Anyone who knows me knows I'm from a small town. (Probably because I never shut up about the fact that I'm from a small town. I know. I’m sorry. I take weird pride in it.) While I was at college, I sort of adjusted to "city life," but now that I’m back home for the summer, I’ve been surprised by some of the quirks of a small town.
1. We collectively get offended when anyone calls a place with a population of more than 5,000 a "small town."
The town where I go to college has about 20,000 people, and my friends would make fun of me every time I corrected them for calling it a small town. But it's not just me, guys — it's a thing. Generally, if a place has more than one chain restaurant, people from a small town know it's not a small town; it's a small city.
2. The water tastes incredibly good.
If you're one of those people who says that water has "no taste," then you need to go and reevaluate your life because you are very wrong. Even the best city water can't compare to the well water of a small town. Water from a rural place smells like rocks, looks as clear as the air and tastes like actual heaven. If you haven't experienced this type of water, I'm very sorry that you think chlorine-smelling city water is actually good. I’m passionate about this one.
3. Everyone recognizes your car.
Even before I took a step into town, people knew I was there because they saw my car. Not only does everyone know your car, you remember theirs. This makes it easier to wave at everyone as you pass them, which is definitely something that happens in a small town.
4. Driving is really easy.
Learning how to drive in a small town, then having to battle Portland traffic was a struggle, but on the flipside, going from heavy freeway traffic to the small-town lull is a breeze. "Bumper-to-bumper" isn't a thing; you can drive miles on the highway without meeting another car, and the longest you'll ever have to wait at an intersection is a full minute, and that's probably only because there are deer crossing the road.
5. You actually do know everyone.
I work at the one coffee place in my town, and even after being gone for eight months, I recognize nearly everyone who comes in. If I don't know the name, I at least know the face, and if I don't know the face, then it’s safe to assume the person is a visitor from out of town. Charming? Perhaps. Creepy? A little bit.
6. Everyone complains about everything.
But it might be the most innocent and ridiculous complaining possible. Retired couples always complain about deer getting into their gardens, the town gets unreasonably upset when businesses change ownership, high-schoolers were up in arms when we had to start purchasing parking permits. (Permits were five dollars, mind you. And, yes, I was one of the ones complaining...) Honestly, these are all things that really don't matter in the long run, but you bet people are still going to get together over brunch or whisper together at high school sports events to complain about all these little problems.
7. The town is silent.
I was surprised by this revelation. Cities are actually really loud. Cars are loud, construction is loud, people are loud. So in a small town, where there’s overall fewer cars, construction and people, it's impossibly silent outside. There were times at college when I wouldn’t keep my dorm window open solely because it was too loud out there. In a small town, when you walk outside, it’s always somehow quieter than it is in the house. The most sound I hear out my window in my town is the kids next door outside playing, or a loud engine on a big truck two streets over or some dog barking from across the valley. It’s refreshingly quiet.
8. There are very limited stores, restaurants, etc.
If you need anything from a place that's not a bare-minimum grocery store or a hardware store, it's going to involve a trip out of town--an excursion that will take a full day. And there are probably about five or six restaurants in the town, all of which serve some variant of meat and potatoes, so bland palates are good for small-town dining. Also, everything closes extremely early. The only places consistently open past 6 p.m. are the bars, which are as numerous as the restaurants.
9. You can actually see the stars.
I was appalled by light pollution when I first moved away from my small town. I hated not being able to see the stars, and I hated that the sky was never completely dark. Nothing spells "rural" like a crisp, clear view of a dark sky filled with stars.
10. Nothing changes.
One new building went up, and a couple buildings were painted a different color, but other than that, nothing really changed in town while I was gone for college. And those few changes were immediately noticeable. Things rarely change in a small town, and that goes for friendships, too. I'm thankful for good friends who are still good friends in my hometown.
