Topic 9 A small town vs. a big city

The environment where a person grows up and lives molds his personality to a greater degree. He becomes a part of the culture of that community where he lives and the ideals, the line of thinking, the way people dress, the way they speak, the types of food they like, all of these are influential (влиятельная) and somehow makes the person what he is. Taking this into consideration, I would prefer living in a big city.

I would like to be aware of a lot of things. I would like to be up to date as to the current technologies that would help lighten up activities of daily living, such as the Internet, washing machines, microwave ovens, cable television and the like. I would like to experience the benefits of living in the era where high technology is the trend and make total use of it. I would like to be exposed (Я хотел бы подвергаться) to things that would make me an achieving professional in order to succeed in life. It is not that I belittle those who (принизить тех, кто) would prefer to stay in a little town. I think they have the advantage of having a peaceful life, free of noise, air, and water pollution, live abundantly with fresh fruits, vegetables, milk and meat.

Also, the intimacy (близость) of having a small community far outweighs the crowded city (с небольшим сообществом, значительно перевешивает переполненном городе). But they are deprived (лишены) of what is new or if it comes to them, like television, people in the city are using far more advanced tools and gadgets, such as palm top computers or watching through their cell phones already. For example, it is very difficult for electricity to reach far fetched places (удалённые места) and so how can they make use of the Internet over there. Nowadays, it is very easy to travel publicly, especially with the metro rail train in the city. In a matter of minutes (В считанные минуты), you are already in your destination without the hassles of traffic (суеты движения). But in a small town, one has to walk by feet or if they become lucky, some improvised moving carts made of plywood (из фанеры) are the means (являются средством) of their transportation.

I would not prefer living in a situation where I think I would not grow as a person; where if ever I would learn things, those are still way behind those of the urban people. I want diversity. I want an evolving environment. I want to be at pace with the challenges of (Я хочу быть в ногу с проблемами) the place I am living at and not stay drowned in the stunted growth (задержка роста) I may have if I choose to stay in a little town.