Housing

Most of working age eek out a living or one or the other goes to Glasgow every day.

That's just how you live.

Sometimes, it can get you down.

But one good day, just the one, oh, it makes it all worthwhile, IMO.

There's no place so beautiful.

We went East for holiday last October.

And it was drier, it was arguably more beautiful in scenery, how it goes.

But folk just weren't the same. You couldn't walk round just a'grinnin' and no one would think anything of that other than 'Hiya!' Folk were snidey-like.

This is as close as I can get mine to how I grew up, my Southern life 6000 miles away.

I dunno any more. I'm all of a swither.

But no place is perfect.

re. the "simple life"; I've yet to work out how to do complicated on a budget...

Yeah... had a few holidays up west coast (Applecross direction) with family, so have a wee appreciation of the logistical hassles involved in getting people & stuff around that bit of the world.

If/when we come back we'd be heading for the lowlands; highlands are good for holidaying, but I've got trouble enough finding paying work where I am; no sense in making life harder for myself.

Heehee. Shopping opportunities are different through here.

"If it keeps you outta here, then good, more for us"

I'll be back...

It was Muirhouse.

9/10 Muirhouse Crescent, to be exact.

We came out here because a friend had a house at cheap rent as she and her husband were temporarily moving abroad to work for VSO.

But by default we found this life or it found us.

And now our children identify with it and, in many ways, so do I.

I've had some folks call it 'the simple life' and while it rankles a bit, I do smile.

Oh, keep thinking that! If it keeps you outta here, then good, more for us .

My MIL once she cried out over DD1, 'Oh, she's gone teuchtar!' But then, her own ma and da were about as 'teuchtar' as it comes.

And what's a teuchtar but a person, anyhow?

'I cut ya, ye all bleed red,' as my Papa always said

Sounds lovely. I'm from round Edinburgh, so know Pilton/Muirhouse.

Situation sounds similar to us; we're skint, but place we're living is nice, and the local school is decent, and we don't have any worries/stress about DS getting in.

Zero chance of buying a house or anything but benefits outweigh drawbacks (for now).

My life here, 9 years now, has been very different from that of most Americans living in the UK.

I first lived with my husband in the council estate where Trainspotting, both the book and the film, were based.

We then lived in Leith, an ecclectic area of Edinburgh, in a HA flat.

We have always worked, but always been working poor.

There was a US military base here, so there are quite a few half-American and some American people here. The latter have been here for many years, and were never the very wealthy sort, so I can relate more to them.

But we went to my native country earlier this month.

And though there were many tears on leaving, and life was much easier in many ways, it was still not so easy in so many other ways, and too expensive for a family of 5.

What is for you will not pass you.

So this is our home.

We do our best to make it so - decorating, celebrating every day.

My children are now very much a product of here.

Other Scots I know might take offense, I know so because I have already experienced it, but there are some regional differences, IMO and IME.

We had, but we are in a HA flat now.

It's a first floor maisonette. It's riddled with damp. We had to spend thousands of pounds when we moved in because it was in a horrible condition and of course there was no cooker, washing machine, furnishings, etc. It has old storage heaters and it costs so much to heat at all. Worst of all, the downstairs, one bed flat is leased to the council to house homeless men, who are usually criminals.

But the rent is cheap, it's Band A, and we have debts as you must run a car to live here and to heat cost very very much, yet it is not really possible to do without heating as it is quite cold up here in winter.

My husband drives a mini bus for a local hotel and works in the hotel, doing whatever, when he is not driving.

The primary school where DD1 goes (DD2 will begin in August) is wonderful, though.

The people are very friendly and kind-hearted for the most part, more so on the whole than in Edinburgh, where DH and the DDs are from (sorry, no offense to Embra folks, this is just our experience).

It is more a community.

The children can and do play out.

There is only one secondary school for many miles, so many that some pupils board at council expense during the week.

So there are never worries about school placements or catchment areas.

This is why we stay.

"Again, I am not Scottish"

I know; picked that up from yr previous postings. I just like hearing non-scots views on scottish issues; call it independent confirmation.

Can see why you're having a crap time with housing if you're up the west coast though...

I don't... diaspora says Canada, NZ & Oz to me.

Again, I am not Scottish. My husband and children are, however.

I'm in the Western Highlands.

I would not consider England the diaspora because it is still in the UK.

===================off-topic===================
Expat AIBU to ask where in Scotland you are? I'm Scot in England, intrigued by yr diaspora remarks...

People over stretched themselves because "property only goes up, you need to get on the boat or miss out forever"

People overstretched themselves because of the insecurity of tenancy laws here.

National newspapers are written by london-based journos who all earn substantially more than average wage, and probably jumped on the great middle-class buy-to-let bandwagon.

They don't see a problem (mostly because they are the problem), so they don't report a problem.

We're stony skint and in debt.

We went to the US, my native country, for a visit earlier this month.

My mother wanted us to stay.

We can't afford it.

But there's one thing I can give to them. Being Scottish, real Scottish, is a big advantage in many countries in the diaspora, all of which have a much better standard of living than here if you chose wisely and well.

Other than education, it's about all I can give them. I want to make sure it doesn't go to waste.

Sometimes people simply don't have a choice whether to sell or not.

Dead people (last time sellers) are one. Families will tend to sell Granny's house for what they can get, rather than waiting around to see if it appreciates. Divorcees are another.

When house rices start to go down, these sorts of sellers will find it in their best interests to sell as fast as possible, putting more downward pressure on prices.

That's what I'm hoping anyway...

DS3 and ds1 are stuck here, being registered disabled: ds1 will work I think but I don't know

I feel pity for him and what he may face just to have a roof, stuck between ds3's will-be-cared-for-somehow level and true independence

But hey, house price values stayed high!

I wonder, sometimes, what good is a house you don't live in and can't sell for the greedy price you want?

But then I think, nevermind. I won't be here to pay for your own self-agrandissement and nor will my children, I'll see to that.

In cities, they were all immigrants who did the same thing and then jabbered away in another language.

Our downstairs neighbours were two of them.

They were twin brothers from S. Africa living with their parents - a nurse and a factory worker.

Their interest was in sending money back to their family, particularly their mother's sister's children, as the sister had died of AIDS and left two young children.

Everyone they worked with was an immigrant, too.

'if I live to where I need a carer, I'm off to Switzerland. me too exp unless dh is still about (yunlikely, older than me)

They bus the carers in here: easier than paying them a living wage after all. COurse you get the quality you pay for- so the carers sit the charges in their wheelchairs in the park for hours whilst they smoke and chat to their mates on their mobiles

Just the life I fancy. Not

'There are no plans to build new houses in our village so we (and others) will be forced to move away.'

Yes, and yet then these same folks bemoan the lack of carers in their area.

No shit! Your kids moved away because they couldn't afford to live there and you can't get anyone to live there because the pay is too low for them to afford it.

Well, they can't have it both ways.

They didn't want new building or 'those kinds' of people housing in the area, but they want someone to wait on them for £6/hour.

What's it gonna be?

Because I'm off to work in Glasgow for twice the price and half the hassle and then, if I live to where I need a carer, I'm off to Switzerland.