it's offical....

I am NOT a city girl. I've always told people that I'm more of a suburb/country girl than a city girl. I like open space, pretty landscapes, quiet, and clean air. I dislike not being able to see more than a square foot of sky when you are outside. Generally, I find tall building and skyscrapers to be ugly monstrosities, as opposed to beautiful architecture. I do not like taking my life in my hands any time I want to cross a street. Dodging puddles on the ground filled with who knows what makes me more than nervous. The thing that I realized most clearly yesterday, when Joshua and I went down to Harvard to register for a class, is that I do not like having such a large number of people so close to me. Don't get me wrong, I am definitely not claustrophobic. But there's something about personal space that isn't being invaded that appeals to me. Instead of it being this wonderful adventure, it felt like stress in the form of a city. I can't even describe how wonderful it was to walk through our door into peace and quiet. Even being on the T (Boston's subway) was better than being outside on the streets because it was less crowded--since it was the middle of the day--and (sort of) cleaner. Not that Boston is dirty, don't get me wrong.

All of this to say, the Dixie Chicks' song "Wide Open Spaces" has been running through my head for the last 24 hours. The idea of a small town is alright with me...everything close together so you can just walk instead of driving your car. But a big city turns me off. I do want to be close enough so that I can have the opportunity to go see musicals, operas, symphonies, etc. But when it comes down to day in and day out--well, there's nothing like a few acres and a lot of grass to make me smile.