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I think I have a "middle American" mindset and a middle American soul which mostly correlates to what your getting at, I think, the OP that is.
I'm 23 now and while I'm going to have a high paying career after I finish school (either pharmacy or dental) I'll always have a middle American soul, I'll never be one of those snobby elitists types. I want to be the kind of person who takes my kids to NASCAR races, rodeos and football and basketball games. I will always feel more at home drinking beer rather than wine, going to WalMart rather than Starbucks, and getting my coffee at McDonalds or 7-Eleven and not Starbucks. I'll also take Coronas and Coors over Sam Adams or specialty beers anyday. For me its the backyard barbecue instead of the country club, going offroading instead of horseback riding, motorboats instead of saiboats and a John Deere baseball cap instead of some exquisite Russian made fur hat. I'm an educated person but in my heart and soul I'll always be and strive to be just your average down home, middle American, down to earth kind of person.
I'll never drive a Jaguar or a BMW like those yuppies. When I have enough money I will buy a large, loud, powerful Ford or Chevy pickup that I can revve my engines with when I stop at a red light next to a cute girl. I'll always go eat at fast food places and at Outback and Applebees and Bennigan's instead of some snobby place. And no, no urban loft for me, I want to live on a large plot of land with lots of open space and privacy. At the same time I dont' want to be too far from civilziation and i don't want to be too far from the movie theater, the supermarket or restaurants. So I guess I'm pretty suburban.
Al that urban yuppie thing really turns me off.
You embody much of what is wrong with this country. You strive to have the biggest, loudest, crudest...
I do and I think it's great. I mean I'm pro city but when it comes down to it, I just like being in my safe suburb (Carmel, IN) at the end of the day. I would say that I am in the minority here for doing so but in the majority with the general population. Of course I'd still live in the city but there seems to be this better way of life outside the city than inside. This is why I laugh when people tell me the inner city is a great place to raise a kid. I just tell them to look at Cleveland and St. Louis for proof...and actually I have no sympathy for cesspools like Cleveland and St. Louis because they sit back and let their cities are falling apart while at the same time wondering why the high growth areas like Nashville, Charlotte, and Houston are passing them up. I know it's subjective but it really is the quality of life.
I'm with you on the suburban mindset. I am pro city and do want to move to a larger city area such as Dallas/Fort Worth or Houston in the near future, but will definitely be living in the suburbs and not in the city itself. I love how calm and beautiful many suburbs are- the manicured landscaping, the beautiful new homes you see in all of the new developments, and yes, even the shopping malls/strip malls, etc- it's just my type of lifestyle, as bad as it may sound.
Not everyone in a suburb lives in their car. I drive 4 1/2 miles to work. Takes 12 minutes. My DH drives 6 miles, 15 min. This is not my definition of "living in a car".
Bingo.... sure a lot of people in the 'burbs drive into the inner city maybe 20, 30, or even 45 minutes away to go to work and if that's what they want that's fine. Personally I think it would be great to be able to work in the bustling big city and then escape back out to a nice suburb at the end of each day, but that's just me- and that is assuming the drive wouldn't be too long. But many of us live AND work in the suburban areas- in those cases people drive 5 or 10 minutes to work, have all the shopping and services they'd ever need within that distance as well, and really only need to go into the big city they are connected to for other entertainment or events.
I hate suburbia. All the big city problems and none of the amenities. HOA run neighborhoods full of snooty snobby people who brag about owning their home and have no freedom that an owner has. New suburbs have houses that are 12 inches apart and no yards (look at Puyallup, WA or anythign around Seattle). With cities gentrifying all the thugs are in the burbs now too. Not safe places. Small towns or live in th ecity
I grew up in a small town in Ohio (population 30,000, nearby population 75,000), and my family eventually moved to a nearby subrural/exurban area (population 1,200, nearby population 25,000).
I moved to a college town (45,000, 20 miles west of the Chicago burbs) and then to a small/medium sized city (150,000, MSA 400,000). I've also lived in the suburban outskirts of said small/medium sized city.
Currently I live near downtown Rockford, IL and enjoy it. Now Rockford's not the most vibrant city, but it's nice being able to walk a few blocks and find unique things to do (shops, non-chain restaurants, museums, parks etc). You just have to make the most of where you live.....and every place usually has it's own unique vibe. If I had to choose between the urban/suburban/subrural/small town living, I'd probably choose urban or small town/city. Subrural is nice and peaceful, but there's more amenities in the population centers. Suburbs.....they can get a little monotonous, but they're not awful.
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