Country ain't Country no More

25 years ago I saw it happen to Manassas where I lived for so long, we used to hunt and fish inside the town limits, now I can't navigate my way through it without getting turned around. There was only 4 traffic lights in the whole town and now its a commuters nightmare, durring rush hour you can't get out of 1st gear till you are well into the county. I now see the same thing happening to Front Royal. By years end we will have Lowes, Wal-Mart, Target, and a whole host of other big box type vendors. Once refered to in the Washinton Post as a "redneck settelment" I always thought of it as sort of the last outpost for anyone hanging onto northern Virginias hub of civilization. Front Royal is still small and has retained its rural atmosphere for now. You can't get out of the grocery store without seeing someone you know well enough to stop and talk to, the sheriff is on a 1st name basis with most people, if you look around there are still cattle grazing inside the town limits, I havn't taken the keys out of my truck since last time I went to Manassas, and you can still pay after you pump your gas. After seeing what happened to Manassas I know all that is going to change and I don't mind to much considering I make my living off of the growth and development of the area, in fact you could say it is a bonus for me to be here in the midst of the whole thing. There is some part of me that just rejects progress, even though we will clearly benefitt from it, I find myself in that crowd of old farts sitting around saying "We don't need no stinkin Wal Mart we got Stokes General Store". I know Kirsti and Dan are eagerly awaiting the grand opening of Target and the others. Our little town has moved up from Redneck Settlement, now the post refers to us and others as exurbs, whatever that means.