Rhode Island doesn't really feel like Rhode Island anymore.

Edit to add: It's not that I hate change. I very much understand that change happens. I have kids and don't hate their generation or their music or anything. I hate the loss of a unique regional character and culture.

I grew up in South County many years ago. The people and the place had a distinct feel. When I drove up to visit friends in Cumberland, the place and the people were different than they were in Cranston or Coventry. Accents varied by region. Most of the people I knew in my town were from families that had lived there for generations

Now when I go back, a lot of the cool old homes have been razed so people could erect vinyl-siding-clad bland boxes. The fields and woods are now outdoor malls and apartment complexes. Most of the people I talk to moved to the area from another part of the country within the last ten or twenty years. The unique restaurants are fading away and chains are everywhere. Even the accents are homogenizing.

I just feel like much of RI now looks like any other city or town off of any exit off of any Interstate in the eastern half of the United States. Residential developments full of McHouses down the road from commercial developments full of nationwide chains.

So does anyone agree or I am I just an old fuddy-duddy who can't handle progress?