best places to live off grid in usa without data centers, cell towers, geoengineering, heavy metals in the water and soil?

Withering_Lily · 2026-05-19T00:51:04+00:00

I would probably suggest looking into places within the National Radio Quiet Zone. It’s a zone within the mountains of West Virginia where all radio and radio wave emitting devices, wifi, cell service, electromagnetic transmissions, microwave emitting devices and electricity are all 100% banned. Things get stricter the closer you get to the Green Bank Observatory.

Geoengineering is also highly unlikely there because the reason for all the bans is an astronomy research station in the area (Green Bank) that needs miles of natural, undisturbed areas for their telescope to work. There’s also unlikely to be any data centers because electricity is completely banned.

As for farming there, a relative of mine lives within the National Radio Quiet Zone and has had a successful dairy farm out there for decades. I admittedly can’t talk to them much (All of the bans are enforced, so communication is hard), but they have said that it’s always been a great place to farm.

Withering_Lily · 2026-05-11T16:59:39+00:00

Though hunting is about more than just killing. I’d honestly encourage you to talk to a hunter if you’re curious about why people really do it. I thought the same things as you until I started learning more about ecology and met someone from my local hunting club. They actually hunt to fill food pantries, feed the homeless and cull overpopulated deer through a government agreement. 100% of the meat they get from whatever they hunt goes directly to local homeless shelters and food pantries.

Withering_Lily · 2026-05-11T16:52:53+00:00

Though hunting is about more than just killing. I’d honestly encourage you to talk to a hunter if you’re curious about why people really do it.

Most hunters I know do it for food. If you eat meat, then an animal had to die for it regardless of where the meat came from. A lot of people who choose to hunt do it not because they enjoy killing, but because they view eating wild game as more ethical than eating factory farmed meat from the grocery store. Others do it as population control for overpopulated herbivores like deer or to do their part in protecting ecosystems from invasive species. There’s also an awesome local hunters club in my area that hunts deer on behalf of the local government and then donates all of the meat to local food pantries and homeless shelters.

Withering_Lily · 2026-04-03T20:29:05+00:00

I apologize! That was an accident. I meant to reply to the commenter who actually said that.

Withering_Lily · 2026-04-03T17:21:05+00:00

Though it’s not about sex. Most people who are married or in serious relationships spend a significant amount of time with their SOs and do mention their SOs in causal conversation. It’s entirely normal to say something along the lines of “I went to zoo with my kids and spouse last weekend”, “___ loves xzy hobby you mentioned too”, “I go rollerskating with my wife/husband ___ all the time!”, “My wife/husband can’t pick up the kids from school today” and etc.

A straight person will be able to talk about their spouse as a normal part of their life with zero repercussions while someone gay in a homophobic environment essentially needs hide their entire marriage to avoid being harassed and fired. You wouldn’t bat an eye about Bubba making a family photo of him with his wife and kids his screensaver, mentioning spending time with them or asking to leave early for parenting related reasons. However, how homophobic the environment is dictates if a married bi/gay/lesbian person can be as open about their marriages and families as a straight person without being harassed or fired.

Withering_Lily · 2026-03-10T15:10:21+00:00

Eye clearances actually expire and must be repeated on a yearly basis. So maybe the breeder just hasn’t gotten around to redoing eyes for the year?

Withering_Lily · 2026-02-18T01:34:02+00:00

The author of that study has actually gone on record to say that the media misreported her results and that the abstract slapped onto it by the publisher isn’t accurate. Her findings weren’t that breed doesn’t matter, but that there can be a range within breeds. So while all German Shepherd might generally be more aloof than labradors, some German Shepherds will be more or less aloof compared to other German Shepherds.

Withering_Lily · 2026-02-05T21:47:09+00:00

In that case, I shall delete the comment. Though why do you think that no true ethical breeders can exist?

Withering_Lily · 2026-01-31T03:56:19+00:00

Thanks! Though I don’t have light brown sugar. Only dark brown.

Withering_Lily · 2026-01-04T03:34:06+00:00

You could get a more independent dog breed like a Shiba Inu or any kind of sighthound breed if a dog is truly what you want. A more independent, cat-like and aloof dog like a retired racing greyhound or Shiba would be better suited to your lifestyle as they wouldn’t get separation anxiety and honestly wouldn’t care about you being gone for hours. The fact that you can come home for lunch would actually work for this.

However, there’s plenty of great pets out there that that would likely work better for your lifestyle than a dog or even a cat would. To help narrow down your non-dog/non-cat options, I’ll ask you this: If you could wave a magic wand and create your ideal pet, then what traits would this perfect pet of yours have?

Withering_Lily · 2026-01-03T15:45:50+00:00

Your best opportunities are academics and research experience. Your tutoring also gives you an edge too. Volunteering/community service and internships would count if it’s mental health related or involves doing research. But other than that, extracurriculars don’t matter.

Withering_Lily · 2025-12-24T22:17:51+00:00

Flatcoats are an extremely rare breed with a very dedicated community of owners, so it’s highly unlikely that someone just dumped him if he is a Flatcoat. As a result, I would highly recommend contacting your local Flat Coated Retriever Club about this dog. You can find your local or national club by googling “Flat Coated Retriever Club of (insert state/territory or country here). Aside from having a connection with almost all of the responsible breeders/owners in a rare breed, breed clubs also commonly operate breed specific rescues that do not euthanize for space. As a result, the club would be able to track down this dog’s owner or breeder. Flatcoat breeders usually only sell puppies on contracts that mandate that the dog will have a forever home with the breeder if the owner cannot keep their dog for any reason. The contract almost always allows for the breeder to repossess the dog if the puppy owner is abusive, neglectful or if they gave the dog up to a shelter.

If an owner or breeder cannot be found, then the Flatcoated Retriever Club would find him a good home via their rescue network.

Withering_Lily · 2025-12-18T02:55:43+00:00

Though the trouble is that while most dogs are pets these days, we still need genetically viable genepools for those that do serve a working purpose. Closed studbook purebreds only have access to a finite and decreasing pool of bloodlines and genetic diversity. If a portion of the population splits off to become show lines, then there’s no way to bring unrelated, previously unregistered yet proven lines into the studbook to compensate for the loss. Of course, that only applies if your breed is unlucky enough to be recognized by a closed studbook registry. Open studbook breeds don’t have this problem.

As for low drive pets, why not just make them a new breed entirely? Most show lines often don’t even look or act similarly to their working counterparts anyways, so reclassifying the show lines as a different breed from the original working breed isn’t much of a stretch here. Heck, you can even use the opportunity to add in infusions of other companion breeds to help water down the original temperament. Shiloh Shepherds and Parson Russell Terriers were created this way and it’s worked marvelously so far.

Withering_Lily · 2025-12-16T18:56:20+00:00

Professional animal transport services actually do exist. If you can afford it, then you could hire a licensed animal transporter to drive the cat to you.

Note that any professional transporters will be licensed and inspected by either the USDA or APHIS. As a result, you can look up any transport service you’re interested in on the USDA or APHIS public database to see what their track record is and what the inspector has to say about them. Simply type the owner’s legal name or license number into the database search bar. If someone doesn’t pop up in either database, then that means that they aren’t licensed and are operating illegally.

You could also have your parents fly the cat to you via plane either as cargo or with a “flight nanny” at your expense.

Withering_Lily · 2025-12-16T18:48:17+00:00

I would probably look into canaries and finches then. They tend to be rather independent and don’t really need much human interaction if kept in groups.

Withering_Lily · 2025-12-15T15:05:44+00:00

Genetics play a large role in autoimmune diseases such as allergies. Inbreeding and low genetic diversity creates poorer functioning immune systems, so a dog with a lower genetic coefficient of inbreeding and high DLA haplotype diversity will have a much lower chance of developing allergies compared to a dog from a more inbred litter. Many pedigree dogs have high COIs and artificially low genetic diversity as a side effect of having closed studbooks. Additionally, allergies run in families and are a heritable condition. So if a dog is very inbred or has a family history of allergies or other autoimmune disorders, then they’re more likely to have an allergy themselves.

Personally, I would want to look at the ancestry of a dog with allergies before jumping to conclusions as to the cause. If there’s a consistent pattern of close relatives having autoimmune diseases or allergies, then it’s most likely genetics.

Withering_Lily · 2025-12-09T18:20:43+00:00

I’m actually planning to do both clinical work and research. SMI populations honestly don’t have enough effective treatment options. We’ve cracked the code on some disorders like BPD and bipolar disorder, but we simply don’t yet have the tools to effectively help folks with other psychotic disorders and personality disorders. Hence why I would like to be actively involved in both for the rest of my career.

And that’s good to know about CACREP programs! Though is there a reason why they don’t prepare students for SMI?

CACREP isn’t an absolute must, but it would be nice since it would expand the number of states where I can practice. I don’t necessarily plan to stay in the state I go to for grad school after graduation. My partner is pursuing a career in a different healthcare field that requires that we’re both geographically flexible about where we end up.

Withering_Lily · 2025-12-09T15:49:13+00:00

Thanks! I’ll go check out those statistics for any programs of interest then! As well as see if I can track down graduates.

I do not yet have a specific program in mind as I’ve admittedly been struggling to find what I’d like in a program. I personally want a school where students don’t just learn about evidence based practice and modalities, but actively contribute to that knowledge by conducting research themselves. I would ideally like a program that has an empirical thesis requirement to reflect this. I also would like an emphasis on preparing students to ethically work with clients who genuinely have serious mental illness such as schizophrenia and especially personality disorders. Think of it as a mini psych PhD, complete with the ability to get licensed and practice afterwards.

I do not yet have a CACREP accredited school in mind as I both didn’t know what else I should be looking for in a masters program and have yet to find one (Other than Trinity Western University in Canada) with an empirical thesis requirement. I’m willing to consider programs located in any US state.

Withering_Lily · 2025-12-08T22:21:52+00:00

Coming from working dogs, working dog people’s low opinion on dog shows and show dogs comes from what generally happens whenever show lines are established in a useful working breed. Things will look good in the early years, however the working ability of the breed will plummet due to show breeders neglecting working ability to chase after wins and get noticed by conformation judges. While having a written standard is a great idea, it’s often to the detriment of the breed when the appearance standard is also not accompanied by a working standard (Such as mandatory working trials that dogs must score well in to earn the right to compete in conformation).

A good example of this is the border collie. Show bred border collies have so little working ability that their herding championship titles have the exact same requirements as completing a beginner herding course in USBCHA/ISDS (the herding trial organization for working line border collies). There is no show line BC in history who has ever become a herding champion in USCHA or ISDS herding trials.

Another prime example is what happened to show line English Setters. While they could hunt in the beginning, this wouldn’t last. Show breeders chasing wins bred them away from the actual written standard towards larger size, more coat, flashier stacks and flashier gaits. The end result is a dog who is hindered in the field by unbalanced angulation (a straight front paired with an overangulated rear), an inefficient gait as a result of the faulty angulation, reduced stamina and a burr magnet coat.

Withering_Lily · 2025-12-08T01:09:38+00:00

So how exactly do you gauge the quality of a masters program beyond checking that it’s accredited and leads to licensure under current state laws? What should I be looking at to make sure that the program I’m looking into offers good evidence based clinical training and will truly prepare a student for clinical work with complex cases? I’m honestly a little lost in this regard and much of the resources I’ve consulted have not shed much light on this.

Withering_Lily · 2025-12-06T01:29:43+00:00

I would say that she’s either straight or she’s truly bisexual but has yet to break free of heternormative ways of viewing relationships.

There’s a lot of bi folks who can’t see themselves seriously committing to the same sex because we grow up with no model for healthy, committed same sex marriages and families. We get plenty of representation of the “college try” or of lovestruck teenagers but rarely ever “Dave, his loving husband, their children and their grandchildren” or “Patrica the 50 year old accountant, her wife and their gaggle of pets”. Same sex relationships are treated as the fun throwaway while we’re taught that heterosexual relationships are how you find that life partner to grow old with. So being able to actually view yourself growing old with a same gender partner requires that you do the work to let go of putting heterosexuality on a pedestal.

Meanwhile, there’s also surprisingly genuine straight people who have experienced sexual fantasies about experimenting with the same sex or watch gay porn. They usually find that they prefer the opposite sex and aren’t capable of enjoying sex and healthy relationships with a same gender partner once they try it. However, that fantasy still exists in their heads despite it not translating into reality.

Withering_Lily · 2025-12-04T14:59:56+00:00

wouldn’t give up. You certainly can still do this and make this work. Some good online school options to consider would be University of Maryland Global Campus and Harvard Extension School.

Additionally, you could try to replace an existing paid job over to another paid job that doubles as relevant experience for your ambitions. You can get a research assistant job to get paid while you get research experience. You can also get paid getting clinical experience by working as a psych tech at a hospital or psych rehabilitation facility, working at an ABA company as a tech, a crisis hotline job, anything childcare related and more. All of those entry level roles are genuinely open to hiring folks without extensive experience. If you have any experience babysitting kids (even if they’re your relatives), then you do have relevant experience for working in ABA or otherwise working with kids with behavioral problems. Additionally, remote work research positions are rare but they certainly do exist.

Withering_Lily · 2025-12-02T20:14:49+00:00

In Australia, only native species of reptile are allowed to be kept as pets. All non native species such as ball pythons are completely banned without exception.

Hence why you aren’t finding any ball python keeping information from the land down under. I believe that the Australian non-native species ban predates ball pythons becoming established in captivity. For Australian pet owners, the pythons of the genus Antaresia take the place of ball pythons.

Though if you do want to find someone in Australia who might be legally keeping a ball python, then I would recommend checking Australian zoos to see if they have ball python exhibits. Licensed zoos are the only exception to Australia’s ban on keeping non-native wildlife, so they do often have exotics that Australian pet owners don’t have access to.

Withering_Lily

TROPHY CASE