We made a few trips to WV a few years ago, and during one of them, we drove nearly three hours in snow and ice. I finally had to turn the wheel over to my son because I could not see well enough to keep going. He managed to get us down the interstate to the right service road, where we stopped and gravely considered the hill that was between us and our hotel. I do not even know how we made it, no chains or snow tires on a 2WD SUV, but we did.
All the high elevation in WV? Yeah, they have some winter. Perhaps not what you're used to, but traumatic as hell for us Southerners! (I'm from NC originally.)
*chuckles* I think in 2005 we had a real bad snow (it was over half a foot) and then on top of it we got this freak freeze. Where we lived at that time me and wife were more into a wooded area. I woke swearing I was hearing shotguns going off beside our bed.
Looking outside it became clearer what was going on. Trees were literally freezing from the inside to out. The moisture in the wood froze solid and then as the temperature began rising with day moving onto us, the trees were snapping cleaning off.
We lived for over ten days (a military week) with only four to six hours of electric a day provided by her grandfather running a generator for the barest essentials. Think we had a chest deep freezer & our refrigerator hooked up. Her granddad's help come at the expense of me helping do several various odd jobs for folks around and about once the weather broke and we could get out to go help. Yes, yet again a grandfather trying to work me to death. *grins, smh, chuckles* As if I've ever minded.
Our apartment is rather small even with an upstairs. The style of apartment we're in has a galley style L shaped kitchen. That opens to a squared living room that has two closets on the interior wall, one closet is a half bath water closet, the other houses the furnace, water heater and electrical panel.
There's a short hall from the stoop entrance going into the living room, off to the interior wall there's stairs. Upstairs is one twin bed sized bedroom or "kid's room" we've converted into our "office", and one master bedroom, a hall between them with a full bat on the end. The living room and upstairs are low pile carpeted, bathrooms, galley, mech room have linoleum. There's a small room sized outside storage room butting against the neighbor's storage room on our "patio" a concrete slab.
I'd say likely 8'*12' for the kid room and the master 12/10''* 12' not counting closet space in either, think the full bath is 8'*8' standard. The kitchen also houses the laundry room/closet with its folding track doors. Wife and I agree that the place was constructed with lower grade "affordable" materials internally. We were told there was insulation in the walls. We've our doubts about that as we can hear the neighbors at times.
Odd story regarding that too. Wife had to phone up 911 one night. There was a thud next door as if something or someone had fallen down the stairs. Then, a lady over there screamed "someone call 911!" A short while later we see in the newspaper that the resident over there had been located 4 miles away stuffed behind some big round hay bails in a barn.
Apparently l.e.os (Law Enforcement Officers s) suspected some kind of foul play, possibly even murder. I was upstairs in a "dead to the world" sleep, this was before I'd been diagnosed with the apnea. At any given about a week after reading that in the paper a man and woman come by and were questioning me and her about what happened. The man stated he was the brother of the man that was the alleged victim & that he knew in the victim's medical state there was no way he walked 4 miles nor climbed in behind the hay.
I still believe though the man and woman questioning us was more likely to have been F.B.I that come out of Charleston office to assist local l.e.os. They seemed far too "collected" about the whole incident and it was "approached" all too casually & coincidentally to have been "family". I might be wrong though but you'd play hell trying to get me to shake that feeling about it, having once been a federal employee myself, spent time with plenty enough cops working with and otherwise.
Wife says our full rent would run around $535 monthly. At present we're using what here is called section eight housing, meaning H.U.D helps offset some of our rent. Think we pay roughly $475 so H.U.D. is not covering much of the cost. She figures if in September she is hired for her new job, we'll likely be paying full rent. She'll be able to do that though as she'll be earning better.
I know it seems I'm not contributing. No, I'm not doing so financially. I would if I could without any hesitation. In fact I would rather be helping out by bringing money home. She has a point though in that I have done her proud in the two years we've been here in keeping house. I know that doesn't seem much perhaps. My part will become greater once we find our little farm. I'll be the one tending the farmstead and homestead.
She also has a point that I only have 1 gear, ... "git 'er done!" And I've done that long enough in life that it's now catching up with me in possibly some of the damnedest ways. I used to give 160% constantly, on my "better" days now I'm lucky if I can manage 80%, and for someone like me, I consider that a disability.
Unfortunately, ... da da dumb, the state or and feds will not grant me disability. As well, apparently all they require anyone to do is roughly 45%. Kid you not her family tells me they know a guy that is a drunkard who gets disability. I cannot afford staying a drunkard even if I so desired, which I don't, yet someone does and gets disability for it.
We've decided that until we're able to sock back possible down payment, we'll stay here. Still looking for something ranch style, no stairs, $30,000 - $50,000 range with 2 to 5 acres for a small hobby/family farm. We'd like to be as sustainable, self reliant as we can be.
To those ends I'm intending to "work smarter" not harder in caring for our home/farm/stead. Been seeing a lot of different handy tips and tricks regarding husbandry. All else fails I got a near complete collection of Foxfire books full of old time wisdom to fall back on.
Currently apartment living suits us but it is also a temporary means to hopefully a better end.