I was thinking today about how different I would be if I lived in a small town. There are lots of things I love about living in the city. Mainly the theater, restaurants, museums and transportation.
But what am I giving up to live in the city?
I don't know my neighbors. At all. Okay, I'm at a "chit chat small talk" level with the guy next door and with our landlord. But the other people on the block? Complete strangers.
I'm completely surrounded by strangers all the time. On the bus. At the gym. Walking down the street.
And my city, as much as I love it, is NOT safe. And so I am constantly on guard. I have my defenses up. I avoid eye contact and try to keep a low profile. Cuz you never know who is going to be a crazy.
I'm already an introvert so it takes me a while to open up to people but living in the city I am just starting to feel super cold. I connect to my friends and family through emails and facebook and the phone, but I'm not connected to the people who are all around me on a day to day basis.
It would be interesting to see how I would change living in a small town.
Do you think where you live changes who you are and how you act?
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Interesting post. I don't think Chicago is making you mean though! You are well connected, just through different means than face-to-face minute-by-minute interactions. For me, though, this is a big boon to living in the suburbs. I love that I know my neighbors, can take a walk and talk to the people in their yards, let the kids play outside and feel (mostly) safe about that. I think I might be a city-dweller in my heart, but there are definite boons to living in that kind of environment. It's also all I've ever known, so there's that...
ReplyDeleteI love this! It's very interesting. I can not see you as being mean though, but it is probably a different lifestyle. Of course it is, you pointed out how it is for you! I'm not a city girl at all. Not even a little bit. I hate when I have to go downtown, and I hate everything in downtown. I am pretty sure I suck. I would actually prefer to live out in the country more, but the house we are in now and the neighborhood is one of my favorites of all- and it's for the same reasons J said- the kids can go to the park, the neighbors are all looking out for one another and know one another- people go riding or walking by here all day and evening and call out hello. Maybe you could try a little experiment to reach out and connect with 5 people a week or something fun like that? I know it could be a risk, but I'd LOVE to hear the stories about that!
ReplyDeleteThe East coast has had a terrible impact on my personality - I'm far more intolerant and impatient than ever since I moved to New York. Being surrounded by elitist kids doesn't help either. I long to get back to the MN nice, which can be overbearing if you're not born into it, but once it's gone you really miss it - in others and in yourself.
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