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Okay. I recognize some people feel that way, but to me it's totally alien and doesn't seem to fit the traditional definition of words.
Princeton Wordnet
Country - "an area outside of cities and towns."
Rural - "living in or characteristic of farming or country life."
Although a government site does say of "rural"
"those areas not designated as metropolitan statistical areas."
So I guess it's defensible.
Still the census recognizes towns of over 10,000 as having what they call "a micropolitan area." If an isolated town of 19K is "country" than the capitals of Maine, South Dakota, and Vermont are "country." (Augusta is only about 50 miles from a metropolitan area, but that's still probably far enough)
I could reluctantly see my town as a "country town" as it's outside a metropolitan and micropolitan area, but I even have some problems with that. One of my sister's lives in town of around 9,000 that's outside of a metro or micro. I don't really see it as "a country town" and I don't think most anyone in its county does either. Also Aspen, Colorado has about 6,000 people and is 98 miles from a town of over 50K. Thinking of Aspen as "the country" just strikes me as really weird.
I agree. To me, "country" means out in open rural countryside, outside of a city or town of any size. You know, farms, orchards, that kind of thing. I guess I could see how a tiny hamlet with three or four little stores and a few houses widely spaced along a highway could be considered "country," but any town big enough to have a neighborhood or two would be a "small town" to me, which is different from being out in the country.
Of course Observation can set whatever definitions he/she wants for his/her own thread, but that does not mean that Observation's definitions will fit other people's picture of the different kinds of areas. I think the issue here with the term "country" is that this term here is being used to apply to any sort of non-suburban community smaller and/or less densely populated than a large or small city. Fine for the sake of convenience, if that's how the OP wants to set up the poll, but in truth there is a big difference between farm territory and a town of 5,000, 10,000, 15,000, etc., with streets and neighborhoods and a built up downtown area.
If you wanted to, you could in fact come up with several categories of "non-suburban towns." For example, there is a noticeable difference between a village with a row of specialty shops in its tidy little downtown and a larger town that serves as the commercial and service center for its local area, complete with hospital, general aviation airport, and the basic collection of businesses you need to stay clothed, fed, scrubbed, styled, entertained, mobile, fit, healthy, living in a house in good repair, etc., etc., etc.
I would certainly call my town the suburbs, but according to your descriptions I grew up in the city. My town has access to 2 commuter rail stops and the Boston metro bus system, and it's more than 3k per sq mile, but i think anyone would call it the suburbs. (voted suburb before I read the post.)
I would certainly call my town the suburbs, but according to your descriptions I grew up in the city. My town has access to 2 commuter rail stops and the Boston metro bus system, and it's more than 3k per sq mile, but i think anyone would call it the suburbs. (voted suburb before I read the post.)
I would certainly call my town the suburbs, but according to your descriptions I grew up in the city. My town has access to 2 commuter rail stops and the Boston metro bus system, and it's more than 3k per sq mile, but i think anyone would call it the suburbs. (voted suburb before I read the post.)
I put city down since I lived in the Bronx, NY until I was 13, then moved out to the suburbs in Nassau County. Still live there, absolutely love the beach!!
My father was a man named Jed, a poor mountaineer who kept his family fed. But then, one day, he was shootin' at some food, and up from the ground came a-bubblin' crude! (Oil, that is. Black gold. Texas tea.)
Well, the next thing you know, my dad's a millionaire, and all the kinfolk said, "Jed, move away from there!" They said, "California is the place you wanna be," so we loaded up the truck and we moved to Beverly! (Hills, that is. Swimming pools. Movie stars.)
I grew up in the middle of nowhere in the sticks. The " town" had a post office, a church, and a small store. That was it. I've since lived in 2 major metros on both coasts - Boston and SF. I can basically live anywhere and like both the country and cities as they both have positive aspects.
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