a thread where we all had to find three good things about each state

it would be nice to have a thread where we all had to find three good things about each state

― max, Thursday, February 18, 2010 3:45 PM (40 minutes ago)

I like this idea.

Maybe, for each state, good things listed by an insider and some listed by an outsider.

Alabama:

my family is from there
Ruben Studdard is from there
lots of good food

(note: I have never been there)

Mississippi, insider's view:

1. great literary tradition - Faulkner, Welty, Williams, etc
2. great culinary tradition - incl. http://www.southernfoodways.com/
3. the Natchez Trace Parkway

Michigan:

Never more than a ridiculously short distance from open water
More sand/beach coastline than any other state except Florida
Ridic large percentage of Potawatomi/Indian place-names that freak everyone else out (ex: Kalamazoo)

washington, insider:

trees trees trees
sense of entrepenurial dynamism and economic opportunity (even still imo)
dank nugs

MA, insider:

gay marriage is legal
choral/classical music is astounding and plentiful
a bazillion excellent institutions of higher learning

Mississippi, an outsider's perspective (who voted it worst):
1. Probably the best and most influential blues and early rock tradition (Robert Johnson, Elvis, BB King, Bo Diddley, Muddy Waters)
2. Gave us Root Beer, the greatest of soft drinks
3. Seriously, the Natchez Trace Parkway is great

Arkansas, former three-year insider

1. surprisingly diverse physical geography with many recreational opportunities both terrestrial (mountain biking, hiking, camping in the Ozarks/Ouachitas) and aquatic (rafting, floating, kayaking in the White River/southern swamps/Mississippi delta)
2. only U.S. state to naturally produce diamonds
3. typical Forbes list stuff like low cost of living, low crime rate, relatively low unemployment etc.

Rhode Island
-cuisine (stuffies, weiners, coffee milk, etc.)
-fort thunder/fort thunder's babies.
-buddy mo-fucking cianci.

Utah:

– The best diss for a citizen of any state is the mean nickname for Utahans, "carrot snappers"
– Easy as hell to find yr way around Salt Lake City due to great grid system for streets
– About 800 different kinds of crazy natural geographic beauty

^ kind of want to change #2 to "Carnival of Souls was filmed there"

Indiana, ex-insider:

1) the rolling hill country in the southern part of the state
2) automobile/aircraft engine historical development (esp. James A. Allison - though not born there, did most of his important development work there)
3) Hoagy Carmichael

I want to list breaded pork tenderloin sandwiches, when done right, but I doubt they were invented there.

Pennsylvania (resident of 18 years, occasional visitor, kind of a hater, but i'll stick up for PA once in a while)

- Cheesesteaks
- The Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Barnes Foundation, and the Rodin Museum (altogether, these three pretty much pwn the Metropolitan, imo)
- Some actually very pretty and pastoral landcapes.

i would also like to add to PA:

- Tastykakes
- All the weird esoteric historical stuff about the found of the US
- Great beer.

illinois:

1) chicago for basically everything (incredible museums, cuisine, music, sports, culture, skyline, etc)
2) historically speaking, the state is totally fascinating w/r/t politics and crime and the old-timey small towns are usually quite beautiful and charming
3) underrated pockets of interesting geology nestled towards the northwest part of the state

For Indiana, I need to add:

the amazing printed music collection housed in the Indianapolis central library. I didn't know about it until my last visit - an entire floor of sheet music, scores, songbooks, hymnals, symphony and orchestra programs, from the early 1800s to now. An embarassment of riches.

Oklahoma:

1.)Sooner cheerleaders
2.)Tornado youtubes
3.)There are bison there

Oregon:

1) the beautiful Oregon coast is all publically owned, from the water's edge up to the vegetation line.
2) no sales tax
3) local strawberries (pref. "Hood" variety) are the world's best, when they're in season

California, envious outsider:

1) foodie heaven
2) Sierra mountains and their many National Parks and wilderness areas
3) Big Sur

^ i would personally replace the sierras with pauly shore but whatever

new jersey (lived here just about all of my life):

1. we exist merely to amuse the rest of the country. see "jersey shore."
2. we exist merely to be the unflushed toilet bowl for our neighboring states. see also "jersey shore," city of philadelphia vs. new jersey, 437 U.S. 617 (1978).
3. we exist to confound the rest of the country when non-natives meet natives who do not conform to either 1 or 2 (which is, like, most of us).
4. the jersey devil, the devil's tree, and all of that wonderfully fucked-up shit from weird nj that sounds like something out of a william faulkner novel or david lynch movie.
5. our cool natives take more pride in being the birthplace of the feelies, the misfits and naughty by nature than in bruce springsteen.

The Jersey Devil was my #1 fear as a kid, thanks to an illustration in Mysteries of the Unexplained.

last but not least:

6. a fucked-up, byzantine and thoroughly corrupt political culture that puts Chicago and Louisiana to shame and that cause even Clay Davis to hold his nose in utter disgust.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xNnAvTTaJjM

the house in this video is located in Union, NJ. and it's still there ... i just saw it the other day, in fact!

5. our cool natives take more pride in being the birthplace of the feelies, the misfits and naughty by nature than in bruce springsteen.

prefer the non-cool native POV

to each their own, i guess. you also didn't grow up in the NJ suburbs during the 80s (when Brucemania was inescapable).

unfortunately!

texas, from an inside man

-gorgeous western basin that rivals new mexico for big empty spiritual beauty but never gets appropriate props imo yall ever driven round marfa in the dawn light damn

-san antonio, which is a wonderfully complex town. on the surface its a tourist trap put in place to snatch the money of pasty people of the north with novelty sombreros, but because its a tourist trap town all the natives that aren't gangsters are this tight knit honest community of service industry types that will do you a solid with the understanding that you'd always do the same for them, and that you will if you ever get the chance.

-motherfucking tacos

Delaware from the inside:

1. Home of Tax Free Shopping
2. Beaches
3. It's easy to ride your bike there because it's very flat.

California, envious outsider:

1) foodie heaven

except for Stockton, CA ... which is actually foodie hell. and i'm not even a foodie.

3 more good things about new jersey

• seaside heights
• grease trucks
• summer corn

3 good things about new york (non-nyc edition)

• fall foliage
• buffalo wings
• niagra falls!

3 good things about maine

• lobster
• acadia nat'l park
• bluberries

(insider on nj, semi-insider on ny state and ME)

More good things about Delaware:

4. Two-ish hours from Baltimore, DC, and Philadelphia.
5. There are at least three distinct accents represented within the state despite it being small enough that you can drive from the top to the bottom in a few hours.
6. Joe Biden

3 more good things about rhode island

• dells lemonade
• mobile diner
• hp lovecraft

re the jersey devil: i just read that history channel postulated that the jersey devil might actually be a great horned owl. my first thought is that such a bird wouldn't be big enough (it can grow up to 2 1/2 ft. or so w/ a five foot wingspan), then i saw this video on Youtube and i noted that they can look pretty damn scary:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N0jVgldCwAk

Florida:

1. Mild winters
2. Gulf coast beaches
3. My company

I love the whole myth of the Jersey Devil and the wack jobs who think they've seen it. Lol Pineys.

NY:

1) Fire Island
http://ezhistory.com/yahoo_site_admin/assets/images/ny_ocean_beach_beach.150161344_std.jpg
2) The Finger Lakes Region
http://hikingohioparks.com/images3/finger-lakes-map.jpg
3) Pizza/Bagels
http://www.vinnyspizzasonline.com/real%20pizza.jpghttp://www.costaricapages.com/panama/blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/02/bagelassortment.jpg

idaho, outsider edition:

skiing skiing skiing
craters of the moon
good ppl come from there, some of my best friends etc

Idaho, insider edition:

• Innertubing down the Boise River in summer w/a 6-pack of beer and beaching like a drunken whale in the middle of a city park
• Albion, crazy small town in a beautiful Sound of Music-looking valley w/classic small town museum full of everything they could find older than 30 years old in a former teacher's college called Albion Normal (used to drive here every year for my birthday)
• Coming home w/ten rainbow trout you just caught in the Snake River & grilling them on a beautiful July evening

maryland (insider ed)

kind of has everything and is not that big, so you could drive from very southern southern maryland to the chesapeake bay to baltimore city to the fancy dc burbs (but why would you want to do that) to the appalachian mountains in like half a day
best state flag of all the flags
crabs + old bay seasoning <3

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41WACQDTJZL._SL500_AA280_.jpg

http://images28.fotki.com/v1028/photos/9/991469/4377045/WP01072527sd-vi.jpg?1191094799

by these mountains

http://www.forwolves.org/ralph/wpages/graphics/cityrocks16-1.jpg

thread needs AK and HI

Coming home w/ten rainbow trout you just caught in the Snake River & grilling them on a beautiful July evening

that IS awesome, actually!

best state flag of all the flags
best state flag of all the flags
best state flag of all the flags
4 real

more maryland

smith island
the wire
autumn glory wayyy out in westernmost county. generally, fall in the appalachian mountains when the leaves are changing and the weather is still nice, also it is football season - best thing ever

thread needs AK and HI

never been to Alaska, so secondhand stuff:

1. an aunt of mine once said "they've got mosquitoes up there big enough to fuck a turkey"
2. my parents brought back some fantastic salmon the last time they went
3. weird growing season, which somehow results in people growing several-hundred-pound vegetables

hahahahaha that theater+ cage match is so great

I think the more important question is "why WOULDN'T a cage match happen in the Frauenthal"

It's been a long time since it was okay to spit your chaw on the floor, for one thing.

MD, from 18 year insider:

1. Best Flag. Period.
2. The amazing city of Baltimore, and all of its inconsistencies and contradictions.
3. Church Point at sunrise.

gonna admit my first reaction was "wow that is an AMAZING set"

xp to the Minnesotans: OK, I only lived 5 miles from my high school. But that school was still at least 70 miles from anywhere.

It's been a long time since it was okay to spit your chaw on the floor, for one thing.

Naturally! One should always use a spitoon!

CA, from a 4 year insider:

1. Our bear will kick the shit out of anyone else's. Except for Alaska's, but he's too busy dealing with the above-mentioned mosquitoes.
2. Dispensaries.
3. Our beer is pretty amazing.

4. The Green Brothers and their arts and crafts masterpieces.

laurel our HS was so big and nice that the pool was on the fourth floor

PS I hate you.

Colorado, outsider:

- Frigging epic mountains
- A squirrel stole my pancake in Denver when I was 4 & this is my earliest memory
- Easy to draw

1. Our bear will kick the shit out of anyone else's. Except for Alaska's, but he's too busy dealing with the above-mentioned mosquitoes.

I thought the Alaskan bears were too busy blowing up the world with their space planes...?

Have we talked yet about the Alaska Nanooks opening reel for their hockey team?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8THGqrjUDGI&feature=player_embedded

btw as an outsider, that video is my #1 reason why Alaska is a national treasure

ps laurel we did not have a fourth floor, much to many 9th graders' dismay

I still haven't been inside the new (lol, "new") high school!

dude it is a trip

I saw the floor plans! My mom was still on the school board when the proposal went through and basically I kept looking at it going o_O

think it has actual "pods"

or "zones" or some bullshit

That Nanook thing is awesome!

PPS Oh I geddit.

We have a new HS now, it has two floors. I've never been in it, but it can only be a step up from the old one. Ho ho ho

rufus's school is having a special event in town and i know there is at least one ilxor who would have a good time:

http://www.centerschool.net/images-news/ContraPostcard022810.png

I love it when buildings like high schools are awesome

cleveland refurbished John Hay highschool, here is the cafeteria

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/47/137293930_ca6b50e00a.jpg

Contra dance for REALS??

and the lobby I think

http://planning.city.cleveland.oh.us/projects/assets/med/projectID14_23.jpg

Or should I say FOR REELS oh god someone stop me

lol

Ha ha

colorado:

01. mountains
02. beer
03. weed*

*not specific to the region, tho many high-quality varieties are easily & cheaply attainable & police in many areas of the state tend to just look the other way as a general rule.

CA, from a 4 year insider:

1. Our bear will kick the shit out of anyone else's. Except for Alaska's, but he's too busy dealing with the above-mentioned mosquitoes.
2. Dispensaries.
3. Our beer is pretty amazing.

― Clerk all KNOWIN (B.L.A.M.), Friday, February 19, 2010 9:12 PM (25 minutes ago) Bookmark

dude i gotta say, ive been disappointed w cali-beer. some of the local stuff is v good (and i love hoppy beers, so im well-situated), but like, every CA beer store ive been to is surprisingly more expensive and way less stocked w interesting stuff than east-coast beer stores. even putting aside the low-level of dogfish head distro here, and the absence of bell's beer, im just kinda ehh when i go into a supposedly sweet store in SF. compare this to like bullshit corner stores in NY, DC, college park MD, or durham, and im like WHAT IS THE DEAL??? i mean, i maybe should start liking wine.

but okay, here's my posi- contribution

CA (resident for a year as of next wed):
- the quality and variety of nature in CA is astounding, even keeping in mind how big the state is
- some really excellent food (subsections: produce; mexican food; ethnic enclave food in LA; seafood; in-n-out burger)
- fuckin creedence
- oh wait w33d LOL

MD (24-year resident):
- OTM dar1a and BLAM on the flag
- broad-leaf deciduous trees
- berger cookies, crab chips, natty boh, smith island cake, racial/ethnic diversity

oh also the orioles and the terps

Get thee to a Bev Mo. Re: the lack of distribution of Dogfish and Bells - We're all pissed off about it. Believe me.

This makes for another addition to MD:

Ronnie's, in Rock Spring. One of, if not the best liquor stores EVER.

gone

oh shit psych it's still there but i think ronnie sold it

UM BUT OH FUCK GOOGLE STREETVIEW SUGGESTS THAT THE SNOWBALL STAND IS GONE

North Carolina, by a recovering insider.

1. BBQ, preferably eastern style
2. College basketball
3. Lots of nature and crap in the western part of the state. If you like that sort of thing.

I don't know I would consider college basketball to be a good thing about NC...people were just a little too obsessed with that shit

I was one of them. It's fun!

it can be fun, sure! I guess I was in the belly of the beast w/r/t basketball obsessiveness and sometimes it got to be a little much.

4)Driving down the Merrit Parkway is always great -- winding road, gorgeous scenery, historic bridges built by the WPA

This is one of my favorite roads to drive esp in the Spring/Summer. It's so pretty and the curves make the drive esp fun.

yeah the merrit parkway is great - I had been taking I-95 for so long! ;_;

Yep, I know! I pretty much always take the Merrit if I'm driving to through CT now. It may not be the quickest route but it's the most enjoyable.

yeah! I love the scenic lookouts. and iirc if you're coming in from new york you get to cross the tappan zee bridge, which is the bestest bridge

The Tappan Zee is great - the view is amazing. I usually cut back to 95 sooner so I can take the not nearly as nice but still p good Throg's Neck over to LI.

re my earlier NJ-lovin' post mentioning The Devil's Tree ... it has its own Wikipedia page and shit

an aside: i just love the Internet. back in the day, sitting around in central jersey shooting the shit we NEVER would have imagined that a local myth that no-one outside of a few counties in the middle of New Jersey had any reason to know would in a decade or so become something that some punter in, i dunno, Malawi or Kyrgizstan w/ Internet access and some knowledge of English, could learn about as some crazy American myth.

XD

Victoria, Australia (long-time res):

The Great Ocean Road
The Melbourne University campus (same league as Oxford?)
The autumn in Melbourne is mellow and relaxed, and a celebration of surviving the dreaded Melbourne summer
Boxing day Test, Oz Open Tennis, AFL
The Age

Queensland (occasional tourist):

Sunshine Coast (craps over the overhyped Gold Coast from a massive height)
Bundaberg Rum
Toowoombah (long unfairly maligned as a hopeless redneck town, but clean, friendly and welcoming of strangers, with great surrounding scenery)
Tropical fruit
'Banjo Paterson Australia' in a way southern States can never hope to be

montana, outsider:

glacier np
the high line by road and rail
hanging out in missoula

oh shit psych it's still there but i think ronnie sold it

― 69, Friday, 19 February 2010 22:26 (5 days ago) Permalink

UM BUT OH FUCK GOOGLE STREETVIEW SUGGESTS THAT THE SNOWBALL STAND IS GONE

― 69, Friday, 19 February 2010 22:27 (5 days ago)

I can totally taste an egg custard snowball with marshmallow RIGHT NOW.

And total bummer if Ronnie sold it. Place is amazing for their booze slection.

MI, insider

isle royale
10 cent refund
the mighty mac