Big City, Small Town

I’ve spent most of my life living in big cities, but am transitioning into a small town for the first time. I was born in Houston, Texas, population nearing 6 million in 2010 [about 2 million when I was born there]. That’s just the county I grew up in. I’m about to move to a state where the whole population is just over 1 million, and the town we’re living in has less than 20,000. 

This is going to be a big shift.

I’ve had about a year and a half to prepare myself for this change. I’ve had lots of different thoughts coursing through my mind. Having spent several years expecting to spend my life in urban areas, there was the initial freak out. But once we really decided to make this commitment, I also started fantasizing about some of the more romantic aspects of small town life.

Not living in a big city, I know from past experience that I will actually miss freeways, skyscrapers, the white noise of traffic/trains/rapid transit/buses.

I am looking forward to being able to walk most places in town, being surrounded by old New England architecture, and nature making more noise than machines.

I think I might miss the freedom of anonymity, but love the familiarity of acquaintance.

I’ll miss the bustle and buzz of a big city, but look forward to simplicity and peace of a small town.

I will miss the breadth of dining and entertainment options. But I also look forward to actually being able to know every restaurant in town and not have a list hanging over my head of places I need to try. 

I will miss having so many choices for everything (shopping, schools, parks, grocery stores). I will love having less decisions to worry over.

I’m going to miss the ethnic diversity and internationality of big cities, but look forward to seeing more economic diversity amongst neighbors. 

We’ve been thinking lately about how both in inner cities and suburban neighborhoods, most people have to “get out” in order to work at good jobs. It creates this spatial disconnect between family and work. While I can see some advantages to having these things separated, I am looking forward to our children growing up in the same space where all the adults in their lives work. They’ll be able to see their parents’ offices and colleagues and get a sense for what having a career looks like on a more intimate level than maybe just a once/year “take your kid to work day.” 

Help me out, Lobsters. What are some of the other pros/cons of big cities and small towns? Here's one guy's research-based thoughts. What am I forgetting to miss and what do I not know to look forward to? What are some of the cons of small town life I should be preparing myself for?