The fact you used the word “city” to describe a place with 60,000 residents sorta tells the tale. I’d call that more of a small town; to me “cities” start at about 500,000.
Not that you’re wrong. Rather just that this shows how both you and the folks from elsewhere can be disagreeing about daily retail reality while both telling the truth.
Well, the whole state has just 1.3 million people, spread out over an area that almost equals that of the rest of New England combined.
Maine’s three largest cities, in terms of population are Portland (66,194), Lewiston (36,592), and Bangor (33,039). The state’s tallest building is in Portland, and is only 16 stories tall.
The town I live in has fewer than 3,000 inhabitants, and like many other New England towns, still has a town meeting style of government. The city of Bangor is closest to me, and it’s still a good 20 miles or more before I even hit the first traffic light on the way.
So yes, I’d definitely say our way of life and overall attitude are different here than in places where SeaDragonTattoo and Green Bean worked. I just spent some twos today at a store. The cashier seemed downright delighted (quite opposite the attitudes described upthread), and bought them out of the drawer for herself. I’ve never seen cashiers smile over ones, fives, tens, and twenties, but plenty of them do for twos, halves, and dollar coins (although less so on the dollars now that they are ubiquitous in vending machines), which is part of the reason I continue getting them to spend.
I probably wouldn’t bother with my coin roll hunting hobby if people got ticked off, like they apparently do in some parts of the country, every time I spent a handful of half dollars, but around here, that doesn’t seem to happen.
The lifestyle here is why I’m in no hurry to leave, even though the job prospects and wages are better in the larger cities, and even though I’m underemployed for my education level and experience.
I used to give rolls of pennies to homeless people. Until one guy yelled “What the f**k is this?” and threw it back at me, hitting me in the eye.
I call 'em ducats, but I only made a point of getting them when I was headed to a Ren Faire.
And I’ve been known to ask for the $2 bill if I happen to see it in a cashier drawer. For whatever reason, they delight me.
Portland may be small, but it’s definitely a “real city,” even from the perspective of a native New Yorker like me. It’s not the population that makes a city, but the character of the place and its relationship to the surrounding area.
For what it’s worth, I’ve been all over Maine. Wonderful state, and yeah, people there are pretty laid-back, albeit in a taciturn Yankee sort of way.