I love small towns, but are they only good for couples, families and recluses?
Just saw the stats for my town - population of 3,500 and average age in the mid 50s. I love it here, but at the risk of sounding like a lonely loser, I don't want to spend the rest of my life alone. I guess I don't just mean single, but more broadly alone.
Is it time to move on?
Select to expand quoteWahine said..
population of 3,500
So that's 3,500 potential friends? 
Select to expand quoteWahine said..
I love small towns, but are they only good for couples, families and recluses?
Just saw the stats for my town - population of 3,500 and average age in the mid 50s. I love it here, but at the risk of sounding like a lonely loser, I don't want to spend the rest of my life alone. I guess I don't just mean single, but more broadly alone.
Is it time to move on?
Yes, its time to move on. Preferably to a city where there are people you like.
If you want to prove it to yourself, work out how many of those 3,500 are in your target age range and single. I would hazard a guess that you don't live in a mystery town where everyone is your age and single, so move it is. Move back later if you still want to.
If have no experience living in a small town, but a friend of mine and his wife lived in a few and were always complaining about how hard it was to fit in with such a small tight knit community.
It is worse being alone in a city, so weigh it up before taking the plunge. Be prepared to move around a bit if you want to find the right mix.
I love living in a small community - but I also fit the demographic (middle-aged w/family). I think a stint in a large city would have been good in my younger (single) years, but wouldn't change a thing now.
(except if I could pick up this town & move it to a windier spot in Aus).
@Wahine unfortunately small towns are ultimately doomed.
The new world government wants everyone to live in a megapolis
and will soon 10-25 years start cut services to regional areas, increase fuel costs and prohibit on premises renewables.
So my advice is to enjoy it while you can, bcos you'll eventually end up in a chity where bird songs have been replace by police and ambulance sirens,
where the sound of the wind has been replaced by semi trailer pneumatic brakes,
where a breezy large country house, is if you're lucky replaced by a small overpriced ($600 a week future $120k a week) unit in a non English speaking neighbourhood,
where a nice country drive to the shops is replaced with 24hr gridlock traffic
This was Sydney just last week, it's not a joke it's real you can while your time away looking at your fuel gage reduction while sucking down the CO1 (carbon monoxide).
Oh and to make matters worse the loneliness in the chities is so much worse, bcos you're surrounded by people, all of them avoiding eye contact out of fear and disregard. Hell if you were to fall and be incapacitated they'd just step over you.
Select to expand quoteFlySurfer said..
Oh and to make matters worse the loneliness in the chities is so much worse, bcos you're surrounded by people, all of them avoiding eye contact out of fear and disregard. Hell if you were to fall and be incapacitated they'd just step over you.
Hey, come on, be fair! I would step around you. Only if it wasn't too much trouble though.
Not everyone in the city is bad, it just seems that way. Just the other day I had a taxi driver that didn't try and run into me.
Select to expand quoteFormulaNova said..
Not everyone in the city is bad, it just seems that way. Just the other day I had a taxi driver that didn't try and run into me.
Not yet; look at Formula, poor guy gets to work at 07:00 and leaves at 20:00hrs to "mis the traffic", how long before he snaps?
PS: Do I need to reference that Chinese city/baby in the street incident?
Select to expand quoteWahine said..
I love small towns, but are they only good for couples, families and recluses?
Just saw the stats for my town - population of 3,500 and average age in the mid 50s. I love it here, but at the risk of sounding like a lonely loser, I don't want to spend the rest of my life alone. I guess I don't just mean single, but more broadly alone.
Is it time to move on?
If you love your home town then no need to move plenty of ways to find someone.
Select to expand quoteFlySurfer said..FormulaNova said..
Not everyone in the city is bad, it just seems that way. Just the other day I had a taxi driver that didn't try and run into me.
Not yet; look at Formula, poor guy gets to work at 07:00 and leaves at 20:00hrs to "mis the traffic", how long before he snaps?
PS: Do I need to reference that Chinese city/baby in the street incident?
Awesome! Can you tell someone who pays me that I get there at 7 and leave at 8? That's be great! If only I was paid by the hour. Do they pay you for travel time too?
Sadly, driving in Sydney traffic is more therapeutic for me than catching a train. I wonder if its because I have to drive past the airport on the way to work? Must be the fumes that are calming me down 
P.S. Don't let on that I know you and I have already snapped.
Select to expand quoteFlySurfer said..
This was Sydney just last week, it's not a joke it's real you can while your time away looking at your fuel gage reduction while sucking down the CO1 (carbon monoxide).
Oh and to make matters worse the loneliness in the chities is so much worse, bcos you're surrounded by people, all of them avoiding eye contact out of fear and disregard.
Hell if you were to fall and be incapacitated they'd just step over you.
You do realise that all these new cars belch out almost zero carbon monoxide don't you flysurfer?
The amount is so small that you can no longer gas yourself when things get rough.
I saw the specs on a diesel engine a few months back and they claimed the exhaust was cleaner than the air that went in. ???
About the only available option left to check out early now is to hop on your bike and ride out in front of the postie. BIFF! 
Oh,.. you've tried that already? ok then. Back to the car exhaust but use a really old model car. 
Select to expand quoteWahine said..
I love small towns, but are they only good for couples, families and recluses?
Just saw the stats for my town - population of 3,500 and average age in the mid 50s. I love it here, but at the risk of sounding like a lonely loser, I don't want to spend the rest of my life alone. I guess I don't just mean single, but more broadly alone.
Is it time to move on?
If you liike small towns you can move to another small town and make sure it's one with a lot of tourist traffic.
Tourists are mostly ready to talk to others, even the ones who never talk to anyone in their own country.
I've never worked out why that is.
And some of them are really hot!
Don't just talk to the good looking ones. Talk to them all, because sometimes the ugly ones have some really hot friends. 
Select to expand quoteFormulaNova said..
Awesome! Can you tell someone who pays me that I get there at 7 and leave at 8? That's be great! If only I was paid by the hour.
Sorry mate, there's no way you can pass off chatting on Seabreeze as work, but at least you put in the time.Select to expand quotepweedas said..
You do realise that all these new cars belch out almost zero carbon monoxide don't you flysurfer?
The amount is so small that you can no longer gas yourself when things get rough.
Oh yea?
Prove it, go on, be a man; garden hose + duct tape + camera...
Thanks for all your advice on picking up While I am single, I really wasn't just talking about that kind of company - more the stuff FormulaNova talks about when his friends lived in a small town. I don't think you can force finding someone - if it happens, it happens. But I don't think being single should mean the only time you have any company is while you're at work?
Select to expand quoteWahine said..
Thanks for all your advice on picking up While I am single, I really wasn't just talking about that kind of company - more the stuff FormulaNova talks about when his friends lived in a small town. I don't think you can force finding someone - if it happens, it happens. But I don't think being single should mean the only time you have any company is while you're at work?
Don't believe the stuff I write!
Well, actually, my friends had problems fitting in, and that was as a couple. I think as a couple it was easier for them to meet new people, but they had a particular attitude where they expected people to welcome them without putting in much effort.. which just doesn't seem to happen. Even in a city, there is a need to get out and do things in order to meet similar people.
Anyway, whichever way I look at it, a small town is always going to be more difficult, especially if you don't have that many things in common with the typical people you would find there.
As others have said, living in a city can have similar challenges too, but it does have more opportunity.
Select to expand quoteWahine said..
....
Is it time to move on?
If you are under 50 or over 51 then of course it is time to move on. It should always be time to move on.
Don't get stuck where you are. If you don't like it when you move on then you can just move on some more.
Gotta get up, gotta get out, grab the world by the throat and shout.
and never look back
When living in a small town and you happen to meet someone, ALWAYS check the family tree. You don't want to end up snogging your cousin.
If your local supermarket is big enough to stock a reasonably large range of blue cheeses, stay there.
Select to expand quotePitbull said..
When living in a small town and you happen to meet someone, ALWAYS check the family tree. You don't want to end up snogging your cousin.
Genetically speaking, it is OK.
Just sayin' ........
