Growing Up in a Small Town

Those who grew up in small towns will laugh when they read this. Those who didn't won't believe it.
You can name everyone you graduated with.

You know what 4-H means.

You went to parties at a pasture, barn, gravel pit, or in the middle of a dirt road.

You used to "drag" Main.

You scheduled parties around the schedules of different police officers, because you knew which ones would bust you and which ones wouldn't. (The little town I grew up in didn't have a police force!)

It was cool to date somebody from the neighboring town.  (Only if you wanted to start a fight at the Saturday night dance...)

The whole school went to the same party after graduation.

You didn't give directions by street names but rather by references. "Turn by Nelson's house, go 2 blocks to Anderson's, and its four houses left of the track field."

The golf course had only 9 holes. (No golf course at all!) 

You couldn't help but date a friend's ex-boyfriend/girlfriend.

Your car stayed filthy because of the dirt roads, and you will never own a dark vehicle for this reason. (Almost none of the roads in town were paved.)

The town next to you was considered "trashy" or "snooty," but was actually just like your town.

You referred to anyone with a house newer then 1965 as the "rich people".

The people in the "big city" dressed funny, and then you picked up the trend 2 years later.

Anyone you wanted could be found at the local gas station or the town bar.  (Or the bench in front of the grocery store.)

You saw at least one friend a week driving tractor through town or one of your friends driving a grain truck to school occasionally.  (We used to ride our horses to school once in a while)

The gym teacher suggested you haul hay for the summer to get stronger. (The real reason was that he wanted cheap labor to get his hay in)

Directions were given using THE stop light as a reference. (Two stop lights, one block apart, until they took them down.)

When you decided to walk somewhere for exercise, 5 people would pull over and ask if you wanted a ride.

Your teachers called you by your older siblings' names.

Your teachers remembered when they taught your parents. (Or when they went to school with your grandparents!)

You could charge at any local store or write checks without any ID.  (Most stores had counter checks.  Why buy checks when you could just use theirs?)

The closest McDonalds was 25 miles away (or more).  (More like at least 120 miles away!)

The closest mall was over an hour away.  (Try 2 1/2 or 3 hours, depending on who was driving)

You've peed in a cornfield.

Most people went by a nickname. (Or by first and middle name, like Doris Jean or Johnna Sue)