During my freshman year of college, my parents moved from a city of 50,000 (which, admittedly, isn't huge) to a township of 322 (which is obviously tiny). Although I had originally thought I lived in "the middle of nowhere," I soon learned that I knew nothing about country life. Everything was about to change.

Here are the things that you can only understand if you live in the middle of nowhere.

1. Going to the grocery store for your parents means a half an hour drive.
   Oh, sure, there are closer stores, if you want to pay $10 for a loaf of bread, shop in a tiny store with zero options, and have the mom-and-pop-store owner breathe down your neck the entire time. Trust me, between the tiny store that's close to your house and the super store that's half an hour away, the long drive always wins.
   
2. Cell phone service is only wishful thinking, especially with a minor provider.
   I've come to accept the fact that there are certain places in my house where I cannot use my phone. My back yard is one of them. My bedroom is another. Basically, the entire house is a dead zone, and it's kind of horrible (but I secretly love it, because it means I don't have to talk to anyone). I once had T-Mobile, and it was possibly the worst (but also best) two weeks of my life. I couldn't talk to anybody.
   
3. For that matter, so is home internet.
   I don't know if this is a common problem, but it took us forever to get acceptable internet at our house. And, with no cell phone service, internet is pretty important. Thank God we finally have it. I can use my computer in my room now! Woo hoo!
   
   
4. While driving, always stay on the lookout for deer.
   Hitting a deer is no joke, and they jump in front of cars all the time. It's terrifying! A baby ran in front of my mom's car a few weeks ago, and it was horrible.
   
   
5. And for tractors.
   I think I've talked about this one in previous articles. Tractors. Everywhere. There are literally "tractor crossing" signs all over the streets. Getting stuck behind them is the most frustrating thing in the world.
   
   
6. And for bikers. (The ten speed kind.)
   They're everywhere too! What if I hit somebody? And, of course, bike lanes are nonexistent, so you just have to casually swerve into the other lane to pass the bikers.
   
7. And for people riding horses.
   Seriously, it's like nobody knows how to use cars anymore.
   
8. Any and all jobs take at least half an hour of commuting.
   Unless you want to work at the singular gas station in town, anyway.
   
9. Everybody knows everybody.
   No joke, all I have to do is say "I'm a McFee" and anyone I talk to immediately knows who I am.
   
10. Because everybody knows everybody, people are instantly suspicious of the random college student they don't know.
    Because my parents moved here after I had moved out of the house, going out with my parents is always awkward, because I get constant "Who is this girl?" looks from everyone in the room. My siblings' friends don't even know they have an older sister. And then they're always very confused when they find out.
    
11. The silence
    If you ever want silence and solitude, the country is the place to find it. When you live far from civilization, frequently you can hear nothing but the breeze in the trees (and the occasional moo from the farm next door). It really is the best place to relax.
    
12. The nature
    Since we live far from everything but trees, we spend lots of time outside. We sit by the lake, swim in the lake, hike through the woods, and go on ill-fated bike rides (it was today, and it was bad. Dirt roads post-rain are not good for bikes if you want to stay clean). And, whenever we're out we realize just how much nature is around us, and how amazing it is.
    
13. And last but certainly not least, the stars
    I have to admit, I'm a little bit of an astronomy freak. When I moved to Evanston for school my freshman year, the first thing I noticed was the lack of stars because of all the light pollution from Chicago. I was always the first person to realize that, if we ever got lost at night, all we had to do was look for the orange glow in the sky, and we would know that we were heading south towards the city. In the country, stars are everywhere. It's probably my favorite thing about being out here. You can see all the constellations! I spend many nights outside, looking up.

Living in the country definitely took some getting used to, and it obviously has its drawbacks, but now that I'm here, there's nowhere else I would rather be. Oh, look, the Big Dipper!