The Rules of Dating in a Small Town

Small Town Life: Is It Really That Different?

Small town life is mainly considered to be absolutely different from life in a big city. There are a lot of funny and scary books about small town life. Thanks to novels by Stephen King we often fear the life in a small town in America, although many dismiss his portrayal and claim that there are a lot of good things about small towns. It is hard to figure out the advantages of living in a small town, as some can view them as disadvantages, so we will give you fifteen points in which life in a small town differs from life in a big city.

1. Everybody Knows

While it is easy to remain a stranger in big cities, that is impossible to do living in a small town. Small town dwellers know each other well, and whenever you do something the whole town is most likely to learn about it.

2. Shops

Those who got used to life in the big cities may consider the lack of opportunities to shop at national retailers as one of the main small town problems. Yep, it may be hard to imagine, but people in small towns may not have Walmart.

3. Pollution

The one aspect in which life in a small town is definitely better than life in a big city is the smaller level of air pollution. But everything depends on the concentration of industry; if the small town you live in is near the Nuclear Power Plant... oh, boy...

4. The Grass is Greener

Yep, the grass is greener on this side. Small towns usually have much more green spaces than the big cities.

5. Lower taxes

Yep, taxes in small towns are generally lower than in big cities. Real estate is also less expensive comparing to big cities. No Walmart, but you can actually buy the place you’ll live in.

6. Absence of Traffic

You are unlikely a fan of traffic jams. If so, then life in small towns was made for you, as there are no traffic jams in them. Actually, there is barely any traffic at all.

7. Less Public Transit

In case if you are wondering why there are no traffic jams in small towns, here is the answer – there is less infrastructure for public transit, fewer buses, fewer trains, fewer cars, etc.

8. Limited Access to Healthcare

When it comes to health problems, a small town is probably not the best place to be, as access to innovative healthcare is, unfortunately, limited.

9. The Internet is Not That Widespread

You'll be surprised, but the Internet is not as widespread as you have thought. Actually, not all of the townsfolk may have access to the web. If you are addicted to social networks, probably a small town is not your cup of tea.

10. Death Silence

If you move from a big city to a small town, you are more likely to have problems with your sleep for the first few nights. You were complaining about how noisy the big city is? You are going to miss it. You will spend first few nights in a small town understanding what the “loud silence” means.

11. Neighbors

When you live in a big city, it is easy not to know the name of your neighbor next door. When you live in a small town, however, you are most likely to know all your neighbors who live down the street.

12. Pay Some Time Later

When you live in a small town, you can often pay for your groceries next day, if you happened to have no money with you. Same goes with gas stations.

13. People Leave Their Doors Unlocked

When you live in a small town, you can leave the doors of your house open. Moreover, if you came to visit one of your neighbors while he or she is absent, you can always come in and wait for them inside.

14. Schools

Schools in small towns have teachers who have taught several generations of one family.

15. Boss's Friends

When it comes to businesses in small towns, often employers and employees are either friends or even relatives. On the contrary, in big cities, employers may not know his/her employees personally.

Dating in a Small Town: Rules, Etiquette & Ideas

Considering all the above-mentioned peculiarities of life in a small town, it is easy to figure out the problems you'll be facing dating there. Most likely there is only one bar where singles gather, and most likely it is the bar where your relatives or teachers go to have a drink. As townsfolk know everything, most likely you're going to hear the stories of your crush's sexual life long before you go on the first date. It also means that when you start dating, the whole town will learn about it immediately. Also, because everyone knows everyone, there are no blind dates in a small town. Moreover, if you go on Tinder you will be shocked by the fact how many of users you know in person.

We can come to a simple conclusion that less people often means more exposure. How to avoid having problems when dating in a small town? Simply follow small town dating rules and etiquette, which you are about to evaluate right now.

1. How to Meet Single Women in a Small Town?

When you are in a big city the question “how to meet single women?” mainly finds its answer on online dating sites and apps. As we've already mentioned what problems you may face using Tinder, you can clearly see that most of the online dating tools are useless in a small town. So, how are you going to find single women in a small town? Well, look around. The best way to find a girlfriend in a small town is to find a girlfriend near you.

2. Slow Approach

Yep, when you are in a small town, you need to approach a girl slowly. If you want a mere hook-up, it is better to travel a few miles to the nearest club. Otherwise, your everyday life will turn into walking pass all your teachers, neighbors and friends ashamed. First, find a girl you like and have a light conversation with her. In the course of this conversation, ask her out for dinner. When you ask someone to dinner in a small town, you won't get lost in date ideas. In a big city, you are lost among the choice of cafes and restaurants to pick to impress your date-mate. In a small town, however, you are most likely to ask her to the only restaurant the town has. You can also cook a dinner at your home, as it is also a suitable variant for a date in a small town.

3. Things Get Serious Faster

When you are in a big city, you can date as long as you want. A lot of people trying to find their perfect matches in big cities complain that quite often their dating leads to nothing. You may date for a year in hopes that your relationship will develop into something more serious and culminate into marriage, but in the end, you just break up. When it comes to dating in a small town, things differ drastically. Actually, there is no point in starting to date if you don't have any serious intentions. Remember your last girlfriend in a big city? How long have you been dating before she decided to get you and her parents acquainted? Oh, you were dating for a year and a half and you still don't know who her parents are? It is something that won't happen to you in a small town. If you ask a girl out, probably you'll have to meet her parents before taking her out. And the period between the first date and a wedding ring is also extremely short comparing to dating in a big city.

4. Date Ideas for a Small Town

Unfortunately, here you are really limited. Date ideas in a small town are limited by the town itself. If you ask her out to dinner, we have already established, that either you take her to the only restaurant or a cafe that the town has or you ask her to dinner at your place. If you stick to the second variant, take care of the romantic atmosphere. There must be candles, some wine, and, optional, some country music playing in the background. Be careful, as the fact that you are having a dinner at your place doesn't mean that you can engage into premarital sex without girl's parents' blessing. Another variant is taking her to the nearest club, which is a mile or two away from the town. But mind that her parents would allow her to go with you only if they are sure that you have serious intentions about their daughter. They want her reputation to be spotless.

5. Mind the Reputation

Speaking about reputation. It is something that you should mind too when in a small town. In a big city, you can easily get lost, but you can't do that in a small town. In the rural areas, reputation spreads like wildfire. So don't get too flirty. Your ending dates on a bad note or one night stands are most likely to get around and give you a bad reputation, which will limit your possibility to date. Moreover, your bad reputation may force you to leave the town. On the other hand, if you have a spotless reputation, girls most likely won't stop running after you.

Conclusion

Now you know about the peculiarities of dating in a small town. There are certain advantages and disadvantages. If you like one night stands, open relationships, hooking up via Tinder, and you enjoy being careless about what others may think, then rural life is something not for you. On the other hand, if you prefer good old traditionalism and relationships developing as fast as they can, then life in a small town was made for you.