Saturday, May 19, 2012

first scare


December 1998.   Living in North Jersey -- suburbs of New York City.  A scary place to be should something happen when the clock strikes midnight on December 31, 1999.  Hmmmm....maybe we should follow an old dream and move out west and plant all our own food and be self-sufficient; living off the land.  Far away where the chaos won't get to us.  Near a river so we'll have plenty of water once the entire country's water system shuts down.  Just you and me, simple and free.  Hmmmm.  


Nah. Too much work.  Besides, my husband's a city boy.  He has to shave when he camps.  Maybe we should just move somewhere less crowded.  Something to ponder.


More space.  We could sure use more room for our growing family than our tiny garage apartment provides.  Looking at local properties, we're shocked at the very high cost of living in our area.  We'll never be able to do buy a bigger place unless we drastically change our lifestyle, put the children in daycare, and me go back to my careerThen we'll need another car, new clothes, etc. etc.  It just doesn't seem worth it.  We were committed to the children being at home while they were little.  I had worked full-time for over ten years and was ready and excited to raise my children and spend lots of time with them.

My sister calls me to chat.  She tells me about a house for sale next to hers.  What?!!  Are you SURE?  It can't be that affordable!  Things are so much less expensive down there... Hmmmm...back to the south.  That's something to ponder.

Back to the Y2K scare.  People start storing canned goods and bottled water.  I picture my first-born son with his ribs showing and sucked-in cheeks, like those poor children you see on the World News.  I imagine how it could very well be a reality if all that the media said was going to happen actually happened.

And then there were the in-laws.  Lots of problems with the in-laws, who vehemently rejected me in the beginning.  It was a little better, but not much hope seen.  Nothing had really changed much.  A wise counselor advised us the best thing we could do is put distance between them and us.  We needed that space to blossom and be free.  Just you and me, simple and free.  No more drama and chaos and hurt feelings and crying.

Warm, sunny south, here we come. 

3 comments:

  1. How brave you were then, and how brave you are now to undertake this journey of sharing.

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  2. That is quite a story, Jimi Ann, and quite the leap of faith to pick up and move like that. Took courage! :)

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  3. It is never an easy step, but I believe it is always rewarding!!

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