That ‘nice’ vs ‘kind’ bit is the perfect description. I was born and raised in Waltham, lived there and Lowell till I was 30 and then moved to Cali for 10 years. Moved back here in 2020. Truth be told, the sense of community here is VASTLY superior to anything I experienced in Southern California.

People do wave (or nod) to each other. We acknowledge one another’s existence. People will pull over and give you the right of way when the street isn’t wide enough for two cars. We wave (not obnoxiously, just pop a hand up from the steering wheel) at each other in acknowledgment. That just doesn’t happen in SoCal.

I’ve had several conversations in the grocery store line. Nothing immense but someone might see something I’m buying and make a comment, with a smile. That doesn’t happen in SoCal.

I just had a buddy of mine come out from Cali. He was dumbstruck because we will give people the right-of-way, when driving (sometimes people do it unsafely or when it’s not appropriate) but I explained it’s like us holding the door open for someone.

True, we’re not in each others faces. We will absolutely respect people’s privacy but overall we treat each other with respect and acknowledge one another’s existence. There are definitely people that are on the other end of the spectrum but overall we have a strong sense of community.

When I first moved back people asked me why. It wasn’t till I moved away that I truly realized how amazing it is out here. That’s not to say SoCal is the dumps, it’s not. There are a lot of great things there but here is someplace special. The sense of community is outstanding and the nature is phenomenal (winters can suck but I wouldn’t trade them again). Maybe my love for New England blinds me to some things but god damn if this isn’t an awesome place.