KFC walks and 90-second commutes: The perks of living in a small town

"For now, a small town is the perfect place to be," writes Nicola Alpe.

For seven months we have been living in a small town. Make that living 15-minutes outside a small town, population of very few.

Times were different when the 1966 Encyclopedia of New Zealand said, "A city is defined as a borough with a population of at least 20,000". I can assure you that we are currently not residing 15-minutes outside a city, but I lost interest in finding an updated definition.

Small towns are great for parents. Great for kids. Terrible for teenagers. My friends and I would assemble in Benny Barker's garage on a Friday night, The Doors pounding. It was cold. It was loud. Boy was it loud. Us girls would take to the dark streets, leaving the boys playing air guitar, lost with their eyes closed and we would walk to KFC for a Colonel Burger with cheese. We would eat and walk back. Then we would go home. And that was that until the next weekend.

This current rural village lifestyle of ours is so different to our regular life in LA. Despite us no longer being as near to the Venice boardwalk as we were, teeming with people, sights, sounds and smells, there is still the constant flow of traffic, bikes and people walking their dogs right past our door.

My family left the town I grew up in some 20-years ago, but I can still walk down the street and see someone I know. It happened over summer and for me it is one of the most endearing parts of a small town. People knowing your business and the lack of options aside, familiar faces can make you feel like you are a part of something even if you don't know anyone personally and that can be really good for the soul. That outlook was why we decided to settle in Venice, LA's version of a small town.

The first time I recognised someone at the supermarket at home, I was thrilled. "Jerry!" I boomed with a smile on my face. Jerry looked over warily, taking a moment to realise I was his newish neighbour but by the end of that conversation by the tortilla chips, they were coming for drinks. I was on a high. I recognised someone, and they knew me, even if it was a guy living across the street. I left feeling like a local.

Small town living has many advantages. Once in town, it takes practically no time at all to get anywhere, purely because there aren't many places to get to. I FaceTimed a friend departing the supermarket and en route to my sewing class. We only managed to get the niceties in before I had to excuse myself as I'd reached my destination after 90-seconds. A friend in my class confessed she loves small-town living because she can put her jug on, take her daughter to ballet and be home just before it's boiled. I quickly fell back into ingrained but long-forgotten behaviours, driving around the streets until I can jag a park right outside where I need to be.

I'm still unsure whether small-town living is a viable long-term option for us. Now that I'm a parent I see its perks, but I'm not so far gone from my teenage years to remember the frustrations and the perhaps undesirable ways we ended up spending our leisure time.

Thankfully I'm able to appreciate the friendly smiles, the short commutes and the uncluttered mind that comes with fewer options. For now, it's the perfect place to be.