I have friends who live in small towns, and I’ve done in in Switzerland. Everyone knows your business. It freaks me out. I babysat a friend’s cat for one weekend. Next week at the bus stop all the other ladies commented that we got a cat. What?? No thanks.
I guess it depends on what you are used to. I find a degree of comfort in what freaks you out :). I like some anonymity, but it gives me a sense of security to know that others are paying attention to my family.
I can see how it would feel smothering if you grew up differently.
That’s the way things are in the holler. I just have to tell one person something and everyone else knows. I kind a like that after the anonymity of living in Bakersfield, where we didn’t even know the neighbors that were right next to us. I could look right in their windows from my living room but I didn’t know their names. Now, people a mile away know that I got an oil change for free or that hubby is on travel.
Now I’m going to use this to my advantage :-) I do have one liberal neighbor, right across the street. Go figure! She had a fit when I said we were going Galt and not paying into the system anymore. And then the Trump economy started so we jumped in. Now hubby wants to jump out, he is tired of the stress. So I’m going to make sure she knows about it :-) just being a bit obnoxious here. But it was really none of her business whether we work or not. She only works part time and her husband not at all. Talk about hypocrites!