Except for when I was in college, I have lived within a 3 mile radius of where I grew up. My parents still live in my childhood home. We live less than 5 miles from the Philadelphia border. I have always considered myself from Philly to those who are not from around here. Otherwise, I live near Conshohocken.
There was a study I read about once that said the Philadelphia area had one of the highest populations of people who grew up here and continue to live here when they become adults. I studied economics in college, worked at a stock exchange for years and am definitely an econ nerd. During the 2008 housing boom/bust, there was another study that showed unemployment was much lower in countries like Germany where people tended to rent and move to the jobs. The UK and US, people would settle down in one area to be with their family and buy a home, but the jobs would not always be there. They were not willing to move to the job, hence the unemployment rate was higher.
In Philly, (for the whole Philadelphia and surrounding counties area), people tend to stay because they have deep family roots and ties to the community. The area had been settled by different groups of immigrants. For example, the Welsh had a big influence considering the names of a lot of the towns and streets. Italians, Polish and Irish all had their own church parishes and traditions, a lot of it rooted in food. Today, Philly is a mix of so many different groups it is truly an awesome thing, especially if you are a foodie. In the past few months, we've eaten Thai, Israeli, Szechuan Chinese, German, Vietnamese, Japanese, Greek and Italian out. We are more than cheesesteaks, tomato pie and hoagies.
And then, there are the sports. You will never find such a die hard sports fan base anywhere in this country. Go Birds is a greeting, a response to basically anything. The Phillies have been amazing to watch. The Sixers always have some drama and are fun to watch as well. The Flyers fans have been tested, but are doing really well. It's never easy being a Philly sports fan. The ups and downs are real. The depression of watching the Eagles self destruct the past few weeks is absolutely real. Knowing that last night was Jason Kelce's last game as an Eagle really sucks.
Jason Kelce has truly embodied what it means to be from Philly. His speech at the Super Bowl Parade has solidified his spot in Philly history. If you did not realize this yet, Philadelphians are the most honest people you will ever meet. They do not hold back, you do not have to guess what they are thinking, there are no stone faces. We tell you. You may not want to hear it, but we'll say it anyway. Jason Kelce is that person. He has embraced the mummers. He wears flip flops and shorts on game days, because he wants to. No need to impress, he is who he is. And I absolutely love it.
Bryce Harper is another Philly transplant who has embraced the city. He is bold and transparent with his emotions. He wears the. Philly Phanatic headband/sweatband with pride. Philly sucks you in, and you either love it or you move on back to where you came from. But if you love it, we love you.
I love living here. My kids are in the same school district that I went to. We have moderate weather. We get snow, rain, heat and cold, but usually never to the extremes. There is the occasional tornado which scares the $#!@ out of me, but thankfully there are not too many. Typically storms such as hurricanes are on their last legs before they hit us and we may lose power for a few hours or a day or two. Nothing too bad. There are no fires, earthquakes, category 5 hurricanes or a tornado season, all of which I am very thankful we do not have. The shore (for non Philly people - the beach) is a little over an hour away. The Pocono mountains are an hour or so away in the other direction. Truly, Philly is a misunderstood gem that more people would love if they got past the "scary" sports fans stereotype.
29 Days till Pitchers and Catchers. Go Phillies (and Birds).
Pic is from our trip to Disney on the day that the Eagles won the NFC Championship game to go to the Super bowl. We watched the game from my husband's phone while sitting in Italy enjoying the wine (adults only) and snacks. Everywhere we went, we saw other Eagles' fans and heard "Go Birds". It was truly an awesome day.
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