ISO Advice: Moving Back to Littleton

About a month ago, a former Littleton resident, who’d spent her childhood in town, reached out to a Littleton Facebook group and asked what current Littletonians thought about the town she’d left decades ago.

Of course, there were many people who accurately reported how much the town had changed, and the tone of their replies was diplomatic and neutral.

My gut reaction (the phrase that had popped to my mind) was not neutral. At all.

And there it was: in the comments, already posted by a current Littletonian: “It’s a shithole.”

When I read it—and knowing a little about the person who wrote it—I had a general idea what lay behind this (also) accurate and diplomatic answer. This commenter was simply stating the obvious, at least as it appeared obvious to me, given my first thought, that honest gut reaction.

Over these past few weeks, I took a poll of Littletonians, all of whom happened to be longtime residents. I asked, “Do you think Littleton’s a shithole?”

Each and every one said, “Yes.” Three even squinted at me as if I was asking a silly question. And one replied with, “A total shithole.”

When I would ask, “What makes you say that?” most simply said, “Look around.”

Littleton hadn’t always been a shithole. Otherwise, I don’t think that woman—the one asking about whether to move back to 01460—would’ve been considering returning to her childhood home.

But “shithole” paints a hard-to-unsee picture.

How did we get here?

When I answered that question for myself, it brought home this reality: the people in charge have tremendous and profound influence over the day-to-day experiences in your short human life, and they can make where you live feel like a shithole.

Look around.

* * * * *

My name will appear on the ballot for a seat on Littleton’s Select Board.

Election Day is May 10, 2025.

My fifth policy objective: Legally change the town’s name to Shittleton.