Colin McEnroe Show: When Did America Become So Homebound?
More than 35 percent of Americans never leave their hometown.
Moving is horrible. More than other life stressors, it combines physical exertion -- because no matter how much you have the movers do, you will have to get ready for them -- with about 8 kinds of psychological stress. The ripping away of your shell of security and the sifting through of your memories, good and bad, and the boxing up of your life, a grim foreshadowing of the day when you too will be boxed up.
Can you see how much I hate moving? Which is why so many of us just don't. I naturally assumed Connecticut people are especially unlikely to move, but that seems not to be the case. Fifty-seven percent of the people who live here were born here, which is pretty close to the national average. People are far less likely to move into or out of Pennsylvania and Louisiana. In each case, nearly 80 percent of the state population is native born.
You can join the conversation. How many times have you moved? Do you enjoy moving? Do you think moving a lot is good for your children? Leave your comments below, e-mail colin@wnpr.org or Tweet us @wnprcolin.
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moving or not
We live in the state in which I was born, but we moved in and out several times in our youth. Now we are too old to tolerate moving. Happily we landed in West Hartford. Who would leave??
Moving
We moved several times, but the most liberating move came in 1998 when we sold, threw out, gave away most everything in our 8 room house and barn to move into a 31 foot motorhome. Once you get your head around the fact that things are just that - "things" - and realize that the most important stuff is memories in your head and heart, as well as the friends and family you have, it really isn't that hard. Ask any fulltime RVer!
E-mail from Tom
My wife and I have moved 15 times since 2000. I have lived in Virginia, Florida, upstate New York, Washington, South Carolina, and now am in Plainville, CT. We use moving as an opportunity to go through all of our stuff and get rid of excess. However, we are more hesitant to move now that we have an elementary aged daughter.
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