Do You Know What a “Townie” Is?

Do You Know What a Townie Is?

October 1, 2024

Townie.

I hadn’t heard that word in quite a while. But I remember well when I overheard the conversation one of my acquaintances—not a close friend—said something that kind of hurt. She was a good student at the same college I went to and at some point she said this to one of my friends, something like “Why does she [Melodie] go out with a townie?” Or, she may have used the term, “local yokel.”

That hurt a little, but why did it matter?

Townies, or local yokels, in this part of the good old U.S.A., were kids who didn’t go to college but after high school worked locally somewhere, sometimes in a factory or mechanic shop or McDonald’s, and hung around downtown (or elsewhere) after work, enjoying the presence of many good looking girls. And guys, I suppose.

Maybe I shouldn’t write about this now, it truly has not impacted my life in any way and my townie/local yokel is now my husband. He’s a country man who presides over our eight acre “farmette” where a local man harvests our hay on seven of the acres for his cows and pays us a little for the privilege. My husband enjoys nothing more than cutting wood for our basement woodstove (which heats us all winter) and we don’t pay a cent for any of it anymore. (So many trees have fallen everywhere, and they need chopping up.)

Urban dictionary says the townie word has negative connotations. Townie guy: “Things haven’t been the same around here since they built that hotel where the old hardware store used to be …” a townie guy might say, wishing for good old days.  

My townie guy and I have raised three delightful and almost brilliant daughters who have given us six delightful and almost brilliant grandchildren, Townie or not. Their parents are teaching them to be good if not great kids, and of course along the way, we and they all have bumps along the road.

But trade in my townie guy, nah.

He’s a good man, saved his/our money and while not perfect (and I’m not either) we’re still together after meeting almost 50 years ago.

My townie guy at that time had a second job that he loved because he worked for a skating rink on some evenings as a “floor guard,” keeping kids safe. He also enjoyed the presence of many good looking girls at the rink at times. He even thought I was good looking and his first line to me was “If you bend your knees a little more, you’ll skate better.”

What a pick up line, telling me what to do.

He still tells me what to do. And I tell him sometimes.

Our brilliant daughters seem to love us.

Our well-loved grandchildren know and love us too.

That’s what my townie guy got me—five grandsons and now one granddaughter!

And I love him and all of them.

Usually. Yes we get mad, we shout, we cry, we make up.

We plan to go the distance. Hard times will come, we’ve had a few of those already.

And the words of that acquaintance long ago? It doesn’t matter anymore. She’s fine, she’s got a good husband.

My Dad was a farmer, and Mother loved him. They raised us well, even with the ups and downs.

I’m one lucky woman and I know my townie man thinks he’s one lucky man.

Do you have or know a townie guy or gal?

Or a local yokel?

Or? I’d love to hear from you!