like the 15-minute thing at Chinese restaurants. You know, when no matter when or how much food you order, it will always, ALWAYS be ready in 15 minutes?

So we have to drive a lot. So what? It’s worth it. I’d take life in the country over life in suburbia or the city any day.