At the time I was born and for the overwhelming majority of my pre-18 year old existence, my hometown, Detroit, Michigan was the 5th most populated city in the country, with a population of over 1.5 million (now, in 2017, Detroit is the 23rd largest city in the country and its population continues to decline for a host of reasons).
In other words, I was born in the big city. I am as much of a city boy as anyone and I will always be that way.
I have lived in smaller cities (Tallahassee, FL, Washington DC, Boston, MA) for short periods of time (less than two years) and there is nothing, to me, that beats the amenities of The Big City, including varieties in culture and food, museums, or even the possibility of remaining anonymous for a period of time.
In fact, I live in a smaller city, now, the home of the only private university among the Big Ten athletic Conference...but still, Chicago is only a 5 minute train ride away and I do live near an -el station.
Rapid transit is one of the primary reasons that I would prefer not to live in Detroit again; I felt this way shortly after I lived in New York City and even cities smaller than Detroit (at the time I lived in them, that is).
Truth be told, I would rather not actually live in ‘’the big city’’ ever again; I have become fond of living in a university town and I am even so blessed as to live in a university town that is a very short and inexpensive train ride away from The Big City and the amenities that I so adore...yet I can also avoid big city hustle and bustle whenever I please.
Which is one of the reasons that I prefer university towns like Evanston, IL and Cambridge, MA (and, I’m guessing, Berkeley, CA) to other university towns like Ann Arbor, Michigan or Madison, Wisconsin or Champaign, Illinois.
Of course, I can imagine all sorts of reasons to decide to live in pretty much any size town or even to live in a very very rural area...in fact, I think that I could live in a rural area for a time under certain conditions. But...you can take the boy out of the city but you can never take the city out of the boy, at least in my case.
Today’s question: Are you from a big city? Medium-sized city? Rural area? Could you live in a city/area like the one you were raised in today?
RSVPS
1. EagleOfFreedom
2. John Crapper
3. Kathy
4. doingbusinessas
5. momomia
6.
MAYBEES :
N in Seattle
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RSVPS
1. kathny
2. belinda ridgewood
3. rubyr
4. sidnora
5. joanbrooker
6. ericlewis0
7.
MAYBEES :
laura
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RSVPS
1. nhox42
2. Common Sense Mainer
3. Bill in Portland Maine
4. radical simplicity
5. radical simplicity’s spousal unit
6. Knockbally
7. freedapeople
8. AnotherMassachusettsLiberal
9.
MAYBEES :
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RSVPS
1. tbirchard
2. navajo
3. Glen The Plumber
4. remembrance
5. TLO
6. jpmassar
7. Meteor Blades
8. kimoconnor
9. citisven
10.
MAYBEES :
1. smileycreek
2. paradise50
3. jck
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