Ohmystinkinheck

The nicest part about living in a small-ish town/city is the significantly different amount of traffic. Our 5:00 rush hour is over at 5:15 - a completely bearable set-up.

On the way to the HIll Country this past weekend, I passed through Austin. As I scooted along at the very clipped pace of 20 mph on the highway, I watched various idiots “cat and mouse” through traffic as if the extra two car lengths might just save their lives.

I puttered along in my same lane and noticed, without some prideful glee, that no matter how those obnoxious drivers frittered and frattered, they hardly pulled ahead. Still, their driving was dangerous to me and others and the whole city (like all cities) is one, two or two hundred enormous car wrecks ready to happen at any given second.

People, people EVERYWHERE. For crying out loud why would anyone purposely live where they couldn’t breathe without taking in exhaust or someone’s anti-perspirant?

I think that same reasoning applies to my aversion of malls. I don’t want to bump shoulders with oncoming traffic or inhale the latest perfume doused across every female body leaving any major department store.

Yes, I know…I’m 35 and I sound 80.

I’m good with that.

Fourteen years ago, when all of mine and Jeff’s friends were racing to big cities for big, high-paying, high-power, high-stress jobs, we were strolling (very slowly, I might add) to a more relaxed mode of living. I daresay we are still headed in that direction; away from the traffic - toward a life LIVED and not MISSED.

19 Responses to “Traffic-ing”

1. Kizz

   Well, clearly you don’t belong in a city. And that’s cool. I grew up in a small town and now I live in NYC. I’ve lived a few other places, some smaller than others. In my city I can wear and eat and do what I like and not be under constant surveillance. Sure there are people around but they aren’t invested in my dog/lawn/pants in the same way that I found people to be in a small town. In a small town I couldn’t be me. I’ve had to go back for longish periods and it suffocates me as the smog of Austin does you.

   I live in a city, this particular glorious and beloved city, because this is where my life is LIVED not JUDGED.

2. She Likes Purple

   I could have lived in College Station forever. I miss the easy pace of that life.

3. OMSH

   Kizz - I grew up in a big city and felt anonymous. It sounds like our two different experiences led us to the opposite. :)

   College Station is a bit too big for me now, but we do enjoy visiting.

4. Kate

   I was never more happy than to move out of the suburbs of a big city about three years ago. And even though the town I live in isn’t necessarily small (pop. 65,000-ish) it has a small town feel to it in alot of ways. I have always been a country girl at heart, yearning for a simpler way of life, one that is slower in pace and more about the trip than rushing to the destination.

   I can see the benefits of big cities, but those benefits just don’t weigh heavy with me. A drive through farmland where you can smell fresh cut alfalfa and see animals grazing next to white farm houses, with kids running and playing in a huge yard, is what carries the most weight.

   And while it’s nice to visit The City once in awhile, I’m always thrilled to return to my quiet little corner of the world.

5. Claire in CA

   I’m with ya. I live in a suburb in So Cal, and it’s people and traffic 24/7. I want to get out of here so badly. Now, it’s convincing my hubby that we could be happier somewhere else.

6. Katie

   Well, I had to speak up, since I actually live in A-town myself. I love Austin. But here’s the thing: I live IN AUSTIN. Not the suburbs. I hate the traffic, too. But I never really have to deal with it, nor does my hubby, since he also works in Austin. The problem isn’t cities, it’s sprawl. Suburbs are artificial creations for people who want to live in neighborhoods close to cities, but not too close. And therefore, the traffic is created. I grew up in the suburbs of Houston and YUCK. But Austin is an AWESOME city that I love to death, with so many amazing things to offer that I would sorely miss if I lived elsewhere. I should probably note, however, that I would not want to live anywhere else in Texas. :)

7. Katie

   I meant, in any other LARGE city in Texas. We are open to checking out small town life and rural life, too….. we’ll see where hubby finds work after he graduates!

8. Mrs. Wilson

   Oh I’m with you! Our “rush hour” is over in the same amount of time - quite short. I have NO IDEA why someone would want to live in a place like that! I have to admit that we are moving to a bigger city, but it’s still quite a small city. Big cities are not for me. I like to visit them, I would not like to live in one.

9. Melanie

   I LOVE this post. I live in a small rural town. I commute to a city for work and the traffic there drives me crazy. I don’t understand why someone would want to live where it takes 30 minutes to go five miles down the road. Of course I’ve never lived in a large city, so I don’t know the conveniences they have to offer. My parents and I live on opposite sides of our town. I can go from our house to theirs in 10 minutes. Love it, Love it, Love it!!!!

10. chocolatechic

    I was commenting to my son yesterday as we drove through big and small towns about the correlation of the size of the city to how fast people drive.

11. Loralee

    I live in a valley of 100,000. Technically a metro area but it is wide spread and full of tons of farm land. I love the nature but also like having enough shopping near by.

    Some people are energized by big cities, other people are drained by them.

    I tend to get a bit drained and like living amongst the cows (But only an hour away from a great big city).

    As long as I can get out of the sticks on occasion I love living in them.

12. bethany actually

    I get what you’re saying…but I am a city girl all the way. Which is kinda funny, because I am an introvert and when I have to spend a time in social situations with a bunch of people, I get very drained. But being in a big busy city energizes me and makes me happy. I hasten to second Katie’s point that this means being IN the city, close to work, school, church, etc., not living 45 minutes away in the suburbs.

13. Lanna

    Amen! Growing up I always felt more comfortable in the teeny towns where my grandparents lived (my sister and I got to visit/live with them for a week or two every summer, it was awesome!). Like populations of 600 and 4000, vs. the college town I grew up in - where yes, rush hour is over at 5:15, but bars are open and crowded until closing. We’re in a smallish town with 3 stoplights in the 8-block downtown area (I don’t count the lights on the highway). I love it, and I’m a tad younger than you. ;)

14. Michelle

    That’s one of the reasons I like smaller towns too. When I go into a mall in Manhattan, I feel like I’m going to have a panic attack!

15. Mandy

    Growing up I was convinced that I needed to get out of my small rural town. I moved to the heart of Cincinnati and the second night had to make a trip to Walmart for a black sheet to hang over my windows and earplugs to keep out the noise and sirens. I slept like that for over a year! I actually missed the crickets! Now I live in a small town on the outskirts of Cincinnati but drive right through the big city traffic everyday to get home. This is actually where I do my best thinking, but boy do I love to pull in my little driveway in front of my little house in my little town!

16. mamalang

    I was born and lived in Baltimore, Maryland until I was in late elementary school. I loved it. We moved to Indiana, and we lived in a college town, and it was okay. Then I moved to the back 40, and I loved it. After college, I lived near DC and commuted in, and I hated it after a month. Now I live in a medium sized city, wirh rural areas close by, plenty of shopping nearby, and 3 large cities within a day’s travel time. It really is good here. When the kids are out of school, we may move out to the boonies again, but this is a good mix for us now.

    Let me also note, I have extreme motion sickness, so my travel time was always forced boredom…no reading, no crafting, no sleeping (I was riding the metro).

    And lastly (wow this is long)…I think it’s great that we have the choices and that we live where it works for us. I may not want to live in a city, but I have a great friend that does…and that’s okay.

17. Jamie

    I’m with you, OMSH. Being 2 hours away from you, living in a small town as well makes me appreciate our little calm existence. We go to Houston frequently and every single time I’m back on 59 North headed home and I always, always have an overwhelming sense of relief that I live in a small town with small-town traffic.

18. Vanessa

    I grew up outside of an ubersmall town, where everyone knows everyone, and when you’re down, the whole town has your back. I had to move to a big city (by my standards) for university, and I hated it. I hated the anonymity, the lack of empathy or caring for others…I really felt like the country mouse in the city.

    I’m still in the same city, because I’m graduating this year, and already have a job and a fiance here, but we both live in the suburb where we work, and don’t have to deal with rush hour going into or coming out of the city. We’ve also bought a house outside of the suburb, so the pseudo country, for after we get married…and I couldn’t be happier. City living will never be for me.

19. SAJ

    I hate smelly perfume in malls too! Or even worse are those outdoor carts where slick-talking guys try to get you to put fruity lotion on.