Five Years Time

[purlieu]

The question "where do you want to be in five years time?" always worried me as I never had the faintest idea.  For ages I was at school, then university, then I joined the millions of other graduates with no real aim.  After a couple of years in Leeds I moved away to Manchester to find a better life, new friends, some fun.  After six months I'd met nobody good, found no potential jobs and run out of money, so moved back in with my parents.  I got back with my girlfriend in Leeds and we're happier than ever.  Just.
I'm moving back to Leeds in the next couple of weeks.  I have friends there, and I have a girlfriend there.  However, I'm not looking forward to it that much.  I've matured a lot in the last year and I don't think I can deal with living in a city anymore.  After a few months living with my parents in a town, right next to the country, and after moving on from my 'purlieu from the sex meme' days, I feel ready for a calmer, quieter life.  It's not going to happen.  I have some debts and no plans so I need to move to Leeds where there are potential job openings, where I can live fairly cheaply and I know people.  And I can be with my girlfriend while she finishes university. 
In a year or two I'll be able to move on.  I would really like some fields and woods nearby, where I can walk a dog, and feed birds in the winter.  I want local shops I can shop at rather than supermarkets.  A couple of decent pubs that aren't full of cunts.  My girlfriend and a few friends in town.  I'm not sure where yet: I'm not keen on moving south of the midlands and she won't stay in the north.  Maybe we'll come to the midlands then.  But I'm definitely ready for it now.  So if somebody asks me "where do you want to be in five years time?", I can answer with that description.

tl;dr I want to move to the country in the next few years when I'm able.  Where do you want to be in five years time?



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[Ginyard]

I want ot be terminating people. The terminator has taken out a police station. I dont really want to be 40 i 5 years.

[Sony Walkman Prophecies]

It would be boring to give you the full-list, i'll just say that ive learnt there's a world of difference between what you want, and what's right for you. There's loads of things that seem attractive within the safe confines of fantasy-land, but i know alot of them wouldnt be good for me in the long run. In other words adulthood is about compromise, i just hope in 5 years time ive compromised the right things.

[alan nagsworth]

Shitting into a container that does not biodegrade quicker than the shit itself. Anything else will be a bonus.

[Zero Gravitas]

Have you heard of buckets?

[Claude the Racecar Driving Rockstar Super Sleuth]

Oddly enough I live in a small town by the countryside and have considered a move to Leeds before.

[alan nagsworth]

Have you heard of buckets?

No, is that a band? Currently wiping my arse on the NME so it can't be much worse I suppose.

[Zero Gravitas]

Believe me, if I was referencing a band you'd have no idea that a band could even be called that.

[vrailaine]

Bald, probably reasonably happy, possibly hospitalised, hopefully alive, maybe redoing uni.

[the midnight watch baboon]

doing that doctor

[Caroline]

Living with my boyfriend, owning a dog, doing a job I don't hate too much. That would be nice.

[session9]

probably dead

[Snied]

Finding out that all of my hypochondria was just paranoia (actually, that's just plain hypochondria, isn't it?), and that I don't have emphysema due to some cruel trick of nature.

I will replace the fear by worrying about having some disease I've read on Ultra Wikipedia.

[Big Jack McBastard]

I feel ya purlieu. I moved to London nigh on a year ago and am getting to the point where I'll not be able to afford it much longer (flatmate can't afford it either and he's got a bloody job) and will likely end up back at my folks digs for who knows how long. I've enjoyed the freedom of it but it's been ultimately quite unsatisfying, not really branched out, sent out a half billion job applications with minimal response, sick of feeling frigging useless etc and while I can take city or small town life as equal beasts I do feel somewhat out of place here and sort of miss my dinky hometoon a bit.

I also hate that 5 year question, shit, life is what happens while you make plans for it and knowing where or what you want to be in that time is virtually impossible as life will find a way to fuck with your plan one way or another.

Employers don't much like that as an answer though, heh.

That said I applaud your attempt to answer it, vague as it may be it's better than anything I can come up with.

Not utterly poor and wearing out my welcome will do for now, the rest I'll take as it comes.

[The Boston Crab]

Practical stuff: Teaching French/Spanish in Hong Kong/Shanghai, hopefully got a boss dog.

Fun stuff: More music/writing. Not interested in earning a living with anything fun. I now understand that daily routine keeps me 'chill' and efficient with my time.

Possible stuff: Murdered a lot of people, both important and plebeian.

[Backstage With Slowdive]

I've avoided all this by never having any picture of, or ambitions for, the wider future.

That isn't to say I didn't take future-related actions: passing exams, going to university, going to the careers service to see what I could go in for, applying for jobs. But it was never more than arranging what I'd be doing for the next year or so, to maintain living standards that I was accustomed to. I have no strong attachment to the job or industry I'm in apart from not being able to see how I could get an equally secure one elsewhere. The things I dislike about it are what I would dislike in any job, inclduing self-employment, so I'm not bothered about them. I've never been deluded that there is a perfect job in which you only do things you want and never any dull necessities. I was always aware that serious illnesses could happen, and in the end one did, and now it's possible I might not be around in 5 years anyway, so it turns out I had the right attitude all along.

[boxofslice]

About five years ago I had plans to open a live music/late night bar - that didn't work out.  In five years from now I'm still not planning on having children.

[purlieu]

It would be boring to give you the full-list, i'll just say that ive learnt there's a world of difference between what you want, and what's right for you. There's loads of things that seem attractive within the safe confines of fantasy-land, but i know alot of them wouldnt be good for me in the long run. In other words adulthood is about compromise, i just hope in 5 years time ive compromised the right things.

Yes, I can relate to this, I spent a long time longing for the city, I almost moved to London eighteen months ago, lived the 'high life' and stuff out of this big desire for it I'd had for ages.  I left jobs just so they wouldn't fuck with my social life. 
Then I realised that it's not me at all and I'm a lot happier doing nice, simple things that get me by and spending my spare time making music and sitting in nice pubs.

Backstage With Slowdive has the right idea, I think.  I just think too much.  Far, far too much.

[Emma Raducanu]

Thing is with wishing you lived in the countryside is that if you're not used to it, you end up finding fault all over the place, then end up wishing you were back living in the city (that's almost biological and mathmatical fact). I've lived in the countryside for a few years now and what initially drew me to it (immediate access to hills, streams, trees and peacefulness) has made the move very satisfying and remain a constant source of fulfillment. But I've started to feel like what I enjoyed about the city (visiting museums, restaurants, pubs, people, anonymity) has gone missing and I'm starting to value them more and more. So I think in five years time, I'll have found a place of compromise - a large, vibrant town on the verge of brilliant countryside and hopefully living the best of both worlds. I just need to figure out how to build such a place.

[ziggy starbucks]

I'm going buy a dinghy and its going to be called Dignity. I'll sail her up the west coast, through the villages and towns. I'll be on my holidays while the people I pass will be doing their rounds. I suspect when they see me they'll ask me how I got it and I'll tell them how I saved my money in high interest bonds and investments in the east asian manufacturing sector.

They'll say that my ship called Dignity is pretty. Because she will be.

[Emma Raducanu]

Charge people for rides, when a pretty lady boards, find a Westerly current. You'll be alone with her for weeks in the Atlantic sea. Once you've reached America, she'll be so pleased to have found land, she'll want nothing more than to marry you.

[Kishi the Bad Lampshade]

I'll have found a place of compromise - a large, vibrant town on the verge of brilliant countryside and hopefully living the best of both worlds. I just need to figure out how to build such a place.

Brighton?

It is full of young twats on a Saturday though.

[Little Hoover]

There's Richmond upon Thames, tube access, but there's a bloody great big park nearby as well, you couldn't really call it the countryside though I suppose.

[Ginyard]

Cockfosters. Trent Park, tube, happy Lippy Lippo's chip shop on the mount pleasant roundabout and the countryside on your doorstep.

[purlieu]

Thing is with wishing you lived in the countryside is that if you're not used to it, you end up finding fault all over the place, then end up wishing you were back living in the city
[...]
So I think in five years time, I'll have found a place of compromise - a large, vibrant town on the verge of brilliant countryside and hopefully living the best of both worlds. I just need to figure out how to build such a place.

Agreed - I grew up right on the edge of a medium sized town, and walked in the country with my dad pretty much every day between the ages of 5 and 13 so it's definitely something I'm comfortable with, but at the same time I don't fancy a small village as it might be a bit cut off.  Living right on the very edge of a town - being able to see the country from my house would be wonderful - with reasonable transport links into the town centre, would be ideal.  It's just a matter of being able to afford it.  Which I can't at the moment.

[Kishi the Bad Lampshade]

Cockfosters. Trent Park, tube, happy Lippy Lippo's chip shop on the mount pleasant roundabout and the countryside on your doorstep.

I think you're missing out the most important thing, which is that is has a name which sounds a bit rude.

[the midnight watch baboon]

Yeah, like a balderdash! style, older exclamation. Except dirtier.

[Shoulders?-Stomach!]

Living right on the very edge of a town - being able to see the country from my house would be wonderful - with reasonable transport links into the town centre, would be ideal.

Welcome to the most expensive areas of the country. (Yes, you covered not being able to afford it but I thought I might further dull your dreams)

[Little Hoover]

Cockfosters. Trent Park, tube, happy Lippy Lippo's chip shop on the mount pleasant roundabout and the countryside on your doorstep.

Aye, around where my uni is, although my halls are in Wood Green which is a terrible place, but near to Alexandra Palace and Muswell Hill which I just discovered on a walk today, seem to be very nice places. London, but with more of a suburban town vibe. the mark of a much nicer place seems to be that the food outlets tare mostly cafe's,  sandwhich shops and proper pizza restaruants, rather than kebab and fried chicken places.
And there's a church that's been converted into an O'neils, I think we should have the meet there.

All this reminds me of course, of Iannucci's bit about people countryside complaining about poor public transport / people in cities in complaining about noise and congestion. Still there's some decent albeit mostly very expensive compromises between the two.

[purlieu]

Welcome to the most expensive areas of the country. (Yes, you covered not being able to afford it but I thought I might further dull your dreams)

Oh not necessarily, I live right next to the country and it's not a particularly expensive house. 
Of course, depressingly, I'd still have to wait to inherit it to put a deposit on a mortgage.  But I'm not necessarily thinking of buying just yet anyway.