I'm exhausted

of the city. Of its shrouding busy lights where you cannot make out a thing with your weary eyes. People on relentless insatiable chases that leaves close ones in the dust. The pandemic, too, but it only exaggerated what was already there. I'd like to go somewhere small. A quiet place with birds by a body of water. Bonfires under the bone moon. Those who aren't coming to leave. People often say that you'll miss the city, but after some months in a quaint town last year, I'm not sure if I will.

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Anonymous

Nov 3, 2021 at 2:46am

"People on relentless insatiable chases" Vancouver has always been a stupid and shallow city, but in the last decade it's like NYC in the 80s featuring Patrick Bateman. It definitely sounds like you need to get out, I did.

14 1Rating: +13

Culture vs rural

Nov 3, 2021 at 4:23am

I live in rural and pre pandemic everything closing on Sundays was frustrating. But now, as I ride down an ocean sided highway and my commute is beautiful even in the pissing rain, I do not miss the city life. I miss "city life" but that seems a bit off before the buzz of the big cities come back.

5 2Rating: +3

BC...

Nov 3, 2021 at 5:46am

... is full of small towns like this. If you've never driven through BC I would encourage anyone to take the Lougheed Highway or TransCanada out to Hope and then go up the Fraser Canyon and then go up to Cornell and visit Barkerville so you can see what British Columbia was like back in the day. Once you're up at Prince Georges you're literally only halfway up the problems. So then from Prince George up to the Yukon border and back down around there's a whole bunch of other stuff. Almost the whole of this is serviced by Hydro to some degree. There are places to live in other small communities but the big question we should be asking is why we have hundreds of miles of Highway that is habitable but no housing on it. If you look at Barkerville that's the traditional way we lived in British Columbia everybody had a little Shaq or detached house. We have plenty of room to do this in British Columbia but for some reason we don't. Everybody I've talked to who's moved out of the Lower Mainland says they liked it better. This fall we did our customary tour of the province and in Cache Creek I spoke with a woman in her 70s who had raised a family in the Lower Mainland who that moved to Cache Creek in 2015 and she wouldn't move back to the Lower Mainland for any amount of money.

4 2Rating: +2

What dreams are made of

Nov 3, 2021 at 7:22am

Your tired words Make beautiful poetry

5 7Rating: -2

100% with you

Nov 3, 2021 at 7:45am

It’s not exactly peaceful living in Vancouver. Waiting for the bus in front of 6 lanes of traffic. Taking your life in your hands biking to where you need to go. I too dream of space and the sound of birdsong. I hope you get out of here and find your quiet place to live.

16 2Rating: +14

Lucky Dog

Nov 3, 2021 at 8:00am

Take me with you.
Sounds quaint alright :)
Birds , fresh air , night sky's with stars you can actually see , the list goes on. Lol
Nice !

10 1Rating: +9

I would love to leave here, too...

Nov 3, 2021 at 8:30am

I want to go somewhere beautiful, lush, and alive, where the people are sane and celebratory, open and Real.

Being trapped here for ~31 years straight is... just a nightmare.

15 1Rating: +14

Season Hubley

Nov 3, 2021 at 11:18am

November takes its toll.

11 1Rating: +10

I got out.

Nov 3, 2021 at 3:20pm

It took decades. I bit down at work every day. Years of living under skies like a grey blanket. Suspicious, pretentious people who think a smile is a sexual overture. Gossip and calumny. People whose idea of conversation is to compare times on the Grouse Grind. It was awful.

Now I take the dog for a walk every morning. I grow my own food. I listen to the wisdom of my 80 year old neighbours. I pray for the friends I left behind. I hope you make it over the rainbow.

16 2Rating: +14

Tyler

Nov 3, 2021 at 4:02pm

I moved to Vancouver 17 years ago and have been one of its biggest boosters ever since. But I'm even starting to lean towards leaving. It's such a beautiful city in so many ways with the best weather in Canada. But the crowds, traffic, constant construction and surly population has me thinking of leaving.

16 2Rating: +14

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