Small town living: are you up to it? 5 Great Tips.
A major difference between living in the metropolis of Vancouver and the towns and villages of the Sunshine Coast can be summed up in one short phrase: elbow room.
On the roughly 150km of highway running from Langdale right up to Lund, visitors or new residents will see expansive ocean and forest, often large residential plots – some running to five to ten acre parcels – and the lack of crowds. What they won’t see is how ‘close’ rural living in Canada is.
From rumors to civic politics to neighborhood balances, Coasters live in truly small towns. Heck, some places are barely hamlets. It can be hard to get used to after the anonymity of Vancouver or the surrounding municipalities.
I’ve compiled a few tips over the years to help you get oriented to small town living if you’ve never lived outside a city or large town before.
5 TIPS FOR FITTING IN ON THE COAST
There is only one road.
It is our ‘highway’, but when you’re in ferry traffic or cutting it close for time, the lack of passing lanes combined with slow drivers can make for bad decisions. Bad decisions usually means one or all of these consequences: you and everyone else will miss whatever ferry you were in such a hurry to catch; the road could be closed for hours (and remember, there’s only the one road); someone could be killed, in which case the entire highway might close for as long as 12 hours until the coroner and insurance/police highway teams make their way up to do their investigation of the crash before the road can be reopened.
REMEDY: Leave 10-15 minutes before you think you need to and relax and enjoy the drive. Always carry snacks, water and books/games in case there’s a closure or boats are full or running late. After all, you can’t eat or drink your bad mood – though you can poison yourself and others with one.
Lose your temper, lose your status.
Yes, there actually is measurable status to living on the Sunshine Coast, and it’s directly tied to the level of zen an individual displays and lives by. Though I am but a humble grasshopper, I aspire to be a peaceful and contented person who does not give dirty looks to the person dawdling ahead of me, swear while driving, glare at children, or grit my teeth when the cashier at the grocery store exchanges news with the person ahead of me in line. One or all of these people likely ARE my neighbor, teach one of my children, has the right to approve my loan at a bank, or is a writer at one of the local papers. This was learned the hard way, over 25 years ago, when I was outspoken and impetuous… well, MORE outspoken and impetuous anyway.
REMEDY: It really is fabulous to enjoy people, for it makes everyone around you interesting and beautiful in ways easy to miss in the big city. When I’ve forced myself to chill out of whatever agitated state I’m in, some out and out miracles have happened. I’ve met a few of my best friends, made connections for my kids, been invited to join interesting people to do amazing things. So pull in the spines, urchin, and let the tide take you where it will.
Small towns can feel cliqueish.
I felt that when I moved here 25 years ago. There weren’t very many people, but boy they all seemed to know each other, and they didn’t seem to have the room to make new friends. People who have lived in the same neighbourhoods for decades are going to know each other better, and their lives are full up to here with obligations and staying in touch. It can seem daunting to break in to well-established social circles and it’s often hard to suss out where to look to make connections. It is getting better – the ratio of new people to homegrowns is growing, but here’s some other ways to speed the process.
REMEDY: Don’t just hang out by the one pier piling you know, fishie, swim with new schools from time to time. I’m on a recreational dragonboat team, and that is a GREAT way to meet new people of both sexes. There are many ad-hoc groups that meet for hiking, cycling, walking, the food bank, stone soup day (making sandwhiches for food bank day), citizens committees, school committees, and literally scads (scads!) of not-for-profit clubs, societies and interest groups. Into public service? Great people chip in time for Habitat for Humanity. Like nature? Join the Frog Project. Into the organic food movement? Join the One Straw Society. Like music? Hang out at the Roberts Creek Hall and join the association and start working dance nights. Gay? There’s a good mailing list, a local gay & lesbian association, and a womens’ group who will make you feel so at home you’ll forget where you came from. If you’re into the arts, this is one crazy-busy artistic community.
Get used to the Goldfish Bowl Effect.
Like everyone else, Coasties have opinions. Newcomers have opinions. Even your pets will develop opinions! The gossip mill is ever-present in any North American hamlet, town and city and the only thing different about the Coast is that you might get wind of it quicker. It’s like Rachel Lynde of Avonlea in Anne of Green Gables – sometimes folks live vicariously through others and just love to know ‘what’s going on’, even if it’s nothing.
REMEDY: Don’t get involved in gossip – unless you’re passing along good news intended for the community at large. You could say something to a neighbour and never know who they might know. Keep focused on the positive, enjoy the slower pace, and don’t play into someone else’s social agenda. This is directly tied to cliques (the wrong kind). Be wary of people wanting to immediately invite you into their confidence. Most Coasties like to take their time getting to know new people to the point of taking them into their confidence – a diversion from that norm may signal there’s a different motive underneath it all. Think of a shark fin and act accordingly.
We-wax, Wabbit.
The Sunshine Coast operates at a different speed than Vancouver in most respects. Many businesses are run by self-employed business owners, and some of those people also have a regular day job to help make ends meet. They run their businesses on a very fine balance between staffing hours vs revenues. They also still have to do all the paperwork, accounting, and day-to-day management on top of what they’ve already got going on. People of working age on the Coast make a lot of sacrifices to be able to live and work here, so hours can be irregular, people are chattier at checkouts, and often some items will need to come from Vancouver.
REMEDY: Didn’t you move from the city to get away from high-octane living? Plan ahead and leave plenty of lead time for stores or staff to help you with your needs. Expect delays comparative to Vancouver – if you do the math it’s easy to see the advantages big municipalities and cities get with volume and no-barrier delivery. This effect intensifies as you move away from ferry terminals, especially on the south Coast since our population is spread out so far compared to Powell River. The trade off is that you can still feel like you’re living somewhere back in time outside of Sechelt & Gibsons especially. Enjoy the groovy atmosphere and milder currents of life here.
IN SUMMATION
I don’t know if the Coast is any different from any small town in Canada. I just know that once a resident gets acclimatized to life on the Sunshine Coast there’s a level of relaxation that kicks in – so long as you point yourself in the right direction from the start. The day will come when you will drive off the ferry at Langdale or Powell River and heave a great big soul-sigh: home.
Can’t wait to see what you bring to our community!
