Whitestone is a small, quiet, suburban town in the northern part of Queens, NY. If you are not familiar with the area, odds are you have never heard of it. However, those that live or have grown up in Whitestone know that it is the best place to be!
Here are 35 signs you are from Whitestone:
1. You know Utopia Bagels has the best bagels in the world and don’t mind waiting on an out the door line for them.
2. Your friends and relatives have ended up in the Bronx numerous times when coming to visit you.
They then proceed to tell you how it cost them $16 to come and visit you. You automatically respond, “You should’ve read the sign ‘Last exit before Toll’” and then proceed to laugh.
3. You don’t understand the concept of looking for parking when you get home.
You simply pull into your driveway!
4. The only way to access the subway is to take a bus to Main Street.
In that case, you rather take the Express Bus, LIRR, or drive to your destination.
5. You can see the skyline from various points in Whitestone, but you still dread going into the city.
6. You’ve understood the idea of commuting since high school, since there isn’t one in Whitestone.
7. You either went to St. Luke’s, 193, Holy Trinity, or P.S. 79 for grammar school.
8. You went on a field trip to the New York Hall of Science, Bronx Zoo, and Queens County Farm at least once.
9. Everyone had their birthday parties at Playrobics.
10. You probably went to St. Francis Prep, Bayside High School, TMLA, or Holy Cross.
11. And probably took the Q76 to get there.
12. You swam in the water at Boosters Beach when you were a kid and now realize you were swimming in the East River.
13. You’ve ridden your bike through Fort Totten and have probably gotten lost in there.
You still haven't toured the actual Fort.
14. Or rode the Cross Island bike path and stopped at the dock for ice cream!
15. Bay Terrace was the coolest place to hang out when you were in middle school.
You’ve now upgraded to either Bell Boulevard or Franny Lew.
16. You desperately miss Stork’s Bakery.
They clearly had the best jelly donuts and cookies!
17. Cascon clearly has the best cheesecakes in Queens.
Don’t let anyone try to convince you otherwise.
18. When you tell people you are from Whitestone they usually have no idea where it is so you have to clarify this by saying you live near Bayside, Flushing, and Citi Field.
19. If they know where Whitestone is, they ask you how far you live from Cherry Valley.
20. You may love Cherry Valley, but you know that the best sandwiches are from Tony’s or Varsi.
21. You’re most likely Italian, Greek, or Irish, some combination of the three, or are part of one of them.
22. People have trouble understanding how you grew up in NYC, but had a backyard, parks, and maybe even a pool.
Yes, I live in New York City, but in the suburbs!
23. You never understood the purpose of 8th Road.
24. You can see the blue dome of St. Nicholas Church from all of Whitestone.
25. And hear the bells of St. Luke Church.
26. Anytime you need to go shopping, you'd much rather drive to Long Island than try to cut across Queens to get to Queens Center Mall and sit in traffic.
27. You dread driving to College Point, especially during the holidays because of all the traffic on 14th Avenue, 20th Avenue, and the Whitestone Expressway.
28. All of your prom photos or any other important event were taken in Francis Lewis Park in front of the Whitestone Bridge.
29. Once in a while, they film a movie in Whitestone, in which case everyone needs to go and investigate.
30. You still miss Waldbaum's.
31. Nothing is better than Ralph’s on a hot summer day.
You wait all winter for them to reopen!
32. You have at least one police officer, firefighter, or contractor on your block.
33. You love frequenting all of the "mom and pop" shops in the Whitestone Village, but dread parking there.
34. Everyone knows everyone!
If you’re in a shopping center, driving, or just going for a walk, chances are you’ll run into someone you know.
35. Nothing interesting ever happens, but when it does, the whole neighborhood knows about it and comes together to make a difference.
Overall, you wouldn’t trade living in Whitestone for the world. You love your town, all of the memories you’ve made in it, and all of the people in Whitestone!
