After the chicken ordinance spectacle, Britton and I received an email from the city that said we could come into compliance within a “reasonable schedule of attrition” which we are taking to mean that we can keep them until they die. Which leaves us back where we have been for the last nearly 2 years…with our chickens. In a way we are relieved…the way that the code was going was turning into a bureaucratic nightmare with inspections, fees, permits and government nosey-ness into our business. So in a way, we have bittersweet feelings about how the whole thing turned out.
There are some people who worked on the process with us who really want to push to get this back on the city agenda and to appeal it. I…am just not really feeling it. I am tired of fighting for something that I think was going down the wrong route of micromanagement anyway. I am bitter in that I fully believe people should be able to raise their own food, pets and utilize their property in the way they so choose, but it is sweet that they allowed us to keep our chickens anyway AND we don’t have to get a permit to keep them!
One of my favorite songs and by a great Colorado band!
Bittersweet feelings goes further than just this chicken ordinance thing. We have bittersweet feelings toward Greeley in general. We feel sweetly about this being our hometown and appreciate everything that it has allowed us to do and the personal growth we’ve attained here, but bitter that it doesn’t seem to want to change with the times and feels like it is pushing us out. That is part of the reason we want to move and live in Puerto Rico…we have grown out of shell here and are looking to expand our horizons.
We went to the 2nd out of three bee classes yesterday and decided to wait until we are living in Puerto Rico to get our own colonies. We do want to go learn hands on with some beekeepers in the area however. We just figured that we should be clearing out things from our lives here rather than bringing more in that we will only have to get rid of before we leave anyway.
Yesterday was also Britton’s and my dad’s birthday so we went out to lunch after the bee class and discussed their lives on this earth. My dad is exactly double the age of Britton! Strange coincidences in life.
We are still not sure what our exact ETA in Puerto Rico will be but we are still thinking 2010 will be a year of many changes. A lot of it depends on my job, Britton’s ability to work remote or find another job and whether or not we want to start our own business or just live down there.
It is beginning to feel more and more real, this change that is coming over us. And while I am tremendously excited, it is still that ambivalence, that bittersweet feeling, that makes it all the harder. If it were all bad or all good, life would be so much simpler. But it’s the complexity that makes it interesting.
Hi, I have been following your blog for sometime now and as a Puerto Rican part of the biggest migration of islanders that is moving stateside during this decade. I am somehow concerned that you make a move to Puerto Rico and you been desilusioned with your decision.
Since I moved from PR to CA about 4 years ago, I have dreamt of moving back to the island, but I know for a fact that getting employment there is very difficult and the cost of living is quite high. Puerto Rico is in the midst of the worst economic recesion since the 1950’s and if you are not able to bring your own source of income to the island, I suggest you hold until you can afford some form of retirement.
Accoding to some estimates almost half a million people including myself have left the island this decade, so I just want to warn you about this fact. In case you are not aware of the current puerto rico events, the local newpapers sites are endi.com, primerahora.com, vocero.com and the only local tv channel wapa.tv. They are in Spanish but I’m sure you can see the pictures and videos and figure it. In case you don’t know the first thing that will stand out is the huge crimewave in the island. I hope this helps you get a balance view of the situation.
Other thing is that I want to add is that in the decade of the 2010, there will be a huge demographic shift in the island, and by 2020 the island will be like a retrirement paradise. There is a low natality rate among Puerto Ricans. Many public elementary schools have been closed because of the lack of children, and according to the US Census PR has the fourth lowest natality rate of the nation. So in the future a more mature and less dense island, may present a better quality of life than the present situation.
Anyway I don’t want discourage you from moving to my beloved Puerto Rico, but if you do I want you to do it with your feet on the ground, and remember the best place to live is in the West Coast.