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I grew up in the 'burbs, then moved to the big city. I loved the city; I was young and went to concerts and dance bars and parties.
Then I moved to the country. Wide open spaces, few neighbors. I'm addicted, don't think I'd be happy in a city again.
The biggest change is now I'm older and like staying home. I'm married and don't feel the urge to go find a partner. And concerts are much too loud. Dang kids!
Your mileage may vary.
This is me too, except for the married part. I always lived in big cities (L.A., San Francisco, Portland, San Diego, Phoenix). NEVER thought I'd love living in a small town. It has to be near a big metro though. Where I am pretty much fits that bill, especially since Trader Joe's finally opened "here" last fall! (45 miles from my house)
I don't think that's why they are nostalgic. I find myself being most nostalgic for the time I had my first job in high school to going to college. I started driving (freedom), earning money so I could pretty much do a few things and by then, my mom was done raising kids. I could have either gone one way or another. It grew me up a lot and I liked running my own life as opposed to other people doing it.
I also think people are nostalgic over their lost potential. When you are young, you have your whole life ahead of you and the possibilities are limitless. When you get older, not so much.
I mean doesn't that also coincide with having less responsibility and bills? Did you enjoy paying your car insurance? I didn't. I earned money but it was a vast underpayment as I realize as an adult, I was taken advantage of.
I think we both can be correct here.
OP, you don't know what a 'small town' is. When I was born my home town had about 1200 people, by the time I graduated HS it was around 800, today it's down to 283 and losing more every year. THAT's a small town. Would you want to live there?
And we grew up in a town of 80 people. If we wanted to go anywhere we had to cross the border and go through Customs. But we were never bored. Always outside doing something.
Skiing, snowshoeing or snowmobiling all winter. Hiking, riding atvs, camping, hunting, fishing, boating, prospecting all spring, summer and fall. The school we went to only had 10 students.
After a couple of them moved away the school closed and we had to cross the border to go to a Canadian school.
Moved away when I started high school. I’ve taken my children back and my grandchildren. They all wanna know if we can move back. They like the freedom of doing what you want. I’m seriously thinking about moving the RV and leaving it for the summers.
And we grew up in a town of 80 people. If we wanted to go anywhere we had to cross the border and go through Customs. But we were never bored. Always outside doing something.
Skiing, snowshoeing or snowmobiling all winter. Hiking, riding atvs, camping, hunting, fishing, boating, prospecting all spring, summer and fall. The school we went to only had 10 students.
After a couple of them moved away the school closed and we had to cross the border to go to a Canadian school.
Moved away when I started high school. I’ve taken my children back and my grandchildren. They all wanna know if we can move back. They like the freedom of doing what you want. I’m seriously thinking about moving the RV and leaving it for the summers.
“Boring” depends so much on the individual that the term is almost meaningless.
For a few yrs we lived where people said there wasn’t enough for the kids to do, meaning lack of malls and age-focused hangouts. Yet I saw young kids who went out after school on the sea in their own Zodiacs, no adults involved. How many urban or suburban kids have the chance to really learn seafaring things, hands-on, on a daily basis? They could also roam on plentiful city and county lands gorging themselves on ubiquitous wild berries, or ride bikes all over, learn woodworking (that was a big thing there), or indulge in the arts.
Here in the inland SW, I’ve also heard laments from ADULTS that “kids don’t have anything to do.” BS! For starters, aside from many of them needing to do better at schoolwork, they can ride horses (many have their own horses), ride bikes or motorized things, target practice, hike, and more. Just because someplace lacks shopping mallanzas does not = “nothing to do.” Those adults must consider shopping to be entertainment.
Nostalgia is usually for a time when you were happy. Some people are nostalgic for the army. Some are nostalgic for high school (yech). Some for when they were single and carefree. The common denominator is happiness, not the situation.
If you find a place where you are happy now, it probably won't be what made you happy before.
Although it was in my case, sort of. I didn't have a happy childhood but I had a horse that I rode alone in the big natural park near my house. I was happy then. Now I'm retired .... and I have a horse that I ride alone in the big natural park near my house. Everything else has changed, but I'm happy again in just the same way I was before.
I was born and raised in a city but went to college in a small town and fell in love with the convenience and the economy of small town life. This was a town of 35,000 people, walkable, had a nice park, mom and pop stores, cafes and neighborhood pubs. I lived in a similar small town for 37 years. It was a good place for a family starting out. Had good schools and jobs. It was friendly and there were a lot of other transplants. Small towns often have a few families that run things but that was diluted due to the transplants. You still had to know family connections. I was happy to leave when the time came. It was approaching 50,000 by then.
35,000 is not what I'd consider a small town. But then I've never lived in a place with a population of over 5,000 except when I went to college in Binghamton NY. Not sure what the population was then but it was as big a city as I'd ever want.
Honestly I think 1,000 or so would be my lower limit with the closest city at least 30 miles away.
OP, you don't know what a 'small town' is. When I was born my home town had about 1200 people, by the time I graduated HS it was around 800, today it's down to 283 and losing more every year. THAT's a small town. Would you want to live there?
If that's not a John Mellencamp song from the '80s personified, dunno what is...
All my friends are so small town
My parents live in the same small town
My job is so small town
Provides little opportunity, hey
No, I wouldn't want to live there. Unless in some temperate zone like the central to SoCal coast, and there isn't much opportunity there either. High home prices though.
Last edited by Blondebaerde; 02-14-2022 at 06:01 PM..
Today, you can live in a rural area/small town and be disconnected with the neighbors 2022 is a different time and people keep to themselves
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(45 miles from my house)
