Dyed in the wool Midwesterner? [Archive]

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Ultralight

6-8-19, 6:28pm

iris lilies

6-8-19, 7:10pm

You ever have one of those watershed moments where so much intellectually, emotionally, and even culturally comes together in your mind and reveals something to you?

Late last night I thought (and felt) this: "Maybe I am just a dyed in the wool Midwestern guy."
I lived out West a few years. Ugh, cannot do desert. That eliminates about 1/3 of the country.

I am a Midwesterner. I must have seasons. That eliminates another, what, 1/5th of the country?

some the of PNW is attractive but there are so many rainy days! Ugh.

while I love the topography and other natural places where winter is hard in the ipper midwest, I will not live North of Interstate Highway 80 having been there/done that. That eliminates another large chunk of the country, but I feel affinity for them who live there! They are hardyMidwesterners!

I think there are many things I would like about New England
but there are some fearsome winters there.

i am not rich enough to live in San Francisco. If I were, I would throw out all of the issues above.

Ultralight

6-8-19, 7:35pm

I briefly lived in New England. It was okay. I lived in Arizona for a couple years. The lack of water gave me anxiety. I lived in the South for almost 5 years and they did not like me all that much down there.

I have not been to the PNW yet, or the west coast. So who knows, maybe I would fit in there.

But I am begrudgingly admitting to myself that I might just be a Midwestern guy with many Midwestern sensibilities.

iris lilies

6-8-19, 8:41pm

dado potato

6-8-19, 11:14pm

Most of the midwestern woolen mills have closed, but Faribault carries on (since 1865).

http://www.faribaultmill.com/pages/our-story/

catherine

6-8-19, 11:31pm

I see no downside to being a Midwestern person.

I agree. I love Midwesterners.

JaneV2.0

6-9-19, 9:17am

Gardnr

6-9-19, 10:00am

I don't know what a Midwesterner is by definition?

iris lilies

6-9-19, 10:10am

https://www.currentresults.com/Weather/US/average-annual-precipitation-by-city.php

"some the of PNW is attractive but there are so many rainy days! Ugh.
"

Seattle has 37.7 inches of rainfall to St. Louis's 41. We're here, if you ever want to emigrate! :welcome:

But it is overcast so many days there. Our rains are more productive—thunderstorms that drop lots pf precipitation, then the skies open up to sun. PNW skies are constipated with the precip, can barely push out raindrops.

Haha or at least thats how
I see it.

iris lilies

6-9-19, 10:15am

I don't know what a Midwesterner is by definition?
Well for one, you live in one of these states or have a state of mind of one of these states:

2803

JaneV2.0

6-9-19, 11:01am

But it is overcast so many days there. Our rains are more productive—thunderstorms that drop lots pf precipitation, then the skies open up to sun. PNW skies are constipated with the precip, can barely push out raindrops.

Haha or at least thats how
I see it.

You're right; our clouds are kind of rainfall-retentive. :~)

Teacher Terry

6-9-19, 11:12am

iris lilies

6-9-19, 11:31am

IL, where did you live in the West? I lived most of my life in the Midwest. I lived in upstate New York for a few years. I lived in Texas and Kansas and the conservative views prevailed and were hard to take. I have lived in Northern Nevada for 22 years and love it. Mild 4 seasons with a ton of sun. The drought doesn’t bother me but we are mindful of our water usage. That’s why we have AstroTurf. Lake Tahoe and the mountains never get old.

I lived in Las Cruces New Mexico for 3+ years. Recently we took a trip back there, a driving trip, worst vacation I’ve had in ages. The endless driving through endless scrubby topography got me down. Flatlands of Dirt and Dust.

I am indifferent to mountains. We had them in Las cruces, the Organ Mountains. They were ok but did not make up for the desert. The desert is so different from what I am used to here, and I completely understand that some people find it fascinating. I get that. But that is not me.

i dare not speak my aversion to fake turf other than to say I find it horrifying. And yes,
I see the new style stuff, two of my neighbors have it. They also have the hideous carbuncles known as “decks” plastered against their elegant Victorian houses. So yeah, some people put out things that while not deliberately trying to hurt my eyes, they do!

:laff:

Teacher Terry

6-9-19, 11:35am

New Mexico is very different from here. We are high desert so plenty of trees and green. I hate naked mountains.

Zoe Girl

6-9-19, 11:43am

My family are real midwesterners, good people. I tease them a little but that is expected with family!

I am a Colorado person, through and through. From the first time we visited when I was 10 I knew that this was where I wanted to live. So I am super happy I get to live where I want.

I love the smell of a tiny sprinkle of rain on a warm day near evergreen trees. I love the way our weather freaks out newcomers. I love the way you can see clear mountain ranges almost every day from Denver. I love that in general we leave people alone in what they want to do. I love that when I go to sea level I have energy. Ahhhh,

Gardnr

6-9-19, 11:57am

Well for one, you live in one of these states or have a state of mind of one of these states:2803

Attachment does not open. Your comment tells me it's rather generic. So I'm a Northwesterner:cool:

Alan

6-9-19, 12:03pm

Attachment does not open.

I'll open it for you.

http://www.simplelivingforum.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=2803

sweetana3

6-9-19, 1:24pm

I grew up in Alaska and love almost everything about it. But had to move to the Lower 48 for job advancement and ended up in IN for the last 40+ years. I have to say I am very glad we ended up here. It is diverse and mostly accepting without the excesses of the coasts. Cost of living is incredibly low and we will be able to retire here easily. Husband is deeply involved in his volunteer activities and this will greatly benefit his overall health.

What I do not like is the gentrification of our downtown neighborhood. I can see that in the next 10 years it will only accelerate. That said, there are a lot of nice places to move to within the interstate circle to get away from the hustle of downtown if it becomes too much.

Just had the annual Pride Parade and what a crowd came. Thousands lined the streets and yelled and screamed for all the entries. Took hours to get thru all the participants and floats and bands.

razz

6-9-19, 1:47pm

I'll open it for you.

http://www.simplelivingforum.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=2803
I just tried the attachment with no success. I have no idea what constitutes a mid-westerner. I know that a Maritimer is usually more laid back and easy going in temperament, not as aggressive in business-like manners.

Teacher Terry

6-9-19, 2:31pm

Won’t open for me either. I consider Ohio to be the East. People in Kansas thought they were in the midwest and I disagree.

Alan

6-9-19, 5:20pm

Won’t open for me either. I consider Ohio to be the East. People in Kansas thought they were in the midwest and I disagree.
It's important for our betters to let us know when we're wrong, otherwise how would we know?

iris lilies

6-9-19, 5:32pm

Won’t open for me either. I consider Ohio to be the East. People in Kansas thought they were in the midwest and I disagree.
I would never consider Ohio to be an
eastern state, but Kansas being a Western state is understnadable.

OTOH People here make fun of St. Louis because it is quasi Southern in some manners, culture and traditions, midwestern in topography and weather, Eastern in architecture.

Gardnr

6-9-19, 5:48pm

How come MidWest doesn't mean the middle of the West?:confused: Really ya'll are the middle of the country.....right? Which makes you the "central":~)

Teacher Terry

6-9-19, 7:11pm

I don’t consider Kansas to be the Midwest. I think of them as a plains state. What does the article say about Kansas?

mschrisgo2

6-9-19, 8:45pm

What Does the article say? It is unoperable.

iris lilies

6-9-19, 10:10pm

The map shows these 12 states as The Midwest:

North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, Ohio,Michigan, Indiana.

iris lilies

6-9-19, 10:14pm

I don’t consider Kansas to be the Midwest. I think of them as a plains state. What does the article say about Kansas?
Kansas *IS* a plains state as is Iowa. Some plains states are in the Midwest.

There is nothing more Midwestern than the state of Iowa which is smack dab in the middle of the Midwest. But Iowa is also a plains State.

Teacher Terry

6-9-19, 10:27pm

Thanks IL. Interesting and it’s not the first time I have been wrong:))

KayLR

6-10-19, 6:34pm

https://www.currentresults.com/Weather/US/average-annual-precipitation-by-city.php

"some the of PNW is attractive but there are so many rainy days! Ugh.

"

Seattle has 37.7 inches of rainfall to St. Louis's 41. We're here, if you ever want to emigrate! :welcome:

But, but, but Jane! What about that Seattle Freeze? Can you see Ultralight embraced with open Midwestern-like arms? =

Ultralight

6-10-19, 7:36pm

What are some visual indicators of being Midwestern?

Ball caps are ubiquitous, along with being overweight. T-shirt and jeans uniform. Flannels. Scuffed up sneakers.

Ultralight

6-10-19, 7:44pm

Behavioral indicators of Midwesterners:
-Being cheapskates
-Eating at buffets
-Playing on softball leagues all spring and summer
-Fondness for potato salads

Teacher Terry

6-10-19, 9:25pm

Bowling is a sport:))

ToomuchStuff

6-11-19, 3:44am

Behavioral indicators of Midwesterners:
-Being cheapskates
-Eating at buffets
-Playing on softball leagues all spring and summer
-Fondness for potato salads

Personal bias? There are midwesterners, would don't fit those.

dado potato

6-11-19, 8:23am

HuffPost ran an article on certain empirically observed characteristics of Midwesterners. (6/18/2014, author Sarah Boboltz)
We spend less for lunch.
We are "friendlier" and "more conventional" than people from other regions.
We exhibit more voluntarism.
etc.

An anecdote from Phil Stagg's Waterfalls of Michigan, Book 4 - West about his experiences after getting stuck along with his son near Penn Falls in Ontonagon County:
… After several hours of trying to get my 4WD Chevy out of the slimy muck, it was obvious it was not going to happen without some help...
Stagg attempted to call AAA, but the cell phone signal was poor.
… This chewed up the last half hour of precious daylight. … So we each quickly made an overnight bag out of our camera backpacks and started hiking out of the woods... The village of Ontonagon was 20 miles away... We hiked about 3 miles back to M-26 and there met a vehicle... Here was a hunter heading out from his hunting camp for some supper... He gave us a ride to Rockland, where we had a wonderful Saturday Pizza Buffet with him. From there we went back to see about getting the truck out. After an hour of futile effort he took us back to his hunting camp, where we spent the night. In the morning he went out hunting with his aging dog, and he let us drive his truck to a rendezvous he had set up with an off-road towing company from Houghton. We led the tow truck to our vehicle. He winched it 100 yards up the 2-track, and then he promptly got stuck himself.... About this time our hunter friend and his dog came wandering in. They had hiked the several miles along the river to see how we were doing. Putting all the tow-ropes together … there were just enough to hook the hunter's truck to the tow truck and pull him out. He then winched me up the rest of the way, and we were once again on our way! It's nice to know there are still helpful people in this world. May we all be like our "guardian angel" Yooper.

Teacher Terry

6-11-19, 10:50am

When we lived in upstate New York in 1976 we lived in a town of 2k. A couple that lived outside of town where there was a bend in the road said every winter they would get bad snowstorms and people would go off the road by them. It could be days before the weather was good enough for people to get their cars out of the field and leave so they always made sure to have enough food in their freezer.

catherine

6-11-19, 11:32am

My brother and SIL have lived in Minnesota for years (My SIL was raised in Wisconsin and they moved to Minnesota just on the other side of the St. Croix after they married. My brother actually has adopted the accent.

My favorite story about Midwestern hospitality goes back to the late 80s when I took my mother and 4 kids out there for a week to visit with my brother/SIL. We met all the neighbors in their little town, and they were all so friendly, but the one that stands out was Rebecca, who had two small kids, had just gone through a nasty divorce, and commuted an hour into Minneapolis daily for work.

But she offered to host a party for us--total strangers!--telling my SIL, I don't have too much money, but if everyone brings something I'll provide the back yard. Which she did. This would NEVER HAPPEN in my neighborhood. First of all, when family comes to visit a neighbor, we leave them all alone--we don't stand on their porch in a line to meet them. Second, you don't invite people to your house unless it is HGTV-ready, because people talk about the things you have and don't have.

So her house was a little chaotic, of course. Far less so than mine would have been under similar circumstances. But we had a great time, and she certainly had no reason or obligation to ask us! Other than she loves my brother and sister-in-law and wanted to be hospitable to their family.

I've never forgotten that. It seems so small, but it was (to use a Trumpism) so bigly kind.

Teacher Terry

6-11-19, 11:56am

That’s so cool Catherine. In our neighborhood the old houses are being sold and renovated. A young couple across the street was working in their front yard so I went over to welcome them. They were remodeling the inside and asked if I wanted to see it which I did. I asked if they wanted to see ours and they did. I have been in some of my neighbors homes and I would never judge. How much money someone can afford to spend on their homes is no reflection on the type of person they are.

beckyliz

6-13-19, 5:19pm

I'm a lifelong Kansan and will probably die here. I despaired over the politics of the last two governors, but we have a new one now and I hope she can lead us out of the darkness. I will stay and do what I can to make my beloved state better. It isn't all flat as a pancake! The Flint Hills are lovely to drive through, especially in the Spring after the burn off and new grasses have sprouted for the cattle to fatten up on. I love the history, geography and most of the people, lol.

Teacher Terry

6-13-19, 7:58pm

I have lived in Kansas twice but unfortunately in Wichita. The KC area is pretty also. People are nice but the politics were so conservative.