General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region Forumsstate by state speak your mind about...minnesota
i have met amny minnesotans and they are all so far good folks
the foods are a little different (think lutkefiske)
the land is beautiful and the state is the land on 10,000 lakes
thats a lot of lakes
minnesota is 80% as old as the earth
that is older than any other place
it has always been there
many huge corporations are headquarted in minnesota
many great writers and musicians also come from minnesota
they have the 10 largest gdp among the states
logging mining and agriculture all are extensive
as is the tourism business from its many waterays and lakes
minnesota has a lot going on
MNBrewer
(8,462 posts)Have lived here for 18 years and don't really want to move anywhere else. We have our nutjobs (Bachmann) but also have the first muslim elected to Congress (my U.S. Rep., Keith Ellison).
Canuckistanian
(42,290 posts)That alone makes it a special place.
raccoon
(31,110 posts)Other famous Minnesotans: Robert Zimmerman and Jon Hassler.
geardaddy
(24,926 posts)Brothers James Arness and Robert Graves (Aurness)
Eddie Albert (Heimberger)
Loni Anderson
Louie Anderson
The Andrew Sisters
Judy Garland
The Coen Brothers
Al Franken
Terry Gilliam
Jessica Lange
the list goes on: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_people_from_Minnesota
HopeHoops
(47,675 posts)Lydia Leftcoast
(48,217 posts)Not since we got all those immigrants from Latin America, Southeast Asia, and East Africa.
You can get any kind of food you want in the Twin Cities now.
HopeHoops
(47,675 posts)Most Americans think salt is the only spice on the planet (and curiously, it IS the only "spice" in SPAM, a contraction of "SPiced hAM" .
geardaddy
(24,926 posts)HopeHoops
(47,675 posts)dflprincess
(28,075 posts)Well worth the stop if you're in the area (but you need a sense of humor to enjoy it).
bvar22
(39,909 posts)I used to bicycle down Lake Street on my way to The Lakes.
Block by block, the different mysterious aromas from all the Ethnic Restaurants, Bistros, and Diners was a treat in itself.
I'm glad I had the chance to check out many of them before moving.
Delightful.
There are many things I miss about Minnesota,
and the food adventure of ethnic dining is one of those.
Noodleboy13
(422 posts)Yes, we do have a penchant for typical, starchy mid-wersten foods. However, Mpls has, over the past 10 years, become quite the foodie city. James Beard awarded chefs, a robust local organic farm scene, combined with the farm to table movement has resulted in a burgeoning restaurant scene.
btw, I've lived here my entire life and never once had Lutefisk. (Norski's are a weird bunch) Lefse rocks tho.
peace,
Noodleboy
Lydia Leftcoast
(48,217 posts)I lucked out, because my dad, who was the son of Norwegian immigrants, absolutely hated it.
I was not impressed with my one experience with lutefisk. The church where my father was pastor actually held an annual lutefisk supper, and people would come from miles around to attend. I went once, and that was enough.
Later, I heard from a Norwegian exchange students that modern Norwegians think of lutefisk as something that impoverished peasants used to eat in the 19th century.
hifiguy
(33,688 posts)She had to learn how to make the stuff after marrying a Norwegian. Nasty stuff.
My Uncle Cliff, who was 100% Norwegian, would eat leftover cold lutefisk for breakfast.
HopeHoops
(47,675 posts)It's just the name.
I'm glad things are different than I'd heard. I've been to places with boring food. It's, well, um, boring.
The Velveteen Ocelot
(115,676 posts)Keith Ellison
Paul Wellstone
F. Scott Fitzgerald
Minnesota Public Radio
A Prairie Home Companion
Lakes, rivers, woods
Minneapolis-St. Paul: High literacy, politically liberal, many colleges and universities, relatively low unemployment, Minneapolis voted one of the "gayest" cities in the U.S., lots of ethnic diversity (especially restaurants)
Beautiful summers
Bears, wolves, coyotes, moose, eagles, mountain lions
The St. Paul Chamber Orchestra
The Minnesota Orchestra
Nobody actually eats lutefisk
Excellent airport with convenient men's room action for Republican senators
Not so good things:
Michele Bachmann
Chip Kravak
John Kline
Mosquitoes
Winter
Republicans in the Legislature
glinda
(14,807 posts)dmallind
(10,437 posts)Yes it gets really fucking cold, but you can always wear warmer clothes. This is not the stone age.
1700 snow plows in Hennepin County. How many do you have, Atlanta? Might be why 2" of the stuff shuts you down.
On the reverse side, no MN drivers, 4WD does not help you stop on ice any easier. Early winters always have more trucks/SUVs in the ditch than cars. Think about it SUVers.
Vikings/Bills Superbowl end in a tie? Who knows (I've lived in both!)?
I'm not sure that driving a large truck out onto an ice-covered lake, then lighting a fire while you fish, is something a state that high in education rankings should promote as a popular pastime.
Yes, many Minnesotans really do sound like Fargo characters whether residents see that or not. I've never lived anywhere that doesn't claim to be accent-free to a large degree. Never lived anywhere that really was.
The Twins realy are a decent baseball team, last year notwithstanding. Funny that year was the only one the coastal media empires chose to give the team any camera time apart from when they play the Yankees or Red Sox.
Bleach does NOT make fish taste good, even if you spell bleach l-y-e. I don't give a crap how long you try to "acquire" it.
Despite suffering brutal winters, the roads are the best in the Midwest, and outside the Atlantic states like VA and MD, among the best in the nation. Well done MNDoT - even if the two MN seasons really ARE winter and road construction!
Nobody who has not been there will believe or understand the humid heat that MN summers can, however briefly, achieve.
Having the second biggest local atheist organization in the nation is something to be proud of, you dour Norwegian Lutheran bastards!
Salt is not spicy. Pepper is not a "crazy-hot" food condiment.
Odin2005
(53,521 posts)hifiguy
(33,688 posts)The mind boggles and the brain broils at the thought. Usually there are one or two weeks every summer where the heat index (temp/humidity combination) gets up in to the stultifying, horrible 100s. Walking outside at those times can literally make your stomach turn over, the air is so thick and awful. Miami has nothing on that kind of misery, just more of it.
And contrary to popular belief, we of German descent outnumber the Norskes and the Svedes up in these here parts, yah you betcha. Uff da.
geardaddy
(24,926 posts)Noodleboy13
(422 posts)Scandahoovian cultures.
Those Finns are freakin weird.
peace,
Noodleboy
geardaddy
(24,926 posts)Noodleboy13
(422 posts)Wasn't there a viable socialist party in the Iron Range until the 20's or something?
peace,
Noodleboy
geardaddy
(24,926 posts)Gus Hall seemed to run every year for president when I was in high school and college.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gus_Hall
Sisaruus
(718 posts)All my grandparents were Finnish immigrants.
My maternal grandparents were members of the IWW.
My paternal grandparents were leaders in the local Finnish socialist hall.
geardaddy
(24,926 posts)I remember a story about when Wellstone was first running and going through the state garnering support. He was meeting with a few Finnish old timer up on Da Range and one guy said something about how Paul was Jewish and this guy was a Finn so they were outcasts and had to stick together.
hifiguy
(33,688 posts)The Finn Who Would Not Take A Sauna: http://www.coloradofinns.com/Finnwhowouldnotsauna.htm
But there was one, a shy young man, and although he was Finnish,
the joys of winter had, for him, long started to diminish.
HE WAS A FINN, THE ONLY FINN,
WHO WOULD NOT TAKE A SAUNA "
It isn't that I can't," he said, "I simply do not wanna.
To jump into a frozen lake is not my fondest wish,
for just because I am a Finn don't mean that I'm a fish."
annabanana
(52,791 posts)lolololol!
mnmoderatedem
(3,724 posts)>>Nobody who has not been there will believe or understand the humid heat that MN summers can, however briefly, achieve.
I'm a Minnesota transplant, lived here for 20+ years. Got a buddy who's a transplant from Florida if you can believe that. Usually the other way around. Anyway, he never, ever, EVER acknowledges that it can, on occasion, get as bad heat-index wise as anywhere else. Pointed out a three day stretch last summer where the heat index was higher than in Miami at that time. He just shuts his ears and refuses to acknowledge fact. Just obsesses with bragging about how hot and muggy it gets in Florida.
Sisaruus
(718 posts)My brother-in-law never believed us about salt and pepper. Until he traveled to Scandinavia with us for the first time. Now he never goes there without carrying salt and pepper shakers in his jacket pocket.
Odin2005
(53,521 posts)And thanks for mentioning our ancient rocks!
geardaddy
(24,926 posts)and that Minnesota has a great theater tradition
and the Walker Arts Center
The University of Minnesota was the first hospital to transplant a kidney
We also have the Mayo Clinic
Wellstone ruled
(34,661 posts)One of the highest standards of living in the U.S. .
Swen and Ole.
Home of the largest Ice Fishing Shacks(wet bars,tv,porta-poty,full kitchens,and bunks)
hifiguy
(33,688 posts)the only thing I don't like is the winter weather. And the older I get the less I like it.
The Twin Cities are a pretty darn good place to live, though not terribly cheap anymore. We do have quirks, many of which our own national treasure Garrison Keillor has catalogued in his inimitable way. Minnesotans really are quite passive-aggressive and really do hang around as adults with people they went to junior high with.
One of the odd things is that there are a lot of rich - really rich - people here, but you'd never know it. They make Warren Buffet look like a Trump-style showoff. I think we are also the largest metropolitan area in the country without a Ferrari dealership.
Viking12
(6,012 posts)It obviously produces great things.
Seriously, though, you left the amazing educational system off your list.
sinkingfeeling
(51,445 posts)Loved the summers and the county fairs. I didn't really see the whole state. My son went to college at Winona for one year. Liked all the small towns along the river. I also drove from Rochester to Winnipeg, Canada, stopping in Duluth and International Falls.
It's pretty farm country and I loved dining in small town cafes.
Brickbat
(19,339 posts)Especially the winters!
WI_DEM
(33,497 posts)and Al Franken. A Minnesotan was on the national Dem ticket in 1964, 1968, 1976, 1980 & 1984
hfojvt
(37,573 posts)I spent five school years sort of living in Minnesota. I found many of the young Minnesotans I met to be obnoxiously arrogant. Like Twintown somehow made Minnesota superior to the rest of the midwest. I dislike large cities in general, but have a special loathing for Twintown.
Growing up in SD, I also rebelled at Minnesota sports teams. The TV stations from Sioux Falls acted like the Vikings and the Twins were OUR teams, even stating as such. I scoffed at that. Our teams? We do NOT live in Mineesota. But I did eventually get over my hatred of the Vikings, because, let's face it, Fran Tarkenton and Chuck Foreman were pretty cool.
Naturally we did some camping in Minnesota, but I cannot remember any pleasant memories from that. Usually it was too cold in the fall when my dad met his brother from Wisconsin. Camping is less fun when you cannot swim, or when you freeze trying to swim in late August. On one trip we even got hit by a tornado at Helmer Myre state park which knocked our camper over and sent dad to the hospital for stitches. The hospital was very well hidden. Stopping for directions, the guy started to tell all the lefts and rights and lefts we needed to take, but then just said "just follow me, I will take you there". At the same time, there was a large group of motorcyclists staying at the park on their way to Sturgis, SD. They made a point of helping to set our camper back upright, but I was disappointed. As many big guys as they had I thought they could have set it down gently, but they just got out of the way and let it slam to the ground - something my dad, brother and myself could have done.
Another campsite we stayed in after a flood, la-qui-parle state park, was legendary for its swarms of moquitoes. We still talk about that. Trying to walk the dog and get two steps down the trail and notice his back is just covered with mosquitoes. Then dad lit a fire and we thought we could sit around that and be mosquito free, but it was like the fire just attracted moquitoes and they went berserk.
I found the spring weather to be unrelentingly awful, much like Wisconsin. The sky just fills with scud and it rains, and rains, and rains for weeks at a time. Any number of times I would be riding back home to SD and would ride in to blue skies and sunshine. It was like the scud stopped at the Minnesota border.
Minnesota used to be reliably liberal, being the only state that didn't vote for Ronald Reagan in 1984. But then later they elected Pawlenty instead of Mondale and long had a string of Republican Governors from Quie to Perpich to Pawlenty. Electoral wise they are more of a swing state than a reliably blue state. They voted for Kerry over Bush by a mere 51% to 47.6% and in 2000 were even worse, Gore winning by a mere 2.4% while Nader got 5.2%
Rudy Perpich was a dyed-in-the-wool Democrat until his dying day.
Norm Coleman, not Timmeh the Tool, won the Wellstone senate seat - the election in which Mondale stepped in after Wellstone's tragic death.
hfojvt
(37,573 posts)Huh. I seem to remember that the Minnesota Daily did not like him very much, so I assumed he was a Republican. I actually could have met him, he came to my dorm to campaign and was standing a few feet away from me. But as a mere student, I did not pay that much attention to Minnesota politics, although I did vote there in 1984. Don't remember who I voted for for Senate or any other race though. Probably Boschwitz, though. I cannot even remember Joan Growe's name. I was still slowly moving from the Republican party and just barely voted for Mondale.
Also, I confused Pawlenty with Coleman. It has been a while. I was shocked by that. I thought Mondale would clean up, like Lautenberg did.
dflprincess
(28,075 posts)He did step in to run in Paul Wellstone's place and lost to Coleman in a very close race.
The last time Minnesota landed in the Republican column during a presidential race was 1972.
Pawlenty never got more than 45% of the vote statewide. This is because Minnesota does have a long tradition of 3rd parties. The DFL was not always the DFL. Once upon a time there was a Democratic party and a Farmer Labor party (and a Republican party, but we don't talk about that). The Democrats & the Farmer Laborites merged in 1944 and, to this day, there are those of us who think that was the biggest mistake the Farmer Labor party ever made.
It was the progressive bent of the state that allowed Nader to get 5.2% of the vote here - that and Minnesota was considered one of the states where it was "safe" to vote for Nader as a protest.
Lydia Leftcoast
(48,217 posts)and unglaciated area along the Mississippi between Red Wing and the Iowa border, which has higher elevations than the surrounding land.
Minneapolis has ten lakes within its city limits, and thanks to a visionary parks superintendent in the late 19th century, they're all surrounded by park land and walking and cycling trails. For some reason, St. Paul didn't get as many lakes.
We still have the caucus system, which means that we can make resolutions in our local caucuses and see them passed up to the state level.
When I was growing up in the 1950s, Minnesota was really a lot like Lake Wobegon, in that most people were either Lutheran or Catholic.
We know how to pronounce Scandinavian names.
Minneapolis has one of the largest populations of urban Native Americans, mostly Ojibwe and Dakota, as well as reservations scattered around the state. You can study both the Ojibwe and Dakota languages at the University of Minnesota.
Northfield, Minnesota at one time had more colleges (Carleton and St. Olaf) than movie theaters, and probably still does. Northfield also holds the distinction of having had its bank robbed by Jesse James.
The North Shore of Lake Superior between Two Harbors and the Canadian border is a fantastic scenic drive.
B Calm
(28,762 posts)Personally I love the state of Minnesota. This old Hoosier has been going up there since the 1970's on fishing trips. I have come to know several Minnesotans that I call very dear friends.
glinda
(14,807 posts)JUST KIDDING!
riverwalker
(8,694 posts)The BWCA (Boundary Waters Canoe Area wilderness), Voyageurs National Park. "Wilderness is a spiritual necessity" ~ Sigurd Olson
riverwalker
(8,694 posts)once debunked, now being reconsidered as genuine by some. It's in Alexandria, Minnesota in a little museum. What I found even more interesting than the runestone were the little implements in the museum found by farmers that were autheticated by a university in Oslo to be Viking. (Of course, being "Ekte Norsk" I am biased )
http://www.kensingtonrunestone.us/
steve2470
(37,457 posts)Being from Florida, I'm used to 93 degree heat and 50 percent humidity during that month. During my jog around Lake Calhoun near downtown Minneapolis, it was a delightful 80 degrees, low humidity and a cool breeze blowing out of the north. I loved that kind of weather, but I'm sure it gets frightfully cold in January.
geardaddy
(24,926 posts)Gus Hall
Brickbat
(19,339 posts)Noodleboy13
(422 posts)Where else but MN are you going to find an albino muslim rapper.
peace,
Noodleboy
geardaddy
(24,926 posts)We were going to go to the Atmosphere concert in White Cloud, but something came up.
Did you go to any of their outstate concerts?
Hong Kong Cavalier
(4,572 posts)She's amazing.
Thank you, The Current, for being such an awesome radio station and introducing me to all of this amazing music.
Ooh! The Current. 89.3. Minnesota Public Radio.
That should be on the list, too.
The Current
geardaddy
(24,926 posts)It's a state treasure.
glinda
(14,807 posts)KamaAina
(78,249 posts)C'mon, man!
glinda
(14,807 posts)Rectangle
(667 posts)geardaddy
(24,926 posts)Rectangle
(667 posts)The Iowa fact is, however, duly noted!
geardaddy
(24,926 posts)lindac007
(55 posts)We moved there from NY and we are now retired in America's Wang (Florida). I love MN and am working hard to get back there. Perhaps one of these days....... I visit there frequently, my son and grandson live there in Albertville, just northwest of the cities.
It was quite the culture shock moving from NY to MN, but I came to love every moment of it. The weather may be harsh in the winter, but as someone mentioned, you can always add more layers and get warmer. Here in Fl you can't get cool outdoors. MN has the most wonderful people in the world living there, especially in Mpls, my favorite city outside of NYC, where I grew up.
MN will always be my home, its people will always be my people and I will carry it always in my heart.
dflprincess
(28,075 posts)and I was born in Minneapolis and, except for a few years when my dad was transferred to Buffalo (NY not MN) I've lived here my whole life.
Lydia Leftcoast
(48,217 posts)1. Natural setting (Portland has snow-capped mountains and ocean, each within a short drive in opposite directions, and the largest urban forest park in the country)
2. Transit system (The Twin Cities are about 20 years behind Portland in this respect).
But I'd rather live in Minneapolis than anywhere in the Sun Belt.
Response to lindac007 (Reply #43)
dflprincess This message was self-deleted by its author.
cyberswede
(26,117 posts)It's fantastic with butter & sugar, rolled up like a cigar - yum!
I was born there; most of my family grew up there. Love Minnesota! It can be difficult to find a place to buy good beer when you're out in the sticks, though.
Noodleboy13
(422 posts)Tikki
(14,557 posts)part staunch Liberals and part repugs.
Saw signs of both views as we drove around the State.
The Tikkis
MineralMan
(146,286 posts)Except for maybe the big snowstorm coming this week. I don't love that so much, since I have a cold and will have to do snow removal. But, oh, well. Fishing's great hear for six months.
limpyhobbler
(8,244 posts)Minnesota battle of the bands, two of the greatest ever. You can like them both, but nobody likes them both equally. At some point we all have to choose.
I Hate Music
vs.
Covering the Byrds 8 miles high
Broken_Hero
(59,305 posts)in early-mid January of 96 because of a blizzard...their airport floors were clean, but not comfortable.
The Genealogist
(4,723 posts)I was at a conference in St Cloud, MN, and I had not seen smoking in a hotel lobby in some time. I was amazed. This was in 2000, by the way. It was bitterly cold when I was there, but apparently it was a warm spell, for that part of Minnesota. I went to Canada twice, through Minnesota, so I have seen the state from top to bottom, Iowa to Canada. It is beautiful in the summer, I think, especially along Lake Superior.
Thegonagle
(806 posts)which includes bars and restaurants, and naturally, hotel lobbies. Happened in maybe '06.
AsahinaKimi
(20,776 posts)Hockey Moms? I have never been there, but heard there's lots of ice and snow. I know the Vikings football team is there..
(I always liked the color purple!)
Thegonagle
(806 posts)in some other state, and realize that it wouldn't happen like that here. More states need to study how we do it, IMNSHO.
Paper ballots by law, optical scan machine counts randomly audited, canvassing every precinct to make sure numbers add up exactly, automatic hand recounts in tight races, observers allowed, double custody of cast ballots, same day registration that works, identity is verified at registration.
Unfortunately, the GOP put a voter ID amendment to our constitution on the ballot, and it has a pretty good chance of passing from people who don't understand the issue or exactly what is at stake.
geardaddy
(24,926 posts)and consitently one of the highest voter turnout percentages in the nation.
Morning Dew
(6,539 posts)I grew up in Wisconsin but I've lived here longer.
Blue_Tires
(55,445 posts)bvar22
(39,909 posts)I had the pleasure of spending 6 years in the Twin Cities,
and had the opportunity to explore most of this state,
from the Arrowhead and The Boundary Waters Wilderness Preserves (NO motorized vehicles/ paddle your way in ONLY),
to the Western Prairie gateways.
I loved living in Minnesota!
In addition to what others have said,
The Twin Cities is one of the MOST Bike Friendly Cities I have experienced.
One of the things I miss the most about Minnesota are the Wonderful Bike Paths and Commuter BikeWays!
It is possible to access most areas of the Twin Cities without sharing the road with automobiles.
These are 1st Class, well thought out, developed, and maintained.
Some of the Commuter BikeWays are cleared and maintained throughout the Winter,
making bicycling possible all year long.
I DO recommend studded bike tires, especially when exploring off the path,
but many ride through the Winter without studs.
Minneapolis Skyline at Sunset from Pilot Knob Hill
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=160x21876
and one of the Best State Fairs EVER!
A Night at The Fair
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=160x21150
There is only one downside to life in Minnesota, the Four Seasons:
June, July, August, and Winter. (local joke)
to all my Minnesota Friends!
I still listen to Prairie Home Companion every Saturday Evening.
geardaddy
(24,926 posts)Thanks for sharing!
I thought there were only two seasons here: Winter and Road Repair.