What Do Nutmeggers Love About Living in Connecticut? A Ton

It's a simple question with so many different responses: "What is your favorite thing about Connecticut?" Recently, this query was posted to the Connecticut Reddit group by a user with a classic screen name: EGGSAREGREAT69420.

Eggman wrote:

"What is your favorite thing about Connecticut? My favorite thing is the quietness. The only thing that really happens where I live is car crashes; you never really hear about violence."

These were some of the many replies:

bubbasacct: "Nature, we are surrounded by resplendent parks and trails."

afleetingmoment: "The quiet competence people generally seem to have here. Whether I’m hiring someone to do work on the house, calling my city hall, or volunteering—I find most people here employ a 'get in, get out' strategy and then go on with their day. Minimal small talk, good results. I could see it being abrupt for outsiders, especially people from the South or Midwest; but as an introvert who just wants to wrap stuff up, I find it pretty perfect."

vinyl1earth: "We have four real seasons: spring, summer, fall, and winter. However, the winter has gotten pretty mild, and the summer is not excessively hot. Since I grew up in Connecticut more than sixty years ago, I'm used to it. The vegetation, the weather, the landscape are all pleasant and human scaled."

Mojoimpact: "The woods. Such unassuming trees—almost nothing to them when you look in; but then you enter and are in an entirely different world. Beautiful smells, rivers running here and there. You will undoubtedly run into an old road or an abandoned car from 50 years ago the further back you go into these old farm woods. There's a sense that you are safe in the woods, and they bring you back home. I often walk into the woods at any time of day, in any weather, and experience what that feels like. There is no greater peace than walking through the trees during a soft snowfall, then returning home as it starts to get dark. There is no greater beauty than the sunrays lighting up the ferns on the forest floor as a summer thunderstorm forms overhead. You can hear raindrops as you walk down these old rock wall roads that may have been used decades ago. There is no finer smell than a crisp autumn morning with blue skies as the leaves crunch under your feet. There is no better sight than the first flowers budding next to a recently thawed stream as the temperatures warm up for the first time that spring. There is nothing that brings me more peace than being in the woods of Connecticut."

birdiestp: "Every person I know who has come to New England from a different region has said that the trees are the most amazing thing!"

bubbasacct: "This really helped me to capture a feeling I've had whenever I leave the Northeast. I felt it the worst in Italy, Texas. I looked around and saw plains to the horizon in every direction, and I felt naked."

DrSatan420247: "Long Island Sound. Fun fact: Long Island Sound was originally a glacial lake, and it was turquoise in color."

rfunaro6: "Pizza and the changing of four seasons."

YougurtclosetVast3118: "One hour to the hills, one hour to the ocean... something for everyone! And OMG FALL! Glorious time of the year."

rocktropolis: "I moved to Mansfield from Bourbon St in the French Quarter in New Orleans. I am far from an easy target but being able to go for a walk at night without my head on a swivel, without a constant heightened state of anxiety, cannot be undersold. It's not exclusive to CT, but that, along with a lot of other things—better civil infrastructure, nature, seasons, education—really has made a difference to my mental well-being."

WoodwindsRock: "Four seasons, proximity to Boston and NYC, lots of history, beaches (yes, they’re on the sound, but still very neat, and it’s not much of a drive to get to an open ocean beach in RI depending on where you are in the state), lots of nature, great pizza, healthcare jobs, and reproductive freedoms!"

SyntrophicConsortium: "We don't call it the land of steady habits for nothing! Anyway, that's my favorite thing about CT. We live up to that motto, and I appreciate the consistency. I don't like surprises."

EnoughEffort6590: "The rolling hills and amazing hiking trails. That I can get lost in the woods and not encounter another person but really not be lost at all."

CTdadof5: "Nature, schools, proximity to mountains, ocean/sound, and two of the best cities. Schools, history, and the majority of citizens are kind, educated, and welcoming."

BabyFarksMcGee: "It’s not New Jersey."

ILovePublicLibraries: "The stuff you don't see in Florida."

Environmental_Log344: "It's the people for me. CT feels like a land apart. We are unique in many subtle ways, and I love that feeling of solidarity with other stubbornly practical Nutmeggers. We don't go in for big changes and are not taken in by bullshit. There's plenty of kindness and dry humor, too, and we know how to have fun. Can't leave without mentioning grinders and pizza—the best in the world."

Amy_Acccident1871: "Local fishing waters. The Housatonic River, Candlewood, Bantam, Lillinonah, the Farmington River, and on and on. I’m in Litchfield County, and the abundance of rad kayak fishing waters nearby are easily the best part of living here. Other than Champlain, the fishing was a huge upgrade for me moving down here from Vermont, especially fly fishing for trout. DEEP does a fantastic job managing the state fisheries, and I really feel like my license fee goes a long way here. The Housatonic alone is worth living here for, in my opinion."

This list is tremendous and just about sums up how I feel about living here. Connecticut is safer than most other states, the landscapes are breathtaking, the fall is a magical time, the schools are generally very good, and the history is like no other. I expected a lot more troll-like answers, but most of the people in the thread genuinely shared their unique perspectives on what they love about this place. Even Dr. Satan behaved! Yeah, if you didn't catch that, one of the guys goes by Dr. Satan, but he seemed awfully pleasant.

Maybe that should be our new state slogan: "Even Satan is happy here."

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