living in places

[windit]

It's been nice to read through these and imagine all the different sorts of places you've all lived in.

Right now I am trying to make a housing choice that really does feel like it's out of a children's book, did anyone have that picture book that was something like 'country girl, city boy' and described their two different lifestyles?

I've been living in the suburbs this year, but need to make a move in a couple of months, either into the city or out into a village.

My family moved constantly when I was growing up but I spent the longest period of my childhood in a very small farming village (<200 ppl). Then I spent most of my adult life in what I'd consider a big city - but by international standards, it's tiny. I've visited London and New York and honestly struggle to comprehend the sizes of those places - let alone visualising the population. A city that takes hours to drive across??? I live near the capital city here and you can WALK from one side to the other in an hour.

It took travelling to make me realise what a small town hick I am in lots of ways. But I'm craving country life again. Knowing and being known by a small community is strangely fulfilling.

[Cele]

I have not moved much in my life, I've lived in a village and a town. I definitely prefer towns, there's some stuff to do and places to go to, but not TOO much. And not too many people. When cities get bigger, they also end up having the downsides of big cities. Maybe I would think differently if I had lived in a city, but my current mindset is that I wouldn't want to. My gf keeps dreaming of living in a village but I'm not so sure about that... Because if you have children, they have no higher education options nearby and will have to move to a city far away to get education, and this was something that I struggled with when I was at that age. I could settle for mixed though, so a more remote area close to a bigger town. I've gotten used to living in the town center and being able to just walk to most places, but if I was to live in a house in a more remote place, I'd have to have a car at least. The worst part about living in the town center is not having my own yard and therefore, having no possibility to set up any sacred tree/stone/whatever and have that sort of connection to nature.

[musicobsessed107]

I grew up in the suburbs, but I much prefer cities now that I've lived in one for a while. It's so nice being able to walk everywhere. I'd like to pretend that there's other reasons, but honestly it's pretty much just that. Being able to just get up and walk to a store when I need something is so convenient that it has entirely overridden any fond childhood memories that are specific to suburbs. Youth is fake, memory is unimportant, walking is forever.

Okay it also helps that I hate yards.

I live in what's technically a suburb (although there's no real distinction between urban and suburban life where I'm from, unlike in let's say, Seattle, where I've noticed that there's an actual distinction between the city and its suburbs during my 2 trips up there in December 2018 and November 2019 respectively), and it's pretty walkable if you can walk a few blocks to the grocery stores or the bus stops to go further distances.

Not all suburbs are created equal, I guess. I just don't like the idea that people seem to think and hold onto this stereotype that all suburbs are more like large rural areas when they can also be more like small urban areas depending on where you are. In my area, the burbs are definitely the latter. There are plenty of cul de sacs and houses with yards around here, but also apartments (mostly the older 2 or 3 story ones and the occasional 4 or 5 story more recent developments here and there), freeways, bus stops every few blocks and different grocery stores within a mile radius, and a few entertainment venues as well.

[Grimmgall]

In my opinion, a village seems as though it would be quite a beauteous place to live in ideally, but I am more inclined to live in a small town. My issue with cities is that I believe skyscrapers are hideous, and I believe that if I were to reside in an area with an abundance of skyscrapers and bland buildings, I'd feel quite miserable. It's been stated that aesthetics are actually an important aspect of mental health, and I believe small towns would suit the aesthetic appeal + accessibility aspects more than either a village or a city. The other issue with cities is the pollution, and I believe also the traffic.

I was born in Dover, DE, but my entire life, I've been living in suburban areas. I'm very accustomed to the suburbs.

[HisVirusness]

I grew up on the southwest side of Chicago, and have spent my life moving from place-to-place... in Chicago.

Despite that, when I was a kid, I would spend 1-2 weekends a month with my grandmother.  She lived in the far-south suburbs, which was a nice area to ride a bike around, but I was never really comfortable at night because of how quiet and dark it got.  Some see that as relaxing and peaceful... I was not one of those people as a kid.

A few years back, I got a nice job driving a bus and moved to the northwest suburbs to be closer to work.  The dark silence at night still made me feel uneasy, but I got used to it over time.