Thank Walmart and Dollar General and Home Depot for the destruction. I try to avoid those stores even here in suburbia. The little Ace Hardware by me and the home-owned grocery store meets most of my day to day needs.
Walmart in small cities/bigger towns definitely. But most small towns are an hour or more away from a home depot...I used to live 3-4 hours away from the nearest.
I'm not sure if the dollar stores caused it or filled void; maybe a little of both.
I have to be honest some of it is just better roads and cars; it used to be getting to a big town or small city took hours so shopping closer to home was economical. But we widened highways or built interstates; now big towns/small cities are less than an hour drive 'cause you can drive faster.
That and the loss of jobs from lost industry or automation. Not enough people and money to support local businesses.
It seems it's a lot of things, really. Still sad, though.
I can see how a highway would change things a lot. Some things still need to be close, especially groceries and hardware. Small businesses are all at risk, even in big cities, though. Sorry about your town!
Actually my home town gentrified...and the small town i live in now is also gentrifying and growing. These bring their own issues. But I've lived and worked in small towns that were like my poem; Aberdeen, WA (used to be a timber town), Gila, NM (used to live there; last time Inwent through the grocery and hardware store were closed); Glenwood, NM (worked there; gas station, store, restaurant gone)...a couple more, it's all the same...
Great writing, ernie. Man oh man, have I seen this in my neck of the woods, too. Over and over again. My small town was booming when I was growing up; not so much anymore.
Thanks! Yeah, it’s really sad…seems they either die or gentrify…which, of course, completely homogenizes them into the the corporate franchise culture. Sad either way.
When I was in New Mexico we went to Carlsbad Caverns and White Sands we were using the surfboards little surfboards on White Sands my cousin John had a mini bike we were screwing around with that too I was always into mini bikes
I really haven't been anywhere I've lived in Brooklyn the Bronx and Westchester I've visited only a few places never really spent time anywhere else maybe the Catskills in New York three Summers late 60s early 70s that's about it less than a week in La Luz I've been to Vegas for a week San Carlos California for a week did Jersey Shore a week at a time about five or six times a few other places I'm probably not remembering but I never lived in a small town
When I lived briefly on Long Island (from 1999 to 2002) the thing that struck me the most is how little people knew about the rest of the country. They'd been to Las Vegas (NV, not NM 😂), Florida, maybe a few other places, and they always flew so they had no concept of the places in-between. It's not just the tri-state area...it's pretty much everyone east of the Mississippi, really. Did you know that 80% of the U.S. population lies east of a line from San Antonio, TX and Minneapolis, MN? And another 10% is in California...so more than half the area of the U.S. has 10% of the population, and even that is concentrated in big cities like Phoenix, Seattle, Salt Lake City, Las Vegas, Denver. So the country out here is pretty empty.
Just to give you an example, New Mexico where I live is the fifth largest state in area but 37th in population (just over 2 million people). New Jersey, the most densely populated state, has 1/14 the land area of NM but more than 4 times the population (9.5 million people). You all are used to it, but I found it way too crowded.
People no longer drive or take the bus or train so they really don't see anymore what the west and Great Plains are like. We're literally fly-over country!
I made the move to Glen Cove because I got a job in Nassau County so I sold my place in Scarsdale I was still single at the time and then I met my wife while I was out there believing or not but she's from Westchester and eventually we came back
Yes fly over country and as a non flyer and I hate to say not much of a traveler I hate that term I hate that they call it fly over country because I know it's much more than that Jersey is crowded you're right we go to the Jersey Shore one week a year and it's pretty nice down there we go to Beach Haven Long Beach Island area I forgot the county but it's awesome water is clean people are nice
I was going to mention but I forgot I also lived in Glen Cove Long Island for about 3 years from 2011 to 2014 right after Sandy hit the South Shore I moved into Massapequa as a rental and then I bought a co-op in Glen Cove I made a nice 100k on the sale of that place and I put it into the house I'm living in now
It was pretty cool when I was in Massapequa the neighborhood was cleaning up from Sandy I got a good deal on a studio on the inlet in Nassau Shores so I got to use the landlords kayak all the time I was constantly going out to the inlet and just touching the ocean and turning back cuz I'm chicken I was down in Scarsdale one night getting a haircut and I'm met my future wife so that was the end of that LOL
Thank Walmart and Dollar General and Home Depot for the destruction. I try to avoid those stores even here in suburbia. The little Ace Hardware by me and the home-owned grocery store meets most of my day to day needs.
Walmart in small cities/bigger towns definitely. But most small towns are an hour or more away from a home depot...I used to live 3-4 hours away from the nearest.
I'm not sure if the dollar stores caused it or filled void; maybe a little of both.
I have to be honest some of it is just better roads and cars; it used to be getting to a big town or small city took hours so shopping closer to home was economical. But we widened highways or built interstates; now big towns/small cities are less than an hour drive 'cause you can drive faster.
That and the loss of jobs from lost industry or automation. Not enough people and money to support local businesses.
It seems it's a lot of things, really. Still sad, though.
I can see how a highway would change things a lot. Some things still need to be close, especially groceries and hardware. Small businesses are all at risk, even in big cities, though. Sorry about your town!
Actually my home town gentrified...and the small town i live in now is also gentrifying and growing. These bring their own issues. But I've lived and worked in small towns that were like my poem; Aberdeen, WA (used to be a timber town), Gila, NM (used to live there; last time Inwent through the grocery and hardware store were closed); Glenwood, NM (worked there; gas station, store, restaurant gone)...a couple more, it's all the same...
Great writing, ernie. Man oh man, have I seen this in my neck of the woods, too. Over and over again. My small town was booming when I was growing up; not so much anymore.
Thanks! Yeah, it’s really sad…seems they either die or gentrify…which, of course, completely homogenizes them into the the corporate franchise culture. Sad either way.
aww, that's sad
Yeah, seen (and lived in) too many towns and small cities like this. Rural America is dying.
When I was in New Mexico we went to Carlsbad Caverns and White Sands we were using the surfboards little surfboards on White Sands my cousin John had a mini bike we were screwing around with that too I was always into mini bikes
Mini bikes are fun!
I have never been to White Sands, believe it or not (though I have been to Carlsbad Caverns).
I really haven't been anywhere I've lived in Brooklyn the Bronx and Westchester I've visited only a few places never really spent time anywhere else maybe the Catskills in New York three Summers late 60s early 70s that's about it less than a week in La Luz I've been to Vegas for a week San Carlos California for a week did Jersey Shore a week at a time about five or six times a few other places I'm probably not remembering but I never lived in a small town
When I lived briefly on Long Island (from 1999 to 2002) the thing that struck me the most is how little people knew about the rest of the country. They'd been to Las Vegas (NV, not NM 😂), Florida, maybe a few other places, and they always flew so they had no concept of the places in-between. It's not just the tri-state area...it's pretty much everyone east of the Mississippi, really. Did you know that 80% of the U.S. population lies east of a line from San Antonio, TX and Minneapolis, MN? And another 10% is in California...so more than half the area of the U.S. has 10% of the population, and even that is concentrated in big cities like Phoenix, Seattle, Salt Lake City, Las Vegas, Denver. So the country out here is pretty empty.
Just to give you an example, New Mexico where I live is the fifth largest state in area but 37th in population (just over 2 million people). New Jersey, the most densely populated state, has 1/14 the land area of NM but more than 4 times the population (9.5 million people). You all are used to it, but I found it way too crowded.
People no longer drive or take the bus or train so they really don't see anymore what the west and Great Plains are like. We're literally fly-over country!
I would love to check out Europe for a few weeks maybe Sicily or Portugal Ireland I would love to see these places experience what life is like there
When I talk about leaving now and moving to my neighbors to my wife to whomever everybody's response is "but where are you going to go?" I hate that
I made the move to Glen Cove because I got a job in Nassau County so I sold my place in Scarsdale I was still single at the time and then I met my wife while I was out there believing or not but she's from Westchester and eventually we came back
Yes fly over country and as a non flyer and I hate to say not much of a traveler I hate that term I hate that they call it fly over country because I know it's much more than that Jersey is crowded you're right we go to the Jersey Shore one week a year and it's pretty nice down there we go to Beach Haven Long Beach Island area I forgot the county but it's awesome water is clean people are nice
I was going to mention but I forgot I also lived in Glen Cove Long Island for about 3 years from 2011 to 2014 right after Sandy hit the South Shore I moved into Massapequa as a rental and then I bought a co-op in Glen Cove I made a nice 100k on the sale of that place and I put it into the house I'm living in now
Nice! I first lived in Middle Island but later moved to Port Jefferson. I worked in Patchogue.
It was pretty cool when I was in Massapequa the neighborhood was cleaning up from Sandy I got a good deal on a studio on the inlet in Nassau Shores so I got to use the landlords kayak all the time I was constantly going out to the inlet and just touching the ocean and turning back cuz I'm chicken I was down in Scarsdale one night getting a haircut and I'm met my future wife so that was the end of that LOL