...You can name everyone you graduated with
...You know what 4-H is
...You ever went to parties at a pasture, barn, or in the middle of a dirt road
...You used to drag "Main"
...You schedule parties around the schedule of different police officers, since you know which ones would bust you and which ones wouldn't
...You could never buy cigarettes because all the store clerks knew how old you were (and if you were old enough they'd tell your parents anyway)
...It was cool to date someone from the neighboring town
...You had senior skip day
...The whole school went to the same party after graduation
...You don't give directions by street names (turn by Nelson's house, go two blocks past Anderson's and it's four houses left of the track field)
...Your car stays filthy because of the dirt roads
...The town next to you is considered "trashy" or "snooty," but is actually just like your town
...You refer to anyone with a house newer than 1980 as "the rich people"
...Anyone you want can be found at either the Dairy Queen or the feed store
...You see at least one friend a week driving a tractor through town
...Football coaches suggest that you bale hay for the summer to get stronger
...Weekend excitement involves a trip to a Wal-Mart
...You decide to walk somewhere for exercise and five people pull over and ask if you need a ride
...Your teachers call you by your sibling's names
...Your teachers remember when they taught your parents
...You can charge at all the local stores
...The closest McDonald's is 45 miles away
...So is the closest mall
...It is normal to see an old man going through town on a riding lawn mower
...Second Street is on the edge of town

By Palmbchprincess on Saturday, October 30, 2004 - 10:37 am:

Janet, I read this to Nate, and we both can relate to a lot of these!!

By Dawnk777 on Saturday, October 30, 2004 - 10:42 am:

I went to high school in a town of 50,000, but we had Senior Skip Day. I was too chicken to skip out, though! I had no idea if I would get in trouble with my parents or not. With my own kids, I will look the other way! LOL! Of course, in my day, 18 was the drinking age, too. Maybe just as well I didn't go!

Emily, for the second year in a row, has had the same teachers as Sarah 3 years ago! LOL! I think once in a while they get Emily mixed up!

By Tunnia on Saturday, October 30, 2004 - 10:45 am:

OMG! LOL! This is almost exactly like the town I grew up in. Our population was less than 100. Most of my teachers either taught my parents or went to school with them and everyone knew everything about everyone else. As a kid, you couldn't so much as sneeze without five people telling your parents. Needless to say, we didn't get away with much.

By Cat on Saturday, October 30, 2004 - 10:46 am:

I can relate to a lot of those!!! However, we didn't have police to worry about because we didn't have any! Also, we could buy cigarettes, because they were for our dad and the store clerk knew that.

By Vicki on Saturday, October 30, 2004 - 11:19 am:

LOL..many of these hit very close to home for me too! We are in a small town now and I am sure they will apply to dd too! But, I wouldn't have it any other way!!!!

By Yjja123 on Saturday, October 30, 2004 - 11:21 am:

Oh my. That is my home town to a T!
Thanks for the laugh!
Yvonne

By Melanie on Saturday, October 30, 2004 - 11:38 am:

ROFL, I could relate as well!! I had several teachers who taught my mom . I had to laugh at the "rich people" one because there were a few houses around town that were referred to in that way. LOL. Thanks for the laugh!

By Ilovetom on Saturday, October 30, 2004 - 11:41 am:

I am not from a small town, but live in one now and most of this is true of my town. LOL.

When we first moved here I asked someone about a McDonalds and they said "Oh yeah" and gave me directions. Imagine my surprise to find out "McDonalds" had no golden arches, but was MacDonalds Grocery Store.

Still miss McDonalds.

By My2cuties on Saturday, October 30, 2004 - 12:48 pm:

We had Halloween parties in a barn, and we had Senior skip day, so I guess my town may be considered "small"...lol Well, that's okay, I don't mind. Thanks for the laugh!

By Tink on Saturday, October 30, 2004 - 01:07 pm:

My town has 200,000 people but we are in the middle of "farming country" so a lot of these apply: 4-H, barn parties, senior skip day, cruising (but we are the city that made cruising famous!), and my sister was called by my name and my brother was always "Cori's brother".

By Paulas on Saturday, October 30, 2004 - 01:10 pm:

Just like my town except we weren't even big enough for a Dairy Queen!

Okay...how's this. A place I lived it after graduation was a 6 HOUR DRIVE TO THE NEAREST MACDONALD'S OR MALL!!!!!!!!!!!

By Kernkate on Saturday, October 30, 2004 - 04:35 pm:

Sounds like the town we live it. Thanks for the laugh

By Kernkate on Saturday, October 30, 2004 - 04:37 pm:

Sounds like the town we live it. Thanks for the laugh

By Cocoabutter on Saturday, October 30, 2004 - 06:46 pm:

I grew up in a town similar- we dragged main, had parties in fields, and my car was always dirty!

By Kristie on Saturday, October 30, 2004 - 07:50 pm:

That is soo funny! I grew up in a town of 50 people. The directions to my house were turn right off the highway go up to the corral with the Arabian horse in it, turn left and my house was the one with the deer skulls on the fence. (and if you drive a chevy truck, park at the end of the driveway cuz dad dosen't allow chevys in our driveway). There were no cops, no stop signs.
We had 1 bar (now a strip club, none of the locals like this, it's ran by "outsiders"), 1 church, 1 post office, and one gas station. Our parents would buy us alchohol when we were teen agers cuz they knew we were gonna drink regardless and would rather us do it in front of them. (I never drink now cuz I've always been able to and got it out of my system early) EVERYONE knew your buisness and if they didn't, or the trueth wasn't good enough, they made it up. And still do. EVERYONE is white and when I started datein gmy hubby the rumer was he was a drug dealer, he is hispanic. Now they all like him, or so they say. I now live in the next closest town that is 45 miles away and population 50,000 and they call me the city girl. When you go out there it's like going 45 years back in town. Nice to vist (rarely) but I will never live there again.

By Unschoolmom on Saturday, October 30, 2004 - 08:06 pm:

You missed one

...You can tell the different kinds of manure the local farmers spread...and have your favourite one.

I like fresh cow manure myself. The liquid stuff or chicken manure are both repellent.

By Anonymous on Saturday, October 30, 2004 - 11:10 pm:

LOL Sure sounds like the town I grew up in, and still live in. It's bigger now, but still has that small town feeling.
My kids will have some of the same teachers I had in highschool, I'm sure. I just hope they don't do the barn parties as well as I did. LOL

By Marcia on Saturday, October 30, 2004 - 11:11 pm:

Oops, that was me just above. Don't know why I checked off the anon button.

By Kaye on Monday, November 1, 2004 - 10:07 am:

LOL my town was 356 people and these were pretty much true. We didn't have a dq though, we hung out under the bridge. We even had a senior trip (to the bahamas!)

By Missmudd on Tuesday, November 2, 2004 - 01:57 pm:

This morning I went from my town (pop 2700) to the big city (pop 4500) 15 minutes away to go to the fruit stand. I bought 6 bags of vegetables and 2 pieces of pizza from their deli (my 3 yo and I were hungry, darn time change anyway). In loading the 3 yo and handing him the pizza, I totally forgot the groceries. I got home, unloaded the 3yo, cleaned up the pizza sauce and then realized I had left the groceries at the store. I reloaded the 3 yo and drove the 15 min back to the store. My fruit was still sitting in the cart in the parking lot. I can say there is very little I miss about living in the big city

By Pamt on Tuesday, November 2, 2004 - 11:04 pm:

When we briefly lived in a town of 256 in our "little shack on the prairie" (a falling-down parsonage in the-middle-of-nowhere Texas) we had neighbors who were church members and they would call us if we forgot to put the trash out and make sure everything was okay *rolls eyes.* They would also comment every time they saw our lights on in the wee hours of the morning and I had to constantly remind them that we had a newborn and kept strange hours sometimes--LOL.