The hottest Rural Life Substack posts right now

The author had a history of hating guns but began to rethink this perspective after personal experiences and conversations with a friend.
Having a gun in the house made the author feel uneasy at first, but they took a step towards embracing self-reliance.
The author realized that understanding guns was important for feeling more secure and less dependent on government protection.

Snow that freezes over becomes hard, icy "snowcrete" that makes surfaces dangerously slippery.
Farm animals, especially horses, face high injury risk on the ice, so caretakers must be extra careful managing livestock.
A warm-up to about 40°F is expected after a stretch of days below 25°F, and melting should ease the treacherous conditions.

He experiences life as drained of meaning, where good and bad feel muted and time is just matter changing form, moving too slow or too fast.
He’s haunted by memories, guilt, and self-destructive habits, unable to be honest with himself or others, which keeps him stuck.
Brief human connections — a dog, kids, small kindnesses — offer moments that could pull him toward care and staying, showing that small choices still matter.

A mare named Quieta gave birth to a foal named Velocity on Christmas Day. It was a special event, made even more meaningful because they had another foal born on the same day two years prior.
The process of caring for the new foal included making sure he was healthy and getting him to drink from his mother quickly. They also monitored Quieta's health to avoid complications after giving birth.
Horses are very social animals and enjoy mutual grooming as one of their first interactions. This shows the bond they share and supports their social structure.

Dumber people are more likely to believe in female idiocy, contributing to rural urban divide.
Areas with higher belief in female idiocy experience higher brain drain and lower female achievement.
Brain drain and depressed female achievement in rural areas lead to a cycle of increasing belief in female idiocy.

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