Get to know our states

[MattWaterman]

Y'know, I had been thinking lately that I don't know the secret history of most american states. As in, like, when I think of Florida I think of the beach and Miami or when I think of Ohklahoma I think of ranches as far as the eye can see. But those are simplistic impressionss that probably don't tell everything about the whole state or its people. So, for example, I'll go first in regard to New York...

When you mention New York, everybody thinks of New York City, of course. But, from east-to-west, NYC to Buffalo, New York State is over eight hours driving, the same distance more or less as NYC to North Carolina, I believe. While it might be over-stating it to say that the variability in the two trips are commensurate, it goes without saying there's a huge difference between the NYC Metro area and The Rust Belt area of the north. It's been said many times to me from marketers that travel a lot that upstate NY is identical to some of the plaines states, namely Ohio or Indiana. And outside of geography (upstate is generally very hilly) I'd agree. I figure that that's something a lot of people in, say, Texas might not know.

Also, out in the west of NY there's a little area around Rochester, just south of Buffalo, that is this little pocket of liberal granola-ism that's just kinda fun. Remeniscent of what I've heard about parts of Colorado near Denver or the Pacific Northwest, there's a "do what you want" vibe that is much different than the simmering resentment/depression of the rest of the rust belt area (Buffalo, Syracuse, Utica, Albany...) And meanwhile going east from NYC is Long Island ("Da Iyland") where Toyota and Bio reside. Out there it's kind of a potpori of nice, regular suburbs and areas of insufferable rat-racers and their bratty kids (...is that fair, guys?) A lot of NY the state feeds off of NYC but there is also a sort of resentment from the rest of the state towards the city, areas where people actually look down on it. It's an interesting mix...

So how about the other states? I want to learn about all 50!!!
:laugh:

[Knuckles]

Well, Illinois is pretty easy. I will start with Chicago, home of the big shoulders. Chicago is probably like any other city with its mix of different ethnic groups, but Chicago does have its scenic spots. It is on a Lake, so you have a stretch of land that runs the length of the Lake. Also, you can kayak the Chicago River seeing the skyscapers from that point of view. Chicago is very liberal. Chicago also means land of the onion.

As for the rest of Illinois, it is mostly farmland. Driving the whole state would take 12-15 hours top to bottom and you would see miles and miles of corn. Illinois has quite a few state parks and I have heard that Southern Illinois is very beautiful this time of year. Besides Chicago, the rest of Illinois is conservative.

And since this is a comic book forum, Illinois has a town called Metropolis with a large statue of Superman in the town.

[Buckyrig]

Also, out in the west of NY there's a little area around Rochester, just south of Buffalo,

You need to define 'around Rochester'. :huh:

Rochester is northeast of Buffalo.

[Mwynn]

Pennsylvania has plenty of small pocket areas with farms and the Amish. Pittsburgh is like little NYC, or that is how the city government wants it to be. The other side of the city features old abandoned steel mills.

[dano]

Upstate NY also has little known wine country that's very prolific. People always hear about California Napa Valley, but the Finger Lakes are swamped with wineries and vineyards.

[Buckyrig]

Wineries, cowtowns...same difference. :yawn:

:laugh:


There is this tiny little town on the west bank of the Hudson whose name I can't remember...but I call it Christmastown...because it looks like the setting for every hokey Christmas story I've ever seen, read, or heard. Actually kind of cool.

[Toyandgadgetguy]

Upstate NY also has little known wine country that's very prolific. People always hear about California Napa Valley, but the Finger Lakes are swamped with wineries and vineyards.

East end of the Island, too. Some are quite popular. Pindar, Pellegrini, etc.

Here. (http://www.liwines.com/default.ihtml?page=vineyards&subpage=mapanddirections)

[MattWaterman]

Also, out in the west of NY there's a little area around Rochester, just south of Buffalo,

You need to define 'around Rochester'. :huh:

Rochester is northeast of Buffalo.

Minor details in the grand scheme of things...

[Buckyrig]

Those are the kind of directions that get people mugged, Matt. :laugh:

[dano]

Heh! Don't get me started on the long Island wineries!
I've never been so horrified at the abuse those longislanders give to the wineries.
They get together in stretch limos and buses, go to the wineries, drink all the samples and leave tanked on free/cheap booze without buying so much as a bottle.

It's like wine locusts
For shame.

[Toyandgadgetguy]

Heh! Don't get me started on the long Island wineries!
I've never been so horrified at the abuse those longislanders give to the wineries.
They get together in stretch limos and buses, go to the wineries, drink all the samples and leave tanked on free/cheap booze without buying so much as a bottle.

It's like wine locusts
For shame.

But there's cheese, too. Can you blame them for wanting free cheese?



(if the wineries weren't making money... they wouldn't keep doing it... don't worry too much)

[dano]

actually when my wife and i were out there, places were charging $6 to sample 4 wines because of the locusts. In the finger lakes, it's free or like $2; they don't have mass groups like that.

The most frustrating part is if you're actually interested in wine, it makes it really hard to sample because theres crowds of people lollygagging around the sample table and waiting in line.

[Toyandgadgetguy]

actually when my wife and i were out there, places were charging $6 to sample 4 wines because of the locusts. In the finger lakes, it's free or like $2; they don't have mass groups like that.

The most frustrating part is if you're actually interested in wine, it makes it really hard to sample because theres crowds of people lollygagging around the sample table and waiting in line.

(you do realize that lots of city folk come out here as well, right? People in general down here abuse everything. Upstate, things just plain cost less most of the time.)

[dano]

Heh!
those who 'weekend on the island?'

[Knuckles]

Nobody wants to talk about Illinois. :cry:

[Buckyrig]

Have you been to the Superman Museum in Metropolis, Knuckles?

[Buckyrig]

Heh!
those who 'weekend on the island?'

I might be moving to Henderson next month. While still technically a city, it is a more suburban area.

Just thought you might want to know. :D

[Knuckles]

Have you been to the Superman Museum in Metropolis, Knuckles?

No, I have not.

I forgot to mention that in my first post.

[MattWaterman]

I might be moving to Henderson next month. While still technically a city, it is a more suburban area.

Just thought you might want to know. :D


Just let us know when we should start calling you, Buckyrig from Henderson, okay?

[chaosgoat]

Nobody wants to talk about Illinois. :cry:

My roommate is from Illinois. She has a funny accent.

[Knuckles]

My roommate is from Illinois. She has a funny accent.

:laugh: Where is she from?

[Buckyrig]

My roommate is from Illinois. She has a funny accent.

Uhm...yeah... :sure:

[Mike225]

My roommate is from Illinois. She has a funny accent.Oh no! It's a pot calling a kettle black!

[Buckyrig]

Quiet, Sling Blade!

[Mike225]

Quiet, Sling Blade!Oh no! He's going to mug me!

[Buckyrig]

:sure:

[Mike225]

Cock.

[Buckyrig]

I'm a whiny bitch.

[Mike225]

I'm a whiny bitch.Quoted for truth.

[Buckyrig]

I like them French fried potaters.

Quoted for general amusement.

[Toyandgadgetguy]

Heh!
those who 'weekend on the island?'

We call them 'invaders'.

[FA]

THERE IS NOTHING BUT CORN AND CRICKETS HERE. Do not come.

[Buckyrig]

And tornadoes.

[dano]

We call them 'invaders'.
As well you should. Just as Islanders are locusts of the wineries, they are locusts of the Island! What a grand scheme Spitzer has created! Mystery in every corner. :happy:

[Toyandgadgetguy]

THERE IS NOTHING BUT CORN AND CRICKETS HERE. Do not come.

mmmmm... corn.


No nutritional value, but so much is made from the stuff.

[Fred Duran]

Connecticut has got some pretty badass local history, most of which occurred during Colonial times. For instance, when William Goffe and Edward Whalley were wanted by the English for sentencing King Charles I to death by beheading, they hid out in Judge's Cave up on West Rock, which is about two miles from my house. Also, Roger Sherman, one of the prominent authors of the US Constitution, was from New Haven, which is right down the street.
Also, Connecticut is home to the oldest continuously-operating amusement park in the country (Lake Compounce), and two pretty badass casinos (Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods), and one of the most prestigious colleges in the world, Yale. However, I think that the people who go to Yale ("Yalees") aren't as smart as they're made out to be. They seem to have really serious trouble crossing the street at the designated areas and when cars AREN'T coming. They seem to think that they own the friggin' streets around Yale, but that doesn't help when I'm driving through there, because if I hit one, it's MY fault. :man:
Hamden, where I'm pitching my tent currently, has only one real claim to fame, and that's the fact that the actor Ernest Borgnine was born here on January 24, 1917.
Oh yeah, that and the fact that I live here :nyah:

EDIT: Yeah sorry about that, good catch Mr. Waterman. Ernest was born in 1917, not 1971 :laugh:

[MattWaterman]

the actor Ernest Borgnine was born here on January 24, 1971.


:laugh: Not calling you a liar but.....

[RandallFlagg]

Here in Oklahoma, we all ride horses everywhere. There's also many army outpost you can go to for assistance against the heathen Indians. Our neighbors just got one of them wagons that don't need no horses to go places. We eat mostly buffalo, but thems is gettin pretty rare. It's still a right good place to live. :laugh:

[JAQ]

Hamden, where I'm pitching my tent currently, has only one real claim to fame, and that's the fact that the actor Ernest Borgnine was born here on January 24, 1971.You left out the fact that its residents suffer from mild dyslexia. :) (Besides, we all know that Ernest Borg's real name is Four Of Nine, and he was born in the 24th century.)

Michigan is probably best known for Detroit, aka the Motor City or Motown. Although the auto industry is in decline, the southeast portion of the state remains a union/Democratic stronghold, with an intellectual leftist pocket in Ann Arbor. The city of Detroit itself is over 80% African-American, but the surrounding suburbs include a wide variety of white ethnicities. The area has the largest concentration of ethnic Arabs outside of the Middle East.

The west side of the state is rather different, with early settlements by Dutch protestants who found the liberalism of the Netherlands intolerant of their intolerant conservative Calvinist beliefs. The GOP dominates elections in this part of the state, which makes Michigan one of the "swing" states in presidential elections. Because the auto industry was never the primary employer in the area, its economy is in somewhat better shape.

One little-known fact is that the state almost extended a little farther southeast, to include Toledo. Michigan and Ohio fought a brief war over the territory, which was averted by the federal government giving Michigan a vast piece of land to the northwest: the then-copper-rich Upper Peninsula. The UP is as rural and white as southeast Michigan is urban and black... but similarly lacking in jobs today. Until the construction of the five-mile Mackinac Bridge 50 years ago, the only way to get from one peninsula to the other was by boat (or driving around Lake Michigan through Indiana, Illinois, and Wisconsin). Surrounded by four of the five Great Lakes, Michigan has the longest freshwater coastline in the world.

[Fred Duran]

You left out the fact that its residents suffer from mild dyslexia. :)

Mon't dake fun of me!

[Newt]

Tennessee is the best state.

[Buckyrig]

...for snakeskin enthusiasts! :w00t:

[Newt]

We actually have fairly enlightened game laws- the harvest of snakes is illegal. The majority of people that you see in Nashville wearing snakeskin boots and ten-gallon hats are tourists from the north.

Another interesting fact- no man born in Tennessee has been president of the United States, but Tennessean William Walker was (briefly) president of Baja California ('Republic of Lower California') and later of Nicaragua after invading those regions with his private mercenary army.

[MattWaterman]

Another interesting fact- no man born in Tennessee has been president of the United States, but Tennessean William Walker was (briefly) president of Baja California ('Republic of Lower California') and later of Nicaragua after invading those regions with his private mercenary army.

:blink:
Blackwater existed back then...?

:laugh: :sure: :(

[Newt]

Unlike Blackwater, Walker's freebooters had no support from the US government; they were technically breaking US law by invading other countries.

Walker was put on trial in California for waging an illegal war against Mexico after his Baja adventure; the jury acquitted him after deliberating for eight minutes.

Later on, Walker was captured in the Carribean by the British Navy; they felt he was disruptive to their schemes in the region, so they turned him over to the government of Honduras; the Hondurans executed him.