Tag: rural life

Bryce Angell shares a story about the charms of using an outhouse in the middle of winter.

There are days that seem uneventful, but there is no doubt there are countless individuals who would give anything for a quiet existence. 

A recent U.S. Census Bureau change will redefine about 1,300 areas considered urban a decade ago as rural, after the 2020 Census. The bureau is updating its criteria for what is considered an urban area.

Kymberly Foster Seabolt ponders how living in the middle of nowhere really can be everything. 

With declining rural populations, farm groups in some states have expressed concerns about agricultural labor and reiterated a need for immigration reform. Ohio and Pennsylvania aren’t major states for livestock processing, and many Ohio farmers, in particular, are growing row crops, which doesn’t require a lot of workers compared to crops like fruits and vegetables. But there’s still a need for workers in agribusiness and on farms that grow specialty crops or raise livestock.

The White House Office of Management and Budget rejected a proposal that would have essentially expanded the definition of “rural” to include larger areas, following widespread concerns about the suggested change.

Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia are losing some influence in Congress, thanks to initial results from the 2020 Census, released April 26. But based on what policy experts are seeing, the shift isn’t rooted in changes to rural areas of those states.

The White House Office of Management and Budget is considering a recommendation that would expand the definition of rural to include larger areas. But rural researchers say the changes could make it harder for rural communities to get funding and for researchers to track what is happening in rural areas, and that they’re based on an oversimplified view of what metropolitan means.

Kym Seabolt digs into society's fascination with rural decor and clothing — workwear, roosters, canning jars for every use, large-scale gardening.

While it's easy to be carried away by the dreams of fresh air and open space, the not-always-pleasant realities of rural life should also be considered.