I'm thinking of going Amish...

...for about 2 days out of the week.

I just got back from my lunch hour and there was a detour on the road I normally take, resulting in a nice, windy drive through Amish county on a gorgeous, sunny spring day.

All those beautiful farms with gorgeously built homes, peaceful yards, laundry bobbing on the line. As I was admiring, it hit me that they probably built or inherited those homes, I'm guessing not many of them have to worry about a mortgage payment or getting to work on time, retirement or the fact that gas prices are slowly rising again (2.39!). The whole family is at home doing things in a relaxed fashion only worrying about taking care of their basic needs. Men are working the land, women are baking bread and children are running around barefoot in the yard- not a care in the world.

I realize that's a very stereotypical outlook on a community I really know nothing about. But, that's the way life on the farm looks to us "outsiders" driving (a car!) by.

Makes me wonder why the heck the rest of us put ourselves through all this stress. Why do we make things so complicated, so fast paced? I have told Clint over and over - "Anytime you want to go Amish, I'll go with ya" and really, I'm only half kidding. I love to be busy and I'm the kind of gal who needs lots of social interaction. I don't really enjoy or relish domestic tasks and I get bored easily, so I'm thinking 2 days a week of the Amish life would be just about perfect. I think it would help me slow down the other 5 days.

You know - just to give my mind a break every so often. "Going off the grid" <--(Clint's term!) is becoming increasingly appealing to me. Maybe it's the new 10 hour days at work. Maybe it's because we put the house on the market, so there's something else to think about, maybe it's the couponing game. Who knows? - but seems lately my mind is reeling and I'm guessing I'm going to be taking more country drives throughout the summer. One thing I do know for sure - I can't wait for vacation! Maybe instead of going Amish, I should just move to Traverse City. I get the same feeling up there too.