That's Funny, We Hated It

While my mother was pregnant with me, my family moved from the South to upstate New York. I was born a couple of months later ... in New York. Other than one cousin who was born at a US military base in Germany, I'm the only member of my extended family born outside of the South. We left New York when I was 1.5 years old, so I have absolutely no memory of it. I have never been back.

So it was weird to hear an NPR story about my birth city this morning. It turns out that the city is "The Town That Loves Refugees." (Put that slogan on your bumper sticker!) The population dropped has dropped from 100,000 to 60,000. 40% of that population is over 50 years old. But the population is growing by the influx of foreign refugees. There's evidently a considerable community of Bosnians and Russians. (From what I've heard, it's cold enough for them to feel right at home.) The UN is all excited about how welcoming the community has been. The refugees are bringing a much-needed work force to the city. Many of the refugees have even done well enough to start their own businesses. It sounds like a great place for people who need a new home.

But all I could think about was how much my family hated living there. They couldn't wait to get back to the South. Naturally, I don't remember hating it, but I've been told that I screamed my head off when they stood me in the snow. I'm more than happy to deed my birth city over to the foreigners.