I was born and raised in the big city – I’m from Rio de Janeiro, the 45th most populous city in the world (that means 6.8M people not counting metro population), and I have also lived a couple of years in São Paulo, which often ranks in the top 10 (I can assure you that’s A LOT of people). I have lived the vast majority of my life in condos. I’m used to small spaces, urban density, and also a lot of things within walking distance. I didn’t even know how to drive until I was in my 40s.
In December 2018 we moved into a house, in the suburbs of Toronto – a lot of people do that. I’d say most people do that. They like having more space for things, the backyard, the quietness, they enjoy hobbies like gardening, barbecuing, baking, home decorating. One year later the pandemic hit, so being at a house with a garden and a big kitchen for baking was not a problem at all. Everyone did that in 2020.
The years passed and the world was back to whatever it is now. I got bored. I am not made for the suburbs.
I do not like driving. I get anxious, parking is annoying, other drivers are always angry, I feel like everyone is always in a terrible mood. Driving is terrible. How do people like driving?
The suburbs also hate cyclists and see cycling as something you do as a hobby on a sunny Sunday morning, not as transportation. I love doing everything on my bike. I find excuses to ride the thing even if it’s just around the corner. I have two bikes for different purposes. I want to ride bikes every day. Some neighbours thought I was extremely weird for doing that.
I like being able to walk to things, and I sure hope it’s a short walk – gym, salon, restaurants, groceries. I also like people and window watching on my walk. Not car watching. People in the suburbs will gladly drive 30 minutes to the nearest strip mall to perform these tasks. Still, one hour of my day lost commuting to everyday activities. I did not enjoy that.
I like going out, to concerts and parties that happen downtown. All of these events were an expensive ride share away from me, that also took a very long time to make it worth attending. I started not wanting to go out anymore. And my friends were also not visiting us – can you blame them? I didn’t want to go out myself.
Which leads us to the winter of 2024/25 – it was difficult, dark, and extremely boring for me, as the only activity I’d do was running, so I wouldn’t lose my mind. At some point we made a decision – the winter of 25/26 would be our last winter in the suburbs and we needed to go back to the city.
We made a plan. We worked really hard on our plan. The plan was executed.
WE MOVED BACK!
And just in time for the World Cup to happen on our backyard! (It’s been super fun to watch people, not that I care about the games. It’s not gymnastics or ballet)
I am so glad to report that it’s been two weeks and I am not bored anymore!
There is absolutely nothing wrong with our old neighbourhood or the neighbours – the street is really wholesome, and the neighbours are incredible people. I met wonderful people there.
This is, though, a tale about self experimentation – I tried something new, explored a path I had curiosity about, and at some point decided that, even though it’s what most people love, it didn’t work for me. I learned about myself in the process, and, also, I got a cat from it – net PAWsitive! Thanks, Agata, you are THE BEST!
And I’m probably going to live in the big city until I’m 100 years old, like my grandmother. Hopefully, riding a bike!
You must be logged in to post a comment.