City: Minneapolis

[MWilke]

It has actually morphed into the phrase 'Minnesota Ice'. I learned that from a co-worker here who has lived here all his life and definitely knows how difficult people can be to let new blood into inner-circles.

[zom-zom]

I call bullshit on each and every claim that people in a certain geographical area act a certain way due to the fact that they happen to reside in whatever geographical area.

We're not robots. At least I'm not. Well, I'm fairly certain anyways.

[MWilke]

You don't think that regional culture exists? You think it's standard that people drink Diet Mountain Dew like it's water? Or that most restaurants here find a way to put meat in nearly every salad on the menu? Or that if you're having coffee at someone's house it's probably going to taste like tea?

Overall I really like it, but this place is not without its quirks.

Per the Minnesota Nice thing, my dad's theory is probably the most logical explanation I've heard. People around here don't trust you to stay. They're distant though nice because they want you to stay but they don't want to bond with someone who's going to move away in 3-5 years.

I'm trying to develop a theory to traces it back to Scandinavian and Viking culture, but that's probably more of a stretch.

[zom-zom]

You're only providing samples of food and drink. Food and eating habits are one thing, and those too are falling away as the population ages and diversifies. I don't know any Diet Mountain Dew drinkers, anyone who invites me over and makes coffee will brew it nicely and I'm just puzzled where you eat that they put meat in "nearly every salad".

There are vestiges of the old culture still here and there, mostly in the outstate areas but it's going away. People who like things like egg coffee are dying out.

Aside from food culture, I'm talking about personal interaction and how it is not homogenous. It's a bizarre theory your dad has. If you're meeting people mainly through work I can see that being a problem. I met people here by playing music, joining a comedy improv class, going to school and changing jobs every three years or so.

If you are having this attitude that Minnesotans Are Like This, then you are approaching people with this thought in your head and of course the results will reflect what you already believe to be true.

[MWilke]

Nah, I really no choice but treat everyone very open-mindedly and if anything I'm friendlier than I've ever been. You're really confusing this observation as judgment. That is definitely not where I'm coming from. I have met many good people as locals. They're just not interested in developing a friendship. So be it. I've often wondered if our attitudes were the problem, but I look at the friends we have made and it's pretty hard not to notice that most of these people have moved from somewhere else in their adult lives. And not only that, but they all have the same problem.

[SergioGeorgini]

Not really too worried about this. Found it pretty easy to find people with similar interests and not once has a blanket statement really applied to any region that I've visited.

[Big John]

You can make generalizations about places and the people who live there but expect the locals to object to your observations. My experience would be that Minneapolis is like Indianapolis by a river and without a race but with a kind of odd accent.

I am sure Zom gets some mileage out of his cool job and history as a rock dude that you don’t have available to you.

In most towns, past about your mid twenties it is hard to find friends. Most lifetime locals have their extended family and friends from school. A lot of them are hanging with the crew they sat with in their High School cafeteria. It is comfort zone for them and you will be standing with a group of them while they set up a b.b.q. or party in front of you and not invite you. You should not take offence it is just the way they are, you are a bit actor in their lifetime sit-com.

LA is the same way unless you are in “the industry” in which case you have a lot of friends depending on how successful you or your parents are that week or if people think they can get work or enhance their carrier on you. If you go to a club the same high school chums hang together in cliques. So I am not specifically calling out Minneapolis.

Minneapolis seems to be a place where there are a lot of hobbyist groups this might be a way to meet people. You could join a home brew club or work with others on seed paintings to enter into the State fair (the big event). So I would find a hobby and try to meet some people that way. I am sure you will also meet a lot of people at your kids school. You can live in hope that if you live there long enough your kid will be accepted partially into the club.

A lot of people have goofy/ironic collections there so start some collections to have something to talk about. Watch a lot of TV folks there talk a lot of the tube or you could prove your TV knowledge at the local trivia contests, win a couple and join Mensa.

You could buy a time share in Orlando at Disney World. A lot of locals would suck up to you to try to get access to the time-share. A lot of them are Disney nuts and you might be able to crack the nut that way.

[zom-zom]

Your description of Minneapolis is crazy talk. "Hobbyist groups"? "Goofy/Ironic collectors"?
TV talk? Disney nuts? Are you crazy? Where did you get any of this?

I get no "mileage" out of being a "rock dude". Hardly anyone has heard of any of my bands and my job may seem "cool" to some people but most don't care. When I moved here I was just some guy from Wisconsin who played guitar as far as most people were concerned.

I do agree that as you get older it's harder to meet new friends in a new town. It's like that anywhere.

Disney nuts.. hilarious.

[Germ War]

Per the Minnesota Nice thing, my dad's theory is probably the most logical explanation I've heard. People around here don't trust you to stay. They're distant though nice because they want you to stay but they don't want to bond with someone who's going to move away in 3-5 years.

This actually doesn't sound too far off.

All things considered, I wouldn't say we're unique when it comes to our arms-length reception to newcomers. Milwaukee, in my experience (not that I've ever lived there) strikes me as particularly insular and challenging to "get in" with. It might be a winter-northerny thing.

[MWilke]

...It is comfort zone for them and you will be standing with a group of them while they set up a b.b.q. or party in front of you and not invite you.

This has happened several times to me up here. I get the obligatory invite every once in a while if the destination is a bar, but a private event invite hasn't happened yet. Not that I mind, I find it odd that they're talking about this event that I'm not invited to right in front of me thus I have to avoid any eye contact and pretend I'm deaf unless I confront the awkward situation.

Minneapolis seems to be a place where there are a lot of hobbyist groups this might be a way to meet people. You could join a home brew club or work with others on seed paintings to enter into the State fair (the big event). So I would find a hobby and try to meet some people that way. I am sure you will also meet a lot of people at your kids school. You can live in hope that if you live there long enough your kid will be accepted partially into the club.

A lot of people have goofy/ironic collections there so start some collections to have something to talk about. Watch a lot of TV folks there talk a lot of the tube or you could prove your TV knowledge at the local trivia contests, win a couple and join Mensa.

The only person who I've heard the term 'Winter Project' from was my dad (originally from North Dakota). This term gets dropped pretty regularly around here. That makes sense. Sometimes it's a serious pain in the ass to leave the house in a given weekend in November-March. I think this is really awesome and I expect to participate in this hobby myself in the future.

[SergioGeorgini]

Does anyone work for the media covering the Minnesota state legislature or have a job with the legislature? (or know the answers to these questions?)

So you have 2 sessions in 2 years -- one going from Jan to May and the short year being only 3 months. How often are special sessions? Would love to know the media landscape on who covers it. Looks like a couple bureaus in St. Paul from the papers but no individual wire service and the public information office does not count (though it looks pretty well done).

[MWilke]

http://blogs.citypages.com/gimmenoise/2011/04/pachyderm_studi.php

Does/did anyone put in time at Pachyderm other than Steve's work with Nirvana and PJ Harvey?

[zom-zom]

http://blogs.citypages.com/gimmenoise/2011/04/pachyderm_studi.php

Does/did anyone put in time at Pachyderm other than Steve's work with Nirvana and PJ Harvey?

Rifle Sport recorded our last album there with Iain Burgess in I believe 1989. It was pretty newly-opened at the time. From what I've heard it's been on a steady decline for the past few years.. I hadn't been there but heard from others that gear was needing maintenance and repair, rodents, that sort of thing. It went into foreclosure so I'm guessing the money was just not coming in.. I would imagine the upkeep for it was expensive and there are so many studios.. and Cannon Falls, while not too far from Minneapolis is a bit of a drive.

It's going for pretty cheap, but I guess it needs work and the taxes aren't cheap.

[tmidgett]

http://blogs.citypages.com/gimmenoise/2011/04/pachyderm_studi.php

Does/did anyone put in time at Pachyderm other than Steve's work with Nirvana and PJ Harvey?

Silkworm recorded Libertine there. Great rooms, cool house. Studio had good gear but was not especially well-maintained.

300k, Christ, that is not too bad, just for the buildings. Wonder what kind of shape it is in.

[charliedon'tsurf]

I just applied for a job in St. Paul working for the gov'ment doing what I do.


If, by some slim chance, I get the job, where the fuck should I live? Here are my requirements or constraints:

- I need a house that is big enough for me, a wife, two kids, and two Huskies. No ghetto living, but not insane yuppie neighborhood either

- Near decent schools.

- I can't stand the yellow or tan homogeneous factory neighborhoods. I like older neighborhoods with character.

- It would be great to be within walking distance of a tavern/restaurants and near public transportation

- Drummer, guitarist, keys, etc. willing to rock on a regular basis.

That would be awesome to live in the same town as you again. I hope you get the job. If you are working in St. Paul I would highly recommend my current neighborhood, Midway in western Saint Paul. It's the same hood containing venerable rock clubs Big V's and the Turf Club. Nice, affordable, safe neighborhood with a good mix of incomes and races. Shopping and restaurants nearby and a very central location in the Twin Cities metro in addition to many public transportation options. I think it's called Midway because it is midway between the downtowns of Minneapolis and St. Paul. Please give a call if you need any other advice or help should you get the job.

[MWilke]

http://www.startribune.com/business/you ... 71898.html

Tent and garage sales on music and kids' apparel
So why did the venerable Electric Fetus start having garage sales four years ago? Other record stores quitting business have dumped inventory on the Fetus. The changing music retail landscape has created a dream sale for old schoolers who collect records and CDs. Save 50 to 75 percent at the Fetus' sale (2000 4th Av. S., Mpls., 612-870-9300, www.electricfetus.com) from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. More than 10,000 items will be on sale, including 1,200 new sealed LPs from the past three to four years (75 percent off) and 6,000 used DVDs, LPs and CDs. About a third of the sale will be giftware, including clothing, hats, bath & body, books, posters, toys and gag gifts. Ask for a coupon for an additional 20 to 25 percent discount inside, good for the weekend only.

[MWilke]

Can anyone go to the Twins/Sox game with me tonight? Please PM me.

[MtHrtAttack]

People have mentioned just about every essential point about Minnesoootans. In the past two months of living here since graduating college and trying to get an internship and such, I've learned that the Minnesota Nice perspective really doesn't exist (as people already mentioned- I've met a good portion of people in the past couple months alone who are actually asshole-ish upon first encounter), Minnesotans are the worst drivers (that we've experienced-we're from Pittsburgh, but we've traveled quite a bit in the past 20 or so years, and both my parents say that drivers here are the worst of anywhere) and-I already know this from 4 years of being back here on breaks from school (my family moved here when I was in school)-but the winters here are fucking brutal (I'm experienced in the means of brutal weather, going to school in upstate NY on the shore of a Finger Lake), primarily because of the extreme cold (there's cold in NY, but not like here), and the wind (which definitely does exist in NY). I also do enjoy that this state is pretty environmentally friendly (understandably, because of the lakes everywhere) in that there's a pretty nice sized park about a 5 minute jog from our house. I don't know what people are saying about the extreme conservatism (liberalism was also mentioned, I believe) but I do know that MN is a historically liberal state because of all the farmers (DFL, anyone?) that is turning red slowly but surely, although on my flight back here from a summer job in the southwest, there was a woman sitting in the same row as me who was a "Christian" and "very offended" by what we were talking about the whole flight (considering the girl I was talking to told me about some orgies and the like that her friend was in at Macalester).

[MtHrtAttack]

People have mentioned just about every essential point about Minnesoootans. In the past two months of living here since graduating college and trying to get an internship and such, I've learned that the Minnesota Nice perspective really doesn't exist (as people already mentioned- I've met a good portion of people in the past couple months alone who are actually asshole-ish upon first encounter), Minnesotans are the worst drivers (that we've experienced-we're from Pittsburgh, but we've traveled quite a bit in the past 20 or so years, and both my parents say that drivers here are the worst of anywhere) and-I already know this from 4 years of being back here on breaks from school (my family moved here when I was in school)-but the winters here are fucking brutal (I'm experienced in the means of brutal weather, going to school in upstate NY on the shore of a Finger Lake), primarily because of the extreme cold (there's cold in NY, but not like here), and the wind (which definitely does exist in NY). I also do enjoy that this state is pretty environmentally friendly (understandably, because of the lakes everywhere) in that there's a pretty nice sized park about a 5 minute jog from our house. I don't know what people are saying about the extreme conservatism (liberalism was also mentioned, I believe) but I do know that MN is a historically liberal state because of all the farmers (DFL, anyone?) that is turning red slowly but surely, although on my flight back here from a summer job in the southwest, there was a woman sitting in the same row as me who was a "Christian" and "very offended" by what we were talking about the whole flight (considering the girl I was talking to told me about some orgies and the like that her friend was in at Macalester). Not crap, though.

[zom-zom]

Bad drivers are everywhere. It's not exclusive to Minnesota. Or Wisconsin. Or anywhere in the USA. The Winters vary wildly. Last Winter was great.. lots of snow and cold. Some have had very little snow and warmer temperatures. They are not consistent anymore.

I would be offended to hear people next to me talking about gross shit like orgies too, as would most normals.