Has anyone here considered communal living?

[w8liftinglady]

I have been thinking a lot about this as I scratch to get by...just curious..

[KatyaR]

1. I think some of us may not survive the later years without it.

I know I don't really have much of a support system, so if anything happened to me, I'd be up a creek. I think it would be an interesting thing to try.

[w8liftinglady]

2. that's my thought..

I'd be curious to see how those who have tried it found it.

[graywarrior]

3. Did it in the 70's. Have been thinking about doing it again.

[w8liftinglady]

5. what were the pro's/con's?

[graywarrior]

8. Pro is that it's cheaper.

Con is if you don't overlook personalities just so you can live cheaper, you can end up living with some impossible people. OR, you learn tolerance and acceptance in order to keep your sanity.

Other than that, it's really a business. Careful bookkeeping and other things that go into running a business.

[Whoa_Nelly]

4. A DU Commune!

Sign me up!

[w8liftinglady]

6. Man,that would be so cool...

a group of like-minded people...I would be in Heaven...

[Horse with no Name]

13. Until you get the freeper trolls

in the middle of it tearing our little houses down.

[Whoa_Nelly]

16. With chickens we'll be raising, and the building materials for housing

we'll just tar and feather'em!

http://c1d1t1.com/?p=26
How to Tar and Feather A Grown Man

[Tyo]

7. It can be really rewarding

But it's also a lot of work both emotionally and physically (if nothing else you sometimes feel like you're always cleaning up someone else's mess or trying to figure out the money). But it can actually save money and use resources effectively and bring you closer to people than you ever thought possible, but it requires a lot of discipline to work well. I think it's probably a lot closer to a religious community in this sense than it is to the laid-back hippie stereotype.

[Nicole]

9. Yes

My reasons are somewhat different than your's.

I live in a home bigger than I need. It's not a McMansion or anything close to that. Just a normal sized house suitable for a family. I live alone & think about what a waste of space half of it is.

Sometimes I think it would be nice to invite a struggling young family to occupy that space. Other times I think maybe an older person on a fixed income would love to live here. The house is paid for so I don't need rent money, just some companionship.

[SPKrazy]

29. That Sounds Really Cool!

I bet there is a struggling young family that would take you up on it.

Of course, don't forget my room there!

:hug:

[Blue_In_AK]

10. I lived communally back in the hippie days...

I liked it.

[freethought]

11. Didn't the Europeans adopt a version of communal living?

I remember reading an article some time ago about communities in Europe that were trying a new kind of experiment. People were choosing to live in multi-family communal homes. They had all the amenities like heat, hot water, electricity, modern kitchens and the like. However multiple families lived under the same roof. I read the article some time ago so I don't recall a great deal from it.

[Kutjara]

12. I've thought about it a lot lately, but...

...Scarlett Johansson and Amanda Peet haven't been returning my calls, so the project's on hold for the moment.

[Horse with no Name]

14. Seriously

Have you thought of doing traveling?
It pays well plus pays your housing, etc.
Your Texas license is good in quite a few states so you wouldn't be out licensing fees in several places.
I have a friend who just left here and went to a rural hospital in California. They are paying her housing/expenses and she is making $75/hour.
Something to consider.:shrug:
I'm planning on moving in June.
I am going to take a contract initially to where I am moving so that my moving expenses will be covered and I will have free housing until I get settled.

[Bullwinkle925]

15. I've often thought of having a women's dorm. type of living for the golden years.

There is a need for alternative life-styles in the coming years. Put your thinking caps on and come up with something.

[BarenakedLady]

17. I don't like people enough

It's true. I'm quiet, I'm a loner. I need my own space, which I don't even have really. If I'm around a lot of people, I need to find a quiet place to decompress afterward.

I think the idea is a good one though, but my nature would make it difficult for me to live on a commune.

[Whoa_Nelly]

18. We'll put you in charge of the Zen Garden

Peace and Tranquility will rule!

Either that, or you can run the fish hatchery on the outside of the commune :hi:

[BarenakedLady]

19. Cool

Naked tai chi, yoga, and Pilates classes every morning at 9 am sharp.

[Whoa_Nelly]

20. Naked Tai Chi?

An unfettered life! Sign me up!

[xmas74]

21. I've noticed quite a few old two and three story houses

in my town that need repaired. Most of them are quite cheap.

I've thought about someday buying one, renovating it from top to bottom (attic and basement both finished) and advertising for other single parents to split the bills together, along w/ the child care and the kid errands. (You know, one takes them to soccer, one takes them to dance, etc.) Everyone helps w/ the housekeeping and the gardening, kids included.

Much cheaper than renting an apartment in my area. Guaranteed child care at all times (as long as you don't overdo it), healthier meals w/ the gardening and the additional money that could be spent on groceries, easier to maintain the house w/ the money and some only children would have something like a brother/sister relationship w/ other children.

[Deja Q]

22. I would. If anybody wants to take me.

And not like that you sweet nice pervos, I do have my own standards... :D

[BarenakedLady]

25. darn....

....pfft....well forget it then....

[Deja Q]

27. I know, I know... I got used to that a long time ago...

But I must always be in the wrong to have been given the same treatment by so many. :shrug:

Especially when you thought you were in a community... I fear Thatcher was right (but not for her reasons).

[FedUpWithIt All]

23. All the time.

I am very into the idea of "village" communities.

In the next couple of years, the plan is to begin a small moderately self sustaining "homestead". My real dream is to have it develop into a type of village (think hobbits).

The craving to live simpler and co-productive is becoming to hard to ignore.

[texanwitch]

24. I have three other people living in my house now, making room for one more.

We are friends so it works for us.

My friends travel for two weeks out of the month so I still have the house to myself most of the time.

It can work but everyone really needs to act like adults.

[bikebloke]

26. Israeli kibbutz

In the early 80's I spent 4 years living on a kibbutz and a moshav. The kibbutz is communal (and enjoyable), while the moshav as capitalistic. For a while the life on the kibbutz was nice, with people from all over the world. But people would come and go. Plus, not being Jewish (as many of us weren't) I knew if I tried to make a life of it, I'd always be an outsider. Then there was the intellectual fodder missing.

One the positive side, it was a secure existence. You did your work, while food, clothing and entertainment was provided by the community. As things crumble here, communal living will offer the best chance of survival. The Me! Me! Me! mentality will sink many.

[Broken_Hero]

28. I've thought about it

sounds/looks interesting to me...but my main fear is, similiar to my roomate days, when a good number of my roomates were total jerks...

[SPKrazy]

30. I'm In!

Ready to change my situation!

:pals: