Country Girl – No McDonalds and Shopping Locally
Since I have lived in this part of England I have not visited a McDonalds, shopped in a big Supermarket giant or had a Starbucks, Costa or Coffee Republic frappe. “Oh my god!” screamed my friend recently when I announced this fact, “that’s amazing.” And well, I suppose it is really. You see, before we sold up in the city and embarked on our new life – gosh 20 months ago now – we would often be tempted by these city living perks: pancakes and syrup on a Saturday morning, a weekly ‘one shop’ for everything – from clothes and food to light-bulbs and computers, and regular trips to browse around large shiny shopping centres. Everything we desired was at our fingertips and although we did think about the ideals of buying locally and supporting local business, it just seemed too easy not to. OK so we went to the odd farmer’s market, but the lure of getting everything we could possibly need in one place after a busy day, was too tempting to desert entirely.
But over time we started to question our feelings towards convenience and commercialism more frequently, and that’s when we made the eventual decision to sell up, opt out for a while and find out what was really important to us regarding our lifestyle. What we found – most poignantly during our time living in a small Spanish community – was that we really liked not having convenience at our fingertips and that having to make things ourselves and buy locally, which although sometimes more expensive made us consider with much more depth ‘do we really need this?’ was something we wanted a bit more of. We didn’t however think it was a way of life that could be found in our own country and coming back to the UK in search of that seemed like a ridiculous dream. However, I have to say that in the three months we have been back, I’m starting to believe that it is possible and I’m hopeful that here, we have found the right balance. You see, I do want to grow my own food and buy my potatoes from local farmers, but I also want some access to convenient services like a pizza place and a pub (no chains though!) Where I live now is a town where the independent owner of a coffee-shop talks to you about how he started up his business, where you buy your fruit and veg at the Green Grocer or at the side of the road, leaving your money in an ‘honesty box’ and where pancakes are made at home. I believe there is a McDonalds 40 minutes away, but I can rustle up something better in under 20 now. There are of course no hard and fast rules, and I’m still learning every day about the amount I want of this and that. But what I do know is that I’m thoroughly enjoying feeling as if I am not just lining the pockets of the fat cats.
Just this evening I made dinner with Pak Choi grown in my very own garden and it felt flippin marvelous! Earlier on we picked our pumpkins from a local farm and had a five-minute conversation with the farmer as he hung out of his tractor telling us how well he’d done this year. I even officially turned into my mother today when I purchased a pull-along shopping trolley so that I can walk into town and do my shopping without the car. And when a petition against the possibility of a large supermarket being built in my town was mentioned – EEK! – I thought to myself that I would sign it! I’m no crusader, but I do think that if we could all do a few little bits we might all benefit from a stronger sense of community. It’s not something I really experienced greatly in my old life, but it’s something I am really enjoying now.
Would love to know what kind of community you live in and what your thoughts/feelings are on shopping locally and moving away a little from mainstream convenience … feel free to start a discussion in my very welcoming comment box section below :-)
Alice Griffin is a writer and traveller who lives on the edge of the North Yorkshire Moors, England. Although she accepts the fact that she will most certainly always have itchy feet - she's surprised to find that she may also be falling for a place that could be her permanent base. You can catch up with Alice’s day-to-day life on her personal blog ~ Fanciful Alice ~
But over time we started to question our feelings towards convenience and commercialism more frequently, and that’s when we made the eventual decision to sell up, opt out for a while and find out what was really important to us regarding our lifestyle. What we found – most poignantly during our time living in a small Spanish community – was that we really liked not having convenience at our fingertips and that having to make things ourselves and buy locally, which although sometimes more expensive made us consider with much more depth ‘do we really need this?’ was something we wanted a bit more of. We didn’t however think it was a way of life that could be found in our own country and coming back to the UK in search of that seemed like a ridiculous dream. However, I have to say that in the three months we have been back, I’m starting to believe that it is possible and I’m hopeful that here, we have found the right balance. You see, I do want to grow my own food and buy my potatoes from local farmers, but I also want some access to convenient services like a pizza place and a pub (no chains though!) Where I live now is a town where the independent owner of a coffee-shop talks to you about how he started up his business, where you buy your fruit and veg at the Green Grocer or at the side of the road, leaving your money in an ‘honesty box’ and where pancakes are made at home. I believe there is a McDonalds 40 minutes away, but I can rustle up something better in under 20 now. There are of course no hard and fast rules, and I’m still learning every day about the amount I want of this and that. But what I do know is that I’m thoroughly enjoying feeling as if I am not just lining the pockets of the fat cats.
Just this evening I made dinner with Pak Choi grown in my very own garden and it felt flippin marvelous! Earlier on we picked our pumpkins from a local farm and had a five-minute conversation with the farmer as he hung out of his tractor telling us how well he’d done this year. I even officially turned into my mother today when I purchased a pull-along shopping trolley so that I can walk into town and do my shopping without the car. And when a petition against the possibility of a large supermarket being built in my town was mentioned – EEK! – I thought to myself that I would sign it! I’m no crusader, but I do think that if we could all do a few little bits we might all benefit from a stronger sense of community. It’s not something I really experienced greatly in my old life, but it’s something I am really enjoying now.
Would love to know what kind of community you live in and what your thoughts/feelings are on shopping locally and moving away a little from mainstream convenience … feel free to start a discussion in my very welcoming comment box section below :-)
Alice Griffin is a writer and traveller who lives on the edge of the North Yorkshire Moors, England. Although she accepts the fact that she will most certainly always have itchy feet - she's surprised to find that she may also be falling for a place that could be her permanent base. You can catch up with Alice’s day-to-day life on her personal blog ~ Fanciful Alice ~
Add a Comment
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Comment by Alice Griffin on November 3, 2009 at 12:07am -
Hi Joe,
Your childhood sounds idyllic - those simple moments are what we all cherish. Some of the best moments with my daughter are when we are doing simple tasks - together.
For me I once thought I wanted to move 'right away' from the city, but having done that I realise that although wonderful, I missed some perks. I am hoping that here, we can find a good balance. It's nice to be able to shop locally, but equally it's great to hop in the car for a day trip to the big smoke. And to remove yourself entirely from big companies/city life is a massive life-change. I have met many people who have done this, and applaud them. But for me it is too extreme. However, I think we can all partake in a little of it and any small thing is better than no thing. You know, like I always buy my eggs now from one particular little place down the road. It's more time-consuming to get something here and something there, but I feel I'm supporting the 'little people' in some small way.
Good luck with your decision!
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Comment by Joe Cheray on November 2, 2009 at 3:31pm -
Alice,
I have wrestled with the same thing. I have an opportunity to move to a small town that is miles away from what we in the states call civilization. As much as I love the city when I visit this small town I miss the times I had growing up in a small agricultural community. My memories of helping my grandmother harvest the fruits and vegetables in our garden and helping my grandfather slaughter animals and butchering them were fond memories. I think those were one of the few happier memories of my tumultuous childhood.
There really is something to be said for getting back to the simpler way of life. I am so glad you are getting a chance to live life this way on your terms and saying no to the fat cats that run the city corporations.
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