I know you understand all this. A good number of your trolls are premised on
others assuming the faulty thinking. Most surprisingly, it works like a
charm.

Here's something to think about. It's all nice to move out to the "country"
and it is all the things you say, especially in recent contrast to NYC. It
may take a decade or two but you will realize something. You may move back
to the city, retain the inner peace of the country lifestyle and appreciate
even more what the city has to offer.

One thing with living out there is that you are ever more dependent on
technology on a first hand basis. You can't live without a car. Time spent
commuting to places(which are now further away) takes out of your life. The
choices are less, quality tends to be lower. You'll find the people moving
in are bringing the city with them. The people who lived for 10 years or
more will complain about how the place has changed and in ten years you will
too.

It's rare that a parent first mentions their son/daughter is happy or
mentions it at all. They will usually start to pursue happiness on the day
they retire. "I always wanted to ..." they say and then go on to try it, if
their bodies/health/financial status are capable of it. I've seen too many
former executives at retirement out trying to run/get fit and make up for a
long life of absence or neglect. Why suffer through 85% of your life to try
to make the last 15% liveable?

All this rat race stuff feeds off of itself. Employees are pushed to work
excess overtime for what? Stress, missing the family and not having a life
outside of work. They have become beasts of burden. The stress on
consumption, the emphasis on all growth is good has its human toll. Why does
health care cost so much? Because so much health care is needed. I venture
to say that 70% of all health problems are directly related to workplace
induced stress and rat race mentality.

If people learned to live on less, they would have so much more. That is
why the good Capt Neal is such a role model. An unfettered life, simply and
well lived. You yourself even mentioned a few times that the simple things
the good Capt experiences are lifetime treasures, the things others want
after toiling their entire lives away. Why do they do such things? It is
because they lost sight on the basics - happiness and contentment. I'm not
talking about momentary diversions or escapes but rather a life of simple
honesty to oneself , an acknowledgement of reality and the courage to pursue
it. Is it no wonder that the healthiest people are usually the happiest?