What is it like living in a small isolated town?

when does a hamlet become a village, a village> a town, town> city??

I lived in a small town after I graduated from college. Population - 2,902. Funny & sad story - My co-workers tried to hook me up with a fat girl. I said no, & they thought I was gay from then on.

Other than that, I kind of miss it. The training was amazing. I had a state park, county park, & an old limestone rail trail just outside of town. Plus miles & miles of quiet country roads. I hope you're not afraid of dogs though, because most are unleashed once you get out of town. Besides the above experience, people in small towns are usually friendlier than people in cities. Small town living is a lot less stressful too. No traffic, crime, long lines etc. Being a loner helps.

If you're married go for it. If you're single, then contemplate it.

extrema wrote:

Funny & sad story - My co-workers tried to hook me up with a fat girl. I said no, & they thought I was gay from then on.

Should've gone for the fat girl. Know what they say...more cushin for the pushin.

I've lived most of my life in two towns of about 30,000, and I somewhat frequently visit my grandmother who lives in a town of 3000. I lived in a town of 50,000 for a little while... I also lived in a national park one summer at research station in the mountains pretty isolated from any tourists or traffic. There was a pizzaria, a gas station, and a small grocery store a few miles away.

I have found real small towns (

Guppy wrote:

I've lived most of my life in two towns of about 30,000, and I somewhat frequently visit my grandmother who lives in a town of 3000. I lived in a town of 50,000 for a little while... I also lived in a national park one summer at research station in the mountains pretty isolated from any tourists or traffic. There was a pizzaria, a gas station, and a small grocery store a few miles away.

I have found real small towns (

Well I'm pretty pissed off that letsrun keeps cutting off posts randomly as I wrote a great deal more than this. WTF is going on, Brojos?

Insignificant states and small towns are fine if you don't want to stay current at all. Some want to live that way. It used to really be isolated in insignificant states but with satellite/cable TV it's easy to imitate / copy Hollywood style and Los Angeles culture as billions have done across the globe.

Colleges in small states have to import 2/3rds of their athletes from border states. West Virginia, Idaho, Montana, Nebraska, Oregon, Dakotas, Nevada, have to do that. The problem is athletes often leave school early than in big states. Even if they graduate they are soon gone from the state. Plus out-of-state athletes rarely credit anything that was done for them by hard working taxpayers.

Woodsman wrote:

Small isolated town in the western US with some sweet wilderness out the back door: Awesome.

Small isolated town in the rest of the country: Crap.

This is true. Living in a small town is not bad if you have some nature around. If there's not, you're going to be sitting at home all day. I wouldn't want to be a young, good-looking single guy or girl living in a small isolated town. It'd be a waste of your youth.

I wouldn't want to raise kids in a small, isolated town either. Kids need to have things to do so they can develop their interests and social skills.

Oh Yea.... wrote:

No, but partying with your friends in SODO is - like I'm doing right now! Hell Yea!

Must be one helluva party sitting around Mom's basement posting on LR. Hell Yea!

Ya know how it's like doin' #2 out on a run without any buttwipe, so you grab some pine needles instead? It's like that.

I was born in a small town. Isolated, maybe 5,000 people, and a 90 minute drive to the nearest mall. I went to a major city for college, and have settled in a suburb of a smaller city.

I long for living in a small town again. I've never felt comfortable in cities. The positives of small towns relate mostly to the people. Yeah, there are plenty of rednecks. But, the people are incredibly nice, look out for each other, and community-minded. In a way I have never seen in suburbs or cities. The larger the city I have lived in or near, the more the people just ignore each other.

The downside is the pace of everything. Everything is slow. People drive slow. Service is slow. Nobody is in a hurry for anything.

Last weekend I drove back to my hometown and visited the one pharmacy in town to pick up a prescription for my mother. The person behind the counter asked how she was feeling. When I went to pay they didn't accept credit cards, but that was no big deal because they told me to just stop by sometime when I had the cash to settle up.

Living in a small town isn't for everybody, and if you didn't grow up in one, you might not like it. There is no place I'd rather be.

Buffalo and Rochester are both 200k+ in the city proper. depending on how far south you're talking, you're only 30-45 minutes from either city at most. thats not really too much worse than taking a subway from Brooklyn to Upper Manahattan. maybe you should pick one of those two cities and make the daily commute to the small town. i know plenty of people who commute daily from Rochester to Buffalo, or vice versa. or live in the small town and you can go to either of the two cities any time you want. additionally, you're no more than a few hours drive from: Niagara Falls (go to the Canadian side), Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Toronto, New York, Boston, Philly. and if you want to fly instead, the flights are reasonably priced.

and quite candidly, the winters have not been bad at all (definitely not 7 months). weather is no worse than: Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, the Dakotas, Montana, Washington, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine.

I grew up in a Mayberry type town. About 7,000 people, somewhat isolated from other towns, pre-internet, no school choices, not even any private or nearby parochial schools. I loved it had have wondered how different it would be now with hovering parents and the internet. It's cliche to say but once I was about 7 years old my parents had no idea where I was from 8 in the morning until dinner. Most of the time I was in school but nobody kept watch during the summer. Since the town was so small there was someone we knew practically everywhere and thus always felt watched and protected.

It wasn't until my parents were there for about 30 years and all the children were out of college that we were considered locals.

I grew up in Leadville-which had a population of 5000 or so when I was there. I still go back quite a bit. Regarding "Partying"-My experience with the bars in Leadville is that they are far more interesting than the bars in Denver, or Boulder or Fort Collins. Urban bars tend to cater to a single demographic. In Leadville, I have partied with WW-II Vets, Korean Vets, Vietnam Vets, draft dodgers, Bikers, Hippies and Mexicans-all in the same room. Usually, everyone gets along. That does not happen in "LoDO" which is, I imagine, Denver's version of what you call "SODO."The biggest misunderstanding about small town life is that it's provincial and boring-in many ways it's far more enlightening than being pigeonholed in a little yuppie mindset that many 20 somethings find themselves in large cities.

Oh Yea.... wrote:

No, but partying with your friends in SODO is - like I'm doing right now! Hell Yea!

I live in a village of some 200 folks in the hills of Western Mass (more in summer, fewer in winter), where it is a lot more aerobic than Leadville but there still are no boring long flat runs. I can tell you that there is no such thing as an isolated small town any more unless you want it to be. The internet reaches everywhere, and cities and airports beckon near all the Interstates. But the air is cleaner and the running and cross country skiing is more diverse and fun.

LeadvilleNative wrote:

I grew up in Leadville-which had a population of 5000 or so when I was there. I still go back quite a bit. the bars in Leadville are far more interesting than the bars in Denver, or Boulder or Fort Collins. The biggest misunderstanding about small town life is that it's provincial and boring-in many ways it's far more enlightening than being pigeonholed in a little yuppie mindset

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gwn wrote:

Buffalo and Rochester are both 200k+ in the city proper. depending on how far south you're talking, you're only 30-45 minutes from either city at most.

Actually that's wrong, from roch to that area is a little over an hour of driving.

Albion, Medina, Lockport? My mom grew up in Lockport, and I spent a lot of time there, even into my 20s. I love upstate and western NY...mostly for the isolated quality. As far as enjoying your time in towns like that, I would highly recommend scoping out very specific ammenities that you know you will want: coffee shops, library, few bars, theater (movie or other), running clubs, trails, etc. My deal breakers are coffee shops/cafes, semi-fancy restaurants and access to trails. Plus side to the area is SUNY Buffalo (university towns always have a lot going on), the lake for swimming/boating, the old canals and local history.

I've spent a lot of time in a very small town in Northeastern Vermont. Extremely isolated, only about 200 people total. The whole area is nothing but forest interspersed with the occasional farm. Downtown consists of a general store, a post office, a church, and a library. I would spend all summer up there as a kid visiting my grandparents and a week or two in the winter too. I don't think I've ever been happier than when I was up there. There were no computers, internet, tv or anything in my grandparents farmhouse. I would go from spending all my free time playing N64 and watching cartoons to spending all my time reading, exploring in the woods, catching crayfish in the lake, etc. I loved how wild and remote it was. We would always see moose in the swamps, hear coyotes howling at night, or see bobcat tracks in the snow. I never lived there full time, but as a kid I would have given anything to stay there year round.

Now that I'm in my 20s I'm definitely glad I live in a city. I can imagine that teenagers who grow up in small towns like the one I described can't wait to move away. But when I'm older and have a family I think I would prefer a simple life in a small town like this. I think it's a better environment to raise your kids in, too.

[quote]LeadvilleNative wrote:

I grew up in Leadville-which had a population of 5000 or so when I was there. I still go back quite a bit. Regarding "Partying"-My experience with the bars in Leadville is that they are far more interesting than the bars in Denver, or Boulder or Fort Collins. Urban bars tend to cater to a single demographic. In Leadville, I have partied with WW-II Vets, Korean Vets, Vietnam Vets, draft dodgers, Bikers, Hippies and Mexicans-all in the same room. Usually, everyone gets along. That does not happen in "LoDO" which is, I imagine, Denver's version of what you call "SODO."

The biggest misunderstanding about small town life is that it's provincial and boring-in many ways it's far more enlightening than being pigeonholed in a little yuppie mindset that many 20 somethings find themselves in large cities.

[quote]

^This. There are pluses and minuses to small town or city life, but this post does a nice job of debunking misconceptions about small towns. BTW, I've spent a bit of time in and around Leadville over the years (not so much in recent years) - great place with a lot of character, and, of course, very beautiful.

Hey guys, OP again. I'm enjoying your responses so thanks. I'm considering commuting from Rochester, NY (sounds ncier than buffalo?) And it'll be about an hour commute. Anyone familiar with a 1+ commute? Does that start to wear you down? Ugh...