What’s Great and What’s Terrible About Connecticut? One Word: Money

What is the Worst Thing About Living in Connecticut?

Wow, this completely crystallized life in Connecticut. MSN recently released a list of the Best and Worst Things About Every U.S. State, and I couldn’t resist clicking.

Before I even opened it, I started making guesses and jotting them down to see if I’d be right. I was wrong on all counts—and I should’ve known better—because they absolutely nailed it. For “Best,” they wrote: “Connecticut has one of the highest per-person average incomes of any state in the country.” For “Worst”: “The state has one of the highest levels of income inequality between the top 1% and everyone else.”

Money, the answer to both questions. Hilarious.

If that doesn’t sum us up, I don’t know what does. Every Nutmegger has had THAT conversation with someone from out of state—No, I’m not rich. Sometimes that’s enough, but other times there are follow-up questions, and suddenly you’re breaking down the socioeconomic realities of Connecticut like it’s a TED Talk.

It’s not a fun conversation. Am I rich? Not only am I not rich, but I live in a place where I’m surrounded by ungodly wealth every day. I love living in Connecticut, but the disparity in realities is genuinely Earth-rattling.

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There are people here I simply can’t relate to because of their lifestyle—and I’m sure the feeling is mutual. Somewhere, there’s a filthy-rich family wondering how the rest of us haven’t cracked the code.

If you’re from another state, I encourage you to hug the next person you meet from Connecticut. There’s a good chance they’ve had to explain to their kid that what their classmates have isn’t normal. No, son, we can’t take the entire summer off to travel through Europe. That’s not how that works.

Connecticut, you’re so weird.