to hate living in the country?

[Hullygully]

IT'S SO BORING I HATE IT I HATE IT

I think there's a worse unemployment problem in North Devon than South Devon, though.

yanbu, my parents moved us into the country when we were young, the boredom could kill you. You're too old to take drugs as an escape so you'll need to find a hobby, buy a horse? Horse riding is fun. Another option is join a sports team if there are any around. How rural is the rural you're living in? Do you live close enough to somewhere where you could do something interesting? A nearby(ish) town where you could experience life?

That's interesting Jux. I noticed looking at the map on Rightmove that there don't seem to be many secondary schools in North Devon either - I guess they must be huge and far apart so a lot of kids (and teachers) must have to travel quite a way. Also they all seem to go up to 16 and have separate 6th form colleges. Anyone know if that's the case throughout Devon or that part of the country in general? That might put me off - more as a teacher than for my dc actually.

In East Devon, it isn't really the case. Most of our secondaries - the ones I know about, anyway - go up to 18, though there are 6th form colleges too. The schools are normal sized, I think. Private and independent schools may be smaller; we have a fair few of those, most of them very good, but more than we can afford. We actually send dd to school across the border to Dorset, for complicated reasons which I won't go into.

The population in North Devon is more disparate, so one school can cover a wider area. I don't know much about schools there tbf.

holmes compromise with your DH and come to sunny (cos we're the right side of the pennines) east yorks. Officially now Hockney country! No grammar schools but v good state schools in market towns. Cheapish property, easy access to York/Leeds/coast (schools in the coastal towns not good), low crime.

The pattern in our bit of Dorset is lots of tiny first schools (42 in the entire school), medium sized middle schools (approx 500) and 1 big but excellent high school in Dorchester, 2500 students. About 800 in the 6th form.

We have an outstanding secondary 4 miles away (north Dorset) and a bus takes the children from the village. Lots of tiny primary schools, with about 75-100 pupils.

There are jobs, but without commuting the salaries are quite low.

Many people commute to London (a few days a week) we are right on the A303 ,and there is a coach (10 mins away) that takes you to Hammersmith in about 2 hrs! Oh, and not forgetting the train that can get you in to Waterloo in 2, or from another station Paddington (in the same time) :)

Very rural, but I don't feel cut off or unable to get to what I need in a city!

Hmm - Yorks eh? Been there only once on holiday. Loved it actually. Still a bit far from our families though. Some are in Kent! Jux, East Devon is where I first looked - seems lovely. I really liked the look of Ottery St Mary and it would be good to be near Exeter. Dh is keen to be really near the sea and really likes the North Devon coast though... Anyway, thanks again for the insider countryside knowledge - I seem to have slightly derailed the countryside-hating thread . As you were...

Holmes - not Ottery, please, I beg you!

Dorset is difficult to get to and from by car; no motorways. Which is fine if you don't need to travel much, but do bear it in mind.

What's wrong with Ottery, BoerWarKids? I love the fact that where the Weasleys live in Harry Potter is named after it think it looks lovely !

jen but North Dorset links directly to the A303 ~ direct to London!

That is pretty handy.

Although for other commutes it might be quite difficult I suppose.

And the A35 from West Dorset is a fairly fast route to the M27.

Fair enough. It just seems to take ages from Bath. Maybe Bath's the problem then, not Dorset

S, Boerwarkids! What's wrong with Ottery? I'd rather live there than here (except we have a station, and they don't!).

For S read Yes

Bath to Dorset is a bit of a bugger! We can get to my parents in Surrey much faster than places which look quite local but are cross country...

Have to admit it wasn't so much fun tonight, dropping off DD at a party on a farm in the middle of nowhere, 5 miles from the nearest streetlight, with a dodgy mobile phone signal...trying to locate a farm at night, with teenage directions and no postcode, by a couple of small balloons tied on the gate. We did it though, helped by the moonlight and I have never been so grateful for a 4WD car!

just read a review of the new JK Rowling - sounds like it sums up all that's awful about living in the country!

www.guardian.co.uk/books/2012/sep/28/casual-vacancy-jk-rowling-review

just back from seeing to a lame cow and making sure some ponies have some hay, a simple walk across a 20 acre peat bog, lucky it was full moon really...
I mean wtf? I should be sipping espresso in Bar Italia.

I'm sorry, Nelly, but that does make me .

day 5 of the new year, how are the brave faces doing?

would do anything to move back to grimy south east london, but other half refuses saying it depresses him....

meanwhile our idyllic cuntryside lifestyle seems to involve scooping up dog shit on lane every time i want to take our baby out in the car
dodging chelsea tractors/ fumes as we walk down pavementless lanes
being blank smiled out of local play groups by fierce yummy mummies in boot cut jeans and blow dried hair

had dreams of outdoor living, fresh air, sea walks, dinner parties with creative, bohemian souls escaping the rat race
the reality is monolithic out of town shopping centres, cliquey locals and rampant materialism - house prices/ spending money at ridic over priced local shops/ v average restaurants

Move then

Get some hobbies - go out cycling, walking, running, take up horseriding and buy a horse, take up hobby farming, gardening, painting, orienteering, homecrafts, whatever - theres loads of stuff to do. Never any excuse for being bored wherever you are, unless you're a boring person yourself and determined to stay so.

with a 7 month old baby not much time for hobbies! a glass of wine and a gossip would do me.

buy a horse? if only i was richer

yes obviously move, thought this was a thread to wallow in hating the countryside tho!