[quote=The-Shoveler]From the described “current job leaves us alone for 24-48 hours at a time”
Does not sound like he would be doing a daily commute
(most likely off hours as well).
TV may not be a bad option in such a case.[/quote]I’ve lived alone (or with part-time kids) for the last 15+ years. I do NOT live in a gated community and do NOT have bars on my windows. I’ve gone on up to 3 mile (RT) walks by myself in my neighborhood and taken hundreds of shorter walks with my dog (she can’t walk that far). My kid(s) have rode their bikes all over around here as do other neighborhood kids. Senior citizens up to 90 years old actually take walks to the bus stop and a few blocks around their residence … some with a walker. Some of them are regulars and meet their friends at regular street corners to walk daily. Young military wives who rent around here stay home with babies and toddlers up to 8 months by themselves while their sponsor-spouse is deployed. Most of them walk several times per week, often with an infant in a front-pack, an older baby in a stroller and a ~3 yr old following on his/her tricycle. Even with all 3 at once! That’s why I wanted the OP to clarify if she actually “feels” safe to walk in her current neighborhood.
The safety issue, along with being too overly concerned about the number of PC 290 registrants (registered “sex offenders”) residing in a particular neighborhood is wa-a-a-ay overblown by many over-protective helicopter parents of today (the PC 290 group actually resides in nearly every zip code in the state). The “perception of safety” is in the eye of the beholder. Frequently, the people who feel the most safe in their neighborhoods are the ones who grew up there or have lived there the longest. Outsiders considering moving into a particular area often “perceive” it not to be “safe” based upon superficial physical attributes such as older homes, older streets, overhead lines, and non-tile roofs. Also due to the existence of mom-and-pop stores and small local businesses instead of big-box stores and large supermarkets which need a vehicle to get to. The perception of a particular area not being “safe” to live in or walk in is a crock of BS conjured up by ignorant “outsiders” who know nothing of the particular area, its “culture” or its people. In short, it is utter nonsense which causes prospective homebuyers to reject perfectly decent homes in established, very convenient areas which they can actually afford in a market which has had a dearth of resale listings for years in favor of moving far, far away from their jobs or “settling” for an overpriced newer condo with thin walls, multiple monthly fees and no yard for their kids.
